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I’m riding my bike beneath the ink sky. The air is cool and my jacket, thin. I shiver. Glancing up, I see dust and glitter — the Milky Way. I turn off my headlight and pedal in darkness. Brighter this way.
Suddenly, I see him. To the east, just coming up over the top of a hill — Orion!
I squeal.
Fall is coming.
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“I don’t know anything with certainty, but seeing the stars makes me dream.”
― Vincent Van Gogh
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Image: nakedeyeplanets.com
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I know what you mean. My favorite time of year. :)
Yours and mine both!
It’s always a relief at the end of a long, hot summer.
Beautiful time of day/night to be out and great photo :-)
Cheers, Poul
Indeed, Poul! I love getting out in the evenings as the day starts to cool down (in summer). I *love* the night sky. And I like this photo, too! I can’t take credit for it, but I’m really glad to have found it. It was perfect for this – Cheers, Jess
I wish you hadn’t said that. This summer has been too good to be true. I ran last night and it was so comfortable. I don’t do well in the cold.
I’m sorry, Mario! I take it back. Summer will be here for forever. ;) I’m not a huge fan of cold weather, either, but I do love fall and the changing of seasons.
:)
Beautiful quote by van Gogh.
Spring is coming here and I am happy.
Ah, yes. I will be so confused when I finally make it to Australia! Summer in winter and winter in summer… But it will be a good confused. ;) … After a cold winter, I’m always ready for spring, too!
Agree. Lovely quote and I am so happy spring is here in Melbourne (happy even though it’s hayfever season). Bring on summer!
I think we all like the changing of seasons! Not sure I’d do well in a place like Antarctica where it stays cold year round…. Even being near the equator is a bit hard for me. So humid, and, really, the seasons are much less varied than they are a little further to the north or south… I like the Van Gogh quote, too… Happy Spring, Mabel! :D
Beautiful photo, nice quote and you have put your words are short but effective. Lovely short post. Enjoy the fall. We are still enjoying monsoon here :)
Thank you, Sunil. I enjoyed writing this one. And I think I would like to experience monsoon season sometime, too! :)
And as we near Thanksgiving, the comet ISON will be quite the spectacle just after sunset! Then through December into New Year’s, Venus “…fills the southwestern sky for 3 hours of bravos after sundown in early December, and 1.5 hours after sundown by New Year’s Eve. And if that were not enough, a crescent moon will pass above and to the right of the goddess Dec. 5th and on the 6th she will give her grand finale! She will not be as spectacular again until 2021.”
Then Dec. 13 – 14 we will enjoy the Geminid Meteor Shower, which astronomers and meteorists claim will be even more brilliant than our annual Perseid showers! Exciting time of 2013, eh? :-)
Indeed! And thank you for all of this wonderful info! I will now have to refer to your comment to know when to pay extra special attention to the sky over the next few months. ;) I assume you have beautiful clear night skies where you live, Professor?
The majority of the time, yes. Plus, living on top of the largest hill/small mountain helps a bit too. Very little light pollution! Can easily see the Milky Way every night. :)
That is excellent, then. Perfect for an astronomer like you! :)
“I’m riding my bike beneath the ink sky” … I like that.
I love fall, but I always feel anxious when it approaches because I know winter will be following soon after, and I’m scurred of winter (Montreal winters are brutal!)
I can imagine! To be honest, I don’t know how well I’d do living in a place with brutal winters and a lot of snow. I enjoy cold but tire of fighting it. Thankfully, the winters here aren’t typically *too* bad… And yes, I too love fall. The changing leaves, the crispness in the air after months of hot, dry heat… It’s my favorite time of year. :)
Funny, you and I think the same thing at the sight of Orion. Growing up in the desert I learned to navigate by the stars. Love the coming of fall.
Benjamin
You touched on something I *almost* mentioned in this post, Benjamin. The most enjoyable thing about the time I have spent beneath the stars this past year has been watching them rotate through the sky. Until this year, I’d never really noticed Orion rising here, and then here, and then here, and then here… As far as navigating by them, though, eek! I have a lot to learn. I too love fall! Best, Jess
Everything’s easy once you know how to do it :) have a great day.
That’s a good point! Except tight-rope walking…or operatic singing. I don’t know if I’d ever be any good at those! ;) Hehe. You too, Benjamin!
Orion the hunter was watching over you. Sounds like a nice evening!
I don’t even know why I love Orion so much. But I do. He and Cassiopeia are my favorites. :)
Loved this! And I do love this time of year, too. It’s the bestest. :)
Hey Jeff! So glad to hear from you — and that you liked this! I agree that fall is the bestest… and also that I am the worstest! I still need to write you back… :( I’m sorry!
No worries. You’re a busy girl. :)
I have no excuse for putting it off this long. I don’t even know where time goes. :(
AZURE
CERULEAN..
Right on
u know it
Agree, there is nothing better to me than a change of seasons…a whole different set of colors, smells and I always like to think new opportunities as well. And with Orion’s belt sweeping over the horizon, my favorite time of the year arrives and with this post, I think it is going to be a glorious autumn for you… Cheers.
Fall is my favorite time of year, too. That’s one thing I missed in Hong Kong. Without the changing of the colors of leaves, and perhaps only a few mild days between summer and winter… It was also very hard to see the stars where I lived. Hence, the night sky has always been one of my favorite things about coming home. :)
But I like that — a whole different set of colors, smells, and, yes, opportunities. I agree. I suspect it will be a glorious autumn for you, too! :) Jess
I love this image and also your writing here. Autumn is also my favourite time of year :)
Thank you so much — for both reading and commenting! Autumn is the best… I can’t wait! :)