The moon was rising over the the house, a bright glow forming through the spruce trees. A candelabra burns orange to my left like of something from the set of Dark Shadows. A string of tea lights glows along the fence while Kim prowls the darkness with her camera and a flashlight making images that would never occur to me.
Between the branches of a weeping willow I can see stars. Or maybe they’re planets or galaxies, their light generated long ago, perhaps millions of years ago and just now arriving.
It’s noisy. Tires drone on the freeway a few hundred yards away. The sound of crickets and katydids swell the night air, punctuated by the occasional yells of kids playing in the dark, a plane passing overhead, a dog barking in the distance.
I had to go for a ride, if only for a little while, just to live under the full moon and stand beneath the infinite. It seemed important to acknowledge the short time I have here. To look at the moon.
And howl.
When was the last time I howled?
When was the last time you howled?
I was out trying to catch a shot of the full moon as well Steve, but failed miserably. I was also to late to catch it during moonrise when it was seemingly larger and golden yellow. sigh.
Photographing the moon is tough — especially if you want it to appear large in the photo. You need a really long lens to do that. I have a 300mm lens on a full frame camera and that wasn’t enough. So I have to live with the little round bulb of a moon in my photos. There’s always photoshop…
this was the best I could do, of course, the moon was behind the clouds….
https://goo.gl/photos/rRuecZLHCagFxu7x7
That’s a great shot. I would be happy to have made that.
A super moon is something to howl at. It was pretty overcast here and disappointing.
I only did some soft howling.
I have ridden my little BWS 50 cc the last few nights before going to bed. I it seems important to also acknowledge the time we have here and not waste it. These nights have been some of my favorite rides. That being said I’m going to take the Honda interceptor in search of beautiful fluffy pancakes this morning. OwwWoooo!
Little night rides, rides without much traffic and no need to travel fast, they’re great. Reading your comments I realize I’ve not had any pancakes in a long, long time…
As I rode into work at 3:30 this morning I noticed how bright it was, my headlight beam was almost unnoticeable. I appreciate a full moon every now and then. It makes it easier to spot obstructions and adds visibility to my surroundings. The moonlight makes riding more peaceful.
I can remember riding in the winter with the ground covered in snow and a full moon overhead — no need for headlights at all. Very strange and peaceful as you say.
Where is this? Those things on the left look like guns on a ship but you’re definitely not out on the water.
Pretty dark thoughts…
Those are the 16 inch guns from the USS Pennsylvania. They’re on display at the Military Museum here. No water bodies large enough for a battleship nearby.
Nice little narrative, Steve. It reads like a foreshadower of Halloween.
“I too am not a bit tamed, I too am untranslatable, I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world.” From Song of Myself by Walt Whitman