Crashing the Capulet Party

Throughout 2011, you’ll see my blog posts on the Capulet blog from time to time. That’s because Darren and Julie have invited me to work with them on several projects and I’m thrilled to be crashing their party, so-to-speak. In fact, the party metaphor works nicely as an introduction to my interests.
Like any party guest worth their invite, I would try to keep my half of the conversation as bizarre interesting as possible and listen carefully to what you have to say. With that in mind, I might steer the conversation toward the topic of redheads, West Highland Terriers, and satellites.  These are universal interests, no? Brace yourself. I’m the party guest who will show you pictures of her terrier named Toby, explain how redheads are likely not to be extinct by the year 2060, and take you outside to show you how to identify* a military satellite and compare it to a telecommunications satellite.

Any moving point of light traveling on a laser-straight path in the night sky from North to South is likely a military satellite. Likewise, if it’s traveling east to west, there’s a good chance it’s a commercial or telecommunications satellite. If it’s traveling west to east, you’re delusional and should promptly step inside for another drink. Satellites never travel west to east.

At this point, if you haven’t already excused yourself from our conversation in search of more boring sophisticated party banter, I would encourage you to download Starwalk, the iPhone and Blackberry app that points out the constellations when you hold your phone up to the night sky.

Now, the true test will be whether Darren and Julie can appreciate my yen for space junk, westies and redhead chromosomes. They certainly show plenty of potential.

*A fabulous book called “Secrets of the Night Sky” by Bob Berman taught me everything I now about satellites. I highly recommend it – it’s an excellent read.