Hi everyone ... well, I'm still alive. JP, it worked out fine - but the girls did seem a bit more agitated when I opened the cover to pour in more syrup. We had another big thunderstorm last night - no hail - but heavy rain. I'm starting to think that the bees can tell what kind of weather is on the way. They seemed to be working more deliberately and did not want to be bothered - they just wanted to work. Michael, I'm just starting to realize how perceptive bees are - these creatures can see much more than I can in regards to nature. Since they depend on the weather for their collection flights I think they are able to read weather far more accurately then most creatures. Before I started looking at bees I thought of them as little machines : you get too close they sting and so on. I'm beginning to see a bit of that complexity you mentioned. For instance, I think they seemed more deliberate on Saturday. They must have know it would rain all of Sunday and knew they had to get work done for a couple days. I'm really amazed by these little creatures. Samuils & Bluebee, thanks for your input and thoughts, really appreciate it. It looks like everyone is on the same boat in that the hail storm won't have any long term effects. Did I mention I did not get stung! It was a good day.