May Meeting Recap: Science Overload & Bathroom Destiny

This month’s meeting was held in a completely different location—the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge, provided by a couple of club members. I wasn’t expecting the dirt road, but yes, I was in the right place. The building had a rustic charm, with a spacious meeting room, exposed ceilings, and a brick façade along the front wall. Every so often, we were peppered by the sound of nearby gunfire. Must be a shooting range in the area. I hope.

Familiar Faces and Fun Facts

When I arrived, Club President Paul and a few members recognized and greeted me, which was a nice feeling. I immediately spotted five or six familiar faces. I overheard Paul saying he’s been in the club since day one—that’s 51 years! He also mentioned that membership is now higher than it’s ever been. Love that for all of us space nerds.

This was a special meeting with a guest speaker all the way from Canada. She came to talk to us about auroras—a super timely topic since a few have been visible in Florida recently!

In honor of our special guest, Paul skipped the regular agenda and went straight into introducing the speaker: Dr. Robin Metcalfe, an astronomy professor and director of the Division of Natural Science at York University.

Trying to Keep Up (Keyword: Trying)

Her presentation was fascinating, but I have to admit—I didn’t understand most of what she said. There sure were some pretty pictures, though.

Every concept she introduced was unfamiliar to me. Without any background knowledge to latch onto, I’d often forget what she said before I could even finish writing it down. By then, she was already off to the next (equally unfamiliar) topic. It felt a lot like drinking from a firehose of science water.

The good news? I took pictures of all the slides for later. I’ll try to break those down in a separate post soon. Right now, I’m still recovering.

At the end, Dr. Metcalfe asked how much of the talk was new to us, and I let her know that for me, it was 100%. Turns out I wasn’t alone—even Paul said most of it was new to him!

One thing that totally blew my mind? The sun doesn’t rotate at a single speed. Different layers rotate at different rates. I mean—what?! Is that even legal?

And just when I thought my mind was blown to its maximum, Skip—yes, that Skip—casually mentions that he once created auroras artificially in a box. Just drops that fact like it’s nothing. Turns out he used to be a science teacher. Of course he did.

Social Time and Bathroom Destiny

Normally, the club meets for dinner before the meeting, but since this was a special event, we had the presentation first and then headed to a nearby Ruby Tuesday. Sadly, Dr. Metcalfe wasn’t able to join, but something even better happened—I made a new friend!

Her name is Lisa. We met (again) in the bathroom. We’d crossed paths there during my very first meeting too, and I even wrote in my notes “Lisa = bathroom buddy” because I remembered her. Later, she came up to me and said, “You’re my bathroom buddy,” and I was like, “I literally wrote that in my notes!” Obviously, we’re soul twins.

We ended up sitting together at dinner, chatting nonstop. Turns out, she’s hilarious and awesome, and we decided at once we were separated at birth. When I arrived at the table, I declared (as I do) that I’m left-handed and need to sit either at the end or next to another lefty. Skip claimed left-handed status, so I took the seat to his right. Yep, aurora-box Skip. I knew he was good people. To my delight, Lisa sat down on my other side—gently guided there by her also-awesome husband Brian, who clearly sensed the gravitational pull of bathroom destiny.

What I’m Learning (Besides Science)

This meeting reminded me that astronomy club isn’t just about learning facts. It’s about community, curiosity, and showing up to embrace the chaos. Even when the science flies over my head at lightspeed, I’m still gaining something valuable—whether it’s a fresh perspective on the universe or a bathroom bonding moment with a new friend.

I’m so glad I stayed for dinner this time. And next time? I’ll probably still be confused, but I’ll also be a little less alone.

I can’t wait until next month, when we’re back in our regular space at the Village Inn. This time I’ll come early for dinner. I hope they still have those loaded hashbrown pancakes!