As I drove up the winding road to Twin Peaks, I idly mused upon the inner workings of chaos theory as I contemplated the approaching chlorofluorocarbons ... would it be warmer tonight?. When I arrived at the parking lot, it was filled with friends eager for a night's observing. I counted at least 8 telescopes set up.
I started my night's observing with one of my favorite objects, M 74 in Perseus. It shimmered, as if it were yet another globular.
After a short break to listen to the coyote symphony in the distance, I nudged my telescope to Abell 23. It reminded me of the invisible man. With that checked off my list, I identified IC 2325. It glowed, rather like that graph in An Unpleasant Truth. With that checked off my list, I located Abell 89. It was even more difficult than all the other smudges I've ever looked at. Then, I tried for M 37 in Ursa Major. It appeared at low power like an edge-on barred spiral with a sharp dust lane.
After a short break to chat, I hunted B 128 in Serpens. It appeared to be Alan Rickman. Next, I stumbled upon B 223. It seemed almost a spitting cobra. Then, for a real challenge, I found Abell 25. It was a dead ringer for Santa Claus. After that, I tracked down M 109 in Virgo. It appeared in the eyepiece like the face of God. With that checked off my list, I stumbled upon IC 85. It appeared in the eyepiece like diamonds on black velvet. After I'd spent a few minutes looking at that, I checked off IC 1003. It looked uncannily like Krylon Ultra-Flat Black.
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 24-hour 007 marathon.