Harvest Moon - Victoria County, Texas

The moon was beautiful but the mosquitoes were more than plentiful.  

 

Checking my compass trying to decide where this thing was going to come up, I stood just off the road across from a small pond waiting for 8:09 pm to arrive when this moon would appear.

Just before the rise, it began to become much darker and I could hear a swarm of mosquitoes approaching with a whine like a loose fan belt on an old truck.  As the moon rose, I found myself 25 yards or so too far to the north so I scurried through the weeds trying to get this shot with the windmill in it.  When I stopped moving and began to focus those blasted insects finally caught up with me.

Sure I'd love to have taken a bit more time setting the camera just right on the tripod but I found it nearly impossible to do so swatting those things off my legs. *Note* It's foolish to go into the weeds wearing only shorts and sandals.

Anyway, a day later, I'm still scratching what is probably a hundred or more bites.

Venus Transit 2012

Venus transit.  Venus' path crossed the sun today.  It won't happen again for another 115 years.
Here are some shots taken here in Alamogordo.

 

I don't know if the locals were really concerned or just suspicious but I had a guy in a pick-up truck stop and ask me what I was doing.  He seemed satisfied with the answer about Venus and the Sun and moved on.  Just as I was leaving a deputy sheriff was coming down the road too but made no attempt to stop me.  

 

If you notice on this blown up version, Venus is that tiny dark spot located approximately at the 3:00 O'clock level in the sun.

 You know, in the grand scheme of things, we aren't all that big are we?