Path: orb!not-for-mail
From: li@inigo.Data-IO.COM
Newsgroups: alt.kalbo
Subject: Re: ECLIPSE!!
Date: 19 May 1994 08:01:55 -0000
Organization: Duchy of Wabesylvan Obspauk
Lines: 55
Message-Id: <9405182111.AA23337@inigo.Data-IO.COM>
References: <38@fehen.demon.co.uk>
In-Reply-To: Your message of "Thu, 12 May 94 18:35:05 GMT." <38@fehen.demon.co.uk>
Xref: orb alt.kalbo:690
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To: kalbo@Orb.Nashua.NH.US
Sender: kalbo-sender@Orb.Nashua.NH.US (Kalbo list maintainer)

> "You were lucky, Liralen!

Liralen nods at Simon's words, "Sure was."
 
> "I spent a good twenty minutes setting up a safe viewing system - binoculars,
> tripod and a nice sheet of white card. All very carefully arranged in the
> back garden. The sky was clear, birds sang, and I sat in the warmth of a 
> warm spring evening.

"Mmmm..." says Liralen smiling.  "Lovely.  It was 9am, here, a cloudy day,
with banks of clouds racing across the sky and broken patches of clear
sunshine shining through here and there between patches of utter grey.  We
had weilder's goggles, glasses, a filtered telescope, and various holes in
paper... all kinds of things to watch it with.

"We started with just a hole in a piece of paper; and then someone brought
out the weilder's glass and it was really startling to be able to look
straight at the sun through that and see the gradual thinning of the
cresent..."

> "6:40 pm. I looked, and, yes!, the sun was disappearing, a sliver of moon
> creeping slowly across it, nibbling away at the bright circle thrown on the
> card by Galileo's miracle. Eclipse! (And Tintin leaps free from the Aztec
> pyramid...)

"Tintin?" asks Liralen, delighted but ignorant.  "We went to Chi Chenitza
two summers ago and got to climb some of the Aztec pryamids and were told
of a shadow, feathered snake that flowed down the steps during an eclipse,
but I wasn't told of a name..."

> "6:45 pm. I pop inside to make a quick cup of that wonderful Market Spice tea
> you sent us (I'm slowly addicting the Telecoms lab to its perfume!). 

Liralen chuckles, "Glad that you're putting it to good use, now I know what
to bring as a visiting gift in the fall..."

> A wind blows up, pulling clouds across the westering sky. The sun bows 
> once, and flees to its dressing room, not to be seen till Wednesday..."
> 
> Simon smiles.

Liralen laughs softly.  "Actually, when the eclipse hit 50% a huge cloud
blew right in the way and we had to run inside or get soaked.  Weather here
is weird in the convergence zone.  The sun came out again, ten mintues
later, and the shadow was slipping away..."

> "But I did see it, no matter how small a slice of moon! And there's only 5
> years to wait till a total eclipse here in the UK!"

"Wow.  Neat!  Glad that you got to see what you could..."

---
Liralen Li           | "Remember, science is talking about the universe in a
li@inigo.Data-IO.com |  way you can understand it, magic is talking to the
aka Phyllis Rostykus | universe in a way it can't resist hearing." Neil Gaiman