Weekly Blurb 2: Geminoid meteor shower

I had a mixed up week, especially
sleepwise.
It all started after I got home, feeling sick again from my grandmother’s hannuka/birthday party i organized (See part 1).
I almost immidetly fell asleep, and it was only 23:00. I usually go to sleep at 05:00 and lately even at 07:00 or even 09:00 (!!), so it was kind of an afternoon nap for me, and because i was feeling sick and all it was unusual… so i wake up the next day at 5:30 with Lee, and was awake for a few hours before i managed to go to sleep again, only to wake up at around 14:00 to drive with my parents to Mizpe Ramon, to see the Geminoid meteor shower, and to join an event the astro-club organized.
It was rather nice, even though there were soo many people, because the place that it took place in also hosted a group of school teenagers on their school trip, so there was a llot of mess there and noise and a bit too many light, but by 1:00am everything got better when many of those annoying teenagers went to sleep, and there wasn’t too many lights left, and almost no line to see stuff in the telescope. Unfortunanly the guys from TAU’s astroclub ditched the place and apparantly ran away went all to a “private-members-only” stargazing at the TAU observatory. If we would have known about it, we might have done the same and joined thier private party, but noone bothered to tell us. I always had a feeling of not being a part of the gang when i studied with them, as if i wasn’t let in into the group of “cool” guys. It’s funny because each and everyone of them is a physics nerd, and knows names of many constellations and stars by heart. Yet, i managed to outgeek them, and again, was regarded as the nerd. Can i help it that i’m extra geek in every sense ???
I even have a geek girlfriend !
So, i’m lying there, stargazing, with all the commosion around me, a lot of people making noise, and having fun, and looking at the milky way galaxies and the thousands of stars that are visible from Mizpe, and every 5 seconds or so a meteor falls and everybody yells “WOW !!” and i’m looking at the vast spaces and far away star and getting all perspective feeling of loneliness.
It wouldn’t have been as tough on me if at least i’d have lee’s warm and loving hug to comfort me on the meaningless of life, that is sso tiny is regards for the whole galaxy that’s visible from Mizpe Ramon…
I mean, it’s like the universe tells you, Look ! Here’s stuff you can only imagine about going to but you’re never gonig to get there in your lifetime, maybe a few generations from now, but not YOU ! no, you’re only doomed to LOOK, but NO TOUCH !

Then, at around 1:00, after i have some tea and cake with my parents next to their car, i went back to the telescope area which was pretty much empty, part for 3 really dedicated astronomers who stayed all night. I watched Stars, and planets, Jupiter with it’s moons, and Saturn’s rings. You could even see Cassini’s belt (i think that’s what they call the dark stripe on the rings there).
I saw a few nebulai, star clusters, galaxies (You can even make out spirals !!) and… even a Comet !
And all the while a meteor shoots in a green and bright stripe across the sky every 5 or 10 seconds with people saying “woooow” behind me.

“So…. Pretty…. They should have sent a poet”
(shame on you if you don’t know the pop cultural referance)

Another cool thing was thier very high yield laser pointer, which were very intense green lines that you can use to really pinpoint any star or object in the sky !
I used one to exlpain some constellations to a group of young girls from an place called Efrat, who were very enthusiastic group of newbie astronomers who came prepared with books and star charts, and took a lot of interest in what i had to say. So it was nice being appriciated for my blabbering, and getting positive feedback on top of it, made it worthwhile.

Then I drove back ALL the way from the mizpe to tel-aviv. I don’t really like to drive, but it was actually kind of nice driving in a big nice new car and not my trusty ol` VW beetle, which shakes like hell when i hit 80KPH…

A few measly hours of sleep and i’m awoken again to go to a family wedding from my mother’s side of the family.
But this evening Lee came along and i got to spend some time with her, on a nice, small, friendly wedding, which was very peacefull.

So, i’ve ended up spending 3 days along with a lot of family together.
And you know what ? it wasn’t so bad, after all….