Mama always told me not to look into the eyes of the sun….
But Mama …. that’s where the fun is….
If you don’t feel like going back in time for a whole seven minutes, you can advance the toggle to the 4:48 point and hear the famous lines that Mama told Manfred Mann.
With the total eclipse of the sun taking place tomorrow, Monday, August 21st, warnings have been everywhere about not looking at the sun, even if you think it feels okay. Those rays will still burn. “Your eyes blaze out” should just be a fun expression, not a medical emergency that becomes a permanent condition.
I’ve heard all about the special glasses you can buy – don’t be tempted just to use sunglasses. That won’t do the trick. You can also put a tiny hole in a piece of cardboard and watch the eclipse happening as a silhouette on the ground.
Somehow it doesn’t seem enough, but as tempting as it is, I won’t look into the sun to be blinded forever.
I read somewhere that even taking several short glances at the sun can result in temporary vision damage that can last for months.
I must thank my sister-in-law for the reminder to keep the pets inside! Dogs may be wondering what is going on and look at this phenomenon, even briefly.
I’m going to do the cardboard thing and/or watch it on TV.
It’s kind of a fun and exciting thing though, scientifically speaking. I look forward to not seeing this event. Ha ha.
PS I have to add a disclaimer. Not responsible if, like me, you get this song on the brain after you listen to it.
The phenomenon I’m looking forward to is the crescent shaped shadows that tree leaves provide. I saw this penomenon during an eclipse in the early 80s, and I still remember it. I think it’s ever so much cooler than even using glasses to look at the sun.
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What a great idea!! I clicked on the link in your comment. Wonderful idea. I hope to try it tomorrow.
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I’ve had my glasses for a couple of months. Now if the weather just cooperates! 🙂
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And I think you live right in the path of the total eclipse. That will be perfect! Of course the weather will co-operate. It HAS to!
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A little north of it, but close enough!
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I too worry about sun damage. I almost damaged my retina several years ago. The doctors used a laser to repair the sun damage…so lucky they caught it in time! I have “approved” solar eclipse glasses. Yet, I am nervous because I have read accounts of counterfeits being made that have the correct nomenclature…kind of scary. Ginny is definitely staying inside.
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Good point, Lori. I hadn’t even thought about how much faith we put in these products. If there’s a recall on those eclipse glasses it won’t do anyone any good. Glad you were able to get your eye damage fixed in time. Pretty scary!
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Yes, I was driving my little convertible home on a bright, sunny day. I rested on the couch for a few moments because I was seeing lights and other weird things. I called my eye doctor the next morning to make an appointment. I felt fine but just wanted to be sure. The receptionist ordered me to come in right away. I did and was whisked into surgery. I was so lucky! Speaking of faith in products…I have lost confidence in many products being sold as I read about companies cutting corners, using inferior products, etc. It’s all to increase the bottom line. A sad situation!
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Got to be so careful!
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Not to fool around with something like this.
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That’s for sure. I’m going to listen to Manfred Mann’s mama.
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We have two welding helmuts that we plan to use. The neighbours may think we are creatures out of the Star Wars series, but it will only be for a few minutes. 😀 The two cats will hopefully be in the middle of their morning naptime, but if not, they will be brought inside. Enjoy not watching this event, Anneli. 🙂
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For sure, I’ll be tempted to peek, but I won’t fry my eyes. Not worth it. The welding helmets are supposed to be okay. I still wouldn’t take too much of a chance and stare too long. Wish I could get a picture of those two aliens in your yard!
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If anyone’s interested, the American Astronomical Society has a listing of reputable vendors for eclipse glasses. https://eclipse.aas.org/resources/solar-filters
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Thanks for that, Pat.
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I’ll watch it on TV, the safe way! I never thought about dogs or animals being blinded, how sad. Our TV/cable channels are sure hyping this event up!
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I guess it depends on how desperate they are for news, but the good thing is that there’s more awareness about people (especially children or uninformed people) who need protection from doing something they’ll regret forever afterwards. In the old days there wasn’t the awareness and some unfortunates did harm their eyesight. I remember seeing a 1977 movie called Love at First Sight with Dan Aykroyd and Mary Ann McDonald. It was a “nice” movie (for want of a better description), but what stuck with me was that the Dan Aykroyd character said he went blind from looking at an eclipse.
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Since I’ll be at my day job, I’ll do my viewing on the computer. I worry about people who unknowingly purchased the counterfeit glasses.
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I don’t think it’s wise to put all one’s trust in these things. Better to be careful.
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What a great pairing with the tune and the event.
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I’ve been trying to get it out of my head, but there is so much repetition in the song that it has burned itself into my head. But I’m glad you liked the pairing. 😉
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Its best to watch it on tv!
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You’re right. It’s more boring but it’s much safer.
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Someone caught a photo of Trump squinting into the sun. Yikes. What can I say? I didn’t like looking at it. It felt peculiar. Luckily, my vision survived!
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Not worth it. I did a quick glance and it hurt so it didn’t last more than a millisecond.
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I couldn’t look through the glasses for very long. I felt like it still bothered my eyes.
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It’s pretty powerful light. Also, you have to have a lot of faith in the product to trust your eyes with these glasses.
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Glasses worked great! We were partly cloudy, but got to see most of it. A very special treat for me. 🙂
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I think partly cloudy was probably a good thing. Here we had clear skies but we were too far north of the totality path. Still it got twilighty and it was an eerie feeling. Someone mentioned that the light was different as it faded, not like the usual end of day waning of light. I have to agree. It was almost like the light was filtered through reddish dust. An odd light – hard to describe. No wonder Early Man was terrified during eclipses (I’m assuming they were).
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Weirdly, I had no desire to look up at the sun. Instead, I walked around during the eclipse (only 65% where we live) and watched/listened to how people/crickets/birds reacted. All the same – quiet for a few minutes. Ahhhhhh.
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We don’t look at it any other day. I guess we want to see something unique, but the cost is too high without eye protection. I can’t imagine going to some of those places with the crowds to see the eclipse though.
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Crowds = claustrophobia for me.
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Me too!!
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I’d settle for glasses that actually work and I can actually clean….
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It sure helps if you can see properly. I find it so frustrating when I have to go digging for my glasses in order to see the simplest little thing (phone numbers, or menus, or price tags).
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Interesting. Here in Kenya we laugh as the chickens run to their dwellings in confusion.
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I love it, Philip! Thanks for a different view of the effects of the eclipse!
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