iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

I bought a bass guitar missing ...well, all the electronics. Seemed like a fun project. So far so good - pickup, pots/cap make it sound pretty nice. Need to work on the neck a bit and fret 2 on the low "E" strong either needs glue, or filing, or both, because that string buzzes when low F played.

An electric bass guitar with no electronics or pickup / pick guard. There are strings on the guitar. Color is a deep green.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

When you're casually walking around your property with the wife and you stop to see what the grey thing is in a bush and realize IT'S A BAT! (We think it was a hoary bat.) That was the highlight of my day, people. It was a good highlight, to be clear.

What appears to be a hoary bat hanging upside down in a bush.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

We also have sneezeweed on our property, which is native (yay!). Oddly enough, it doesn't have pollen that naturally floats through the air to make you sneeze. However, if you actively collect the pollen, grind it up and snort it, it will make you sneeze (which is apparently how it got its name).

A photo of sneezeweed, a yellow flowered prairie plant.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Thanks! I was obviously excited to see it.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

We finally have big blue stem grass on our property! (It took 3 years to get that tall.)

A prairie space. The tall grass is big blue stem.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Thanks! Pool water was a comfortable 86F last night. 😁

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Got up to 94F (34C) today. That was a bit warm. A dip in the pool was refreshing. I'd like to take a moment to thank my wife for researching the pool, getting the pool installed and taking care of the pool (I do call it "her" pool).

Photo of a pool at night. A blue light shines in the pool, illuminating the water.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Yes. Include them. I am okay with this..

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

It's also spherical. I've been of the disposition that that alone should make it a planet.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Oh no....I'm sorry. If it makes you feel any better, I have had that happen to me in the past as well. I was lucky last night it was almost entirely clear.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Depends on who is making the statement. 🤪😁

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Also, the Earth very clearly is round, not flat.

A partial phase of the lunar eclipse showing the curved nature of Earth casting it's very clearly curved (round) shadow on the lunar surface.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

This image shows the un-shadowed part of the Moon, as the lunar eclipse was not a full one.

The 4% or so of the Moon that was not covered by the Earth's shadow, a small crescent sliver of light.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Maximum eclipse this evening. As long as compression doesn't squash them out of existence, at least three stars are visible in this image. The Moon did not look quite this red, but I boosted the brightness slightly so the southern portion could be seen better in the image.

A lunar eclipse showing the full Moon nearly in red, but the very top portion still in white where the Earth's shadow did not cover the lunar surface.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

I think the camera and telescope are ready for tomorrow night's lunar eclipse. Who else will be watching it?

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

So did airfare! I was shocked at how expensive it was a few days either side of our cruise, never mind the eclipse. Outside of that it was much less. Glad you enjoyed your trip!

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

We have wanted to go to Iceland for a while, so it seemed like a good fit at the time. We'll have to get there later though. I'm sure you'll have better weather off Portugal!

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

No. I mean, where we moved to late last year is more light polluted. But we have our property that is still Bortle 4. We opted not to go there last night because of the clouds (and wet grassy field due to all the rain).

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

I booked that cruise almost on a whim the moment it became available because I read an article with links to 7 cruises going there. That was in 2024. And then...*things happened in the world* and we made the VERY difficult decision to choose not to go. But we will visit Iceland someday.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

The image may be enhanced to show the stars better (and therefore the clouds as well).

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

A lot of clouds so not much chance for meteors tonight. But I did see the Summer Triangle.

The stars of the Summer Triangle surrounded by puffy white cumulus clouds.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

I am doing well, thanks! Busy with kids, grandkids and life in general. Hope to bring a telescope or two out this autumn as the nights get darker earlier. My wife and I had planned to be on a ship just west of Iceland for this eclipse, but cancelled due to "waves hands around in all directions".

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

I am guessing from the elevation above the horizon, you must have been more north than south or central. Lovely image!! I hope the entire experience was amazing for you!

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

Excellent!! Were you in Spain?

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

I knew there was potential for it to be bad, but even an hour before, the incoming storm didn't seem like it would do much. But it ramped up the closet it got. Still out of power at work. Glad your parents were well south of this!

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Well that was....not fun. 87 mph wind gust recorded about two miles away.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

Went to my first ever drum lesson today and .... the instructor wasn't there. He had a gig. In New York. (I'm in Illinois.)

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

That's always a bonus!! (I miss our pear trees now that we've moved...)

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

Ooh! Those are big ones. Looks delicious.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

A storm or three strolled through today.

An image of a lightning bolt above a house. There is a purple leaf tree in the foreground and two green leaf trees to the left and right of the image.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

I had never been to them before. I left a long and truthful review, and suggested other dealers I've used who have treated me far more respectfully. I will not be back to this one.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

Spent FOUR HOURS helping my daughter buy a car yesterday only to discover the dealer had fraudulently added $2,200 to the financing which my daughter CLEARLY had said "No" to, so I had to raise my voice at them and threaten to kill the deal before they updated the contract. So that was fun (not).

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

My lovely wife noticed a flower she didn't recognize on our prairie earlier this week. I took a photo and used Google Lens. Appears to be Rattlesnake Master, which would definitely be a first for our property.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

And a "war" for which Congress *still* hasn't voted.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

Is there a lot of spraying for mosquitoes and such?

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

Video is at about 1/2 speed.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

Gotta love seeing fireflies in the backyard. I could even make them light up by flipping my hand over my phone's flashlight and flashing at them.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

Our property is in an interesting spot. While I have seen deer relatively close - within 2 miles or so - they have never been on our property in the five years we've owned it. Coyote, rabbits, pheasant...yes. Deer? No.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

I really did think I had written "FOR the first time ever." Ah well. You know what I meant.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

Oh, there's always something new, for sure. These three just took their sweet time showing up.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

Restoring a bit of land to natural prairie is an exercise in immense patience. We planted a wide range of prairie seeds THREE YEARS AGO. Today, I finally saw FIRST THE FIRST TIME EVER on our property: Blazing star Yellow coneflower Purple coneflower (echinacea)

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

Ooh, yeah I agree with that. Ours has an AI chatbot that can't answer basic questions, nevermind advanced ones.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

I was so excited we finally have Black eyed Susan's growing in our little prairie space.

Black eyes Susan's in a prairie of grass.

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Reposted by Dave

Trailhead Jen @thjen.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

Two firsts: I'd never taken a truly satisfactory photo of a Hummingbird Clearwing Moth. Their unbelievably fast nectaring pattern has always made that challenging. But yesterday I did, for the first time, of the very first one I've documented on my property. #nature #moths #nativeplants #insects

A large-bodied moth hovers with its proboscis stuck into a light purple bloom of Bee Balm. The moth is olive green on the top half of its body, and a ruddy brown on the bottom.

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Dave @astronomydave.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

Two thoughts: Our electric company has been great as far as getting new service to our property. Our trash collection has been AWFUL at doing anything we have asked, except weirdly they still pick up our trash even without having paid them (we were told initially we didn't pay them directly).

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