I hopefully assume that Mark is kidding about leaving amateur astronomy, but I'm not really sure. We all need hobby activities to help us unwind from our jobs and family responsibilities, but amateur astronomy observing is much more demanding and frustrating than most because of the dependence on the weather. I like to think of amateur astronomy observing as a meta-hobby. That's a hobby that is so frustrating that you need other hobbies to help you occasionally unwind from it. This time of year the weather is so wet that you can only observe waterfowl. Earlier in February there is the Snow Geese migration in Delta. Last month there was the Swans passing through Bear River Refuge. And soon you can pic up on birds nesting within 50 feet of the road in Farmington and Willard Bay. Some astronomy equipment can crossover into the bird hobby. 10x50 binoculars with wide angle and center focus are excellent for birding. But 20x80's on a tripod or even just your elbows propped on the hood of your car can get you up close to foxes, pronghorns, eagles, and hawks. And of course there is the photography of wildlife and sunsets and other landscape features. I keep running into people at sunset out at Saltair. Some are there for the sunset but many are also trying to pick up the evening comet.. And every one of them shows up out there for the lunar and solar eclipses. The point is, you don't need to stay home just because of the weather. You can go out in the rain and sit in your car with your camera and binoculars and have a grand time for very little gasoline. DT