I found myself thinking about the planets last month, and how cool it'd be to take the kids, or just go myself, to a planetarium. If you've perused my website you'll see several entries touching on astronomy or images of the stars that are breathtaking. When you feel the weight of the world on your shoulders, there are a few visions that one can take in that put everything into perspective; things like staring out at the ocean at sunset, looking at the timeline of world history, watching a full moonrise from Glacier Point in Yosemite, screening Koyaanisqatsi under the influence of some consciousness-altering substances, or gazing up into a blanket of stars on a clear night sky. I've been fortunate enough to do all of these and more, and when I started wondering about nearby planetariums, I remembered that DeAnza college has one on campus.
But what I really walked away with was a desire to return for a true Astronomy show. They do them weekly so I'll be coordinating a return visit in the near future, one to check out the full astral experience of the new facility. Oh, and the title of this post refers not only to seeing this show, but the added bit of trivia I uncovered on wikipedia: "Some of the profits from The Dark Side of the Moon were invested in the making of Monty Python and the Holy Grail.". How cool is that!
I checked online and found that not only is it still there, it had just completed a massive renovation. And I mean massive! They've installed a full new 'seamless' dome, HD projection, new seats and interior, and an "The Infinium S Star Projector", the first ofitss kind in the US. It's practically a brand new development. And they were opening it to the public again in the forthcoming weeks.
Their schedule of astronomy and laser light shows includes a weekly laser show to Pink Floyd's "The Dark Side of the Moon". And it occurred to me that, even though my high-school girlfriend and I had used this or midnight showings of "The Song Remains The Same" as excuses for her coming home very late from our dates, I'd never really gone. I love that recording and stars, so why the hell not?
I went with three close friends this weekend. We met for appetizers and beers and then headed over to check out the show. It was stellar. Pun intended. It was great fun and 'trippy', too. The sound was incredible and really made for a pleasant listening experience. And although the whole 'laser show' experience seemed hippy and dated, it was great fun and enjoyable all the same.
