by Richard Ozer
Well y'all missed a great night.
8:00 (sunset) -- Arrived at Montebello with my brother in tow (he bought me dinner since I was "providing the entertainment").
8:10 -- Pulled the rocker box out of my vehicle and set it down on the ground. A young woman bicyclist stared at me oddly from across the parking lot and finally yelled out "Is there a bird in there?" I replied "Yes" and continued pulling the scope out of my van. By the sight of the huge H2O nebula rapidly approaching and the engaging conversation so far, I knew I was doomed.
8:15 -- Great view of the moon as the temperature of my primary decreased at a delta of 2 degrees a minute.
8:30 -- Watched condensation form on the tube and the vehicle, had a hot cup of coffee and went home.
Next time I'll believe what the natives tell me....