Man, that was some Northern Lights display, wasn’t it?!
Or so I heard. Didn’t actually see them, because we had a thunderstorm roll through Friday evening, and I naively assumed that meant they wouldn’t be visible. It wasn’t until the next morning, when I was scrolling through my social media feeds, that I learned they were, in fact, putting on quite the display after the storm passed. Apparently, the Aurora Borealis was so spectacular, I would have been able to watch a multitude of colored lights dancing across the sky from my very own backyard if I’d happened to glance out the window before going to bed.
Seeing these pics did not help my FOMO. I have this constant fear of missing out on something fun or exciting or unique. Like, oh I don’t know…just spitballing here…maybe seeing the Northern Lights or something?! I was pretty jealous that so many of my friends got to witness this dazzling light show when I was sleeping. They say ignorance is bliss, but I call bullshit. Seeing the Northern Lights would have brought me a lot more joy than not seeing them. Just sayin’.
I have this handy dandy Android app called My Aurora Forecast though, and it was predicting another potentially jaw-dropping display last night, so I eagerly awaited my second chance. Aurora Borealis redemption would be mine! After our usual Saturday evening revelry of cards/records/booze, I waited for darkness to descend so I could finally scratch seeing the Northern Lights off my bucket list. And while I may have dozed off in my recliner for a couple of minutes hours, I awoke at 1:20 a.m. It was prime viewing time and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, so I excitedly threw on some socks and shoes, grabbed a hoodie, and dashed outside, phone in hand, fully prepared to be amazed.
All I saw was pitch darkness and a bunch of stars.
Unwilling to concede failure just yet, I decided to head for the nearby park, thinking I might have a better chance there. But light pollution isn’t an issue in our neighborhood – we don’t even have streetlights – and it was already very dark, so I gave up and returned home. Found out today there was a lull in activity last night, which explains their absence.
That just figures. The one time I’m totally prepared…nada. I briefly thought of trying to fake it and posting something like this to my Instagram…
…but ultimately decided that wouldn’t fool anyone.
Oh, well. What’cha gonna do about it? In my case, bitch and moan and blog. The perfect trifecta.
Did you get to see the Northern Lights? Do you suffer from FOMO? What are you most afraid of missing out on?
Mark My Words 
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