faces
Inn & Daycare
Grooming & Daycare
(Near Oakview Mall)
(North of 156th & Maple)
13706 “C” St.
402-933-4007
15504 Spaulding Plz.
402-496-4005
www.barkavenueomaha.com
“I get a lot of razzing from the other officers when the news claims
continued from page 137 < In truth, Kula is a mild-mannered bee enthusiast. A beekeeper for five years now, Kula is a previous president of the Omaha Bee Club and runs the Youtube channel “Generalbomax,” dedicated to beekeeping tricks of the trade. Beyond that, he’s a veteran police officer for the City of Omaha, having spent nine years as a narcotics officer before trading the street for a seat as a polygraph examiner. Kula is also the city’s man of action when it comes to all things beerelated, responding to 911 calls for swarms and other perils. “This is my excitement now,” he cheerily told me, “though I get a lot of razzing from the other officers when the news claims I’ve rounded up 10,000 fugitives.” We suited up in traditional beekeeper veils, and he showed me his beehives under the cover of smoky, burning brush. Kula is a wellspring of bee knowledge: The smoke masks their alarm pheromone. Some factoids uncover a mindful, zen-like side to him: The queen doesn’t choose if the eggs are male or female; the hive does. Some beg comparison to his life on the beat, reminiscent of Mafioso pulp: Russian and Italian bees are the most aggressive. It’s hard not to draw parallels between the life of a cop and that of a beekeeper, though 138
omaha magazine • july/august 2015