An astronomer I’m not, but a stargazer yes. In Boy Scouts I was barely able to find and identify the five constellations that were needed to get my stars checked off for First Class. That was Troop 301, Homewood Illinois. Ben Prince was the Scoutmaster, and Bill Stiener was the Assistant Scoutmaster. That’s not today’s point, but it is good subject matter for the future. I had a blast in scouts, and only left because once I was 18 I was too old to stay.
Point being that I was up the other morning (I get up around 4:00am), and went out back to take a look at the sky. It’s one of the best parts of the day right now in the great southwest desert, cool, quiet, and at that time the sky still isn’t light in the east. What I did see was my old friend Orion, one of the few constellations I recognize. He was just coming up in the east. Along with Orion the new quarter moon was just coming over the horizon, and just below that Venus was shining bright. Nearly overhead were the Pleiades, which my friend Michael O. pointed out to me a few years ago.
If you’ve made it this far you could be asking yourself, great, what’s the point? Point is that it means autumn is on the way. There is a change of season in the desert. It’s subtle, and it’s happening now. Days are just a bit shorter, and the nights are cooler (really, they are, it’s only 95 now, at 8:30pm). The difference is most noticeable in the morning and evening; the light is softer and gentler. That harsh summer edge is slipping away, and along with it the most intense of the heat.
I also saw my first V of geese the other morning, which seems strange here. There are some geese that stay here all summer, a bit misinformed on the entire matter I guess. That first flight is another indicator of fall; it’s always good to see them. More flights will be following before long.
We don’t rake leaves, put them in piles and burn them at the curb like we did in Chicago. We’re not thinking about sweaters or long pants yet for that matter. There are cool mornings on the patio drinking coffee, and earlier sunsets from the same vantage point. Mountains seem to take on a purple tinge this time of year. In the desert the autumn moon is a little larger, the stars and planets are a little brighter and closer. There’s nothing like the autumn. It brings back great memories, and holds the promise of even better ones to be made.
Point being that I was up the other morning (I get up around 4:00am), and went out back to take a look at the sky. It’s one of the best parts of the day right now in the great southwest desert, cool, quiet, and at that time the sky still isn’t light in the east. What I did see was my old friend Orion, one of the few constellations I recognize. He was just coming up in the east. Along with Orion the new quarter moon was just coming over the horizon, and just below that Venus was shining bright. Nearly overhead were the Pleiades, which my friend Michael O. pointed out to me a few years ago.
If you’ve made it this far you could be asking yourself, great, what’s the point? Point is that it means autumn is on the way. There is a change of season in the desert. It’s subtle, and it’s happening now. Days are just a bit shorter, and the nights are cooler (really, they are, it’s only 95 now, at 8:30pm). The difference is most noticeable in the morning and evening; the light is softer and gentler. That harsh summer edge is slipping away, and along with it the most intense of the heat.
I also saw my first V of geese the other morning, which seems strange here. There are some geese that stay here all summer, a bit misinformed on the entire matter I guess. That first flight is another indicator of fall; it’s always good to see them. More flights will be following before long.
We don’t rake leaves, put them in piles and burn them at the curb like we did in Chicago. We’re not thinking about sweaters or long pants yet for that matter. There are cool mornings on the patio drinking coffee, and earlier sunsets from the same vantage point. Mountains seem to take on a purple tinge this time of year. In the desert the autumn moon is a little larger, the stars and planets are a little brighter and closer. There’s nothing like the autumn. It brings back great memories, and holds the promise of even better ones to be made.
Makes me want to get up a little earlier in the morn. Was that photo taken from you yard?
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