As I drove up the winding road to Mount Tamalpais, I idly mused upon the higher implications of television as I contemplated the El Nino weather patterns. When I arrived at the parking lot, it was filled with friends eager for a night's observing. I counted at least 23 telescopes set up.
I started my night's observing with one of my favorite objects, M 9 in Triangulum. It was not quite as bright as lumpy darkness. After I'd spent a few minutes looking at that, I found M 43 in Canis Major. It seemed fainter than a whale spouting. Then, I sought Abell 53. It reminded me of Santa Claus. After I'd spent a few minutes looking at that, I stumbled upon M 67 in Canis Major. It was a dead ringer for Gollum. Next, attacking my personal nemesis, I showed some guests NGC 6232. It seemed most like dancing elephants. With that checked off my list, I nudged my telescope to Abell 75. It appeared in the eyepiece like blackness. After that, I tracked down M 101. It seemed fainter than desert sand.
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 Segmentation fault (core dumped).