Low ebb?

6/29/2026. What the hell's with me? It's been weeks since I've gotten out under the stars. There's a still-to-be-really-setup Wave 100i and Mele 4C sitting right over there. OK, on June 17, I did get out for a daylight Venus occultation and an appulse that evening using the R6 and 400mm on a full-manual rig --some nice photos, but not really worth expending the bandwidth just now. Mostly I've been messing about with the boat (prepping it, not rowing it, not yet). It feels like it's just been one thing after another, though I suspect I am simply at low ebb. In an effort to bring the tide back in, I've ordered a hand controller for the Wave 100i, the better to put that mount to work without all the computer-controlling, application-syncing, bluetoothing, remote accessing wifi-ing falderol. These bright skies and my fast glass will let me do quite a bit with unguided 30-second subframes. I can get the solar kit running again, too. My appetite (and my tolerance) for frustration just gets less and less, so I aim to reset through simplification. I can recomplexify step by step (or not at all), but at least I can get out under the sky again.

7/09/2026. Another week, another Starlink launch. I got by on short sleep for this SpaceX Falcon 9 which launched about 45 minutes ahead of the Sun. That's a little too late for a great jellyfish up here where we view them in profile but not too late for some fun. Click to admire at scale.

Canon R6, 105mm F1.4, 1/80s x 65, ISO 6400.

Canon R6, 105mm F1.4, 1/200s x 54, ISO 6400.

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