Aug. 20, 2008
The dangers of stargazing
Have you ever heard the phrase "so heavenly minded, she's no earthly good"? Somehow that runs in my head when I think of stargazing lately. There's really not a connection between the actual meaning and use of the phrase, and some of my experiences with stargazing, but they seem to fit together.
Of course, that may be the delusions of a late night combined with an early morning, too.
Anyhow, the last two "events" I've gone out to see with only the dog for company have ended in... well, "disaster" is too strong a word, and "inconvenience" too weak, really.
The first of the two was when we went out to watch a lunar eclipse. It was about three in the morning, and though the dc had said to wake them up, they were unwakable (unwake-able?). The Dog, however, is ever ready for adventure, and so the two of us walked down to the corner, as the sky is easier to see from the intersection, where no big tree crowns block the sky. It was *great*! (I always find "How Great Thou Art" running through my head at such times. How marvelous His Creation!)
I was not standing in the middle of the street, but on the sidewalk near the curb--nearer than I realized, as it turned out. I stepped backward, preparatory to turning around to go home, and stepped off the curb, spraining both ankles. Ouch! Do you know how hard it is to hobble a quarter of a block when both ankles are screaming?
Thankfully the Dog is not a mini-anything, but a Giant, and made something of a crutch or cane to help me on my way home. That was some months ago, and made me more cautious about walking in the dark. (Whatever happened to streetlights?)
I'm still smarting from the latest misadventure. The rest of the family was watching the Olympics a week ago, and nobody wanted to go out to see the meteor shower with me. (Nobody except the intrepid Dog, that is.)
So Dog and I went out into the warm, mild summer night, such a relief after the heat of the day, and began the journey to find open sky. (I love the big trees in our neighborhood, but they are a bit inconvenient for sky-watching.)
We didn't get far--next door, as a matter of fact--before blundering into the skateboard ramp the neighbor kids had left smack dab in the middle of the sidewalk. Score: Ramp 1, Jean 0. Or maybe -1. (The street was dark. I don't know if people are keeping their porch lights off to save on the electric bill, or what. I know the neighbor's light came on when they heard the racket of our tangling with their heavy homemade wooden ramps, and the neighbor dad came out, alarmed and very apologetic. The good result was that they're faithful in moving the ramps onto the grass off the sidewalk when they're done playing, nowadays.)
I think I must have cracked something in my left hand, as it is still stiff and sore when tasked to do such things as type or move the turn-signal thingie in the car. I didn't go to get it x-rayed at the time because it didn't swell up the way my right hand did, years ago, when I cracked a bone in the same relative location. I don't know that it's worth going to the doctor--what will they do, that I can't do at home? (Ice, rest) I mean, if it were an obvious break, I'd go.
I also have a very impressive bruise on one leg. It's sort of a mini-science experiment on the part of the dc--they're fascinated with the changing colors and progression of healing going on.
Anyhow, the moral of this long and rambling post is to watch where you're walking, or walk where your watching, and if you go stargazing, it might be a good idea to use a flashlight on your way there.
Of course, that may be the delusions of a late night combined with an early morning, too.
Anyhow, the last two "events" I've gone out to see with only the dog for company have ended in... well, "disaster" is too strong a word, and "inconvenience" too weak, really.
The first of the two was when we went out to watch a lunar eclipse. It was about three in the morning, and though the dc had said to wake them up, they were unwakable (unwake-able?). The Dog, however, is ever ready for adventure, and so the two of us walked down to the corner, as the sky is easier to see from the intersection, where no big tree crowns block the sky. It was *great*! (I always find "How Great Thou Art" running through my head at such times. How marvelous His Creation!)
I was not standing in the middle of the street, but on the sidewalk near the curb--nearer than I realized, as it turned out. I stepped backward, preparatory to turning around to go home, and stepped off the curb, spraining both ankles. Ouch! Do you know how hard it is to hobble a quarter of a block when both ankles are screaming?
Thankfully the Dog is not a mini-anything, but a Giant, and made something of a crutch or cane to help me on my way home. That was some months ago, and made me more cautious about walking in the dark. (Whatever happened to streetlights?)
I'm still smarting from the latest misadventure. The rest of the family was watching the Olympics a week ago, and nobody wanted to go out to see the meteor shower with me. (Nobody except the intrepid Dog, that is.)
So Dog and I went out into the warm, mild summer night, such a relief after the heat of the day, and began the journey to find open sky. (I love the big trees in our neighborhood, but they are a bit inconvenient for sky-watching.)
We didn't get far--next door, as a matter of fact--before blundering into the skateboard ramp the neighbor kids had left smack dab in the middle of the sidewalk. Score: Ramp 1, Jean 0. Or maybe -1. (The street was dark. I don't know if people are keeping their porch lights off to save on the electric bill, or what. I know the neighbor's light came on when they heard the racket of our tangling with their heavy homemade wooden ramps, and the neighbor dad came out, alarmed and very apologetic. The good result was that they're faithful in moving the ramps onto the grass off the sidewalk when they're done playing, nowadays.)
I think I must have cracked something in my left hand, as it is still stiff and sore when tasked to do such things as type or move the turn-signal thingie in the car. I didn't go to get it x-rayed at the time because it didn't swell up the way my right hand did, years ago, when I cracked a bone in the same relative location. I don't know that it's worth going to the doctor--what will they do, that I can't do at home? (Ice, rest) I mean, if it were an obvious break, I'd go.
I also have a very impressive bruise on one leg. It's sort of a mini-science experiment on the part of the dc--they're fascinated with the changing colors and progression of healing going on.
Anyhow, the moral of this long and rambling post is to watch where you're walking, or walk where your watching, and if you go stargazing, it might be a good idea to use a flashlight on your way there.