01 20 00

eclipse

Today was...

...how can I put this politely...

...interesting.

The snow started last night around midnight and continued all night and into the morning. Rush hour was a mess. Schools were closed left and right. And still it came down, a great white blanket over everything.

And it came down. And it came down. And it came down.

Depending on whom you listen to, we got between 3-5 inches. Which usually wouldn't be a lot, except for the wind. Heavy gusts kept blowing the snow back over the plowed roads, doubling the plow drivers' work. Not to mention snarling traffic up nicely.

Don't get me wrong! I love snow. I think it's beautiful and fun to play in and, yes, even entertaining to drive in. But snow wreaks havoc with transit schedules.

I went to work today and walked into a madhouse. Almost every route was running behind, and there were numerous cold-related mechanical problems. An Alberta clipper (a fast moving low-pressure system brining heavy precipitation, moving down from Canada) hit this area hard today. The temperature dropped from around freezing this morning to -3 degrees Fahrenheit (that's -20 degrees Fahrenheit (or -29 degrees Celsius).

I'll spare you the details of the day. It revolved around futile attempts to get routes back on schedule. As soon as we had one route squared away, another one would call in with a panicked cry for help.

After everything had calmed down and most of the routes were in for the evening, I settled in alone to do my nightly data entry. Just as I was starting, my supervisor called me and told me that the MR/DD workshop was closed tomorrow. So I spent the next hour and a half canceling rides, marking the cancels on the schedules and dispatching everything in the computer.

It sucked.

I went outside around 10pm to lock up the garage, and I noticed that the snow had stopped. Not only that, but the sky had cleared. The eclipse! I looked skyward...

And saw the Moon was being nibbled away by a shadow on its left side.

I stood outside and watched for far longer than I should have. When I went back into the office, my nose was white and numb. But I could see the eclipse! I rushed through the rest of my inside work and went back outside to watch.

The sky grew darker and darker with every passing moment as the Earth's shadow slid over the Moon's surface. When the last driver came in, we spent a moment looking at the Moon. I positively glowed - I was going to be able to see the eclipse.

I drove home, and in those ten minutes it clouded over again. Argh! Damn! It's not fair!

There are two sections to a lunar eclipse. The Earth's shadow has two "sorts" of shadow: the penumbra and the darker, central umbra. I had only seen the Moon enter the penumbra. Totality would take place in the much darker umbra. That is what I wanted to see.

So I went inside to warm up, said "hi" to Dave, and went back outside.

In between the clouds, I could see the darkened face of the Moon. I imagined how ancient people must have been terrified of eclipses, seeing the Sun or the Moon eaten away by a dark shadow, only to reappear a while later. Did they make sacrifices to their gods, asking for the shadow to be taken away? In this civilized age, we know what causes it and can even predict them. But has the magic been lost?

I don't think so.

The Moon played hide and seek around the heavy clouds that were rolling in, but I could still catch a glimpse here and there. The Moon's surface was a dark autumn brown. I watched until my toes began to freeze, and the Moon disappeared under the clouds permanently.

And I noticed it was snowing.

Again.

Looking Up

______ of the Day

Spinning

Go Somewhere