Saturday SCRABBLE at Starbucks

Saturday SCRABBLE at Starbucks
Originally uploaded by achmorrison.

No bingos tonight. A. wins 342-257.

0629072116.jpg

0629072116.jpg
Originally uploaded by achmorrison.

After getting my butt kicked twice in a row, I came back in style tonight. I had two bingos tonight: "angrily" and "attains"; both of which were natural bingos R. had a bingo, too:"goiters". She chose to hold the tiles for a few rounds until I opened a spot for her. Final score: 420-279.



Also, I finally figured out how to moblog with a photo from my new phone.

I'm finally starting to recover from the incredible Cubs win tonight against the Rockies. This is the sort of thing that Cubs fans are not used to seeing.

Tonight I also heard the first fireworks going off in the neighborhood. I really wish that the fireworks nutjobs would set them off between 10 pm and 11pm, instead of between 11:30 pm and 2:30 am. It makes it hard for those of us who keep the windows open to stay asleep. I suppose I should be glad that this is the first I've heard the fireworks. Last year it seemed like they started much earlier in Summer.

"...into center...it's going to drop down! Jones is in! Here comes Koyie Hill! CUBS WIN!!!"

I've watched that probably 20 times tonight. Still love it!

I went out to the Sugar Grove Observatory to do some impromptu observing with one of the TCAA members tonight (last night, it's now early morning) and met a nice couple who were out to see the ISS pass by at about 10:00pm. We waited and chatted, and right on schedule the ISS rose in the NW over the trees. But, what was amazing was that Atlantis had undocked and was about 10-15 degrees away from the ISS, trailing it. The transit across the sky took a minute or so, but it was enough time for me to call R. and let her know to go out and look at it. She pointed out that without the trailing shuttle she might not have been able to recognize the ISS in the midst of the O'Hare/Midway traffic, except that perhaps you could tell that the ISS and the shuttle did not have blinking lights on them. It was really neat to watch them disappear into the shadow of the Earth before they appeared to set. Really cool!

Visible Pass Details

My research students and I got together for the first time this summer in the lab for a very productive first day. The UIUC group is clearing out of the optics lab (and more importantly off of the optics table) for the summer, meaning we have the whole table to ourselves! We cleaned up the corner and started rearranging equipment. After a solid afternoon of working, the students had the instrumentation and PC arranged on the other side of the optics table (away from the wall) and the optical elements rearranged on the table. Fingers crossed, we should have a working speckle pattern interferometer by tomorrow if all goes well.