My sister Julie, who just got married, was hospitalized with very high blood pressure and chest pains two nights ago. She's just been released and will have to see a cardiologist soon. They just bought a house but I don't know how much remodeling or redecorating they were going to do before moving in. Julie has had similar heart and blood pressure problems in the past 6 or 8 years, and I'm hoping she will be able to overcome this scary situation. She just turned 55, which is way too young for something like this, although I know it happens.
I was closing the sliding glass door to allow for an opening of about 8" of ventilation before turning on the swamp cooler, and found this little guy on the edge of the door. In trying to zoom in as close as I could get I ended up with a fuzzy picture, but he's visible anyway.
I tried cropping the photo to get a slightly larger picture but it got even fuzzier so I went back to the original. Please click to enlarge.
I took my binoculars out to the back yard last night to see if I could see the Pleiades (sp?). Even with the moon being so bright and lights from the industrial bldgs across the trail in back, I could still see quite a few bright stars with the naked eye. But when I raised the binoculars I couldn't believe how many more I could see. I don't think I ever could make out the Pleiades, but I sure got an eyeful of other stars.
Trying to stand and look up through binoculars while trying to not lose balance and topple over, makes for wavy stars! I tried leaning against the house in an effort to keep my arms still but it didn't help much. I think I need my lounge chair so I can lay back and maybe rest my arms on the chair to keep them from moving so much. The sky is so beautiful even with the wavy stars and I wish I lived somewhere out in dark sky country. I will always remember Ireland winters with the sky so full of stars it was mind-boggling. I heard from some of the fishermen that it is even better out on the sea and completely out of sight of land. I can't imagine it.
Meals are getting problematic as I'm trying to eat food that I have on hand and not buy anything else until I return from NY. I have been trying to use up the bacon I had on hand and today was the 2nd day of bacon & egg sandwiches for lunch. I fried the remaining few slices of bacon and put them in the fridge - maybe I'll crumble a couple of slices and scramble with an egg for tomorrow's lunch. I have one egg left! I'll probably have to spend a fortune restocking when I return.
UPDATE:
I just got my mail in and found an offer to renew my subscription to Backpacker magazine and get a second subscription free. My current subscription to Backpacker expires in June 2016! I think I will let everything expire and then quit reading any magazines as they all send renewal notices way early. What are they teaching in Marketing classes these days?
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When exactly are you leaving? I guess I missed that. I'm getting excited about my coming journey as well. A week from tomorrow, I pick up Nurse Ratchet at the Fargo airport!
ReplyDeleteIs that a praying mantis?
I'm with you on the renewals. I don't want them sent out years ahead of time. Drives me crazy. Time is getting close for you. Feels good to be back on the road.
ReplyDeleteWe are doing the same thing. Letting all our subscriptions run out and NOT renewing them.
ReplyDeleteI can imagine how you feel about leaving. I get that way too. Hope to be able to do something end of Oct if sometime after the 25th.
ReplyDeleteI stopped getting magazines too. I had just renewed and here comes a renew letter. Really people. AARP is good at that too.
Glad you got a closer look at the stars. If you see a real bright star and look at it through binoculars and it stays a small point of light it is a star, but if that point of light gets bigger when using binoculars, it is a planet. Too bad we don't live closer, we could share my big scope.
ReplyDeleteBlogger just ate my comment. Better not do it twice. I was saying that looks like a praying mantis to me too and you are lucky to have them. Not only are they good luck but they eat lots of bothersome things. I think a recliner with binoculars for star gazing sounds just right. It's so hard to find a really dark sky to see the milky way. Even the National Parks have their bathrooms and other things all lit up.
ReplyDeleteI hope my comment posts. It took me forever to answer comments on my blog because it kept on freezing up :(
ReplyDeleteAnyhow I know how you feel like butterflies in your stomach and all giddy with anticipation and rightly so.
Terlingua is one of the best places I know for star gazing.
Hope you have a wonderful trip - sounds very exciting.
ReplyDeletearlonHboozer.com
Anytime I look at the night sky with my scope or binoculars I am always amazed at how many more stars there are beyond what the human eye can see. There is actually a light gray sheen visible which is the glow from zillions of stars even binoculars & scopes can't see. The Universe is way beyond the scope of anyone's best imagination. It is incomprehensible............
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