Whooo's Out There?

Last night we went out looking for owls. We didn't see any, which is no great surprise given that "we" were a group of about 40 people -- students and parents. No matter how quiet you are, a group that big is going to scare off the wildlife.

We didn't scare off the heavens, though, and our evening walk was well worth our while in terms of astronomy. To the west, a waxing crescent moon was setting. The cloudless sky was populated with the creatures of legend... Orion the hunter and Sirius, his faithful dog. Taurus and the Pleiades, the princess Andromeda and her hero Perseus. Bears large and small. Auriga, the charioteer, which always reminds me not of a driver, but of a kitten of the same name with whom I once lived.

A lovely night...