Eclipse 2017... we made it. We survived!
No alien plants that eat humans were left behind - right? #littleshopofhorrorreference
Did you enjoy it wherever you were at?
I never did find me those super hard to find eclipse glasses.
Let me rephrase... I never really looked until like hours before the actual eclipse. #slacker
I dont know why I didnt put some effort in it....
Let me tell you, I'm already putting an order in for my glasses on Amazon for 2024.... especially because its coming right through Indiana!! YAHOO!!!! Ricky & I already said we were going to go to that.
After talking with Julie, who lives in Nashville & experienced the full totality of it, & what she experienced, I want to see the same thing.
What it looked like in Nashville |
& seeing all the live feeds online & when it actually went completely dark? I want to witness all that firsthand.
By the way, how awesome is it we can watch live feeds of the whole thing on a computer, a tablet, the palm of your hand with your phone. Times, they have changed. & while sometimes it seems like its not for the good, technology is pretty awesome. Gotta give that one to passage of time.
Anyways, I ran out to lunch & came back & the eclipse was starting... it was getting that strange color in the sky... that "sun setting" feel but with a gray touch. Like all the color has been stripped but the sun is still shining. It's just so strange. It's almost what I imagine color blind people see. One of the news guys on the online feeds called it a "Funky Sunset" & said to get that trending. #funkysunsetforthewin
& no one in our office had a pair of the eclipse glasses. DANG IT.
I saw pictures of people with their whole office sporting a pair. Our office just must be full of slackers. I dont feel so alone. I guess I'm with my people.
Luckily, one of my buddies had send me an email that she was doing the pin-hole trick in paper. I asked her how to do it - especially since I looked online & the only thing you can find are those box projectors .... & side note, they ALL recommended cereal boxes..... I literally just gagged typing that word. They need to come up with some other options for boxes next time.
So Elizabeth gave me my instructions & I grabbed some big envelopes & punched a hole in it ... & it actually worked. I kept the sun to my back & got to watch a itty bitty, teeny weeny eclipse happening on the paper.
the tiniest eclipse ever |
A totally difference picture from the one above, huh?
& we didnt get as much darkness as I expected - & we were at 96% coverage so I think I may have expected a little more - but it was still cool to be a part of.
You could FEEL a difference in the air - stillness.... you could feel the temperature change. As soon as it was over, you could feel the heat come back in like a furnace blowing on you. It was just crazy....
After it passed through our area, I finished up work with the live feeds on my computer & watched the final one go through South Carolina before the moons shadow "drops off the edge of the earth" as they said it....
& it went out so beautifully...
They asked a lady what she thought of it & she said, "I just never expected it to feel so emotional over it".... & I could totally understand that.
It really is overwhelming to think of the mightiness that we all got to witness for just a passing few minutes.
While it looks so small on my piece of paper, & may not seem real by looking at live feeds on a screen, it really made me stop & think....
Because you see, just the day before, I was doing my Bible Study & in it, was referenced the "Creation Story"... the beginning of the world.... when God created everything, including the Sun & the Moon.
& you think how long ago God spoke into being these things.... & how they all still turn & rotate... & bring such mystery & beauty & amazement to us in moments like this.
Things we take for granted on most days.
I mean, we dont have parties every day for the sun... & we love good moonlight evenings, but we dont drive for miles or make reservations years ahead to go see it.
But when we see God's amazing works come together... we stop.
We watch.
We are in complete awe.
Reminding us how powerful God is to create these things...
& while we feel so small in all of this, compared to the massive creations of the sun & moon, we too are God's creation
.... & I thought of how nice it was to just see good news for a day.
No news of politics, no news of war, no news of terrorism, no news of hatred....if for a few hours...
& seeing stadiums of people of all kinds together just sitting & watching this event.... people camping out together to have fun & celebrate.... kindness.... friendship... civility... a brotherly love. All to watch this amazing thing of these mighty creations coming together in a moment.
Reminds me that when ALL of God's creation comes together, big things can happen.
& if God's people continue to get together & share brotherly love, can you imagine all the awe that can hold?
Can it make people stop & stare in wonder?... actually, I think it can.
... & we dont have to wait till 2024 either to see it ;)
For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth
Colossians 1:16
we are totally going to go to indiana in 2024 as well. better book a hotel now ;) jk. a guy at my work brought in a bunch of glasses, thank goodness. it was really, really cool! KC joined us at my work as his county closed schools for the day and all of my coworkers were asking him questions because he's a big science nerd and loved explaining it. i was just like ssh, let me look at the pretty thing! ha. very cool!
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize people where actually making reservations to stay places or gathering in stadiums to see it. It honestly didn't look like a big deal here. It was just overcast and cloudy, and yes I did look without special glasses and i'm not blind (yet). But really, it was just clouds so I didn't think that was harmful. I did watch the Nasa live feed from SC and even text my friend to see if it got dark there and she said it was dark enough for the street lights to come one. It did for sure get super hot here afterwards though.
ReplyDeleteYay! I'm glad it worked for you! :) I saw some people wearing welding helmets, some looking through the c-boxes, some with larger paper boxes on their head, strangers sharing their glasses with random folks ... and all that just so the moon could photobomb the sun for a minute or two. ;) God's works are mighty and good!
ReplyDeleteSide note - just checked the calendar for 2024 and April 8 is another Monday. If total eclipses are what it takes to get through Mondays, we should have more of them!
Loved this post, Rebecca Jo, and yes! I stood in complete awe of our creator yesterday!
ReplyDeleteGoing back to read the whole post but I'm letting you know I read the title too fast and I thought it said did you feet smell during the eclipse lol okay I'll go back to reading the post
ReplyDeleteI never did get glasses either. Luckily, a few people in my building had some and were willing to share with those of us who didn't. We watched it in our parking lot, and it was cool to see everyone from other buildings on our street out in their parking lots and sidewalks hanging out to watch it too. We had a hotel in Cleveland TN to watch it, but we decided the traffic and all that wasn't worth it with Zoe. I am glad I got to see it outside, but was a little underwhelmed because I thought it was going to get a little darker than it did. We had 94% here. I did hear the nighttime bugs chirping though, and saw the crescents all over the ground. That was freaking cool!
ReplyDeletemy hubs got glasses at his work (they gave them out!) and they all stood outside watching. we only got 75% coverage but he said it was really cool to watch.
ReplyDeleteI watched the eclipse on CNN for Wyoming and it was sooooo cool. LA didn't experience much (I never bothered with glasses either) that was noticeable to the naked eye (no, I did not look at the sun!) and ours happened fairly early when it was also partly cloudy. Boo!
ReplyDeleteI am continually amazed by God's works and yesterday was definitely one of those. My sister took a trip to Georgia to be in the path of totality. Thankfully I was able to score a pair of glasses yesterday morning because boy did you need them. I don't know what I was expecting yesterday, and I know we were pretty far out from it happening, but I guess I thought it would get a little darker than it was. It was still an amazing experience to witness and now I am set for 2024 with my glasses.
ReplyDeleteBeautifully Candid
I think I was too far north to see much, but I experienced the dim lighting (despite the sun) and my dogs started acting a little strangely! I should've tried the paper trick. I'll be more prepared for 2024.
ReplyDeleteI, too, thought it was nice how our country came together for a bit to admire the sun. It was a unique and bonding experience. I'm glad it happened :) God is good.
It was really a non-event here. Cloudy and it just got a little more overcast. Missed it, but am enjoying all the amazing photos!
ReplyDeleteThe live NASA feeds were AMAZING.
ReplyDeleteWe were only at 80% or so here but it was still pretty cool to see! Our office had glasses they were handing out, which was nice. After seeing videos from friends that were in the area of the full eclipse, I think I'm really going to try to do that for 2024. It sounds amazing!
ReplyDeleteTalk about the wonder and awe of God that it put into me and how I do take for granted these MASSIVE lights in the sky that God brings up every single day and night. I am so amazed at how often I make the evil doings of men so much bigger in my mind than the God of the Universe who created it all and who is bringing all things under Jesus' feet.
ReplyDeleteWe were in the path, not the "totality" part, but a few hours south. So not too bad. However, good ol' kansas, it was brewing a storm for later that night... so it was SO cloudy. Couldn't see a thing. But it WAS magical. The darkness, the stillness, the birds knew, the cats knew. It was really cool. I think it will be neat to make a bigger deal out of the 2024 one too. :) XO - Alexandra
ReplyDeleteSimply Alexandra: My Favorite Things
I thought about that same thing, how God's creation, for one day, brought us all together for one common goal. He is amazing!!
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