Birthday Lunch

 We had a very pleasant evening meal at "Rubix" with Brett and Cathy a while ago so we thought we would try their lunch options.  Turns out to be an excellent lunch spot as well.

Birthday Bash

On Sunday, Adam and Kate hosted a family lunch/dinner to mark my crossing into the Land of the Slippery Slope.  I ate way too much slow cooked (24 hour) brisket with some good wine.  On a warm lazy afternoon and with everyone providing food, there was no excuse to be hungry.

Another Clear Night!

 With nice clear sky last night I tried for the Helix Nebula.  It is so faint as to be virtually invisible in Melbourne but I got a good image with the new scope.  This is a planetary nebula about 650 light years away formed as the central (dying) star throws off material into the space around it.  The outer ring started about 12000 years ago and the inner ring about 6000 years ago.

Finally - A Clear Evening!!

Buying a new telescope seemed to set the weather against me - it has been nearly two weeks without a clear night but last night we had a few clear hours.  So I had another go at the Lagoon nebula (M8).

Father's Day

 It was great to have a visit from the family today on the occasion of Father's Day.  We had to have a photo of Team Pappy.

Basketball at Forest Hill

 The Forest Hill Shopping Centre has occupied some of the less used parking space with a new Basketball stadium.  We have been a few times now and the venue is always busy.

Cooper played there yesterday in a very close game.

My New Bestie

 I have been using the S30 Pro smart telescope for a while and was looking forward to the new S50 Pro that was released a few days ago.  I ordered it and (unbelievably) was able to collect it today.  It gives a narrower field of view and higher resolution. Of course, the weather for the next week is rubbish so testing may be delayed.

Adam's Birthday - The Final Chapter

 As a finale to Adam's birthday, we had a restaurant dinner with the family at "2Elements" in Ringwood.  Good food and setting made for a great night.  (The low lighting meant the best results were with monochrome.)

For afters, Sophie conducted a walking tour of the darkened corridors of Eastland to get us to "Yo-chi" for frozen yoghurt.

Adam's Birthday

We experimented with a new arrangement for the family gathering for Adam's birthday.  The only difference was that the main course was Pizza.  This arrangement seemed to work well and will probably be used again.

Tough Times

 I think I want to be a medical student when I grow up. Patrick and Eloise on another tough day, this one at the Med Ball!