Target--> Wednesday

The orientation went well today, but I'm always glad to get home after driving though all that traffic. The boss called today to let me know he will be here Wednesday night to pick up the things I'm sending with Amy (the employee who is driving the van) to Little Rock. So that means tomorrow I'm setting up all the laptops I have here and getting supplies together. I will probably pack my suitcase. I do not want to check luggage, so...busy busy busy.

The weather is still nice, and the breeze is fresh, so all the windows are open. What a blessing. The guy across the alley is NOT burning wood in his back yard, which had pretty much gone on every night almost all summer. I cannot tolerate wood smoke drifting in the house.

Speaking of things that go on at night, the Dark Sky Association has an exhibit showing how light pollution confuses birds so they sing at night or even loose track of the Northern Star which they use for migration navigation. The poor things end up flying around the skyscrapers until they drop from exhaustion. The exhibit is called "In the Dark" and can be seen at the Nature Museum in Chicago.

The reason a dark sky is so important to me is because I grew up with a sky so dark my father taught me how to find the Andromeda Galaxy with the naked eye. Observing the Milky Way in all its glory and searching the desert sky with a telescope is a cherished childhood memory. On a moonless night you really could not see your hand in front of your face and the stars seemed close enough to touch. It breaks my heart to look out and see nights that are not even close to being dark. The only stars you can see are the few brightest. Somewhere in Indiana there must be a dark sky!!!!

In any case, the Dark Sky people must be getting the word out because at least one town that I know of near here has installed all downward-shining dark-sky-saving outdoor lighting. Yay for them!! If you are wondering what type of lights these are, they have a shield on top so all light is shining on the ground, where it is needed, not across the street into your neighbor's bedroom, which is ridiculous.

Ok, I'm off my soapbox for now.