Working cows and calves...

 Can you see the flies swarming above the cows' backs?

 Cows asking, "Where have our babies gone?"

We sorted them away for a short time

so we could give them their booster vaccinations

 and some insecticide.

 Calvies going into the barn to get their shots.

 We sorted the bulls out from the cows. 

 This bunch should be bred by now.

Counting calves out of the barn gate.

 

 Each morning this week we have been rising early to go get a bunch of cows and calves to work before the heat of the day. By the time we are done with a bunch it's really hot and sticky in the barn.  So many big bodies in one place makes it HOT and HUMID.  Our shirts and jeans are drenched.  This afternoon we hit 99* and the wind started blowing so it feels like a blow dryer out there.  I am so very thankful that I can go inside where it's cool and comfortable.  Since the temperatures are so extreme, it makes our atmosphere more volatile to thunderstorms.  A good shower would be wonderful about now, but dry lightning could be disastrous.  Hoping for rain or nothing.

Hey, did any of you sit out in the dark night and watch the meteor shower?  It was cloudy here on Wednesday, the best night, but last night (or should I say early this morning) at 2:00 I went out to my lawn chair, reclined it back, and star gazed.  I thoroughly enjoyed it. The sky was so clear and the stars were shining so brightly, I felt very small and insignificant.  And to think, The Creator of the stars thinks of you and me.  Amazing!

New moon, stars, and Lovejoy...

What is it about the wintertime sky that makes it so absolutely black and the stars so absolutely bright?  Of course, the moon, being new, keeps the night sky dark, but there's a crispness, a sharpness that makes the stars so very clear this time of year.  This is a very amateur photo of the night sky just at dusk where you are seeing Venus and the New Moon.  I was reminded by MK over at Through a Glass, Darkly that there is much to see in the sky right now.  Her husband, Adam, is conducting an  Astronomy class, and they, too, were observing the New Moon and Venus.  See it here.

So after enjoying a lovely gaze at the Moon and Venus, I ventured into the Eastern Sky to look for the comet, Lovejoy.   I had tried to see it back around January 7th when was supposed to be at its peak brightness, but I could not spot her then.  We were in-and-out of cloudy weather at that time so perhaps that was my trouble.  I went back to my favorite sky-gazing website, Sky & Telescope, to find out where Lovejoy should be found since it continues to move away.  S&T said it was between Pleiades and Aries.  First I looked in the Eastern sky for Orion's 3-star belt, then up from there I spotted Pleiades.  With bare eyes, Pleiades looks like a dusty web of stars way up above Orion, but with binoculars, the star collection is very clear.  Then I found Aries to the right of Pleiades.  Now.....somewhere in the middle of the two, there should be a fuzzy green ball of light that is Lovejoy.  We usually think of comets with long, bright tails, but with just a pair of binoculars, all I would see was a fuzzy green-gray ball and no tail.  Here is the link to tonight's viewing of Lovejoy in case you want to see the sky map.  Lo and behold!  I found it.  I found it several times to my great joy!

 

(From Sky & Telescope by Alan Dyer)

I was so excited, I had to share the fun by calling my parents in town.  They had been looking for Lovejoy these past weeks too.  OnlyDaughter and her two children were there for supper so they all went out on the deck to see the New Moon and Venus, and to try to spot Lovejoy.  I phoned the neighbor grandkids too and told them I'd come over to show them the stars and the comet.  All of our littles have learned to spot the moon -- day or night -- and they are turning into curious little sky watchers. (Do you know how that thrills my heart?)

Outdoors I went, tramping through the little bit of pasture that is between our houses and met the grands who were in their jammies and who were pulling on their coats, hats, mitts and boots to go out to look at the sky.   Their Mama, JLo, and the oldest, Peach, are very good students, trying hard to see each thing, but Toodles and Boy Blue just enjoyed running around in the darkness screaming and playing.  We found the constellations and JLo found the comet too.  I'm not sure if Peach did, but we did see another interesting thing.  A star, I think, that was flickering red, green, white.  At first I thought it was a plane, but it stayed stationary in the sky and was very bright, easy to see with bare eyes.  It was located near Orion. I looked for it on Sky & Telescope's "This Week's Sky at a Glance," and I think it must be  R. Geminorum (from Jan. 20th's posting).  It says, "R. Geminorum is a red long-period variable star."  That certainly described it.  So many, many things to see in our vast night sky.  I hope you are able to take a few moments of your evening to enjoy it.  So much to see!  So much beauty!

Gemini shines high in the east these evenings, off to the left of Orion. In Gemini's center lies R Geminorum, a red long-period variable star sporting the rare elements zirconium and technetium. R Gem is brightening toward a February maximum - See more at: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/weeks-sky-glance-january-16-24/#sthash.OIIyQHKO.dpuf

Venus at dusk...

This afternoon we said good bye to our youngest son who had been home for a much needed break after a full summer of college courses.  It was so good to have him home for a while, and he and I took evening walks most nights at dusk or later --dark-thirty.  As we walked and talked, we pointed out satellites flying by, constellations, the Milky Way and we noticed bright Venus in the southwestern horizon.  It's just beautiful to see Venus setting with a pinky-orange sky as her backdrop. 

We noticed the extra-bright milkiness of the Milky Way.  With a moonless night, the Milky Way is brighter now than usual.  I like how Akira Fujii describes it from one of my favorite sky-gazing sites, Sky & Telescope:

 

The Sagittarius Teapot and the surrounding rich Milky Way are highest in the south right after dark at this time of year. The brightest puff of the summer Milky Way seems to rise like steam from the Teapot's spout. All of the labeled objects here and many more are good binocular targets under a dark sky. Click the image for a larger view.

~Akira Fujii

Have you ever used binoculars to sky-gaze?  It's fun.  When the moon is in its various phases and not full, you can see so many craters and mountains with just a good pair of binoculars.  You can see the moons around Jupiter and get a close look at other planets when they are in view.  One October night when the kids were young, a friend brought her telescope out to the ranch.  She wanted practice using it and needed a sky with no street lights invading it.  We had such fun looking at the moon and planets and some of the brighter stars, and it was then that I found out that you could use a simple pair of binoculars to get a really good look at the night sky.  No need for expensive equipment.  Our family spent many nights looking through binoculars with arms anchored to the pick-up box to get a steady, close look at nearby planets, stars, a few comets, and the moon.  Check this link  and this one for articles on using binoculars for sky-gazing.  One of our most useful books for learning the constellations back in our homeschool days was H.A. Rey's book, Find the Constellations.   We also used the Sky & Telescope website a lot.  The "Sky at a Glance" link became a well-worn tool to guide us in our sky-watching.  I've just come upon this book:  A Child's Introduction to the Night Sky.  It looks like a book I may want to buy for the grandkids and for myself.  The book and a pair of binoculars would be a great family Christmas gift, I think.

Do you like to Sky-watch?

Psalm 19

1The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
² Day after day they pour forth speech;
    night after night they reveal knowledge.
³ They have no speech, they use no words;
    no sound is heard from them.
⁴ Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
    their words to the ends of the world.

The moon, Little Women, and twinkle lights...

 Full Moon taken at 7:30 pm MST

Have you been out to look at the moon tonight?  Oh, it's glorious as always, but tonight at our house there is a rainbow-type ring around it which usually means moisture is in the air or that it's coming soon.  We call it a "moon dog."  I'm not sure if it's a real term for this phenom, but I know that a sun dog is a true term for a ring around the sun.  What all of us will see near the moon tonight is the planet Jupiter and the bright star Aldebaran with faint Pleiades above.  I brought over this good picture from Sky & Telescope where I like to check out the things I see in the sky.  I love this site. 

 
I also like to read about the names of the full moons so here's what the Farmer's Almanac tells me:  "Full Beaver Moon – November This was the time to set beaver traps before the swamps froze, to ensure a supply of warm winter furs. Another interpretation suggests that the name Full Beaver Moon comes from the fact that the beavers are now actively preparing for winter. It is sometimes also referred to as the Frosty Moon."  We have beaver on the river where we lease some land.  It is absolutely fascinating to me how those big yellow beaver teeth can cut down great, old cottonwoods in a very little time.  They are quite destructive and it's sad to see such beautiful trees that took so long to grow destroyed.

Besides moon-gazing, I've been reading on my "Christmas Book," Little Women.  Oh, how I'm enjoying it!  Just take a listen to this part:

'What in the world are you going to do now, Jo?' asked Meg, one snowy afternoon, as her sister came  tramping through the hall, in rubber boots, old sack and hood, with a broom in one hand and a shovel in the other.

'Going out for exercise,' answered Jo, with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.

'I should think two long walks this morning would have been enough.  It's cold and dull out, and I advise you to stay, warm and dry, by the fire, as I do,' said Meg, with a shiver.

'Never take advice!  Can't keep still all day, and, not being a pussy-cat, I don't like to doze by the fire.  I like adventures, and I'm going to find some.'

Meg went back to toast her feet and read 'Ivanhoe;' and Jo began to dig paths with great energy.  The snow was light, and with her broom she soon swept a path all round the garden for Beth to walk in when the sun came out; and the invalid dolls needed air.

 Isn't that just fun reading?  I think so too.  I feel much like Jo a lot of the time.  As much as I enjoy a good book to read, I really can't sit still for very long before my hands get fidgety and my legs begin to ache for want of exercise or something to do -- mostly outdoors.  Are you more of an adventurer like Jo or a pussy-cat like Meg?  Or perhaps you are like Beth, taking care of her invalid baby dolls or Amy who is petted and spoilt by her older sisters.  Each girl has her noble qualities and each has her shortcomings, but    altogether they compliment each other and challenge one another to be better people, moving ever closer to that Palace Beautiful as told in their Pilgrim's Progress.
........................................

Ours is still the only house "on the block" which doesn't have it's Christmas lights strung  and lit.  Peach asked me why I didn't have my Christmas lights up, and I replied to her,  I had the porch light on, wasn't that good enough?  Bless her heart, she told me it was very nice, but it was not a Christmas light.  One thing Hubby and I did put up is The Star on the Barn.  Travelers-by will see it shining in the night, and I hope they think about that Star of Bethlehem.  The Littles love to go see it at dark.  It's a mile up the road to the barn so someone has to take them, just like you would in town when you want to go out driving up and down the streets to see the neighborhood Christmas lights.  Simple little things is what they love most.  Me too.  I hope your eyes light up with each strand of twinkle lights you hang and every candle you light.  You are making someone's holiday special when you do it. Every new day brings us a little closer to that Joyful Day.

In the Land of the Northern Lights...

In The Land Of The Northern Lights from Ole C. Salomonsen on Vimeo.
You might like to click on the link above for a larger view of The Lights.

This video is a real-time experience of thousands of still pictures and 6 months of work capturing the Northern Lights in Norway on camera. This is what it's like to actually experience the Northern Lights in motion. If you've never seen the Northern Lights *in real life*, this is your chance. Thank you Ole!

If you want to be updated on the next big display of the Northern Lights, keep watch over at Sky & Telescope.  You can also find updates on what you are seeing in the night sky by clicking their side link called This Week's Sky at a Glance.