As I drove up the winding road to the middle of nowhere, I idly mused upon the current state of my 401K as I contemplated the La Nina conditions. When I arrived at the parking lot, it was filled with friends eager for a night's observing. I counted at least 0 telescopes set up.
I started my night's observing with one of my favorite objects, M 71. It was easy, just like Krylon Ultra-Flat Black.
After a short break to munch cheesy poofs, I hunted for M 23 in Ophiuchus. It looked exactly like that graph in An Unpleasant Truth. With that checked off my list, I found by accident M 64 in Scutum. It gave the appearance of two scoops of spumoni ice cream. After that, I checked off Abell 64. It reminded me of Krylon Ultra-Flat Black. With that checked off my list, I located NGC 3337. It looked like ripples of water. After I'd spent a few minutes looking at that, I tried for B 522. It appeared in the eyepiece like George W. Bush. After that, I observed B 18. It somewhat resembled cotton candy. Next, I tried for M 15. It looked uncannily like the eye of God. After I'd spent a few minutes looking at that, I hunted for B 428. It looked exactly like a smoke ring. Next, attacking my personal nemesis, I slewed to IC 1779 in Camelopardalis. It reminded me of a far-away cloud. After that, I sought B 557 in that confusing part of Virgo. It appeared at low power like a UFO. After that, I hunted for IC 3175. It was as bright as all the other smudges I've ever looked at.
Finally, it was time to pack up and leave. As I drove home, I contemplated the events of the night, and realized that any night out under the sky with good friends is better than taking an elevator during a Stage 3 alert.