A New Chapter Begins

So Eagleseye Observatory is no more.

The dome was taken away on Wednesday and will be re-sited in a friends house.
The day it was removed ended with clear dark skies and followed again last night as well.
But with no observatory, I just couldn’t take advantage of them.

However, much as I am slightly saddened to see my beloved observatory go, I’m not going to shed too many tears over it.

This week marks a whole new chapter in our lives. We are currently trying to move house.
When we do eventually move, I have made the decision not to take the dome with me.
But, as you can probably guess, I’m not giving up astronomy.
Once we get settled, the new garden will eventually sport a nice new shed that has a roll-off roof.

As well as being an observatory, the extra length and extra corners will give me a lot more space to “work” in. It will become a multi-functional Man Shed. I’ll be able to tinker away in there to my hearts content (Sue allowing! 😉 to indulge in all my other various hobbies.
So that’s the plan.

As well as the dome going, it was a very traumatic week. Our main switch failing at work on Tuesday lead to a very frantic, stressful and extremely long day (and night) trying to get everything back up and running again. What happened to that gradual slow-down I was expecting on my last week at work? Hey Ho!

“Last Week At Work?”. Well, Yes, you really did hear that correctly. This move is a downsize. It releases some equity and (just about) enables me to leave work at the relatively young age of 56.

This will enable Sue and I to spend a lot more quality time together. Last year we saw too many of our friends taken away from us and denied any other opportunities. So, towards the tail end of last year we grabbed the nettles firmly by the balls, and made the decision to “just gone for it”. It will also enable me to concentrate more on the astronomy side of things, doing a bit more writing, presentations and public outreach. From what I hear from other retired people, I may wonder how I ever had time for a job.

So there we are. A new and exciting chapter in our lives dawns. There are going to be some really busy, but very rewarding times ahead as we make preparations to make our “new” home ours. So watch this space.

In the meantime, enjoy the video of the dismantling of the dome.

Dave (Retired, but certainly not out).