Steak Deburgo + M81 & M82 / Plantains Fosters = perfection in decadence2.
Posted by admin | Filed under Food, Messier Catalog
This last weekend was a great one. Mandy went to Des Moines to help her mom pack for a big move north and I had a visit from a good friend. We had planned to make our annual Iowa Spring favorite. Steak DeBurgo with Morels. Another passion of mine is hunting morel mushrooms every spring. They pop for about two to three weeks every year. Much like Deep Space Objects (hmmm.. DFOs? Deep Forest Objects) they are a blast to hunt down and are very rewarding when found. Steak DeBurgo is a famous Des Moines dish made by taking filet mignon and cooking/simmering it in butter and an assortment of italian spices. Topped with Morels and fresh asparagus, this is a dish that is hard to beat. The epitome of decadence and savory excess in one meal.
I am lucky that my visitor is just as curious as I am about the things that make life possible in the universe. I am aware of how annoying it can be for someone to be rambling on about an interest that is alien to everyone else. He was excited to see what the scope could do which in turn made me more excited about breaking it out. We finished our meals and got the Z8 set up. We were flighting clouds a little but things were beginning to break up so that was encouraging.
When the clouds finally broke we ran through the eyepieces looking at Saturn from lowest to highest magnification. First a broad 30mm view, then a barlowed 30mm, then 12.5 then barlowed 12.5 and finally the 9mm and barlowed 9mm. All views were amazing. He had no words except. “Oh..WOW..oh….my…WOW”. It was great. There are no good words for these views except “oh” and “wow”. It’s really fun to observe these objects but almost as fun to show them to someone else who has never had access to a decent telescope. I look forward to memorizing the location of many of the most accessible objects so I can provide a little “tour” of the night skies.
We decided we needed to warm up a bit (35 degrees in may! yikes.) and have a few more drinks and libations before we moved the scope to the backyard in order to hunt down some deep space gems. Once situated and after consulting StarMap Pro on the Ipod Touch we decided that M81 would be a good target. After a few minutes of hunting M81’s stellar neighborhood I was scanning around with the 30mm Wide Field and **BOOYA!!!** two galaxies M81 & M82 in the same field of view!! Wonderful!! I adjusted the focus a little and let my friend take a look. Guess what? “WOW!!”. I couldn’t agree more. Being a novice I expected to find one faint galaxy so you can imagine my delight when two popped in to the same field of view.
Below is a similar image to that shown through my telescope, although not quite as bright.
We observed these objects for a little while experimenting with different magnifications until we were cold and packed the scope up for the night.
All of this skywatching made us a little hungry again for something cooked in butter. I knew I had Plantains, Brown Sugar, Butter, and Ice Cream, and Dark Rum. I rattled off these ingredient and before I knew it my friend was making us some late night Plantains Fosters.
We almost caught the house on fire but got things under control in time to enjoy our desert.
Post Galactic Plantains Fosters by Jared.
One thing that I have learned that is crucial is organization. It’s so important when fumbling around in the dark with expensive eyepieces. I think I misplace an eyepiece cover every time I go out. I found an old camera lens case that is lined with foam for keeping my eyepieces safe and organized. I also picked up a cheap red light headlamp at walmart so I can see what I am doing in the dark. I expect to be learning a lot of these lessons during each session. This is important stuff to a back yard astronomer. We want to spend our precious time looking up at the sky, not on all fours on the ground looking for lost or misplaced equipment. Hopefully things go smoother as I gain experience. But yes, organization is key.
