Merry Christmas!

It's snowing on Christmas Day in Seattle!?

The Zep is back

Wow - 30 years since they last gave a concert, and they sound amazing. I wonder how long these videos will stay on youtube. If they go on tour, I sure would like to be there.

Good Times, Bad Times


News Report


Kashmir


Stairway

Date with Orion

It was finally clear and cold last night. I spent almost two hours on the deck with my telescope. It was the first very clear night this winter. Orion was high in the South, Gemini to the East, and Perseus to the West. It took me awhile to reorient myself to the positions of the winter constellations. Castor, in Gemini was easy to split. I saw a few meteors streak out of the Gemini area - the beginnings of the Geminid Shower? Mars was a prominent sight in Gemini. It is growing bigger each evening as Earth's and Mars's orbits become closer. Near the end of the month, Mars will be the biggest of the year. I was not able to discern any surface features on Mars - It was very bright and I think I need a filter. I spotted several wonderful clusters, including the Beehive (M44), and two in Auriga (M36, M37). Orion presented the Orion Nebula and several multiple star systems. After a fair amount of time, and very cold fingers, I noticed that stars were getting tougher to discern. It began to get hazy and overcast, and it was finally time to head inside. I was hoping to watch the Shuttle launch this morning, but it has been postponed until January 2nd because of sensor problems.


The Orion Nebula - I was able to make out the main structures, not in spectacular color though.

Sump This!

Wet snow and heavy rains have resulted in a major drainage problem at our house. We awoke to several bad signs:

1. A bad smell coming from the bathroom (PS: It wasn't me!)
2. A "waterfall" sound under our bedroom.
3. Inches of water covering the septic tank.
4. Water pouring under our fence from the property behind us.
5. When I checked, a flooded crawl space.

I went to work, wrote quick sub plans, and came home. I dug trenches, but to no avail. I had bought a sump pump on the way home at ACE - talk about a frenzied place! They were out of hose though. One of our neighbors, Leonard, came over and gave me some old hose. With that and other odds and ends, I pieced a drain system together. The pump is working away, but really not keeping up very well. It will work until the power goes out.

Our septic is completely inundated, I guess we just have to wait for it to drain.

Today I also made an important discovery - the limitations of Gore-Tex. I was soaked.