Today, we decided to spend the day in the stars, and we went
to the Burke Baker Planetarium at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. We watched a show on how the Egyptians used
the stars to navigate, build temples, plan the growing season, and tell
time. Unfortunately, we got to the first
show late, thanks to a detour to Bellaire Broiler Burger for lunch. But I think spending time eating the best
hamburger on the planet was definitely worth it. The flame-kissed patty grilled to perfection laid
out on a toasted bun, smothered in melted cheddar cheese and extra-crispy
bacon, loaded with flavor, the smell of which cooking will make you salivate
from the parking lot. It’s also
interesting to note that neither the restaurant décor nor the staff has changed
in the last twenty-some years. Anyway, I
digress…
As I said, we arrived to the show late and we had to be
escorted in by one of the staff. On the
one hand, we got VIP service, but on the other hand, we had to sit in the
crappy chairs that were apparently left vacant for a reason.
The next show was better, as we got there early and had our
choice of seats. The show was better as
well, as it pertained to Black Holes and the little that we actually know about
them. Which led to a lively debate on how
it can be a former star collapsed in on itself but be a hole with no substance
at the same time.
During one of the shows they told us that there would be a
quarter solar eclipse this evening.
Stupidly, I decided that I could capture this event on film, so I went
outside and tried to take a picture of it.
I’m not sure if my experiment was actually successful or not, because
I’m now blind from looking into the sun.
Apparently, three quarters of the sun is still enough to make you see
spots for the rest of the night. Thank
goodness for the typing classes in high school, or I wouldn’t have been able to
do this entry today (I knew you were wondering…).
We did make a detour through the museum late in the day,
mostly because it was free after 3 p.m. (Yes, I’m a cheapskate). They had a very impressive dinosaur exhibit,
recently redone. I think my favorite was
Slothzilla, the ginormous ancestor of the modern-day sloth; although, the
building-size Pterodactyl skeleton was also pretty impressive. The exhibit is definitely worth going to see
in its own right.
That’s all I can manage tonight, and now I’m going to rest
my eyes.
