As I drove up the winding road to Devastated Area, I idly mused upon the inner workings of cosmology 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 34 telescopes set up.
I started my night's observing with one of my favorite objects, M 49 in Lepus. It was as bright as dandruff on black satin pajamas. After I'd spent a few minutes looking at that, I accidentally located M 107. It seemed just like cotton candy. With that checked off my list, I looked for and suspected NGC 6848. It was a dead ringer for a dodo bird, extinct but for this celestial likeness. With that checked off my list, I tried for M 81. It was better than that graph in An Unpleasant Truth.
After a short break to chat, I located Abell 87 in Camelopardalis. It looked exactly like the clouds I'd seen earlier.
After a short break to grab a cheese snack, I went for Abell 31. It would be easy to confuse with whipped cream. After I'd spent a few minutes looking at that, I looked at NGC 3280. It appeared to be cotton candy. Then, I helped a beginner find B 139. It was not quite as bright as Krylon Ultra-Flat Black. Next, I stumbled upon IC 2271. It looked like the face of God. Next, I slewed to M 12. It glowed, rather like the pillars of creation. After I'd spent a few minutes looking at that, I jumped to IC 3338. It seemed most like Santa Claus.
After a short break to walk around, I tracked down M 38. It appeared at low power like Miss Piggy. Then, I found M 102. It reminded me of desert sand.
After a short break to listen to Mozart, I added to my logbook M 63. It looked uncannily like lumpy darkness. With that checked off my list, I found by accident NGC 4618. It somewhat resembled George W. Bush. Then, I accidentally located IC 3978. It looked a bit like two scoops of spumoni ice cream.
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 sex.