Ok, I admit it.
Advance planning is a good thing. Unfortunately, there are times when you have a semi-good idea, and the timing is terrible. Like
tonight.
What? A total solar eclipse is due to occur tomorrow morning at 05:30PDT, and will be webcast by exploratorium.edu. Jane, in her infinitely questionable wisdom, is throwing a party, at which the eclipse will be watched.
When? The party begins at 01:00 PDT, on June 21, but the eclipse itself does not begin until appx. 05:30 PDT. The eclipse is expected to last until 06:30 PDT, and the party may or may not drag on afterward, depending on how burnt we are.
Where? The online party will be held on #eclipse_party on irc.globaldominationsystem.net, the offline party will be at Jane's place in Albuquerque, NM. If you have time to get to the offline party, and you don't know how to get there, /msg me for directions.
Further updates will be made during and after the celebration.
The Aftermath
Well, it went just as badly as expected. There were routing problems (or something) between all four party guests and the exploratorium server. Fifteen minutes in, slide and I finally got video. Frater Shinma gave up on his attempts about five minutes to totality, and ran over to my place in a mad panic. X@nith was the least lucky. S/he couldn't get video at all, gave up, and went to bed. However, the madness was totally worth the trouble! The eclipse was stunning! I could not imagine a better way to watch an eclipse than with my little brother, and a geek three states away. I can hardly wait for the next one...