(source: pixabay)
I saw my neighbor outside last night with her dog, so I walked over to say hi. Her dog is a Corgi named Ferris (after Ferris Bueller), but he is also named after the scientific term for Iron (Fe), because Ferris is a little bit reddish (and my neighbor is a Chemist). Ferris is more behaved now, though he still barks when he sees me, but we are becoming better friends as time goes by. I tossed the ball to him probably two dozen times, so let’s see if that will make a difference. Actually, he may still bark like mad when he sees me, but he did let me pet him. My neighbor was happy to see that, since she lost another pet dog, two pet cats, and other people close to her in the past couple of years, and Ferris doesn’t let many people pet him. I think tossing the ball so many times did the trick (I used one of those chuck-it ball launchers, otherwise, eww… though honestly, I wouldn’t mind having a dog.)
My leisurely stroll to say hi turned into an hour-long chat. Finally, the moon was rising in the sky, and my neighbor pointed out it was a “strawberry moon”. I had not heard that phrase before. Was the moon reddish or pinkish? Well, if I stared at it long and hard enough, was it a bit pinkish? Nah, not really.
I looked up the term after I got home. The name came from the Algonquin Indians to signify the right time to pick strawberries. Indeed, where I live, it is just about strawberry picking season. Actually, it will be another 12-14 days before the berries are ready, according to the website of the local fruit farm where I usually go.
I’m looking forward to going there again this year to pick strawberries. It will be strange not to have my daughter along, though. I’m still getting used to the fact she’s moved into an apartment in the city where she attends college. It feels odd, though I know it’s normal, good, right…. still, it’s not easy.
Last night was not only the “strawberry moon”, but I learned it was also the “mini moon” or “micro moon”, because it will be farther from the Earth than any other full moon this year. It is the opposite of the “supermoon”.
It must be the week of sky-gazing for me. A few days ago, a friend who moved away happened to be in town, and we ended up at another mutual friend’s home (plans made sort of at the last minute). This mutual friend happens to have a huge telescope, which they pulled out, and we were able to see Jupiter, its rings, and its four moons. Pretty cool! I had never looked through a telescope that large, and the only Jupiter I had seen was what looks like a bright, steady star in the night sky with just my eyes, or in photographs.
This friend also had some pellet guns and targets set up in the basement (along with an entire collection of taxidermic animals on display). I haven’t fired any sort of gun since I was a kid. My father took my brother, sister and me to the shooting range a few times, where I learned how to shoot a rifle, but I hadn’t tried it in years.
When I was asked if I would like to try, I did not hesitate to say yes. Keeping the pellet gun held in a steady position was the hardest part. I spent a “long time” (according to my friends) trying to hold the gun still while looking through the scope, and I did not realize I was being recorded! Haha.The first time I pulled the trigger, the safety was still on- so nothing happened! The safety was clicked off, and then I had to start all over again repositioning the gun. It was so quiet as my friends were watching, and eventually, someone started laughing. I was concentrating; I was really trying hard not to have a stray bullet hit their wall! I guess they trusted me (and my other friend and her daughters) in asking if we wanted to try it out. I really wanted to hit that target as close to the bullseye as possible.
You know what? You won’t believe this. My first shot in over 30 years ended up right in the bullseye! The evidence is below. Do you see the large target circle on the right, in the picture below, with 3 yellow bullet holes near the bullseye? Mine is the one that HIT the bullseye on the lower left of the red circle. Ha! No, I am not making this up.
Of course, I had to take a picture of it.
Better not mess with me. I can shoot a (pellet) gun and hit a target.
It wasn’t even a full moon that day.
(And, by the time this gets posted, it will be June 9 already… and the strawberry moon will be over for this year.)
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