Back on August 11th 1999 a total eclipse of the sun should have been visible from the south west of England. I was all set to drive down there with my son and daughter but the weather forecast was unpromising and indeed on the day in question the country was pretty much shrouded by thick cloud. I was glad I cancelled the plan
Fast forward to yesterday night. Astronomers told us that an impressive blood moon would rise in the south east at around 9.20pm and not only that, there would also be a lunar eclipse - lasting some forty five minutes.
Shirley and I drove out of the city up onto the moors from where we hoped we might get a good view of the heavenly event. We were not alone. There were dozens of other motor vehicles out on the moorland roads - people parked up also hoping to see the magic in the sky.
But as on August 11th 1999, clouds got in the way. We saw nothing, nada, zilch but at least we were not seven hours away - down in Cornwall. We stopped off at "The Norfolk Arms" for a couple of beers before heading home.
I guess life itself can sometimes mirror these astronomical disappointments. You look forward to something with eager anticipation and then clouds appear. As Joni Mitchell sang:-
So many things I would have done
But clouds got in my way.
And I'm a day behind. I thought I was going to watch this tonight.
ReplyDeleteWell I hope you get to see it Red.
DeleteI really liked your previous post about well dressing. The artistry in the murals is impressive. I feel like I have seen well dressing before but I don't know where, maybe some historical drama.
ReplyDeleteBad luck with the eclipse, we always seem to have clouds when there is a major astronomical event, too
Glad you liked the well dressing post Kylie... I thought the sun always shone and the skies were always blue in Australia.
DeleteWe got out of bed at 4:45am to check the view from the kitchen window and got about 10 mins of creeping shadow before the cloud-covered moon disappeared behind buildings. We decided not to dress and head out to a better vantage point as the clouds were pretty thick in the west - plus I'm not a morning person! Someone somewhere was bound to have a clear view but not us in Sydney.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a bit of a damp squib for you Pip. Thanks for calling by.
DeleteThe lunar eclipse here occurred early morning prior to and around 4.30 am, Australian Eastern time. I didn't get to see it, although I was awake during the wee small hours, off and on all throughout the wee small hours.
ReplyDeleteI can see you Celtic roots in the double use of the word "wee".
DeleteI'm sorry the clouds prevented you from seeing the eclipse. Hopefully you and Shirley still had an enjoyable evening out. We did not have a chance at seeing the blood moon for it was not visible to this part of the world. We were fortunate last August to live in the path of totality of the solar eclipse. I may not ever see another one but I will never forget that one.
ReplyDeleteYou were indeed so fortunate - to witness a total eclipse. I am envious.
DeleteO.K. and I watched from a hilltop, along with a few other people. It was really impressive, especially with Mars close by, brighter, bigger and redder than I have ever seen it with bare eyes. Here over the South of Germany, the eclipse lasted for about 103 minutes. It was still almost 30c warm, and we had brought cold beer to greet the moon. An experience we won't be able to repeat in our lifetime.
ReplyDeleteI am insanely jealous Meike. Your experience is exactly as I hoped ours would be.
DeleteIt was pink and very small here in France.
ReplyDeleteDon't tell Paul.
DeleteThe planning and anticipation of it as well as an evening ride out of the city was nice, I bet. Sorry about the disappointment in the main event.
ReplyDeleteAh well PT... as they say...that's life!
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