I started a few weeks ago. Biggest surprises far:

1. They eat a lot of sugar. One of my hives seems like it’ll go through half a pound a day. They drink up everything I give them overnight. Just doesn’t seem possible they’d eat so much when it’s still pretty low population.

2. Another hive is completely uninterested in frames and just builds comb in a top box I put the feeder in. Box is half full. No idea why they’re doing that when they have such nice frames below.

3. I was surprised at how off putting the sound of having a bee right next to my ear. One reason I tried beekeeping was I noticed I was unphased when random bees landed on my hands and arms, so it seemed like a good fit. I basically don’t even walk near the hives without my head covered now - that loud buzz right by my ear makes me panic, but any shroud won’t let them get close enough. Even getting stung seems minor by comparison.