I think my dob is cursed!

[Astronut]

...or I am

I was driving my truck westbound over the M62 Pennines earlier this evening after a few drops in Yorkshire and the sky was crystal clear. I could see Jupiter and Venus off to the left and thought seeing as how I was going home tonight I'd get the dob out for an hour or so before having an early night and leave the binos in the truck.

When I got home the seeing looked excellent from my backyard and I put the 'scope out for an hour while I had a bath. Got myself ready and no sooner had I put an eyepiece in, the clouds rolled in. There were still a few gaps so I thought I'd scan Auriga. Swung the dob round and focused and the view filled with cloud and urban skyglow. Looked up and the clouds were even thicker and it looked like it could rain but thankfully it didn't. I waited about 20 minutes and gave up in disgust. It's like banging your head against a brick wall, isn't it?

I'm off to South Wales tomorrow and I'll have my big binos with me. Maybe I'll have better luck tomorrow. I may even end up at a dark site in Pembrokeshire if it turns into a 2 day run but the cloud gods will probably be watching me with an evil grin - damn them, damn them all to hell :crybaby:

[ChrisEdu]

Moral of the story - don't waste time taking baths, get observing straight away!