#National Beehive

[vandaliatraveler]

Thomas and Douglas share a common legacy as historic coal mining and lumber towns, both of which reached their zeniths in the first half of the 20th century. The artifacts of area's industrial past, some of which are now being reclaimed by nature, are still evident along Douglas Road, which forks out of Thomas and follows the North Fork of the Blackwater River to Douglas. These include the beehive coke ovens that once lit up the night nonstop to produce coke for local blast furnaces. In addition to the abandoned structures, a number of coal company buildings have been preserved and added to the National Register of Historic Places, including the Davis Coal and Coke Company Administrative Building and the Buxton & Landstreet Company Store, which is now home to the Buxton & Landstreet Gallery and Studios. The area's bittersweet past includes a legacy of human exploitation and racial injustice. Like its brethren, the Davis Coal and Coke Company paid its miners in company scrip that was only redeemable at the company store, which charged inflated prices for goods and ensured it could reclaim their wages at a premium. The area was also home to the Coketown Colored School, a segregated school at the center of an important civil rights victory in 1892, when Carrie Williams, a teacher at the school, teamed with J. R. Clifford, the state’s first African-American lawyer, to defeat an effort by Tucker County to reduce the school’s term. The victory ensured equal pay and terms for African-American schools in West Virginia. The Coketown Colored School closed in 1954 when segregated schools were found unconstitutional.

[sitting-on-me-bum]

The Beehive Loop Trail, Acadia National Park, Maine

Photo By Sam Manns

[jonnyworld]

Trek up to the Beehives.

[arthistoryanimalia]

For #WorldBeeDay 🐝 + #BearAwarenessWeek 🐻:

John Bucknell Russell (Scottish, 1819–1893) The #Bear and the #Beehives oil on canvas, H 149.2 x W 73.5 cm National Trust for Scotland, Haddo House 79.1.2 via Art UK

[telluricdog]

so @iisansvertigo and i played far cry 5 together recently...

[thorsenmark]

A Snowed Over Mirror Lake and the Big Beehive (Banff National Park) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: A wintry landscape view while hiking to the Lake Agnes Tea House. If one looks carefully off in the distance, the peak of Mount Niblock is right above the hillside of trees.

[rewildandgrow]

Banff was incredible!

[thequeereview]

Exclusive Interview: National Black Theatre's artistic director Jonathan McCrory "we all have the ability to cultivate a renaissance for our own community, for our own people, if we so choose"

For over a decade, Harlem-based artist Jonathan McCrory has served as Executive Artistic Director of the groundbreaking National Black Theatre (NBT), though he prefers the term “creative doula”. The two-time Obie-winner describes his role as enabling “unseen ideas to be birthed between the parents, which are the playwright and the director, or sometimes the playwright and the page”, McCrory…

[apisbeesuppliesiebeehive]

National Beehive

Complete National BeehiveMade fram New Zealand Fir.Includes1 Varroa Mesh Floor Assembled1 Brood Box [flat-packed] or {Assembled}1 or 2 Supers [flat-packed] or {Assembled}1 Crown Board1 Plastic Queen Excluder2 Porter Bee Escapes1 6-inch Roof Assembled4/6 Metal Frame Runners + nails for assemblyRequires 12 Brood Frames and 12 /24 Super Frames

The beehives are handmade locally by Chris Jeuken. Chris, having grown up on a farm in the west of Ireland, was always exposed to the practical aspects of farm life. As a young school entrepreneur, he started designing and making built-to-order, portable chicken coops, selling them through his local network and beyond.

National Beehive

[dream-world-universe]

Bungle Bungle Range, Australia: The Bungle Bungle Range is a major landform and the main feature of the Purnululu National Park, situated in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. The distinctive beehive-shaped towers are made up of sandstones & conglomerates. These sedimentary formations were deposited into the Red Basin 375 to 350 million years ago, when active faults altered the landscape. The combined effects of wind from the Tanami Desert and rainfall over millions of years shaped the domes.  Wikipedia

[dontforgetukraine]

Sofika Zielyk, a ethnographer and folk artist, is a first-generation American who has maintained her roots to Ukrainian culture. She created The Pysanka: A Symbol of Hope project as a "reminder of resilience, cultural preservation, and the power of art to uplift in times of hardship."

“There's a legend that says as long as people are creating these eggs, the world will continue to exist. And I thought this will be my answer to the aggressor, that we will continue to exist,” Zielyk said.

With this project, Zielyk has used social media to invite and encourage anyone to create their own Pysanky using time-honored patterns and methods. These handmade pieces were then gathered at the Ukrainian Institute of America to form a unified art exhibit and installation that is ever changing as more eggs arrive.

The Pysanka originally symbolized the rebirth of nature after a long winter, with the yolk representing the sun. Through this art installation, the pysanka has been adopted as a powerful emblem of defiance against Russian aggression as well as the rebirth of Ukraine after war.

When asked if this installation will ensure Ukraine's continued existence, Zielyk responded:

"This installation of the pysanky tradition is a metaphor for the Ukrainian people themselves. They and the tradition have gone through wars, serfdom, famines, artificial famines, occupation by other countries, and yet have flourished in spite of all this. Ultimately, it shows the aggressor that we were here in the past, we are here now, and we will continue to be here."

Eventually, all the pysanky donated to the installation will travel to different areas of Ukraine affected by war.

They will be incorporated into the same ancient rituals that our ancestors performed thousands of years ago: put in beehives, buried in the ground, placed on graves of children murdered during the war.  But this time, the rituals will be performed not with the intent of hastening the return of the sun god after winter, but for the rebirth of a nation from the ashes of war.

You can send your empty, traditionally decorated pysanky to:

C/O The Ukrainian Institute of America 2 East 79th Street New York, NY 10075 USA

For more information about the project and the history of pysanky, please visit the articles below.

From Tradition to Resistance: Ukrainian Pysanky as Symbols of National Survival

The Pysanka: A Symbol of Hope

[bbanghiitomi]

| i think you're something i have been looking for

synopsis: one day your sister sends you a google document link to their position paper because she needs your help, you have no idea that she had a partner for the essay and that you didn't change your email account.

— nonidol!sportsjourn!mdanielle! × nonidol!athlete!fem!reader

(⁠ ⁠´⁠◡⁠‿⁠ゝ⁠◡⁠`⁠)(⁠ ⁠´⁠◡⁠‿⁠ゝ⁠◡⁠`⁠)(⁠ ⁠´⁠◡⁠‿⁠ゝ⁠◡⁠`⁠)(⁠ ⁠´⁠◡⁠‿⁠ゝ⁠◡⁠`)

BEEHIVE tavern

minji: [sent an attachment]

minji: y/n YOU LOOK GOOD

minji: finally!!!

y/n: fuck you mean by that?

hanni: SHE'S GONNA BE ON REGIONALSSS

hanni: i'm so proud you have an achievement other than being hopeless romantic!!

y/n: when can i actually get a compliment without an ill intent?

y/n: and thanks btw, this is like my 10th regionals my whole table tennis career

y/n: doubt i'd get any further, i always lose when i'm about to get a spot

minji: this is your time to change that!!!

minii: plus, you can't just weep when you've won. you're gonna be the talk of the region once you reach nationals!!!

hanni: IKR you can't keep being negative, just grab the chance!

hanni: you might meet the one in the regionals!!!

y/n: how many times have you said that???

y/n: thanks guys, that's why i always do my best during training.

y/n: i'll try reaching for the nationals spot, promise.

minji: we appreciate your hardwork bro! you're like super busy with training and such!

minji: and we want those hours of hardwork to be worth it!

hanni: ya plus, you really deserve it this time!

hanni: if you need something you can always ask us!

"unnie! come here!" you look up from your phone to the living room where your sister is sitting on the couch on her laptop for something. you sigh before standing up from the dining table chair and making your way to the living room with your phone. "what's up?" you ask, standing beside the couch, darting your eyes on your sister who is leaning on the laptop. her face is almost close to smothering the monitor of her laptop. "don't sit like that, do you want to be a shrimp forever?" you tell your sister before putting a hand on her back, causing her to stir and sit straight, looking up to you.

"oh hi!" youngseo sighs before turning the laptop for you to see. "unnie, can you help me? i've been working on this position paper for a while but i really can't take a grasp of it." you nod and take the laptop to read what your sister has written so far.

"i assume this is a position paper?" you ask, youngseo's face lights up and she nodded.

"yeah! we were asked to pick an editorial cartoon and make two positions for it, then choose one and make a position paper out of it." youngseo answers, she leans on the couch and scratches her cheeks, pursing her lips. you nod as you read the paper, apparently it's about the spread of fake information with the use of social media — having some experience in writing before, you expected the paper to be a lot more easier.

with that in mind, you turn to look at your sister with pure confusion. "what's so hard about this? it's just a position paper." you tell your sister who then sighs and shakes her head. "no! you don't get it! we were given a 10 page format for the paper, i really did think too that it was easy but it's not." youngseo protests, shrugging and standing up, she walks next to you and gives you a side hug. "come on unnie! please help me..." she whispers and buries her head to your shoulder.

you couldn't help but sigh of course, you still have the laptop in your arms and you look at your sister. "i'm really worried about you, what if i wasn't here?" you tell her with a chuckle, the younger girl pouts and sticks out her tongue. "but you're here and you have no choice." she lets go of you and you take it as a chance to place the laptop on the coffee table and cross your arms.

"alright, i'll help. send me the format and this google document link." you tell your sister who nods and smiles brightly at you. "thank you so much sis!" she laughs and claps her hands. you shake your head in faux disbelief. "make sure to check out the document and be updated." you remind her before leaving and making your way to your room which was upstairs.

"okay unnie! i love you!" you hear your younger sister as you leave.

it's funny, you really did have good intentions for your sister when you finally received the link of the document and the paper format — youngseo was right, the formatting of the position paper required was different than the usual, it followed certain paragraph forms that aren't usually used.

when you opened the google document link, you started editing some stuff and entering new paragraphs, making sure you follow the format and the right grammar — the thing is, you didn't know that you were using an email account you didn't mean to use.

minji'spinkytoe@gmail.com

another thing is that, you didn't know another person beside you was making edits and writing on the same document. your sister had never mentioned that the work she was doing that you were now working on was a project that is done by pair.

"minji's pinky toe..? is this youngseo?" a certain girl behind the account: mdaniellebasiceduc@hybe.com muttered under her breath, they've been working on this project for almost 1 week as the allotted time for the work is 1 month, in those 7 days she and jiwoo shared — the girl had never used this account and have been using her school account.

now this account that is sharing the same document as she was is an account she had never seen before, not only the name was questionable but it's also quite peculiar how much work the person behind the account has done in just a span of an hour — usually youngseo would be asking several questions and will take time before writing a new paragraph just to make sure she's doing the right thing.

danielle scrolls to the recent paragraph that the account is currently working on.

your eyes spots the anonymous puppy in the document and squints your eyes. "is youngseo active?" you look up to see there's another account working on the paper and click on it to see the email.

"huh?" you whisper to yourself. you watch as the person starts typing out a sentence besides the one you just finished.

youngseo? why is your email account named like that?

"like what?" you ask yourself before clicking to check the email you're using and to your surprise, you immediately gasp as your eyes lands on the account that hanni made in your laptop. "oh my god, what is this?" you start to panic realizing that the person in the same document might have thought that youngseo is the one behind the email account.

"holy shit..." you mutter before typing an answer to danielle's question.

oh my god, i'm sorry i was using the account my sister's friend made.

danielle blinked as the anonymous raccoon finally answered.

you couldn't help but sigh and slap yourself due to embarrassment and now you'll hear youngseo whining into your ears for putting her on an awkward situation.

BEEHIVE TAVERN

y/n: dude what the fuck?

y/n: [sent an attachment]

hanni: LMFAOOOO what's the context?

y/n: don't you ask my ass you know what's up.

hanni: what?

minji: what's the matter?

y/n: dude hanni made an account on my laptop named minji'spinkytoe and youngseo's classmate saw it.

hanni: NO WAY LMFAOOOO

minji: bro what the fuck? my what? ಠ⁠_⁠ʖ⁠ಠ

hanni: ur pinky toe.

minji: hanni what the fuck!!??

hanni: look it's supposed to be a joke since you sent me a pic of your toe.

hanni: and ofc i didn't know ms. lee right here wouldn't notice.

y/n: how am i supposed to know? ಥ⁠‿⁠ಥ

y/n: my sis asked me to help her with her paper and i didn't know someone else besides her was working on the document.

minji: DUDE WHY MY TOE ┻⁠┻⁠︵⁠ヽ⁠(⁠`⁠Д⁠´⁠)⁠ﾉ⁠︵⁠┻⁠┻

minji: why not y/n's toe instead?

hanni: cause it's funny okay!!?? →⁠(⁠°⁠ ⁠۝ ⁠°⁠)⁠┗

y/n: youngseo's gonna scream on my ears tonight (⁠●⁠´⁠⌓⁠`⁠●⁠)

turns out you really weren't wrong because as soon as you got downstairs your sister suddenly appeared as if she was teleporting. "youngseo—!" you're caught off guard and your sister crosses her arms on her chest with a sharp glare. "why did you use that horrible account?" she asks.

"youngseo look, hanni made that account and i accidentally used it because i didn't know!" you explain watching as she turns her back to you and walks upstairs to your father's office with her feet stomping on the floor. "hey don't tell dad!" you tell her but she turns around to you with a frown. "then why did you tell dani that it was me using it?" you laugh sheepishly and shrugged.

"cause i didn't want her to think you're letting your sister do the work." you answer, youngseo takes some deep breaths and raises her hand to your face. "keep it, thank you for your help but starting tomorrow i will be working on that paper again." she tells you and leaves to enter her room, leaving you confused with her sudden change of mood.

marsh danielle

youngseo: hey dani, i was just gonna say it was actually my sister who was using that account.

youngseo: i asked for her help and lent her the google document.

youngseo: she just really has the most annoying friends ever.

danielle: hey youngseo!

danielle: it's alright, i did kind of think it was funny tho...

youngseo: yeah she's goofy and stupid.

danielle: her name's y/n right? and your youngest sis is hyein?

youngseo: yup, why?

danielle: nothing, i heard your older sis is joining the regional table tennis competition and might make it to the national team.

youngseo: ohhh yeah, but she has to win the regionals first and then she's going to compete in japan before qualifying for nationals.

danielle: that's awesome! good luck to her.

danielle: i'm competing for the regional journalism competition and i'm covering for sports so i was a bit curious.

youngseo:...so you want to meet her or something?

danielle: yes, kind of.

"oooh isn't that danielle?" hanni's voice rolls inside your ears while you are tying your shoes, you look up at your two friends who are whispering towards each other. "who?" you stand in the middle not too far from the duo who both look at you at the same time. "the sports writer for HYBE chronicles." minji answers, you look towards the girl's direction and then to minji.

"you know her?" you ask, minji shakes her head and looks at hanni. "do you?"

"of course not, she's pretty popular okay? and she's attending your competition for the HYBE chronicles." hanni answers, you look once again to danielle and try to decipher what memory you have that reminds you of her name.

but to no avail, you really don't remember anything.

"her name sounds familiar" you tell your friends who both look at you in unison. hanni laughs as if mocking you, she points her index finger towards you with a smirk. "what? she talked to you before?" she says.

minji raises her brows and looks at you with surprise written on her face. "wait really?"

you roll your eyes and shake your head. "duh, no. i just remembered my sister mentioning it once."

while the three of you talk, danielle turns her head around to spot you out of all the people that are present in the park inside the school premises.

"can i excuse myself for a bit?" danielle asks the people who are also a part of their organization, she gets an approval before she takes her leave and makes her way to you and your friends.

you feel minji nudging your sides and you glare at her. "dude what the hell do you want?" you tell her and notice she's staring right in front of you, hanni also was speaking. you turn your head to see danielle making her way to you with a smile.

"hi! your youngseo's sister right?" danielle asks you and you feel your knees shaking, your shoulders feel stiff under her graze. this must be your sister's classmate, yes you figured it really might be her. you look at your two friends who just had their eyes on you with a worried expression. you smile at danielle before scratching your cheeks and nodding.

"oh yeah, right. i'm her sister, is there anything i can help you with?" you ask danielle who only smiled brighter and even giggled. "wow, i've been hearing a lot about you since the division competition and i was so stoked to see you." minji and hanni exchanged looks as you and danielle stood face to face between the duo. you feel your blood boiling upwards to your cheeks causing it to glow red.

you're super sure you've never seen a girl as pretty as danielle, maybe there were some before but if you were to be really honest it really feels like you're talking to the sun itself with the way the girl glows right in front of your eyes.

it's blinding and even the way she smiles doesn't help it.

"ah, yeah... i'm also excited about it. you're also competing right? for the HYBE chronicles..?" you ask her, sounding so cheesy and sheepish hanni felt like she was about to vomit on the spot, but danielle only nodded and even gave you a small tap on your shoulders.

the way her soft fingers trailed on your blazer caused you to almost fall. almost.

"yes! we're publishing our online newspaper and we'll also take our legacy by printing out these papers and submitting them in an international competition." the way danielle talks about it, made her seem more amazing to your eyes — you barely even know this girl but the way she carried herself almost had you wanting to carry her too, with your not-so-flimsy arms.

"god... that sounds amazing." you barely even understand whatever she was saying but you were sure enough that you knew what that meant: danielle is everyone's it girl.

hanni grimaced at your response and minji couldn't help but chuckle, even putting a hand on her mouth. "i know right? you must feel very happy about yours too, i can't wait to cheer you on! good luck." with that, danielle bid her goodbye and left, leaving you with your two idiotic friends.

"ho! ho! hold on! what was that?" hanni asks, holding her hands to your face with a surprise look on her face, minji shrugs and smiles— seeing your lovestruck face at the encounter with such a gorgeous girl. you smile, blinking your eyes slowly, watching danielle go back to talking with her friends. "i don't know..." you mutter.

"wow, she actually knows you? i didn't expect she'd care." minji laughs, she's kidding actually, it's not like you're not that popular too but she likes messing with you sometimes. "you're pulling girls now?" hanni asks, raising her brow at you, you shake your head and bury your face on your palm, smiling. "no! god leave me alone hanni." you say, but smiling hard as you turn away — the duo looks at each other and shrugs.

"i'm still embarrassed by the fact i used an account named minji's toenail and danielle saw it." you sigh as you plopped down your bed, you had your two amazing friends to stay with you in your room before you go through a long training session for the tournament. minji rolls her eyes at your statement.

"how are you more embarrassed? that's literally my toenail." minji scoffs, earning a laughter from hanni who gripped the edge of your table. "i'm so sorry minji, just don't send photos of your toenail next time alright?" hanni says, wiping a tear from her eyes.

"why not? that was such a silly impression to make." you tell your friends, minji sits next to you on your bed — her weight sinking. "since when did you care about your impression to girls? last time i checked you couldn't even answer a simple mathematical problem to impress a girl." minji crosses her arms on her chest, looking down at you.

"and you used to have stomach aches when a girl talks to you." hanni adds, this causes you to scoff with how true their words are.

yes, you used to never care about your impression on girls even if you'd regret it after since you used to have the biggest and most pathetic crushes on girls you were sure you can never have.

maybe because you've grown or was it really because it's danielle — but you can't ever fuck it up, you don't want to mess this up, there's no way you'll let go of the chance god has given you to crawl your way to danielle's life.

"call it puberty hanni, but i swear i've never seen a girl as pretty as danielle before — not as smart and not as kind." you sit up on your bed and look at your friends, minji scrunches her face at you. "again, how sure are you? you don't even know her." she says. you give minji a deadpan look and answer. "do you? that's why i need to make a good impression and get to know her so we can be friends and eventually i can ask her out."

"i do admire you for considering being friends first with her. but hey, i think you've already made a good impression i mean she did approach you, right?" hanni being a good friend for once says. you look at her and shrug. "really?" you ask.

minji rolls her eyes. "you have a fucked up sense of self-esteem huh? she literally said she's stoked to see you because she's heard of you. she's the head of the sports writing and chief editor of the HYBE chronicles. how will she not have such an impression of you?"

you stand up and look at your friends, your back facing your door as you raise your hands. "woah, you mean i have the chance?" you ask your friends, causing them to grimace together. hanni looks at you with disbelief. "of course you have dumbass!" causing minji to laugh.

"we'll support you in your tournament just in case danielle's present there."

the door opens slightly and your friends all look surprised to see the person behind you, you turn around to follow their gazes only to see danielle standing there with the doorknob in her hand. "oh! sorry, i didn't know where youngseo's room was." you stare at her with no words and smile. "it's okay... you'll sleepover in youngseo's room?" you ask, fully turning your body around and blocking your friends' view of danielle.

"yes, we have another project together and i thought it would be a great idea to stay over for the night." danielle answers, smiling at you brightly — your face lightens up, warmth engulfed your cheeks and ears start to burn red. "really? have you eaten dinner yet?" you ask again, tilting your head with a silly smile. danielle shakes her head and giggles. "not yet, i have just arrived." you put a hand on your cheek and look away. "oh okay, the door next to mine is youngseo's room —"

"danielle! what are you doing there? my sis and her annoying friends are there." youngseo exits her room and looks at you with a deadpan expression. danielle nods and waves at your sister. "oh, i thought this was your room." danielle looks back at you and peeks at your friends waving her hand. "bye guys and..." she looks at your again and taps your shoulder. "bye y/n." before leaving and entering your sister's room.

"oh my god is that danielle!?" hanni stands up from her seat and puts her hands on her head with a surprised look on her face. minji laughs and slaps her thighs. you turn around and close the door with a stupid smile, limply making your way to your bed to throw yourself again. "you should be nice to your sister, she's carrying all these interactions on her back." minji says, patting your back.

you breathe heavily, trying to process the situation with the way danielle touched your shoulder. it felt like a feather fell on your way with how soft her fingers were.

you push yourself up with a determined expression. "i have an idea." you propose.

"you'll cook a meal for youngseo and her friend?" hanni asks, following you as you enter inside the kitchen and starts checking for ingredients around the cabinets. minji stands next to hanni, nodding her head. "no, i'll cook meals for us." you correct her and continue rummaging around any drawers or cabinets you see. "but technically because danielle's here. i mean, when did you cook for us anyway?" minji raises her hands and raises her brows.

"don't forget some nights." you grumble and glare at minji as you prefer the ingredients, minji scrunches her face. "reluctantly." she corrects you.

you ignore her and start chopping garlic and opening the stove, placing the pan on the stove to let it heat while the duo takes their time to gossip together at the kitchen diner table.

"i didn't think about writing academic papers being this hard before, i can usually ace them without doing so much." youngseo sighs as she leans on her coffee table with a small grumble, muttering a curse about how writing papers at their age seems to have been more difficult than it did before. lately, their projects have been revolving around writing lab reports and academic papers such as essays and position papers, even manifestos.

and youngseo is smart herself but usually she's more of a science and mathematics smart not writing smart, good thing she met danielle who's known for her writing wits, whether it may be creative writing or not.

"academic writing is like driving school, there's sets of rules you need to follow and it's really hard to master writing but once you get a hang out of it — you'll find yourself looking for the thrill again and again." danielle says, leaning on the table too and giving the younger lee a bright smile.

"oh, by the way — we haven't had dinner yet and i think there's food downstairs. wanna come?" youngseo stands up and rushes to her door with danielle following her. "okay, i don't mind." she smiles and follows youngseo downstairs where they walk past the living room to the kitchen where they see kim minji and pham hanni discussing personal topics as well as you cooking on the kitchen.

"woah why are you three here?" youngseo asks, walking behind minji who remains seated, while hanni follows youngseo with her gaze— danielle stands at the entrance watching the four girls. "your sister's cooking dinner for us and uh, i personally love her cooking." hanni laughs sheepishly and looks at minji who smiles at danielle and offers her a seat. "yes, i think danielle would love her cooking." minji says, danielle smiles at her and shakes her hand.

youngseo looks at you and to the pasta you're making. "i'm gonna remember this." she whispers and takes a seat beside minji, the three girls start a conversation and danielle makes her way to you. "what are you cooking?" she asks, hands behind her as she sways delicately to the melody of nothing, the delicious smell of the food wafts around the place and danielle just couldn't help but take a peek.

"oh vegetables? i love vegetables!" danielle says, you laugh but still have your eyes on the pan and nod at her. "yeah me too but minji hates them." you say, causing her to giggle too.

"i think it looks great and definitely tastes great too." you nod at her and smile, finally turning your head to look at her — it makes her heart flutter, something that feels nice but new, something she was happy to welcome with open arms.

"of course, i made sure it does." you tell her.

"come on minji, how are you almost 20 and still can't eat vegetables?" hanni grumbles as you all start to eat and you serve minji a plate of pasta without some of the vegetables. minji ignores hanni but earns a laughter from youngseo.

after eating dinner, you ask for all of them to leave as you were about to clean the table and plates but danielle insists on staying to help you out — this was a cue for the two of your friends to drag youngseo out of it. "oh come on! what are you doing you two!?" your sister complains as she was being dragged away.

"that was such a nice dinner, i loved it!" danielle says as she helps you take the plates out of the table, you smile at her and feel the way your blood runs hot to your cheeks, causing you to look down to avoid her gaze.

"thanks, i rarely cook here since our mom does most stuff but she's out with dad so — i kind of thought maybe i'll cook again." you tell danielle as you place the plates on the sink, she looks at you with glimmering eyes. "i did hear youngseo say the same thing before and she mentioned how she likes your cooking too."

"my sister is a little tsundere sometimes you know?" you laugh as you tell that to danielle, she giggles and nods her head. "she's so nice though and smart." danielle adds.

danielle helped you in washing the dishes, you talk about your experiences at the table tennis career of yours, what dreams you have for yourself as well as danielle's life as the chief editor of the HYBE chronicles journalism organization, how her journey started and what traits you share in common.

she's pretty spontaneous but likes to plan ahead cause it excites her, she likes vegetables and loves her family so much, she can get a little stubborn and she's always happy, she wants to bring positive vibes to everyone around her.

you tell her a lot about yourself too, your relationship with youngseo, how much your sport means to you and your friends too, how amazing they are even though you'd rather die than tell that to them cause hanni's gonna make fun of you.

"thanks for tonight." danielle gives her brightest smile, and it's almost like you were given the chance to take a peek of the milky way galaxy from her eyes the way her pupils shine bright lights. you couldn't help but smile too, you nod at her and try to keep looking at her eyes. "yeah, thanks too it's not much but i had so much fun." you stare at her for a while before looking away, both of you standing in the middle of the corridor where your room and your sister's room were located.

the lights were turned off already and the only source of lights were the window where the moonlight was present.

once again, danielle gives your shoulder a light tap to get your attention.

you steel yourself before turning around and you're greeted with her face close to yours. "don't tell this to anyone but — if you ever get the chance to compete in japan, let's go on a date, yeah?" danielle whispers and you feel yourself about to crumble to the floor with how close she was, you blink almost too many times to try and wake yourself up from what kind of dream this was but it wasn't working.

"ah, uhm... yeah, sure..." you mutter, still surprised but danielle couldn't help but giggle at your reaction, seeing how flustered you were.

you feel embarrassed but happy too, yes, you're definitely happy — who wouldn't right?

you began to laugh sheepishly and this had danielle laughing too.

"you're so cute," she pauses and reaches for your cheek to pinch it. "see you tomorrow." she continues before leaving and not even waiting for your response because she knows you wouldn't be able to function after what she did.

"i need to win and get to the nationals!" as soon as you enter inside your room you surprise your two friends with your shouting. "oh my god y/n! can you not do this tonight?" hanni grumbles before standing up and grabbing your shoulders. "what's gone into you?" she stares at your face.

"i need to train tomorrow!" you shake hanni's hands off of you. "18 hours practice, yes that's perfect!" you walk around your room whispering encouragement to yourself that had your two friends thinking you're possessed.

"you should cheer on your sister." danielle says as she enters your sister's room. youngseo sighs and rolls her eyes. "she's such a big baby." youngseo mutters before going back to reading her book, danielle laughs and sits next to youngseo, embracing the younger lee in a hug. "oh—! what's gotten into you? did her crazy friends possess you?" youngseo asks, trying to push danielle off of her.

danielle only smiles, not pulling away. "i just think your presence will help her win... i'll accompany you if you want." danielle looks at youngseo with a persuasive smile.

youngseo gives her a deadpan look before speaking. "you like her don't you?"

danielle laughs and shakes her head. "no!"

"really? danielle don't you dare lie to me!"

"i swear."

"dani...

did you really come here to see her?"

danielle pushes youngseo away.

"no!"

"i doubt it."

"well, yeah maybe a little."

"oh come on dani!" youngseo jumps on danielle on her bed, causing the girl to burst into laughters.

"sorry!"

that night made danielle realize that maybe it's not like something or someone has been missing in her life for a long time, it's just that maybe a part of her is looking for that something as an addition to her life — she needed a bit of color, she found that it might be that she have only realized it when she first saw you, it's not on that day you first saw her on the campus after you embarrassed yourself using your friend's account — but it's has been a long time since that fateful day when you handed her a copy of your textbook, you didn't even bother asking her name or telling yours, it's so funny because you don't even remember that day.

ever since then, danielle has been looking out for another day the gods above will tie your strings together again.

and when that time comes, she'll never let your strings go again.

she's been so patient, always cheering out for you from afar, hoping someday you'll eventually notice her and to her surprise — and to yours, that day brought you two together again as funny as it sounds, it was destined to her eyes, it was meant to be.

[sitting-on-me-bum]

"Raiders Of Hives"

Satpura National Park, Madhya Pradesh, India

"In the dense forests of Satpura, a pair of Oriental Honey Buzzards raid a beehive. These raptors hunt for food in beehives and wasp nests but, unlike what their name suggests, they prefer bee and wasp larvae over actual honey."

By Pranav Mahendru

2023 Nature “inFocus” Photography Contest

[indigovigilance]

The Hornet in the Beehive

The passages of the Bible that mention hornets (or, notably, just a single hornet) are talking almost exclusively about the Exodus of the people of Israel from Egypt and God guiding them to the promised land. Specifically, these verses discuss how the people already living in the promised land will be destroyed ahead of the chosen peoples’ arrival by the hornet(s).

The hornet is not who you think it is.

Read on Ao3

Exodus 23:28

The reference in verse 28 appears within this section, entitled God’s Angel to Prepare the Way:

20 “See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared. 21 Pay attention to him and listen to what he says. Do not rebel against him; he will not forgive your rebellion, since my Name is in him. 22 If you listen carefully to what he says and do all that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you. 23 My angel will go ahead of you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites and Jebusites, and I will wipe them out… 28 I will send the hornet ahead of you to drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way. 

From this, we may be able to take that the guardian angel sent ahead of the Chosen People to wipe out the unclean is synonymous with the hornet (in the original Hebrew, הַצִּרְעָ֖ה,  “haṣ-ṣir-‘āh” and yes it seems that the Hebrew word for hornet is pronounced Azira, or more specifically, “A-tsira,” “the-hornet”). (Why did I look at this? Because I wanted to know if the translation for hornet(s) was from a singular, plural, or group noun. Seems like it’s a group noun but I’m not certain.)

So what we have here is an angel symbolically represented as a hornet, pronounced Azira in the original language of the Bible, whose job it is to wipe out those God deems unworthy.

Do with this as you will.

Deuteronomy 7:20

This verse appears in a section entitled Driving Out the Nations

1 When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations—the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you— 2 and when the Lord your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally (footnote: The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them; also in verse 26). Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy.

20 Moreover, the Lord your God will send the hornet among them until even the survivors who hide from you have perished.

Notably, “hornet” is translated in the singular in seven out of eight translations available here. The Message even capitalizes it.

Joshua 24:12

This section is entitled The Covenant Renewed at Shechem

8 “‘I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived east of the Jordan. They fought against you, but I gave them into your hands. I destroyed them from before you, and you took possession of their land.

11 “‘Then you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The citizens of Jericho fought against you, as did also the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites and Jebusites, but I gave them into your hands. 12 I sent the hornet ahead of you, which drove them out before you—also the two Amorite kings. You did not do it with your own sword and bow. 13 So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.’

Translation choices here are getting a little tricky: nine translations use “the hornet,” and the Lexham English Bible specifically emphasizes the hornet. New Living Translation and New Century Version have both replaced “the hornet” with “terror.” A footnote available here reads: Traditionally, “the hornet” (so KJV, NKJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV) but the precise meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain (cf. NEB “panic”).

In summary

There’s a hornet (someone very powerful and very dangerous) in the beehive (Heaven), but it isn’t Crowley.

This is (in my humble opinion) some strong evidence that the intended symbolism behind Aziraphale’s name is a reference to the Hornet that goes before the people of Israel, slaying the Amorites, et cetera, to claim their land. There is some apparent parallelism between an angel clearing out the unfaithful to make way for the chosen people in the Exodus, and an angel whose major responsibility it is to bring about the Second Coming, the Day of Judgment which will also result in the wiping out of those who are found wanting.

The Final Fifteen, again

Aziraphale could not have said no. He could not have refused the Metatron and run away with Crowley. Aziraphale is the Hornet that goes before the righteous to rid the world of the unrighteous.

This was always Aziraphale’s destiny.

~~~

Author’s note: we live in interesting times. My use of the word “Israel” and surrounding language in this meta is strictly with regard to ancient Biblical texts as they are relevant to a fictional work, Good Omens. None of this should be construed as an opinion regarding current political events.

~~~

If you enjoyed this, please check out my meta index for some additional light reading!

[thealogie]

BJ goes to Maine hysteria is very funny to watch as someone from Maine who has never seen MASH. Mr BJ if you’re going to Maine you should check out the beehive trial in Acadia National Park. A personal favorite of mine

I love it. My guy walks from California to Maine to see his star-crossed love and immediately upon arrival he’s like “does anyone know a good hike around here I can go on before going to find my boyfriend?”

[deathmoth-blog]

The name death's-head hawkmoth refers to any of three moth species of the genus Acherontia (Acherontia atropos, Acherontia styx and Acherontia lachesis). The former species is found throughout Africa and in Europe, the latter two are Asian; most uses of the common name refer to the African species. These moths are easily distinguishable by the vaguely human skull-shaped pattern of markings on the thorax. They are large nocturnal moths with brown and yellow or orange coloring, and all three species are fairly similar in size, coloration and life cycle.

The African death's-head hawkmoth (Acherontia atropos) is the largest moth in the British Isles (though not in Africa), with a wingspan of 13 cm (5 in); it is a powerful flier, having sometimes been found on ships far from land. The forewings are a mottled dark brown and pale brown, and the hind wings are orangey-buff with two narrow dark bands parallel with the hind margin. The abdomen is a similar orangey-brown, with a broad, dark dorsal stripe. The most notable feature is a patch of short yellowish hairs on the thorax that gives the impression of depicting a human skull. It is a striking insect, but is seldom seen because it flies late in the night.

A 2020 study describes how, when viewed upside-down, Acherontia atropos creates an illusion of a head with eyes: the mark on its thorax likened to a human skull is the "nose", with the skull's eye-sockets resembling nostrils. Spots on its forewings can be seen as eyes, and various other markings and features can be interpreted as ears, muzzle and lips. This illusion is also present in Agrius convolvuli (convolvulus hawk-moth) and five other species, with the study author suggesting that the function of the illusion of an eyed head is "almost certainly to deter, distract or otherwise deceive predators".

The caterpillar of the African death's-head hawkmoth is also sturdy and somewhat variable in colour, being some shade of buff, green or brown, with seven diagonal blue lines. At the rear is a curved, thorn-like horn. It can attain a length of 5 to 6 in (13 to 15 cm). The other two species of death's-head hawkmoth similarly have three larval color forms: typically, green, brown and yellow. The pupa is stout and reddish-brown, and is formed 8 to 10 in (20 to 25 cm) under the ground in a chamber the size of a large hen's egg.

These moths have several unusual features. All three species have the ability to emit a loud chirp if irritated. The sound is produced by inhaling and expelling air, which vibrates the epipharynx like an accordion, often accompanied by flashing of the brightly colored abdomen in a further attempt to deter predators. The chirp of the death's head hawkmoth takes approximately one-fifth of a second. A study by National Geographic found that the epipharynx was originally built to suck up honey, but later evolved to produce sound.

Adults of all three species are commonly observed raiding beehives of different species of honey bee; A. atropos only invades colonies of the well-known western honey bee, Apis mellifera, and feeds on both nectar and honey. They can move about in hives without being disturbed because they mimic the scent of the bees and are not recognised as intruders. If their disguise is discovered, the moth's thick waxy cuticle helps to protect it against stings.

Leaves of the potato plant contain calystegines, a group of polyhydroxy alkaloids, which are toxic. The larva of A. atropos feeding on potato foliage accumulates these alkaloids.