Saturday 17 October 2020

Jack's confession


The last post drifted toward astronomy and reminded me of this 12 inch Dobsonian reflector which I bought from the maker in Mid-Wales some years ago.

He was a down-to-earth Lancastrian and he could immediately tell that I was making the classical mistake that all amateur star-gazers are prone to do, and that is buying something too big to practically use from a top floor flat in the middle of town, but he wanted to sell me a 'scope.

It was the biggest telescope I could find which I could (then) just about carry upstairs and downstairs on my own. It ended up as a very imposing conversation piece, and I constantly had to correct everyones' unspoken suspicion that I must suffer from a haunting sense of inadequacy, either psychological or physical. I may do, but A: that is none of your business, and B: in the telescope world, size matters a great deal.

Telescopes are not rated according to their magnification power. The most important feature of a celestial telescope is its power of resolution. The bigger the mirror or lens, the more light it gathers, and light is data. This 12 inch mirror could distinguish between two drawing pins placed one inch apart from a distance of over a mile. That is resolution. In the digital world, images are measured in pixels. If you want to project an image clearly on the side of a bus, you need a very powerful camera in terms of pixels. Ok, I think I have explained myself enough for you to put away those unworthy thoughts so I can get on with the rest of this post.

About 15 years ago I realised that Mr Toad and I have a lot in common. Since I was a young boy I have tried out obsessions on all manner of things, never becoming an expert in any of them. For the last 30 years I have been very attracted to fly-fishing, or at least the idea of it. I have bought all the kit - flies, rods, landing nets, vintage game bags, etc - but have only actually fished once. 

I spent a few years obsessing over vintage and antique shotguns, shooting 6 or 700 cartridges out on a farm once a week in all weathers. I inherited tweeds from a dear old (and large) friend who was a true countryman, not just a Toad like me and my gun-owning playmates.

I have come to understand that it is the accoutrements of these activities that I am really interested in, not the activities themselves. I prefer the tools of the trade to the trade itself.

There has been one exception to this, but only due to necessity. I began my proper career by being obsessed with all the tools used in the shaping of stone which have remained unchanged for hundreds, if not thousands of years. I have a vast collection of them which I have never considered selling, because I cannot sell them without losing my income. But, unlike the old days, if I can do something quicker by using a power tool, I will.  

Like Toad, I soon tire of the games and sell the toys before moving on to the next one. In my mind I see it as ticking-off as many fun things to do as I can before I finally tire of the Great Game and move on for good.

Lately I have been wondering what the next obsession is going to be, but have come to the conclusion that I have run out of enthusiasm. I am going inward now. Winter is coming and, as with all the seasons, I am looking forward to it.

22 comments:

  1. One thing l've always lacked in my life
    is Patience..my daughter always says to me..
    Dad..the 'P' word..the 'P' word..I'm afraid
    l want things done yesterday..
    I don't read books, the ones with pages and
    pages of words on them..NO! Reference books,
    yes, with pictures..there o.k. Never read
    Dickens, Shakespeare, Stephenson, etc...
    I just wait for the films to come out..Terrible
    thing really, but, there it is..! :(.

    Mind you..years ago, l had a friend, lived at the
    top of town, and still does, very talented guy,
    with his hands etc..He built two large telescopes,
    mounted and enclosed in his garden, skylights, the
    works..so, l've looked through one many times, and
    with his knowledge of the stars etc..l learned a lot,
    and enjoyed a lot..Great fun, and with his wife bringing
    out regular cups of tea/coffee, it was most enjoyable! :).

    Guns! Oh! My! As a Sicilian..l'm not allowed to mention
    guns..HeHe! Seriously though, the results of guns, and
    the shooting there of..l'm up for, during the season l
    inherit a great deal of game, pheasants, partridge,
    rabbit, etc..I have duck for dinner tomorrow!
    I even have a separate freezer marked 'Road Kill Freezer'.
    I used to have a 4~10 in my late teens..but..never took to
    it, and sold it on..!
    So, l enjoy the results of the shoots, like fishing, l enjoy
    the results of the fish caught, but, sitting on a river bank
    hook in the water..NO! I don't think so..Patience..! :(.

    Yeah! Enjoyed this post Tom..Great..!
    Here's a Blog l follow..may interest you..Hugh Miles..
    TV man..Big fisherman..has had programs on most channels,
    lives not far from me..In Wimborne..! :o).

    https://hughmiles9.blogspot.com/

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    1. Just looked at Hugh Miles's post. I believe that he is quite keen on fishing...

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  2. I believe you have large feet as well !!!
    I went skiing once ..... liked the idea of it but much preferred the aprés ski 🤣 XXXX

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  3. Great post. Many of these things I'm happy simply to read about. Perhaps this should have been a comment on the last post but I'm just updating my knowledge of the solar system from its 1960s state and am currently in a condition of extreme bogglement. For example, the "sky crane" used to lower the Curiosity rover from the hovering descent module the last 20 meters down to the surface of Mars. I mean, bloody hell! But I suppose you bought one of those as well.

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    1. I used to read about it as well as buying the kit. I gave away dozens of astronomy magazines to charity shops. Some things - such as the exploits on Mars - you can only read about.

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  4. I notice candlesticks are not mentioned on your list of obsessions but I do seem to remember earlier on in our 'relationship' they featured heavily.

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    1. I did not mention the candlelit dinners for two to protect your privacy Weave.

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  5. A boy and his toys. Most men have toys, generally expensive toys. For me, I buy ornamental trees and shrubs for my garden spaces. That said, I did buy a telescope...It stands on a tripod in the loft overlooking the back of my property and it is rarely used.

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    1. I have a small telescope for spying on the neighbours, but since the neighbours' windows are about a mile away I don't see much. I stopped myself from becoming obsessed with watches, but if I had a garden I would probably buy trees and shrubs too.

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  6. I had a boyfriend who was mad on windsurfing which also necessitated an appropriate vehicle with which to drive the wretched things (2!!) hither and thither chasing wind. My 8" Dobsonian is living in a friend's garage as we sold the holiday house which enabled it to be used - city living not being conducive to sky watching here - but in truth it was seldom used as the best nights were cold nights and I could barely last ten minutes. But it was a birthday present and I'm loathe to sell it. Ditto getting rid of the many glossy mags devoted to astronomy. How else can I prove I once had a Hobby?

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    1. Yes, the best time for astronomy is the freezing cold winter months. So you have an 8 incher? I think that if I got another one it would be fitted with a tracker - they are so cheap these days. I knew someone who had a tracking scope and one night he set it to follow the Space Station. He was watching the sky in general one night when a little warning buzzer went off and the telescope suddenly swung to the horizon and bashed him in the eye.

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  7. Why do I think you sold that unit some time back, to make more room in the front room. Or else you moved it out back. Or something like that.

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    1. Yes, it took up a lot of space which H.I. began to resent quite badly.

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  8. Replies
    1. There are laws about watching women through telescopes.

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  9. Still having unworthy thoughts of you in tweeds.

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    1. Apparently they suited me but gave the wrong impression. I was once looking at a large telescope in a shop window when a female friend came up and said, "A little wanting in the trouser department are we?"

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  10. Having obsessions is fun, well perhaps not stamp-collecting. For years I loved making miniature furniture but as you so rightly say it was the tools that were fascinating.

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    1. I had a millionaire friend who collected stamps. He made even more money from them. I also have a friend who collects doll's house stuff. I can see the attraction but I think it is more a female thing. I have a female cousin who collects dolls. She came here to a fair in a hotel and bought another one - for £30,000. That is what I call an obsession.

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  11. I've never understood 'collections'. I was recently at a sale where they had a cast iron fry pan for $525.00. It was fascinating to see all the collectors who had come to examine it. I never knew that cast iron pot collecting was a 'thing'. So I watched this unfolding with great interest, and did not understand it at all. I have two cast iron skillets which, by my reckoning is one more than I actually need. And you don't need to ask me why I have more key wound clocks than any one person needs, and why from that sale, I dragged home a beautiful drop leaf table that I surely didn't need. PS: Someone bought that skillet.

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    1. All my cast iron skillets were made in Taiwan. The one you were looking at was probably used by Colonel Sanders's campaign cook.

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