(no subject)

The beginning of November is depressing. It's the start of the end of winter, where the sun sets before 5 PM for nearly two months. It's always reminded me of The Kin Of Ata Are Waiting For You, where the tribe is huddled together, conserving all the energy and food, just waiting for the longest, most miserable day of the year to come, so they can celebrate it with the small cache of food set aside for this day, and (most of them) make it through on those calories. I think of that book at Christmas every year.

www.sunrisesunset.com/calendar.asp  The November and December pinpoints the day the sun starts to set earlier than 5 PM as November 14. I've always thought language gets it wrong about equinoxes and solstices. The summer solstice is the end of summer. Every day gets shorter from that point on.  The fall equinox is really the start of winter, and the winter equinox is really the start of spring. (In the Bay Area, we get magnificent, green, warm, glowingly beautiful early springs anytime between Feb. and April.  It's too bad it isn't more predicable (or maybe I have to look harder for predictors some other time) because it's arguably the best, most spectacular time to visit the Bay Area.)

I looked up the calendar to see what the moon would be doing while I was camping the last few days. It was waxing from a recent new moon, and the Milky Way was wonderful to see. Bonus:  A fireball meteor seen, by chance, looking up at the sky around 11 PM while soaking in a hot spring. TERRIFIC!