Did y’all know Luther Vandross passed away this weekend?
I’m sure he’ll reap a pleasant afterlife, seein’ as how his music (along with that of the late Barry White and the still groovin’ Rev. Al Green) is responsible for the conception of *very* large numbers of children. Also, for anyone not properly acquainted with Luther’s music, feel free to give some of his stuff a listen from my iTunes library.
Well, my suspicions were confirmed last night by my landlord and his wife: their rabbit, Bonkers, probably the most sociable bunny I ever met, passed away earlier this week after struggling with a fairly serious illness. He had been sent home from the vet last weekend, since he showed remarkable signs of improvement, but it seems that things eventually caught up with the little guy.
Vaya con Dios, mi furry amigo…
Received confirmation that indeed, the equipment at the 1.3m is crappy, and it’s not just me. I’ve now been spoiled by how nice and clear the guide camera at the 2.4m was. The “cosmic rays” I thought i’d been seeing on the guide camera previously at the 1.3 are actually errant ions in the photo tubes. Makes watching the guide camera feel like a bad acid trip.
The mice are indeed alive and kickin’ (though likely not for long). Maybe someone will find the courage to crawl under the desks and replace the foam blocking their access points. If not, we resort to Chris’s eco-friendly yet efficient trap: take a wire hanger and straighten it, punch a hole in the bottom of a coke can, stick the wire through the top and bottom so the can spins freely, coat it with peanut butter, suspend over trash can with a nice layer of water in the bottom. we originally didn’t use water when testing it out last june, but once they figured out how to balance on the can, and were able to jump back out of the trash can, we figured they were too smart to live.
And, wonder of wonders, there’s also wireless at the 1.3. slowly but surely this place is crawling, inch by inch, out of the “dark ages” of astronomy. i must say, though, i like the digs at the 2.4 much better. the room i’m in now feels rather akin to prison. except i have walls around my toilet and no bars on the window. it’s very drab and dark. only 3 more nights!
