Posts Made By: George Tiedeman

We all know how easy it is to loose black eyepiece and finderscope caps in the dark. I bought a package of self-adhesive reinforcement rings (they're designed to keep loose-leaf pages from tearing free of binder rings)at an office supply store. I stick one to the inside and one to the outside of each cap so they are easier to find in the dark either with the naked eye (preferred) or with a flashlight (be mindful of others' night vision with any white light).

I have a 12" Hardin dob and an Celestron NexStar 11 GPS with all the bells and whistles. When I come home tired from a long work day and my location is blessed with "Planetarium Skies," I'll pull out the dob. It's on a large garden cart with pneumatic tires. I let it cool down while I have dinner, then hit the highlights for an hour or two. Quick to break out and quick to put away.
If I don't have to get up early for work the following day, i.e., a weekend or holiday, then out comes the celestron for hours of observing and imaging. I was out to 4 AM this morning (Sunday) with it.
I almost sold the dob when I acquired the Celestron, and I am SO glad now that I didn't. A handy dob is second only to a pair of good binoculars when you need a quick hit of nature's glory but can't afford the time to set up and break down the serious stuff. GO FOR IT!
(as last night

If you're ever in the DC area, check out Company 7 near Laurel, MD. Lots of heavy duty high-quality stuff on the floor.

I agree with Jenna - buy a decent used 9.25 to 12" SCT by Celestron or Meade. $1.5K to $2.5K will do nicely. However, KEEP THE DOB. You won't sell it for a whole lot anyway. I started with the 12" DSH then bought a gently used 11" Celstron GPS SCT. When I get home tired from work but want a quick astro fix before hitting the rack, I pull the dob out of the garage (it's on a garden cart), let it cool down while I have dinner, and observe for an hour or two. On "planetarium skies" weekends, when time is no object, I use the SCT for four or five hours and do some astrophotography. Even then, I often pull out the dob, too, so I can share the heavenly wonders with more neighbors. (Bonus: sharing with neighbors educated them and now they automatically turn off their exterior lights when they see a scope in my driveway or on the lawn - how very nice!)
George

In cold weather, hot coffee with real cream and almonds. In hot weather, iced tea with lemon, and almonds. Love almonds, obviously!
I am diabetic, so I have to stay away from the sugary stuff. I use artificial sweetener in the beverages.
George Tiedeman

Forget the budget - tell the wife I suggest a 30" R-C with a top-of-the line CCD camera. Be sure to treat the lad well so he'll let you have some time on it...
George T'man

I have a 12" dob that I keep on a garden cart. When I need a quick astrofix after a hard day's work, I wheel it out when I get home and by the time dinner is over I'm ready to go. It is my most used scope
For more serious observing I use an 11" Celestron NexStar GPS.
Am putting together a 100ED on a GEM mount for when I travel.
George T'man

Depends a great deal on whether or not you were able to rectify the loose parts issue you brought up two days ago!
George T'man

There are many ideas/opinions/mythologies among humans about what constitues "god." To many, it is a humanlike being who thinks and communicates much as humans do, albeit on a higher level, and has the ability to temporarily suspend or override the laws of physics, locally or globally, at will. For some reason this popular manifestation often is considered to express a special affection for (or domination of) the affairs of man, even though our entire Milky Way Galaxy is but a miniscule portion of the observed universe. Others ascribe animal or geologic characteristics to their gods. All too many believers exhibit a common egomania, however - that their interpretation is the only true and correct one and this gives them strength and power over the rest of us, even to the point of murder and enslavement (physically and/or mentally). It also imbues them with imagined "secret knowledge" by which the unknown and unknowable become revealed to them, soothing their fears. As for Hawking, Einstein inter alios "believing" in god, that is a fiction the believers propogate to make their own mythologies seem more rooted in science. What most scientists do have is an awe and respect for the grandure of the universe, and a willingness to be open minded by admitting that there may be forces and processes they neither understand or apprehend. The "god of the gaps" believers immediately use this admission to force their certainties on the rest of us.