How supportive is your partner?

[stevetynant]

When I first got my scope I had a wife who was quite enthusiastic until she realised that most objects in the night skies were grey smudges and only when your out for hours in December do you realise how cold things really get.

Since then I think she's popped out once to take a look at Saturn - so I'm pretty much left to get on with it on my own in the garden or perhaps once or twice a month with some observing buddies around the Mountains of Wales .

So far its worked out quite well I suppose- more me time at the scope and I don't feel so stressed going to dark locations as I would if she was with me (its always easier to look after yourself if a problem occurs than if your loved ones are with you - not that thats happened yet.) So apart from hiding a few Visa bills and the odd complaint about how much space the gear is taking up - its worked better than I thought than if the two of us had taken up the hobby together.

This is however a complete turnaround from what I first imagined it would be like so - does your partner take an active interest in your observing and if so is it working out?

Interested in anyones thoughts on this.

[fredster]

My wife has no interest at all, not even a look at the moon could tempt her out. But she is happy/supportive for me to pursue the hobby and attend my local group.

[DirkSteele]

When I was child my parents were very supportive of my desire to learn about the universe and the night sky, so much so that the nurturing probably helped send me towards a masters degree in astrophysics. When I got a little older and owned my first telescope they would pop out to look mainly at show piece objects like M42 and Saturn (my mother was convinced I had placed a picture on the front of the telescope!). And they continued to do so when I upgraded to larger scopes.

My girlfriend now is very supportive, so much so that she encouraged me to buy a new airline portable scope (APM TMB 105 LW Apo Refractor) to sit alongside the 2 scopes I already own. Her enthusiasm to date has been amazing, but her actual observing experience is also mostly limited to 4 nights under the incredibly dark skies of Namibia last year with a 12” scope. It will be interesting to see what she thinks in the depths of a British winter...

[JamesM]

My other half is similar to yours Steve in that the occasional planet or the moon might help her to shuffle out into the garden to have a look and she is certainly up for meteor showers, the ISS or what I term, 'temporary phenomena'. However she would would never what to stand out in the middle of the countryside for hours and hours in sub zero temperatures - just as well really, as by the time it would take her to get ready for such an adventure, half the night would have gone!!! :grin: :grin:

James

[Ant]

My wife is about as uninterested as you can get.

I have borrowed a PST, one sunny day (remember them?) I had it set up for the first time and I was looking through the EP. My wife having com outside for a fag, was standing literally 5 feet from me. I offered her a look - this would have taken no more than about 10 seconds of time... and she wasn't interested at all.

It's a shame, but I guess if your not interested, your not interested. But she doesn't moan too much about the time that I spend observing (unless we get lots of nights on the trot then I get the usual "telescope widow" comment).

Ant

[x6gas]

Quite difficult to get my wife outside to take a look. By the time I've set up in the back garden she's invariably cozy in front of the fire and although she is interested it turns out that she's not quite as interested in seeing Saturn as she is the latest repeat of Come Dine With Me. I'm also under a bit of pressure to slim down on the kit front; I get that and I am trying.

She's also not always appreciative of me spending time with a telescope rather than her but generally she's very supportive and even buys me astronomy kit for birthdays and Christmas... so I can't really complain.

[The Sailor]

SHMBO is quite supportive of my hobby, encourages me and assists me where necessary, she will find NASA photos I might like on her trawls of the net but, she has no interest at all in astronomy, poor thing .

Jim

[JohnC]

I am one of the lucky few.

My wife is very interested in all things astronomy and being outdoors.

She however is more happy looking at the moon and planets as against Dso.

She has told me that "Being out there looking up is the best, the shear scale of things impresses her the most"

Thank you Dawn.

[bendiddley]

my wife said last night that she likes cloudy nights cos then she get's to see me (how to feel guilty!) she has also named my telescope vera, because i've put a shower caps on the top and bottom lol and calls her my 'other woman'. never the less it is all very light-hearted and i think overall my wife is supportive about my new hobby and pleased that i have found something i enjoy doing, she says she wants to come out and see something soon as do the children, which is nice. but i think i'm going to need to get the balance right between being outside and being inside, although at the moment there seems no end to the inside!

[yeti monster]

Mrs. Yeti, or "she who must be ignored", very occasionally comes near the EP but much prefers to sit and use MKI eyeballs to gaze at the heavens. She has offered very little resistance to my astronomological desires and even insisted that I place that winning bid on my observatory dome, which she calls the 'Wendy house'!

She loves the images I've created and fully understands a persons need to devote precious time to develop and maintain a passion in what ever it is that rumbles ones kelly.

In return I support her need to do weird treehuggery type stuff with all her weird treehuggery type friends..... )

[RikM]

My wife is happy that I have found a hobby I enjoy that does not (often) end up in trips to A&E. Mountin Biking and Rugby are now but memories. She enjoys solar Ha observing and likes the deep sky images I take, but she doesn't have enough interest to give it a go herself. Fortunately she has the same belief as me when it comes to buying kit and the time and effort needed. No half measures. Do it or don't...don't just pretend.

[phillc]

My wife seems to be with most of the other wives. Eg is supportive, will buy me gifts to do with astronomy as presents, as even suggested getting me a eight inch Dobsonian for Christmas and might look at the Moon or planets for a few minutes, but that is as far as it goes. The rest of the the time l'm left on my own to observe in peace or with like minded friends.And that suits me as we do a lots of other things in each others company.

phillc

[Yimini]

My wife will admit to being more interested than she thought she would be, but her interest does not extend to helping set up or spending whole evenings out in the cold. Just a quick trip into the garden to see the highlights and then back into the warm. she'll now watch the occasional TS@N or Brian Cox programme, but has yet to learn that un-like a Rom Com, you can't talk over the top and then still be able to keep up with what's going on :-(

[umadog]

Following a brief enthusiastic spell, my other other half realised that astronomy involves doing stuff outdoors when it's either cold or when there are mosquitoes. On some unfortunate nights, both menaces occur together. The delicate flame of enthusiasm has not survived. She has retreated to a state of reluctant support for my hobby.

[mallorcasaint]

My wife is a member of the Norman Lockyer Observatory along with myself and in fact the first scope we owned was bought for her birthday! I am now into imaging and she is more into observing so on observatory nights I am out with my gear and she is usually in one of the observatory domes or attending a lecture. As I don't drive in UK she often drops me at the NLO for a weekends imaging and as she is a carer for her elederly mum she can't usually stay over with me. She has learned to operate the large historic scopes at the NLO and knows the night sky better than me! She has never balked at me buying gear and loves the pictures I take, Lucky me!

[ampleamp]

Mrs Amp is about as un-interested in astronomy as I am un-interested in horses - her main interest. Having said that, we are both generally supportive of each other's activities so long as we don't interfere. Trouble is, having horses is an early morning activity and astronomy is not. I did once get a "wow" from her when there was a large prom on the sun, but that was only once. .

[Peter Drew]

My first wife(hint) was not particularly interested and saw astronomy as a competitor for her attention. My current wife I met at an astronomy society where she was the editor of the magazine. Although not as actively involved in the subject she retains an interest and is vey supportive, in return I'm very supportive of her interests, win win situation?.

[sologuitarist61]

My partner is very good and makes no qualms about driving to some desolate spot and sitting in the car for a hour or two, and will come and have a look through the scope at anything interesting, but now that I am into imaging more, she just says, 'show me on the computer later'. In the main though she is very supportive and I am grateful that she is.

[Monty]

I keep tripping over my wife, as soon as I find what I'm looking for I'll go to get something so I can sit and enjoy in comfort and the wife will be hogging the scope. A couple of times, the scope has just finished moving and she's jumped straight in before I can confirm what I wanted to see.

[Paulus17]

Well being new to this hobby i haven't really had a chance to do any proper observing in the garden,but the bit i have done at home Mrs P has shown some interest,especially with Saturn and the Moon,we even had a conversation the other night about why some stars are brighteer than others and the distances/sizes involved.

She has always been supportive in what i have done,fishing,woodwork,photography,etc and when she found out that i had had an interest in Astronomy when i was a kid she did encourage me to get a telescope which she bought me for my birthday,which isn't till September

We was planning some nights out observing during our hot sunny summer,but like others that hasn't worked out so far rthis year.

So i would say that Mrs P is very supportive

[8kids]

My wife would rather chew her own foot off than come and stand outside in the middle of the night looking at "is that it". She did quite like Saturn though.

My kids seem mildly interested so they are the ones I'm going to make......I mean encourage to observe with me on weekends, weather permitting.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

My wife finds it too cold outside, but generally tolerates the hobby (even allowing it to affect holiday destinations).

[Antscope]

My other half chuckled to herself and remarked the canadian mozzies,black flies and no-see-ums must prefer english blood...

whilst we were out at the dark site last night

[scarp15]

I met my wife through joining an outdoor activities club, so no problems really. She doesn't get involved much, but then she grew up in a household in which her Father's key hobby was bee keeping and her mother certainly didnt get too closely involved in that! Still got some of his honey though.

[LukeSuppalot]

My wife, to her credit, has been very supportive of my hobbies (astronomy and motorbikes). We get out on the bike together whenever we can and she'll quite happily spend an hour or so in the back garden at the eyepiece. She does draw the line at being outside at 1am when the temperature is about -10 preferring instead to laugh at my attempts to speak with a mouth that behaves like I just got back from the dentist.

My conscience is occasionally pricked by gentle reminders about how much space is now needed for my astro gear and "couldn't we put a scope or two in the garage?". It's at this moment I politely point out that I can't do that as "the garage is full with the bkes".

All I can say is that it must be love coz I don't have any money. Spent it all on bikes and scopes.