Faith has been hacking like an old diesel tractor sputtering to life. For her it probably feels more like a sputtering out. She needs her spark plugs cleaned, maybe a gap adjustment, timing tweak, and that air filter has to be changed. I'm sure the right tools are here, somewhere in my little red toolbox.
"Sure you operate on the dog and cats," she'd say, "but I'm much more complex."
Indeed.
Instead I wandered out to the deck and marveled that the clouds had dispersed and left us with a surprise star show. The Milky Way looked like galactic phlegm, what with Faith's tortured accompaniment, but it was still a lovely sight. Out with telescope to transport one eyeball closer to the crowded starriness.
A short viewing wasn't enough. Bring out the air mattress, blankets and pillows. Jupiter and the Moon are strolling out around sunrise, what better means to ensure a front row seat? Zeke is roused from his comfy bed to come out and "enjoy" a night of deck camping.
Telescope be damned, sleeping under the open sky still rates as a most rewarding viewing experience. A few meteors zipped by and somewhere between the passings of satellite light pinpricks I fell asleep.
Waking a couple hours later the Milky Way had rotated towards the overhead. No clouds. Good. Not too long now.
Another hour or two passed. Roll over. Milky Way. More stars than ever. Great. Zzzzz...
Last wake-up. Not quite five. Brightening. Clouds cover the sky from horizon to horizon. A light mist has covered blankets, telescope, and dog. Haul them all inside.
Maybe next week.
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