We didn't plan to go anywhere for the Annular Eclipse (anywhere into the path of totality, I mean) because it seemed like all the campgrounds and everywhere would be crowded, and the Annular eclipses aren't quite as impressive as total ones anyway (I had heard). So I got out our eclipse glasses, but I wasn't expecting much. But then even the partial version we got here was amazing! We were running outside to look every few minutes because it felt so strange and exciting!
One thing I didn't realize is that the light would change so drastically. I guess I should have known, because it was definitely noticeable even an hour or more before the total eclipse we saw in Idaho, but it surprised me this time anyway. Even inside it felt cool and…watery. Why watery? I guess the only place I've noticed that filtered half-light before is underwater!
The prism-rainbows in our library were affected by it. Here they are on a normal day, little circles and stripes of spectra.
And here during the eclipse—rainbow crescents! I love them!
Our hands cast funny crescent shadows out of what should have been circles
Weird light!
I thought this shot (like Jacob saw of angels ascending and descending a ladder) was funny and so typical. This is our life these days in a nutshell! Comings and goings!
The sunlight is just dimmer than it should be! I can see it even in the picture.
Even though we weren't in the path of totality, the moon really did get nearly all the way over the sun…there was almost a "ring of fire" effect. A "fingernail of fire," maybe.
I loved watching the leaf-shadows get thinner and thinner, too
Such a cool thing to watch! I'm so glad we got to see it!
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Ky and Clementine eying each other suspiciously.
(Note Ziggy's fire protection gear)
Sebastian, bless him, saved the day a little. When he heard what had happened he said, "I'll come to your party!" So he and I and Sam went out and cooked s'mores with them, and we all talked together until it was dark, and by the end of it the girls were laughing and seeming okay. Then we went downstairs and watched "Oceans 11" and that was a happy end to the night. But still…my chest aches when I think about it.😢
On a happier note…I mentioned we were having a Cave Unit for school. And part of that unit was learning about Bats! We love bats. We love them especially now after having learned more about them—they're fascinating and amazing creatures! So one day for our activity, we cut out paper bats and put them on the wall. It was SO much fun (and fortuitously Halloween-y) that we couldn't stop! We ended up doing…well, hundreds of them, I think! We used a sort of plasticy waterproof paper, so I hope they'll last for years to come. Sam helped us put them up in an appealing manner and I LOVE how they looked!
The girls put up some extras downstairs
Gus made the cutest bat ever
Or is this tiny one Daisy made even cuter?
Ziggy's bats were super adorable too.
By the time we were done they were swooping and fluttering along both sides of the room. I felt quite sad when we took them all down after Halloween, but they'll be back next year!
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Ziggy talking to another motorcycle guy on the hill (note Zig's Pirate hat)
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My dear friend Rachael came for a visit and we managed to get an afternoon together. It was so wonderful! It's strange when I'm with her—sometimes I feel so old, just incredibly old, because we have done so much and been through so much since we were little girls together. It feels like we have lived a hundred years since then. But I also feel like those little girls again, like no time has passed, and we are still finishing each others' sentences, still giggling and guffawing and gasping for breath over the silliest little nothings. Ah it's good to be with her. I am so blessed with the friendships in my life!
I loved this post, even just the little details you pointed out about the eclipse. They might seem mundane to an outsider, but they bring those moments back to me so strongly. I am also thinking about Seb saving the day for Daisy's party, and it's such a sweet and thoughtful thing for him to do that deserves all sorts of praise, even if it didn't completely erase the sadness of the moment.
ReplyDeleteOh I wish we lived closer so we might have shown up with a “Did somebody say there was a s’mores party happening here?”
ReplyDeleteAnd I guess we really do live several hours away from each other, but I was still surprised that you guys had a cloud free sky for the eclipse! We only got it for a minute and then nothing but thick clouds, and somehow I would have just assumed the same weather for you.
Your bats are wonderful! We cut only a handful out (and just from black card stock) years ago and they are still in use, so I’m sure your fancy paper will last into the eternities. (And now I’m wanting many many more than the tiny stretch of wall’s worth that we have.) Speaking of bats though, Mike found one in the bathtub at the cabin recently. It appeared dead, but when he took it outside it sort of hissed furiously at him. And later it was gone from the spot he’d placed it so. … 🤷🏼♀️ Perhaps that’s neither here nor there, only when you said you guys liked bats I was thinking that I’d never really considered if I liked bats and wondering if you liked bats just sort of in general or if you’d enjoy a mostly dead bat in your bath tub coming back to life or … ? I don’t even know how I feel about it. I’ll have to think on it to determine more fully just exactly how I feel about bats and in what scenarios I like or do not like them. 😄
Hahahah! This is one of those clarifying moments. I can now state that I like bats in the following situations: When they are paper. When they are outside my house. When they are alive. (Situations 2 and 3 must exist simultaneously to meet the criteria.) When they are not hissing at me furiously. I appreciate this chance to add nuance to my thinking.
DeleteI like that you carefully clarified that you don’t particularly like DEAD bats outside your home.
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