I got in to the airport in Denver with no problems and no random editor sightings. I was on a plane with fellow attendee Paul Witcover and didn’t see him until we met up with the rest of the group. It’s a two-hour drive from Denver to Laramie and we talked pretty much non-stop on the way here. Conversations ranged from Alaskan survivalism to writing tics to prairie dogs. We are going to have a fun week.

When we got out at the restaurant to have dinner the sun had dipped below the horizon, but the sky still held some residual light. Even so, even standing under a parking lot light, the stars were so much more present here than in NYC. Now, I’ll grant that part of my amazement at seeing them might be due to having finished Spin on the way here. If you’ve read it, you’ll know what I mean.

What it reminded me of most was the time I went to London from Iceland during the height of the summer. I got on the Tube and when I came up it was dark outside and there was a moon. It had stopped doing that in Iceland and so darkness felt strangely magical.

Seeing the stars was a little like that. I’d forgotten that I had gotten used to not seeing them. And that’s not even with a telescope. As I said, this will be a fun week.

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I’m heading for Laramie, WY today for LaunchPad Astronomy workshop. Mike Brotherton has posted our schedule.

Here’s what’s happening on day one. You can pop by his site to see what the rest of the week holds for me.

Thursday, July 31

9:30 AM Coffee, Juice, Continental Breakfast
10:00 AM Welcome and introductory remarks from the instructors (MB, JV, JO), Astronomy pre-test and pre-workshop questionnaire, Lecture/discussion: Scales of the Universe (Brotherton)
12:30 PM Lunch
1:30 PM Activity/Discussion: Seasons and Lunar Phases, Public Misconceptions (Verley)
3:45 PM Afternoon break/snacks
4:00 PM Lecture/Discussion: Solar System Tour (Oltion)
6:00 PM Dinner break
8:00 PM Bad Astronomy Movie Night (Armageddon tentatively scheduled)

Um… pre-workshop questionnaire? Yoicks!