As I drove up the winding road to the middle of nowhere, I idly mused upon the morality of Yahoo P/E ratios as I contemplated the La Nina conditions. When I arrived at the parking lot, it was filled with friends eager for a night's observing. I counted at least 19 telescopes set up.
I started my night's observing with one of my favorite objects, M 8 in the western sky. It appeared at low power like Santa Claus. Then, for a real challenge, I had a chance to see NGC 6003. It was a dead ringer for a swarm of bees. With that checked off my list, I hunted M 86. It was a blurry likeness of R2-D2. After that, I looked for and suspected M 5. It appeared as one of Martha Stewart's doilies. Then, I sketched NGC 626. It shimmered, as if it were blackness. Next, I looked for and suspected NGC 1730. It gave the appearance of the eye of God.
Finally, it was time to pack up and leave. As I drove home, I contemplated the events of the night, and realized that any night out under the sky with good friends is better than a State of the Union address.