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Árbol del Sol
Thought for the Month The SunTree Traveler
When I arrived at our event spot in Elephant Butte, I was surprised to find everybody sitting inside talking. It was a beautiful day to be outside, but everybody complained about the wind. I got into my SunTree uniform and went outside and, indeed it was breezy. Not a high wind, but when the temperature is in the 50’s it does not take much of a breeze to make it very uncomfortable and I understood the complaints. I parked myself in a chair in the sun over near the RV warehouse and found that the wind was nicely blocked there. After sitting there for awhile, others soon joined me, including one who fell into a deep sleep causing him to become the play-toy of an energetic dachshund. In the end the dachshund ended up taking a nap on top of the sleeping giant. As is usual for all of our events, this one did not have a lack of excellent food. As is usual for this particular event, there was a gift exchange and since the gifts recipients are chosen by lottery, many were not exactly appropriate for the individual who received them. I personally was very pleased with my gift.
Post-Holidays Event This will be a potluck event, so be sure to give SunTree a call to let us know that you will be there and what you plan to bring for the potluck meal. The event normally is on a Saturday with many staying over to continue eating at breakfast the next day. If you want to do this, you should indicate that you will need a sleeping place for Saturday evening. February Ski Event
All is Not Lost. Our Planets are Returning to the Night Sky Evening Sky: Venus kicks off an exciting year as it begins its starring role as an evening "star" low in the west after sunset. The crescent Moon will assume its position indicator duties by moving close to Venus low in the western twilight, half an hour after sunset on 20 Jan. Saturn will rise about 7:30 in the evening around the middle of the month. By 9, it will be wonderfully bright taking up the late evening duties as auxillary evening star (night "star" perhaps). I normally only concern this newsletter with naked eye viewing, but this month, I would like to throw in one view that is particularly nice, but you need some binoculars (don't go out and buy any expensive ones, the ones that you have molding in the trunk of your car will do, but clean them up a little). People talk about the spectacular view of Saturn's rings or the craters of the Moon, but normally give no notice to the Pleiades. Some people call this star group "the seven sisters" but there are far more stars there than just the bright stars. The five brightest stars are arranged into a "dipper" configuration. This dipper, however has some dimmer stars lined in a curve along and below the "handle of the dipper" and has a nice twinkly group sitting in the cup of the dipper. Morning Sky: Does this sound exciting? Then look at this month's events calendar. Unfortunately the SunTree event scheduler decided to cram a full moon in on the third. By the pre-dawn light in the eastern sky, the moon should be pretty high in the sky or maybe even toward the west somewhat, but it will still block out most of the meteors. That does not mean that if you are cruising eastward on a highway around 5:30 or earlier that morning that you should give up on this shower. There will still be a few brave souls giving their all to make it a successful meteor shower. Throughout the month, inconspicuous Mars and bright Jupiter join together as a performing duo to appear as morning stars in the east before dawn. Another note: That is why we think of January and February as our hottest months (or am I wrong again?)
© 2004 SunTree Travel Club - Site updated Summer 2008 |
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The “Between the Holidays” Event at Elephant Butte