Well, we did it. We set the alarm clock for 3 a.m. When it went off at that godforsaken hour, i could tell that we were both clinging to the blankets as long as we possibly could. But we pried ourselves out of the warm comfort, bundled up and took a very freezing cold walk into our back yard. It was windy and only about 6 degrees and didn't take long before my eyes started to water. It felt like the smeared tears were freezing to my cheeks, but i kept wiping them away with mittened fingers so i wouldn't miss any of the celestial display that we were craning our necks to see (and hoping we were looking in the right direction). The winter sky is so big...and our ability to identify constellations was, well, questionable.
Here's a picture i took just for you:
What did you expect?? It was 3AM!
But then...whooosh! A bright streaming white meteor whizzed across the Little Dipper in a flash. Or was it the Big Dipper? It was so fast and beautiful — but so so cold. We waited. And waited. They said the meteors from the Quadrantid constellation would fall at about one per minute, but we kept waiting and looking in all directions. I was sure that whichever way my head was facing, the meteors would be showering down by the hundreds right behind me. I'll never know. Pete went back to bed and i stayed outside for another 20 minutes. Just before 4 a.m. i saw two more meteors before losing all feeling in my chin, fingers and feet. So i went back to bed, too. And then the alarm clock went off again...way too soon and my feet were still freezing. I think we will do what some wise commenters have suggested: wait for the Perseids in August!
Staying inside with the colored pencils today, and thought you might enjoy this stellar starburst of creativity and color. Grab a cup of hot tea and enjoy!
copyright © hudsonmusicvids
PS: if you're interested, here's a behind the scenes peek at some of went into making this short video! amazing how creative people are.
I wanted to thank you for the heads up yesterday about the meteor shower. I saw a couple but nothing spectacular and was cold so I went back inside. You said you'd try again in August and in August you can see the Perseid meteor shower. We always did that one growing up and now I wake up my little ones and we take sleeping bags and spend a few hours laying on our backs watching for those streaks across the sky. It's fun and much warmer in August.
ReplyDeleteThis video was just wonderful. Having a horrible day and the few minutes of peace were a life saver.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great video - very upbeat! It made me miss my pencil crayons, though. I took them to work for my students to use and forgot to bring them home for the vacation. :(
ReplyDeleteYou GOT up at 3 am...I was STILL up at 3 am. Very unusual for me, but we had friends visiting.
Ha ha ha! Love your night sky pic! :)
ReplyDeleteOne of my dogs got me up right at 2, as I had asked him. We saw a few meteors streak across our lovely Kansas skies!
KZK
What a fun video! I didn't know about the meteor shower till after it ended so I just slept through it. I'd have liked to see it but where I live I doubt I'd have been able to see the moon. Oh well. I'm with you - August sounds good.
ReplyDeleteHow brave of you to get up so early in the cold to see the meteor shower! That picture reminds me of what I was seeing at 3 this morning too...but my view was from my warm cozy bed, sound asleep, looking at the inside of my eyelids! Astronomy picture of the day is about as close as I get to seeing a weather event that happens at that hour!
ReplyDeleteThe video was awesome, and the video about the video was pretty cool too! People are so creative!
Thanks for sharing such fun stuff!
MGM
Perseids in August. That is all. You are welcome.
ReplyDeleteWhile I was reading your post I thought....gee you need to just watch the one (Perseids) in August....but I see someone beat me to the punch! cool video.
ReplyDeleteI contemplated getting up early this morning and watching for a bit as well, but I just couldn't drag myself out of bed an hour early. Lol... From the sounds of it, I'm glad I didn't! Hope you've warmed up!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this video, what a terrific creativity boost.. a great heart starter that made me smile all the way through, thank-you Kate! Joy in huge dollops to you today:)
ReplyDeleteWhat a great little video! Thank you for sharing it with us!
ReplyDeleteI am so excited about your new Christmas fabric! There is a sneak peek over at Fat Quarter Shop under the coming soon tab. Those penguins are the BEST! I know there will be a bundle of this in my future! Thank you for making such fabulous things!
Fun post! Love that video!!!
ReplyDeleteIt's so funny -- I was reading your first blog post about the meteor shower and it was about 2:30 a.m. So, I goofed off until 3 a.m. and then went to the windows to see if it was clear out. It looked like it was, and I debated about going out, but we have a bongbong (that's what we call it) on the doors, so if I'd gone out, the doors would have bonged and then hubby would know I was up so late and it wouldn't have been pretty. So, I decided to stay in and miss it. Will you remind us in August ?('cause I know I'll forget!)
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