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Tuesday, February 25, 2020

Book Reports January/February 2020

This January I read  Keeping Bees With A Smile. In February I read The Richest Man In Babylon. These are my overviews.

Keeping Bees With A Smile by Fedor Lazutin. 

I read this book because I wanted to learn about horizontal beehives. Fedor Lazutin relates his experience keeping bees in horizontal hives and what practices have yielded success over the years in his apiary. He also refrences many historical publications to learn about different methods that worked to control pests before the modern chemicals were available. This book was my introduction to learning about honey bees. I found this book to be very interesting and the concepts easy to grasp. I like his philosophy. He wants to keep bees in such a way as to allow the bees to arrange their hive as they see best and in a way that requires very little maintenance. Almost letting the bees keep themselves. Fedor Lazutin finds that horizontal hives don't need as much rearranging or heavy lifting as vertical hives. Another thing he talks about extensively in the book is different bee races. He keeps bees at a very high northern latitude in Russia. (He is as far north as Canada.) His bees have to stay in the hive for up to six months with no potty breaks. Not all races of honey bees have an intestinal tract that can go six months without a cleansing flight. He recommends that you keep bees that are native to your locale. They are more likely to survive your conditions. The book also has detailed diagrams for building his hive design and diagrams of frame configurations. I would like to try this type of bee keeping in the future, hopefully near future.


The Richest Man In Babylon by George Clason.

This is a book of parables set in ancient Babylon that illustrate sound financial principles. At first I thought this book could not possibly have good advice, because, Babylon. Hello! Babylon symbolizes everything wicked! But nothing about these principles make them Babylonian. They are just common sense ideas. They were not found in ancient Babylonian writings. The author must have thought ancient Babylon would make an interesting backdrop. I learned a few things from the stories.  I think this book is really well written. While reading you feel as though you have been transported through time, and are sitting in the scene with the characters. I really enjoyed the ancient historic setting. One lesson that is stressed throughout the book is: make your money make money. Don't hoard your gold or be a miser. Work hard. Live on less than you make. Invest what money you have extra. Only invest in areas you have experience. Only take advise from those who have experience in the field of which they are offering advice. Don't procrastinate once you have come to a decision about an action. Many opportunities are wasted by delay. Don't live an extravagant or lavish lifestyle no matter how much money you have. I found this book to be inspiring and motivating. It was easy to read and pretty short. The copy I read is 144 pages.


What have you been reading lately? Do you have any reading goals for this year? Tell me about them in the comments!

Tuesday, February 18, 2020

Creation Close-Up: Large Blue Butterfly

Maculinea arion


Are butterflies Parasites? Not typically, but in today's post we are going to learn about  a butterfly that requires a relationship with red ants to complete their lifecycle. And, the ants are not the beneficiaries.


The Large Blue butterfly, Maculinea arion, is native in South England, Europe, and parts of Asia. The Large Blue is not a very common butterfly and populations have been declining for quiet some time. It still survives in pockets here and there. Due to its threatened status it has been studied a great deal, and some very interesting things have been discovered about the Large Blue butterfly.

In depth study of the Large Blue goes back to the early 1900's. When entomology hobbyists tried to raise Large Blue butterflies to produce specimens for their display cases. They ran into a troubling problem: the caterpillar always died after the third instar. Why?

Large Blue Caterpillar

Large Blue butterflies live in open fields where the vegetation is short, sheltering in hedge rows and small bushes. Large Blue butterflies lay their eggs on Wild Thyme. Once the caterpillars emerge they eat Wild Thyme blossoms and any other caterpillars that are on the same flower. (Parasites and cannibals!) After the caterpillar reaches the third instar it falls to the ground and waits for red ants to come carry it to their nest. Not any ol' red ants, the Myrmica sabuleti species of red ant. The caterpillar entices the ants to take it back to their nest by secreting a sweet liquid from it's 'honey gland.' Once in the ants nest the Large Blue caterpillar makes it's diet of baby ant larve!  The caterpillar lives in the ant colony for ten months, dining on ant grubs, at which point it makes a crysallis and pupates. The butterfly must crawl out of ant nest to inflate and dry it's new wings.

Isn't that fascinating!


As the twentieth century progressed the Large Blue's population dwindled. It was declared extinct in England in 1979. Some things that diminished the Large Blue's habitat was lack of grazing on pastures and afforestation. With proper management of fields the Large Blue butterfly has been successfully reintroduced in England and there are several healthy populations.

Genesis 1:28  And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

Humans play an important part in the "natural" world. In this tale it was the lack of people raising livestock and allowing these farm animals to graze on pastures that harmed the Eco system for the Large Blue. As well, as planting trees, ironically. Don't get fooled into believing this planet would be a better place without humans on it. God gave us a role of subduing and having dominion over the beast of the field and over the fowl of the air. He made our planet and He knows what is best for it. My point is that we should be raising and domesticating creatures for our own uses.


If you are interested in reading further about the Large Blue butterfly here are the articles that I read and used as sources;
UK Centre For Ecology And Hydrology- The Large Blue Butterfly
Butterfly Conservation-Large Blue 
Wikipedia- Large Blue Butterfly
Entomology Today- The Curious Case Of The Large Blue Butterfly

Tuesday, February 11, 2020

Needle Book Project







Mr. In The Mid-west bought some boxes of miscellaneous odds and ends at an auction a few years ago. Most of the stuff was junk. While I was going through a box I came across this little Dutch girl. It appeared to be made from woolen felt. There were a few moth nibbles here and there.


I thought it must have been some girls play thing in the past. But no, it had a couple of needles inside. So this little felt Dutch girl was a needle book. "Aww, that's cute," I thought.

Wait, what's this in the bonnet? A thimble! How clever! "I must make some of these!" I said to myself.

I had a nice piece of remnant wool felt. It was a small enough piece that I had not been sure I would be able to use it for a project. It was perfect for this needle book project. I thought the original Dutch Girl was cute, but I added some decorative lazy daisy flowers to my versions to spice them up a little.



Aren't these darling!




I am still using the bedraggled, junk box needle book. She serves my purposes well. (And I do use her a lot!) It would be a shame to retire her now. But when she does wear out I'll have a new, flowery needle book to take her place. :)



If you are interested in having one of the Dutch Girl Needle Books that I have made you can purchase them on QuietStandards, my Etsy shop. :)

Tuesday, February 4, 2020

A Right Spirt

This is the lesson I heard in Sunday School this week. I found it to be very applicable in my life. I am posting the notes that were in the hand-out.

A Right Spirit

Psalm 51:10
Create in me a clean heart, O God; 
and renew a right spirit within me.

The word 'spirit' speaks of an attitude which is portrayed through your spirit, your expressions, functions, or conduct.

One can have the right beliefs and hold the right stance without having the right spirit.

Malachi 2:15 
And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take head to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.

  • We are to keep a close watch on our spirit towards our spouse.



1Corinthians 6:20
For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

  • We are to glorify God, not only in our body, but in our spirit.



Proverbs 15:1-2
A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.
The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.

  • We need a right spirit when dealing with others.



What was it about Daniel that impressed the king?

Daniel 6:3
Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm.

What was it that Elisha wanted from Elijah?

2 Kings 2:9
And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said into Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.

What did Paul pray for the Galatians, for Philemon, and for Timothy?

Galatians 6:18
Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

Philemon 1:25
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

2 Timothy 4:22
The Lord Jesus Christ be with thy spirit. Grace be with you. Amen.

What did David pray for in Psalm 51:10?

Psalm 51:10
Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

A Right Spirit:
I. COMES FROM GOD.
II. MUST BE PRECEDED BY A CLEAN HEART.
III. COMES FROM A DESIRE TO BE LIKE CHRIST.
IV. THE SPIRIT OF MAN REVEALS THE EXTENT THAT HIS HEART IS IN TUNE WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT.


The fruits of the Holy Spirit are love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance.

Galatians 5:22+23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

Let us not have a fault finding spirit, a critical spirit, a condescending spirit. 

Let us be separated unto God, not merely separated from the world.

The closer we follow God the more of The Holy Spirit will show in our spirit.