I went outside at 5 a.m. and saw the 3/4 moon looming high overhead. Not prepared for this (having focused only on the Sun today), I grabbed my old, classic, trusty Celestron 90, threw a Minolta X-370 on its butt, set it on a tripod and snapped some photos. The photography gear is pictured above. Since this is a film camera, I'll have to wait to see if the photos came out. Because it is heavy and non-balanced, camera shake is extreme and the pictures would likely be blurry. In anticipation of that, I used a bulb setting and covered the aperture with some dark foam, removing it briefly to expose the image before returning it to the front and releasing the bulb. We'll see. Now, just to watch more election results and wait to see what happens later in the day.

TIME: Noonish
It might seem odd, but because our property is so densely forested, the only way I can get a clear shot of the sun is to set up out in the woods, far from the house, and shoot through small openings in the trees. It's quite frustrating, that it is. But not so frustrating as the dense cloud cover today. I don't know if I'll get my shot, or not. Here, I have the telescope automatically tracking Mercury across the face of the Sun. We'll see if I can get a shot.

Because I expect it to rain at any moment, I have a tarp ready to cover the telescope as there's no way I could get it over 80 yards of forest and into the house in time. Here also is a look at what I'm seeing. Mercury is out there somewhere. Just as it always has been, come rain or come shine.

TIME: 12:55 p.m.
Wow! I saw it!!! The clouds parted briefly and I peered through the eyepiece. There was little Mercury, about the size of a pea, inside the sharply-defined border of the Sun! It was a magnificent sight. About 20 seconds later, the Sun was once again obscured by clouds. NOW I know what Pink Floyd was singing about in that song... Meanwhile, I'll sit and play with fir needles and watch the squirrels while I wait for the clouds to part again. And that's not to mention waiting for my camera to arrive. I will tell you one thing: expresscameras.com is NOT express. Never got a tracking number, and when I called to inquire, I was told it would "be here midweek." And it sounded like the operator had better things to do. Well, they won't have to deal with me anymore - once the camera arrives, that is. I ordered the battery grip from Amazon.com four days after ordering the Canon EOS 20D, and that came two days ago. I keep it on my side of the bed. :)

TIME: 1:25 p.m.
My wife text'd me to say that it is sprinkling up near Harrison Hospital in Bremerton, roughly 15 miles north of here. I went out immediately and shrink-wrapped the solar filter at the business end of my LX90 to protect it should it start sprinkling here. I can handle a little sprinkle without breaking out the tarp, but judging by the looks of things in the firmament, this day is likely over. I think I have one more hour before the Sun moves out of my shuttered viewing window through the trees so I'll continue to keep my fingers crossed. Meanwhile, I come in to enjoy the early photos posted to the LX-90 Yahoo group.

TIME: 2:00 p.m.
All I can figure, the gods must hate me today. It started raining at a pretty good clip so I hurriedly disassembled the telescope and lugged it back to the house with all the gear. Made it just in time as the rain really picked up. As I was tightening the telescope to the base, I noticed the room getting brighter and walked outside in time to see the rain stop and the Sun peer through the trees in the front yard! By this point, there's no where on my property that I can see it anyway - but if it does clear, I may be able to lug the scope down the street on a dolly and still have a chance. Not likely, however. That sounds too much like work. Sometimes a man just has to accept that after a month's worth of preparation, a wasted vacation day from work and more than enough frustration with a camera vendor and with the television news weatherman - a beer at the end of the day is just the ticket. Think I'll go get mine punched. ;)

TIME: 2:42 p.m.
Okay, now I'm really convinced that I have irritated the great gods. Or someone. It's still cloudy, my camera has not arrived, the telescope is inside, the Democrats control the House and my cat is cranky. Looking for some solace, I figured that I would take the film out of the Minolta and run it up to Rite Aid. "If I got some great pictures of the moon," I thought, "that would salvage some of this day and my wife wouldn't think I was such a fool for hunkering down in the forest with a telescope, dodging rain, etc. etc. in the hopes of catching a glimpse of the sun in Port Orchard, Washington on a cloudy day." Yes, some good pictures from my morning moon-shot would be just the thing to make me sleep better tonight.

However, when I went to rewind the 35mm film, the crank spun too easily - and I realized, with horror, that THERE WAS NO FILM IN THE CAMERA! So not only did I waste my early morning hours by shooting blanks at the moon, I would not have captured Mercury even if the sun had blazed right down on me! I'm so used to digital cameras and so far removed from film cameras now that I neglected to check the indicator to make sure there was film in the camera. Boy, do I feel stupid now. I think I'll go in the room and have a good pout and see what I can learn from this experience.

I still hold onto the hope that my new camera will arrive today, but the way things have gone, it was probably delivered to the wrong address several days ago.