A Starry Starry Update

As KC so graciously pointed out, the sun is no longer out anymore (and so I had to change my screen-name from "SUN!!!"...) but the sky is still clear and the stars are out full force (...to "STARS!!!"). I know because I had to pick up Brodder and in the time that it took to walk from the car to the house, my eyes had adjusted and I could see the stars shining in the sky. Unfortunately, because of all the light pollution, I couldn't see as much detail as I would've liked to, but I was still able to pick out the Big Dipper, Venus, and Orion's Belt, in just the short distance up the verandah steps. Tonight reminded me of the time that I went for a drive with Jean and we got lost out in the middle of nowhere (Pickering/Ajax). I remember that that night, the sky was so clear, and the stars were so bright that we could see the arching of the heavens above us. That night was nice. I bet if I'd been able to go for the same drive tonight, it would've been just about the same. Too bad, eh Jean?

When I was little, my parents bought me this book that claimed to be "Every Girl's Complete Handbook" and it had a (drawn) picture of a girl on the cover, squatting with her hands on her hips wearing pink tights under (I think) a blue and black striped leotard with a yellow headband. I remember this because she looked so proud to be squatting that way on the cover and I could never understand why. Anyway, whether or not this was indeed every girl's complete handbook I don't know because I can't remember what was in it for the life of me...except for one thing. They had two pages dedicated to a chart of the stars and all the major constellations. It was from these two pages and the few times that I went camping that I taught myself where the Big Dipper and Orion were as well as a bunch of other constellations, but those two I've never forgotten since.

I know that, like thunderstorms, I have Dad to thank for cultivating my interest in heavenly bodies. I like being able to pick out the few clusters, patterns, and planets that I can, and I like being able to point them out to others as well. Except for Squiggly. In all the time that I've known him, and for all the times that we've sat out on the side porch chatting philosophically under the stars, I have never been able to successfully get him to recognize the stars that make up the Big Dipper. But then that's Squiggly for you. Although now that I think about it, I don't think I know any guys outside of my own family (I'm counting Dawson as family here) that can recognize any of the constellations on their own. Oh, except for Jean--that alone was pretty impressive.

Yeah, I don't know any males that are even vaguely familiar with the heavens. Guys, here's a tip: learn the stars. Women are all about the romantic nights under the stars, so if you're a star expert, you're a shoo-in! A guy that can point out two or more constellations while on a night walk gets as many bonus hot-points as a man that plays a guitar or a man that brings flowers for no reason. For bonus-bonus points, find out the dates of the annual meteor showers (usually July/August time) and take a girl out to make wishes on all those shooting stars. *sigh* But at least learn the stars; that way, I'll have at least one more person to admire the awe-inspiring heavens with on nights like these. Maybe one day someone will point them out to me for once...