This old dog loves to learn
new tricks, squirelling away
newly acquired facts

like, well, you know,
not caring about mixing
metaphors or other

annoying rules. Like today,
reminded by my favorite
bug writer/photographer

friend writing about
Valley carpenter bees,
aka teddy bear bees,

that, in the words of an
esteemed entomologist,
“Boy bees don’t sting.”

That’s right up there
with “Big girls don’t cry,”
in my humble estimation,

so now I’ve got that earworm
(to use a nifty science term)
buzzing around my brain.

Who knew that the blond,
fuzzy boy bees with green eyes
are not only dreamboat

carpenters but also great
defenders of the nests as well
as doing their part with

female teddy bear bees
to make baby teddy bear bees?
Another reason not to fear

flying blond teddy bears because,
now I know (sing it with me),
“Boy bees don’t sting.”

•••

If you need to hear this (and you know you do),
give a listen to “Big Girls Don’t Cry” by Frankie Valli
and The Four Seasons (1962). Songwriters: Bob Crewe
and Bob Gaudio.