Don’t stop me if you’ve heard this before. For years the Cordova Flying Saucer provided refuge from the ravages of family time at Christmas. The same huddled masses would converge at 5pm for a nice dinner, beverages, and camaraderie. But no more. Thanks, Ft Worth.

It took 2 days and 4 carriers to see the aurora in Norway last winter. A brutal commute, but the Northern Lights tour company made it unforgettable. Tonight’s excursion was easier but the pictures were less impressive. Still, I stopped whining about the lack of photo ops in TN for a few hours.

And thank you Europe for joining in. I live in Tennessee, a bastion for white-boy supremacy and black churches that are highly flammable after dark. The No Kings rally gave me hope that there may be more of us than there are of them.

I took a day off from staring at the atmosphere and joined people who are worried about what ’26 will bring. We lined a major intersection in east Memphis for a party to celebrate what this country was before the last election.

This was a first for me. Managed to be in the right place to photograph hailstones illuminated by the sun as they descend.

Only recently learned this was a real thing. Dark humor, cynicism, satire and snark are my fuels but I didn’t foresee this. Behold, the Memphis Tattoo. Not sure if you can remove this one if you have the option but drop by the Med for a consult. In the meantime, keep low.

I used to be able to focus at night. This shot is over a decade old. When I complain about whatever to my doctor he just smirks and tells me I'm getting old. Can't possibly be true.

Botched the focus since AF fails in low light and my analog eyes are just as bad. Still, a potent and unfortunately carnivorous storm in Monette, Arkansas the other night.

Now that you’ve wordled, a quiz: one of these images is a photo of Jupiter, just reaching opposition to the Sun, taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. The other shows my first rectosigmoid polyp, during full moon, hardware unknown. Can you tell which is which? Good luck.

We toured Norway with The Northern Lights Company to see the aurora last month. Chris guided us to beautiful foregrounds to accompany the lights. During daylight we fed reindeer, visited Norway’s space center, and watched eagles pluck fish from a fjord, close up. The tour was perfect.

We went to Norway to see the aurora. The Northern Lights Co provided a flawless tour. More later. 4 airlines beat us senseless in both directions. The last put us up in a hotel near Heathrow. I sensed a chance to consume a Guinness in Europe. I’ve been told the US version is inferior. This is true.

I have several pictures like this one. The Cordova Flying Saucer opened at 5pm on Christmas. Not anymore. The same crowd waited, dressed as they were the previous year. The damage from excruciating family time revealed in lifeless eyes. The Saucer was their last hope. They’re really screwed now.

I appreciate Zappa’s world-view more than his music, though Joe’s Garage is a favorite. People mistake Maga-ism for libertarianism, which is actually a thing. He eviscerated moral panics that arose from the printing press, radio, television, rock and roll, video games, and TikTok.

I should have expected this. Mom had her unique focus on things. The first time I visited my parents' grave was months after she passed. The ground was too cold to bury her ashes. So I finally took a mental health day from the atmosphere in the spring. I was startled by "side b" of the marker.

This is my first weather photo with a "real" camera, 50 years ago. Crepuscular rays overspread the Oklahoma prairie from a benign storm on the Texas border. It might have created small hailstones.

We hear thunder. My wife streaks outside to scoop leaves from the gutters. Lightning bolt impacts pale against plant damage from water run-off. This is because she has never been struck. It would reflect poorly on me as a meteorologist if something happened to her. Now she has to sign a release.