Date: Tue, 18 Nov 1997 09:19:13 -0700 From: Alex Chaffee <alex@stinky.com> Subject: Star Gazing Last night was the peak of the Leonid meteor shower. That's when Earth flies through a huge bunch of rocks that are just sitting around in space. When we hit one of them it burns up immediately; the streak it leaves is a shooting star. The cool part is the "snow in the headlights" effect -- when you move through a stationary field, the objects in the field appear to be moving raidally out from the direction you're heading in. Think warp speed -- the stars radiate out from the center of the view screen. Since at this point in our orbit around the sun we happen to be aiming straight at one of the stars in Leo, all the shooting stars will appear to be racing away from Leo in random directions. I'm in Boulder, Colorado, and since the air is thin and there's relatively little light pollution, I figured this would be an ideal spot to go watch. So I told my friends, and we made plans. But it wasn't starting until midnight, so first we went out to dinner at a Mexican restaurant nearby called La Estrellita -- the Little Star. We ordered a pitcher of Margaritas while we decided on our meals. About 5 minutes later the waiter came back. "Sorry for the wait, guys. But the bartender flaked out on me -- we can't find him. So I mixed the pitcher myself. I hope I didn't make it too strong for you, guys." Well, it turned out he'd used too much Cointreau, which disguised that fact that he'd also used too much Tequila. After a few glasses and a #10 Enchilada Special I realized I wasn't going to make it to midnight. We shivered our way back home, where I crashed on the couch in my clothes and dreamed... I'm in a diner hanging out with some people I vaguely know. In walks Andrew Shue, from Melrose Place. (Not the kind of star I was expecting.) He slides into the booth next to one of my new acquaintances; apparently he and she are old friends. The next day I'm walking past Union Square and notice a ruckus. Dozens of housewives are clamoring and pointing across the street. There behind the wheel of a mini-van is none other than Andrew Shue! The women start to chant, "Seth! Seth!" (In my dream that was his character's name. I have no idea what it is in real life.) He looks mortified, tries to scrunch down in his seat, but doesn't leave. I walk up to the side of the van; he starts to ignore me but I say, "Andy! Hi. Alex Chaffee, from last night?" He eases up and I ask him for a ride to work. He says sure, he's heading that way anyway. Just then his friend shows up and we all drive off. Turns out they were heading to work as waiters at a caterering job. I think, "Huh, guess soap operas don't pay as well as I thought." I get out of the car with them, say goodbye -- they're preoccupied, changing into their tuxedos, while inside, the job has already started, and one of the other waiters, a short, hefty Japanese guy, having noticed them, is very irritated. I head off but all the streets are unfamiliar and I can't figure out which way is North; the streets intersect at odd angles; I'm at 7th Ave and Broadway and Carnegie and... I start back to ask Andrew for directions but can't find the mini-van... There are cars driving on the street but it's oddly silent.. I woke up at 4:55 AM. Dark outside. My first thought was, "Leonid." I brushed my teeth, pulled on my boots, and drove up to Flagstaff Mountain, just west of town. There, with a panorama of Boulder's lights below and a gibbous moon above, I started to gaze. Orion was low in the west; the Big Dipper was hanging on its side. I felt the strange timeless awe the stars always give me. I'd missed the peak of the shower but managed to catch 3 or 4 falling stars before the sun came up. And yes, I noticed, they did fall away from Leo. Standing at the railing, freezing cold, I watched as our favorite star warmed the morning and lit a flotilla of long, low clouds. Watching with me were a flock of magpies -- pretty black and white birds I'd never actually seen before I came here. Legend has it they steal trinkets to build their nests. They're most attracted to bright, shiny objects. I know how they feel. - Alex, 18 November 1997 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright � 1997 Alexander D. Chaffee (alex@stinky.com). All rights reserved. See more at http://www.stinky.com/almanac/