WHAT DOES STRAW HAVE TO DO WITH ASTRONOMY?

    WHAT DOES STRAW HAVE TO DO WITH ASTRONOMY?

When very young my mother took me to the pasture.  We picked up some straw and placed it in a glass of water.  A few days later we used an eyedropper to place some of that water on a glass slide.  I looked through the eyepiece of my Dad’s microscope and there appeared a world unseen by naked eye.  Euglena in utter happiness moving about.  I have enjoyed looking at worlds beyond human eyesight ever since.
My parents bought me a Tasco refractor when I was about 11.  I still remember how excited I was when I pointed the scope at Saturn, finally found it and saw, behold, the rings.  The other day when my son and I went to visit my Dad,  I showed him the spot where it all happened. Somethings will forever remain tight in the memory.  Then I purchased a 4 inch reflector.  It took so long for it to arrive.  I loved what views it brought.  I would carry it out to the hay field in the back on the top of the hill and look at whatever I could find.  I had that scope for years.  Sold it after college was done and I was teaching.  Then I bought an 8 inch Dynamax.  I have since read that these were not very good scopes.  Glad I did not know for I loved it so.  Raised kids, not much time for astronomy.  No matter I love my kids too.  Then I came into some money and bought a 5 inch Celestron schmidt-cassegrain.  It was a table top set up.  Wonderful, wonderful. 
Then a Meade 10 inch SC.  Built an observatory.  Spent many wonderful evenings.   Polly, the family dog kept careful watch over me.  Sarah, my wife, worried about me alone, in the pasture.  Polly kept a sharp eye.  In fact when it was cold, she would refuse to come into the observatory out of the elements.  Insisted on remaining outside. After various escapades and surgery, I sold the Meade and made what I think is the best astronomy decision I ever made:  I bought a Televue 102.  Expensive, yes.  But service back up is ne plus ultra.  Products on all levels are excellent.  In 2007 I sold it and bought a used Televue 127 mm.   My history says otherwise, but I have no plans to sell it.  When I had the Meade I took photos.  Hours and hours of photos.  I enjoyed it but one day I realized that I had not looked at anything in any meaningful way.  All that changed when I moved to TeleVue.