Thinking of giving it up :-(

[claire1985]

Tonight has been rubbish so far. Perfect clear night, mrs is busy so can't come get me to take me somewhere dark so had a walk up to the local park/woods brilliant dark sky. Not perfect as not far from the road but can see so much more than you can at my flat. Only one problem. Way to many strange scary people hanging around so I bottled it as its not the kind of place you hang around alone, just depresses me so much, I live in a little place and there is a ridiculous amount of light pollution. I don't have transport so traveling at night isn't an option, I don't have a scope as I simply can't afford one and worst part is I have no one to share my passion and hanging around parks alone really isn't sensible judging by tonight.

On a major downer tonight and it's only 19.35 :-(

[Indispensable Hobbes]

Ah that's a shame but you're right safety first! I've just sat in the back garden for 5 mins and spotted the tiny smudge that i believe to be Andromeda Never give up hope, there are loads of people who share your passion and the internet allows us to connect.

Have you any astrological societies near by that arrange meetups? check your library.

[crashtestdummy]

Im the opposite,i have a car,the gf likes to come along but its always cloudy.can you not find some people local to you and tag along?they may even let you share scope time

[ilove1995]

Don't give up! Have you thought about buying a pair of binoculars? I'm sure you could find a suitable pair second hand and they would be more discreet than a telescope if you are worried about who may see you. The stars aren't going anywhere so there's plenty of time to save up and circumstances may change in the future. Be positive. :-)

[bish]

There are a few of us close by. We should all try and meet up some time, although I would only take the bins to a public park.

[LukeSkywatcher]

Failure is not an option. You can not give up simply because of one bad night. Get yourself a set of 10X50 bins and get out there (anywhere) and just look upwards. Ive been known to do some naked eye observing from the local Tesco carpark under the floodlights there. I can still see quite a few stars, so i'm sure the same is possible from Birmingham.

Where there is a will..........there is a way.

[Moonshane]

as Bish says, there must be hundreds of people in Birmingham who'd be happy to join you / collect and drop you off etc at a safer darker place.

[Astro Imp]

Really sorry to read the OP. We all get the feeling we've had enough/can't do it any more but a couple of good nights gives you the buzz again. As has been said try and find some local enthusiasts who you can meet up with.

Hope every thing works out OK.

Good luck.

[knobby]

As Kate bush sang to peter Gabriel... Don't give up!

[claire1985]

In the 5 mins I was there I did see a shooting star and I think I spotted andromeda too so that was awesome

But made me even more sad that I just couldn't stay there.

I live above a shop and opposite me on the corner is a shop open till 11 and chippy open till 10 and a very busy junction so it's all very very well lit outside. You really can't see much at all. :-( its just so frustrating. I also have a two year old and don't get many clear nights free so when she's not here I like to take advantage if that makes sense at all so tonight is even more annoying

Thanks for the replies guys xxx

[ronin]

Binoculars are a good item for easy viewing and sound to be an ideal for you.

Don't go for anything big.

Assuming that cost is a factor have a walk round the charity shops and see if any have a decent set of binoculars in them for a suitable cost.

[Grotemobile]

It is a bit of a worrying problem going out at night

with a scope.I went over Beachy Head with my

4" refractor & had a lot of cars slowing down to

see what i was doing.I was on my own,and at 63

it does get a bit nervy at times.Never seen a sky

like that before, so it was worth it.

Steve.

[LukeSkywatcher]

I went over Beachy Head with my

4" refractor

Ouch !!!!!.................i bet that hurt.

[sologuitarist61]

Whatever you do, don't give up! You never know what might happen in the future, so don't get rid of your kit, you will regret it later. I too live in a very LP site so I have changed my viewing entirely and now do a lot of solar imaging. It keeps my hand in and is quite good fun as well, and if I ever do move house I still have all the gear.

[Qualia]

Ay, the advice here has been spot on. Try to see if there is any local astro club about and arrange with your family that on that given night a month you'll be out a wee bit. I'm sure everyone will understand and try to help. I'd also suggest that each week you try to save a little and see if you can get yourself something like this. I imagine with xmas around the corner, an upcoming birthday and a few bob saved each month, within time it will be possible to own. Binos are excellent for learning the night sky and while I lived in Madrid with a population of around 4 million folk who seemed to never go to sleep, it was the only thing I ever used.

Please don't pack this lark in, there is just so much to learn and it all doesn't have to do with stargazing. On bad nights you could read or swot up on astro-related things like star formations, supernova, structures of atoms and how elements and compunds are formed etc. I think astronomy kind of begins with gazing but certainly doesn't stop there.

Anyway, Claire here's a little poem.

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,

When the road you're trudging seems all up hill,

When the funds are low and the debts are high

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,

And many a failure turns about

When he might have won had he stuck it out;

Don't give up though the pace seems slow--

You may succeed with another blow,

Success is failure turned inside out--

The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,

And you never can tell how close you are,

It may be near when it seems so far;

So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--

It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

[sologuitarist61]

It is a bit of a worrying problem going out at night

with a scope.I went over Beachy Head with my

4" refractor & had a lot of cars slowing down to

see what i was doing.I was on my own,and at 63

it does get a bit nervy at times.Never seen a sky

like that before, so it was worth it.

Steve.

I would guess you wouldn't want it too dark up there Steve - one step in the wrong direction and it is a long way down. Used to go up there when I was a kid and we used to sit on the edge of the cliff and look over - scares me to death now just thinking about it!!

[steve_bham]

I'm sure it will get better where abouts are you?

[claire1985]

Ay, the advice here has been spot on. Try to see if there is any local astro club about and arrange with your family that on that given night a month you'll be out a wee bit. I'm sure everyone will understand and try to help. I'd also suggest that each week you try to save a little and see if you can get yourself something like this. I imagine with xmas around the corner, an upcoming birthday and a few bob saved each month, within time it will be possible to own. Binos are excellent for learning the night sky and while I lived in Madrid with a population of around 4 million folk who seemed to never go to sleep, it was the only thing I ever used.

Please don't pack this lark in, there is just so much to learn and it all doesn't have to do with stargazing. On bad nights you could read or swot up on astro-related things like star formations, supernova, structures of atoms and how elements and compunds are formed etc. I think astronomy kind of begins with gazing but certainly doesn't stop there.

Anyway, Claire here's a little poem.

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,

When the road you're trudging seems all up hill,

When the funds are low and the debts are high

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,

And many a failure turns about

When he might have won had he stuck it out;

Don't give up though the pace seems slow--

You may succeed with another blow,

Success is failure turned inside out--

The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,

And you never can tell how close you are,

It may be near when it seems so far;

So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--

It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

That's brilliant thank you!!

And I'm in oldbury. About 6 miles from brum city centre x

[steve_bham]

I'm not far I'm in west brom. So if we ever go over cosford your happy to tag along.

[laser_jock99]

Used to go up there when I was a kid and we used to sit on the edge of the cliff and look over......

I stood on the edge at Beachy Head once to see if it was possible to abseil down. Within about two minutes the police turned and tried to 'talk me out of it'. I think they thought I was a going to jump!

[LukeSkywatcher]

I stood on the edge at Beachy Head once to see if it was possible to abseil down. Within about two minutes the police turned and tried to 'talk me out of it'. I think they thought I was a going to jump!

In the absense of any actual absailing gear, they were probably right to assume you were a potential jumper.

[laser_jock99]

In the absense of any actual absailing gear, they were probably right to assume you were a potential jumper.

The cliffs there was higher than we thought, nasty crumbly rock too. Less than ideal.

[Indispensable Hobbes]

I just had another 10 mins outside, caught 2 meteors while scanning the skies. The amount of times I've stared up at the sky and seen nothing, in a few mins i see 2. Not sure whether it was due to the increased aperture or coincidence.

Saw a dot next to Jupiter and had a good look at Pleiades Give me a deck chair and a duvet though, my fingers are numb and I've got a crick in my neck.

[Chris]

Yet another vote for getting some bins, although you can probably guess this from my avatar:D I know how you feel, I lived in a flat for years infront of a major general hospital so loads of LP, wish I'd thought of getting some bins at the time, I would have probably got round to doing more hands on astronomy if I had:)

[KenG]

Hmmmm........well for me observing is only a small part of this hobby. I get a lot of pleasure/satisfaction out of researching what I might look at. To this end I use several different sets of charts and a lot of reading material so that when I do take my scope out, it's only the end point of a considerable accumulation of information. Approaching astronomy in this way means that the actual looking part is as easily fulfilled by a binocular as by a scope. You only need magnification for detail, so don't get downhearted. The wonder is in the knowing, not the seeing.