We got skunked - in Dallas, it was bright sun at 12:30 and at 2:00, when everything was over..... From 1:40 to 1:44 (when it counted), solid clouds - though friends of ours did have full sun and saw the beast all the way through. It did get dark, and the Bride suggested we informally renew our wedding vows, so we did on the front patio in the dark; we're going for another 25 years - in 25 years, I'll be 108 and she will be 102. Wish us luck.....
Here in north central Arkansas we had clear blue skies and mid 70s at the start of the eclipse. A neighbor came over and we all sat out in the yard with our eclipse glasses. The temperature dropped slowly as the eclipse progressed and at totality it was 68. We got to see the "diamond ring" in the last few seconds before totality and the wispy reddish chromosphere during totality. It was a great day for a couple of old science geeks.
Temporarily on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The sky didn’t turn much darker because we are far from the band of totality. What I noticed was the water appeared much darker than its usual silvery look from the reflection of sunlight. And the birds went very, very silent.
Where I was (Boston area), the moon blocked 93% of the sun. (I'd had covid, or I would have driven to northern Vermont or New Hampshire for totality.) I got outside with Natalie (the dog) with about 12 minutes to spare, and the yard gradually darkened somewhat, but nothing anywhere near a totality. It was pretty neat nonetheless, although I don't think Natalie noticed much. Next time there's a totality I may have to fly abroad, as the next one in the US isn't until 2044, when I'll be 91. I hope the next totality is in France.
(catching up on my TC in LA's letters.) I live in NH but all lodging in NH up north VERY pricey so stayed w/ my sis in the Troy NY area the night before then drove up to Plattsburgh (155 miles) to be in the totaliity zone. I chose the Walmart Supercenter parking lot. The parking lot was mobbed but very sociable and folks had their lawn chairs. The weather was good for viewing. Drive up and back very long-mega traffiic (stayed w/ sis that night.
The sky south of Austin was so cloudy it looked like the sun and the moon were playing hide and seek with us. It was fun for a while to look for the sun through the clouds but after a while there was nothing to look at. We knew it was almost totality when the lights came on and darkness surrounded us. We went in and watched on YouTube the lucky places that got to see the diamond ring and all the other magnificent events.
a few eclipses ago, a bunch of friends in the building set up that periscope-type situation and watched the action on concrete. it was FUN.
today, alone in my apartment, it just felt weird. first of all, I'd forgotten about it and when it darkened, my first thought was something like "oh fuck it's gonna rain again" (actually, it was EXACTLY "oh fuck it's gonna rain again") and then I remembered it was an eclipse and I was experiencing it ALONE. I pointed this fact out to the dogs, but they weren't picking up on it (last time, the dogs--obviously DIFFERENT dogs--knew something unusual was going on and we all got to bond over it) and it was just me. I felt helpless, even though I knew the world wasn't ending any time soon.
could it have been my annual overdose of Easter-themed movies on TCM?
It sounds like you were channeling your medieval ancestors. Or earlier. Perhaps it was just time to sit on the floor (in the absence of a campfire) and hug your dogs. Cheer up, maybe take them on a Spring flower hunt walk tomorrow!
if the dogs weren't geriatric, I guarantee there would have puh-lenty of activity, with a little fighting over who gets the bathtub to hide in.
that a bathtub wouldn't especially protect you from the angry god who put the sun out (at least temporarily) isn't on their radar.
did I also actually hear some wealthy, whore-fucking, crack-smoking billionaire TV evangelists insisting that the eclipse is just another sign that the Rapture is nearly upon us? I don't think I was dreaming...
I'm astonished that your dogs would consider entering a bathtub voluntarily under any circumstances. Most people on the other hand would - in the event of a "Don't Look Up" scenario - consider lolling in a hot bath or shower to be on a short list for The way to go...
if the water's running, it's a whole different thing.
actually, Jubal tolerates baths and most grooming very well. Daisy (my current avatar) requires at least three strong people just to cut her nails. in fact, if I so much as think about it, she hides. and she has these thick long black nails so hard that when she walks on a hardwood floor, she sounds like a tap dancer with shitty rhythm.
Your last sentence gave me a big guffaw--our pit/lab mix, Libby also has thick black nails and we also have hardwood floors, so yes...non-rhythmic tap dancing hits it exactly!
I had an Airedale who used to do some sort of ball of the foot walk to cross the floor when he didn't want me to notice, so he was aware of it and knew how to sneak...
Your experience was a bit like mine, only mine wasn't creepy. I live in the area adjacent to the arc of totality, but even in this supposedly 99.4% area, the cloudy sky slowly darkened but never went completely dark. It was too humid to sit outside, so I sat with my two cats and watched it from the kitchen. The slowly dimming sky and the slowly lightening sky were more amazing than anything, because it happened so fast. All three of us were fascinated by it.
It was so exciting for us here in NY near Manhattan. Right on time, we lucked into sunshine with our glasses and homemade cereal viewing box and saw it pass by us. Inside, the rooms were considerably darker. We followed the NASA livestream, which was incredible. From city to city all the way to Maine, people were awestruck and cheering. It was a happy moment for those of us who still believe the earth is round.
is the "cereal viewing box" similar to the periscopes I used to make with my dad out of a mile carton with two mirrors? and would that protect your eyes? I'm thinking it wouldn't.
That must have been really amazing to experience totality for 30 minutes moving along on a ship in the ocean Tom. I barely noticed it in NW Oregon today. It was cloudy, and maybe a little decrease in light. But in 2017, although Hood River wasn’t in the path of totality, we were at 85-90%. The temperature dropped, it got darker and my neighbor’s Llamas started making some very strange sounds, like they were singing. It was very cool.
I adore them. at the zoo, I never wanted to leave their sides, looping my little arms around the necks of two llamas while my parents were aghast, warning me they'd spit green stuff all over me. they never did.
are they PETS? I'm having fun imagining what it'd be like trying to insist that my Therapy Llama accompany me in the supermarket.
I love Lamas too David . Yes they are pets, and they would make great Therapy companions. They never spit on me, but they did spit on my dog once. But she was barking at them so it’s understandable.
An awesome experience in Vermont. I know that totality had been described but it seemed strange to take the special glasses off and be looking with our bare eyes. It really got quite dark and the temp seemed to drop quite a bit. It was very impressive how much light came back so quick even though the sun was still mostly blocked.
As things in Texas normally go, we are no more than 15 miles north of Bruce (far NW Plano) and while we had clouds they were intermittent, high, and drifted by. At some times you could see the eclipse through the clouds without glasses. That was cool. When totality came, the clouds parted and we had a great view. The corona was quite a sight. My neighbors and I went to a nearby park, and I laid in the grass to watch, the fire ants be damned.
Isn’t it odd that the moon is just the precise size, at the precise distance to make it possible? Sometimes a coincidence is just a coincidence, but things like this make you wonder. Oh well, what a wonderful world…….
Eclipse? Just a hoax. Product of the Deep State to enable pickpockets and B and E artists to make a big comeback. Might as well call it the anti-capitalistic event it is: Slackers' Day, because of all those who skipped out of work, led by union radicals, of course. Worse, eclipsestruck parents don't pay attention to their little kids fooling around, taking off their magic goggles, and messing up their eyes. Humbug !
In Albuquerque we woke up to solid overcast, but the clouds thinned to a haze just in time for the eclipse. I watched from my front yard. We saw about 75% of totality. The clouds thickened again as the moon moved away. Still impressive, although not as spectacular as the total eclipse last October, which I was also fortunate to witness.
In San Diego, we had a partial eclipse. I was in a zoom meeting for most of the morning but it ended in time for me to take a pinhole box out to see what I could see, not impressive. Some slight darkening but no more than when thin clouds cross the sun. However, when I came back in, I realized my auto-night light had come on even though, indoors & to my own eyes, it didn't look particularly dark outside. Once the eclipse ended, the night light went off.
Here in Maine, the areas that experienced totality had serious eclipse-mania. Greenville, Rangeley and Houlton have been planning for the influx of eclipse viewers for at least a year and this year we lucked out! The skies were clear as a bell over the entire state and nearly everyone in the state, even without getting in the path of totality, could see 95% or more.
Where we were, we got about 97% and it was amazing to be able to watch it. We didn't see a corona or the Beads of Bailey or the diamond ring...but it was still awesome. The sky darkened, the clouds near the horizon went yellow and pinkish, the sunshine got feeble and without warmth. The temp dropped about 5 or 6 degrees. Then the ultra-thin slice of crescent slid around to the bottom and side and then started getting bigger again.
I saw a total eclipse here in Maine, in 1963, and I viewed it as part of our local Girl Scout Troop outing. As a science badge project we had all made viewing boxes and I remember watching in disbelief as the tiny hole projected a replica of the awesome natural show put on by the Sun and the Moon.
I have AMD. The last thing in the world I need or want is to stare at the sun. And for what? So primitive, medieval fools like eMpTy Greene can rally her coven with warnings of impending doom? I hope P1135809 stared long and hard without eye protection like he has done before. What dicks . . .
We got skunked - in Dallas, it was bright sun at 12:30 and at 2:00, when everything was over..... From 1:40 to 1:44 (when it counted), solid clouds - though friends of ours did have full sun and saw the beast all the way through. It did get dark, and the Bride suggested we informally renew our wedding vows, so we did on the front patio in the dark; we're going for another 25 years - in 25 years, I'll be 108 and she will be 102. Wish us luck.....
Luck and love to you two.
Here in north central Arkansas we had clear blue skies and mid 70s at the start of the eclipse. A neighbor came over and we all sat out in the yard with our eclipse glasses. The temperature dropped slowly as the eclipse progressed and at totality it was 68. We got to see the "diamond ring" in the last few seconds before totality and the wispy reddish chromosphere during totality. It was a great day for a couple of old science geeks.
Lucky you!
Temporarily on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The sky didn’t turn much darker because we are far from the band of totality. What I noticed was the water appeared much darker than its usual silvery look from the reflection of sunlight. And the birds went very, very silent.
Where I was (Boston area), the moon blocked 93% of the sun. (I'd had covid, or I would have driven to northern Vermont or New Hampshire for totality.) I got outside with Natalie (the dog) with about 12 minutes to spare, and the yard gradually darkened somewhat, but nothing anywhere near a totality. It was pretty neat nonetheless, although I don't think Natalie noticed much. Next time there's a totality I may have to fly abroad, as the next one in the US isn't until 2044, when I'll be 91. I hope the next totality is in France.
(catching up on my TC in LA's letters.) I live in NH but all lodging in NH up north VERY pricey so stayed w/ my sis in the Troy NY area the night before then drove up to Plattsburgh (155 miles) to be in the totaliity zone. I chose the Walmart Supercenter parking lot. The parking lot was mobbed but very sociable and folks had their lawn chairs. The weather was good for viewing. Drive up and back very long-mega traffiic (stayed w/ sis that night.
The sky south of Austin was so cloudy it looked like the sun and the moon were playing hide and seek with us. It was fun for a while to look for the sun through the clouds but after a while there was nothing to look at. We knew it was almost totality when the lights came on and darkness surrounded us. We went in and watched on YouTube the lucky places that got to see the diamond ring and all the other magnificent events.
I sorta hate to say this, but it creeped me out.
a few eclipses ago, a bunch of friends in the building set up that periscope-type situation and watched the action on concrete. it was FUN.
today, alone in my apartment, it just felt weird. first of all, I'd forgotten about it and when it darkened, my first thought was something like "oh fuck it's gonna rain again" (actually, it was EXACTLY "oh fuck it's gonna rain again") and then I remembered it was an eclipse and I was experiencing it ALONE. I pointed this fact out to the dogs, but they weren't picking up on it (last time, the dogs--obviously DIFFERENT dogs--knew something unusual was going on and we all got to bond over it) and it was just me. I felt helpless, even though I knew the world wasn't ending any time soon.
could it have been my annual overdose of Easter-themed movies on TCM?
or, more probably, I'm just no fun...
It sounds like you were channeling your medieval ancestors. Or earlier. Perhaps it was just time to sit on the floor (in the absence of a campfire) and hug your dogs. Cheer up, maybe take them on a Spring flower hunt walk tomorrow!
if the dogs weren't geriatric, I guarantee there would have puh-lenty of activity, with a little fighting over who gets the bathtub to hide in.
that a bathtub wouldn't especially protect you from the angry god who put the sun out (at least temporarily) isn't on their radar.
did I also actually hear some wealthy, whore-fucking, crack-smoking billionaire TV evangelists insisting that the eclipse is just another sign that the Rapture is nearly upon us? I don't think I was dreaming...
I'm astonished that your dogs would consider entering a bathtub voluntarily under any circumstances. Most people on the other hand would - in the event of a "Don't Look Up" scenario - consider lolling in a hot bath or shower to be on a short list for The way to go...
if the water's running, it's a whole different thing.
actually, Jubal tolerates baths and most grooming very well. Daisy (my current avatar) requires at least three strong people just to cut her nails. in fact, if I so much as think about it, she hides. and she has these thick long black nails so hard that when she walks on a hardwood floor, she sounds like a tap dancer with shitty rhythm.
Your last sentence gave me a big guffaw--our pit/lab mix, Libby also has thick black nails and we also have hardwood floors, so yes...non-rhythmic tap dancing hits it exactly!
I had an Airedale who used to do some sort of ball of the foot walk to cross the floor when he didn't want me to notice, so he was aware of it and knew how to sneak...
Your experience was a bit like mine, only mine wasn't creepy. I live in the area adjacent to the arc of totality, but even in this supposedly 99.4% area, the cloudy sky slowly darkened but never went completely dark. It was too humid to sit outside, so I sat with my two cats and watched it from the kitchen. The slowly dimming sky and the slowly lightening sky were more amazing than anything, because it happened so fast. All three of us were fascinated by it.
yes...that pretty much describes my experience, although I was happy to observe things from inside.
It was so exciting for us here in NY near Manhattan. Right on time, we lucked into sunshine with our glasses and homemade cereal viewing box and saw it pass by us. Inside, the rooms were considerably darker. We followed the NASA livestream, which was incredible. From city to city all the way to Maine, people were awestruck and cheering. It was a happy moment for those of us who still believe the earth is round.
NASA did the nation proud with that livestream.
Yes!
is the "cereal viewing box" similar to the periscopes I used to make with my dad out of a mile carton with two mirrors? and would that protect your eyes? I'm thinking it wouldn't.
That must have been really amazing to experience totality for 30 minutes moving along on a ship in the ocean Tom. I barely noticed it in NW Oregon today. It was cloudy, and maybe a little decrease in light. But in 2017, although Hood River wasn’t in the path of totality, we were at 85-90%. The temperature dropped, it got darker and my neighbor’s Llamas started making some very strange sounds, like they were singing. It was very cool.
LLAMAS????
I adore them. at the zoo, I never wanted to leave their sides, looping my little arms around the necks of two llamas while my parents were aghast, warning me they'd spit green stuff all over me. they never did.
are they PETS? I'm having fun imagining what it'd be like trying to insist that my Therapy Llama accompany me in the supermarket.
I love Lamas too David . Yes they are pets, and they would make great Therapy companions. They never spit on me, but they did spit on my dog once. But she was barking at them so it’s understandable.
An awesome experience in Vermont. I know that totality had been described but it seemed strange to take the special glasses off and be looking with our bare eyes. It really got quite dark and the temp seemed to drop quite a bit. It was very impressive how much light came back so quick even though the sun was still mostly blocked.
As things in Texas normally go, we are no more than 15 miles north of Bruce (far NW Plano) and while we had clouds they were intermittent, high, and drifted by. At some times you could see the eclipse through the clouds without glasses. That was cool. When totality came, the clouds parted and we had a great view. The corona was quite a sight. My neighbors and I went to a nearby park, and I laid in the grass to watch, the fire ants be damned.
Isn’t it odd that the moon is just the precise size, at the precise distance to make it possible? Sometimes a coincidence is just a coincidence, but things like this make you wonder. Oh well, what a wonderful world…….
Eclipse? Just a hoax. Product of the Deep State to enable pickpockets and B and E artists to make a big comeback. Might as well call it the anti-capitalistic event it is: Slackers' Day, because of all those who skipped out of work, led by union radicals, of course. Worse, eclipsestruck parents don't pay attention to their little kids fooling around, taking off their magic goggles, and messing up their eyes. Humbug !
I laughed out loud.
so did I, even if "it's NOT funny...these are sick people," etc. etc. etc.
Nevada
Vegas skyline fades
As Moon's shadow engulfs Sun
Neon signs go dim
Nature's spectacle eclipses
The city's eternal glow
•
Gamblers pause their games
Turning eyes to darkened skies
Eclipse steals the show
Celestial roulette spins
Sun and Moon's cosmic casino
•
Las Vegas goes still
Amidst the desert's expanse
Eclipse paints the town
In an otherworldly hue
A moment of rare magic
•
Tourists gather round
Gazing up at the eclipsed Sun
Vegas' newest act
Heavenly bodies align
Entertainment from above
•
Sin City humbled
By the cosmos' grand design
Eclipse's brief reign
Reminds us of our smallness
In the universe's vastness
In Albuquerque we woke up to solid overcast, but the clouds thinned to a haze just in time for the eclipse. I watched from my front yard. We saw about 75% of totality. The clouds thickened again as the moon moved away. Still impressive, although not as spectacular as the total eclipse last October, which I was also fortunate to witness.
In San Diego, we had a partial eclipse. I was in a zoom meeting for most of the morning but it ended in time for me to take a pinhole box out to see what I could see, not impressive. Some slight darkening but no more than when thin clouds cross the sun. However, when I came back in, I realized my auto-night light had come on even though, indoors & to my own eyes, it didn't look particularly dark outside. Once the eclipse ended, the night light went off.
Here in Maine, the areas that experienced totality had serious eclipse-mania. Greenville, Rangeley and Houlton have been planning for the influx of eclipse viewers for at least a year and this year we lucked out! The skies were clear as a bell over the entire state and nearly everyone in the state, even without getting in the path of totality, could see 95% or more.
Where we were, we got about 97% and it was amazing to be able to watch it. We didn't see a corona or the Beads of Bailey or the diamond ring...but it was still awesome. The sky darkened, the clouds near the horizon went yellow and pinkish, the sunshine got feeble and without warmth. The temp dropped about 5 or 6 degrees. Then the ultra-thin slice of crescent slid around to the bottom and side and then started getting bigger again.
I saw a total eclipse here in Maine, in 1963, and I viewed it as part of our local Girl Scout Troop outing. As a science badge project we had all made viewing boxes and I remember watching in disbelief as the tiny hole projected a replica of the awesome natural show put on by the Sun and the Moon.
I have AMD. The last thing in the world I need or want is to stare at the sun. And for what? So primitive, medieval fools like eMpTy Greene can rally her coven with warnings of impending doom? I hope P1135809 stared long and hard without eye protection like he has done before. What dicks . . .