Dumping Grounds

I am now the proud owner of a Meade ETX-125AT telescope.

Needless to say, we’ve been stuck under complete cloud cover since I have owned it. (Oh, c’mon, what am I complaining about? I got it last night)

The first night of set up is supposed to happen indoors, under lights, anyway.

This is so unlike me, but I documented the process as I put it together. I restrained myself from actually photographing the unopened box, I mean, really… my geekiness DOES have it’s limits.

The first step was to set up the tripod, and to do the whole process slowly enough that Delaney did not get excited. (Yep, I did this with her in the room and unrestrained… do I trust my dog or what?)

Here’s the tripod, which really didn’t require much assembly, other than putting a spreader between the legs (hush your dirty mind) to provide additional stability

The next step was to actually mount this beast (what is it with you and your evil thoughts?) on top of the tripod, and make sure it was stable. This, too, went as planned.

Hey, that was quick, and it actually looks like a telescope.

I noticed, at this point, the â??Idiot Label.â? Read it and see if you do not agree.

This telescope has a motorized mount (which means it will follow things in the sky as the Earth turns) and a computerized handset (which I don’t know how often I will use, I’ll likely just hook it to my laptop, but you never know…) which provides GOTO features. This basically means that once I have it aligned to a few â??pointer starsâ? I can tell the handset â??GOTO Jupiter now, and follow it for a whileâ? and, well, it does just that. This feature may seem like cheating (I know it does to me) but I bet it will be extremely handy nonetheless.

In the interest of completeness, here’s the batteries that would make the telescope do neat things… if it was not cloudy, and if they had been charged up.

A few close up shots… including the polar brace (which tilts the mounting plate of the tripod to allow for Polar alignment) and some important looking, but completely meaningless markings on the side. I have already found a modification for the polar brace to make it more sturdy, which I may do in the near future. It seems strong enough, but it does appear… well… slip-prone.

Before putting it away, I did align the viewfinder (a wide angle monocular to make it easier to find things) to the rest of the scope… an adjustment that I am not supposed to have to do often… we shall see.

It is important to note, that throughout this entire process, Delaney took â??I don’t give a shitâ? to a whole new level. She was not nearly as impressed as I was.

I have ordered a camera that mounts in the eyepiece (OK, it came with the thing for free) but they were out of stock, and I may not get that for a couple of weeks. That’ll probably do me some good, as I can spend some time actually looking, and just experiencing how cool the stars are, before I start stressing out about taking that perfect picture. I will have plenty of time to stress about photography later.

For the most part, anyone who reads this I know in real life (although I did get some non-spam, rather personal comments last week that my blacklist kept from making it to the site… those were most likely by no one I knew), so given that I know you all… if anyone would like to come out sometime and check out some planets or stars, you are hereby invited. The only thing I have looked at so far was the opposite wall of my living room (while aligning the viewfinder), but I have been given the impression that Jupiter and Saturn in particular are VERY recognizable with this scope… the rings of Saturn (and even the Cassini Division) and the bands of color on Jupiter clearly visible. We’ll see, and I will report back, assuming the clouds ever go away.

So, about a week ago, I am at my client’s office (who shall remain nameless, to prevent any embarrassment to anyone) and I leave my temporary cube for a moment to use the restroom.

I enter the aforementioned facility, and something strikes me as, well, just not quite right. I look around for a moment, and I realize what it is… there are no urinals. It’s all stalls, from wall to wall. I am a bit surprised that something this subtle is so striking, but it is. The whole room feels very uncomfortable.

I take care of my business (and I will spare you the details, it was nothing unusual, I assure you) and on the way out of the room, I am stopped dead in my tracks with sheer terror.

There is a tampon dispenser on the wall.

The blood rushes to my head as I realize I must have gone into the wrong bathroom, and while common sense would tell you to get out as soon as possible, I can hardly move. How could I have been so dumb, and what will the client think if they see me walking out of the women’s restroom?

I manage to get outside, and there it is… â??Menâ?

If anyone had been around, the giant question mark over my head must have been visible. Why on earth would anyone convert a women’s restroom to a men’s restroom (as it obviously had been… there was a women’s restroom right next to it) and leave the tampon dispenser in place?!?!?! I mean, does this mean that they bought a second one to put in the new women’s restroom, and no one considered the idea that maybe the men didn’t need one? And… did the women have urinals?

I came to the conclusion that it must have been a practical joke, but I watched several long time employees enter the appropriate restroom without a second glance. I am certain that there was a story there to be told, but I just didn’t have the heart to ask.

Sometimes, the surreal is just plain funny.

Bonnie Tyler would be proud

The only thing that would make this better is midgets.

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If you find yourself in the same boat, this is a pretty cool new site.

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