bees are pets too

So: dogs are a lot of work. Cats are easier but they do require feeding. Bees, on the other hand, pretty much take care of themselves once you've got the basic set up. For a $600 investment, you're set. And if everything goes well, at the end of the summer you could have 30-60 lbs of honey. That means: no more shopping for gifts at Christmas. Everyone appreciates a bottle of local honey.

The go-to person re: bees in Greenwich has got to be Ellen Zampino. She's hard to catch, but she does give one session classes each semester for The Greenwich Continuing Education program.

Anyway, one of the grand treats of summer is to pull in the drive and see all those bees in the sunlight, flying into and out of the hives. You can check out the hives at Greenwich Audubon Center, too, just above the apple orchard.