TGIF

July 31, more than half of the year has passed by and yet today was the first day this year that I took a day off from work. Between being a PM for 7 projects and working in the Release Management team, there's basically no time left between projects to take time off.

So it was soooo nice to have a day away from the office. Slept late, did some shopping, had lunch with my favorite lunchie, then went wakeboarding. I tell you, just floating there in the water looking up at the sun and knowing that it was 15:30 on a workday afternoon was an awesome feeling...

Funny Fate

Seems like this year is a good time for celestial events. A few months back, we got to see the largest full moon in decades, and today was the longest total eclipse in Asia in 500 years, and the longest partial in HK for 50.

Normally, I'd take the day off to capture such an event on camera, but I had some meetings that I couldn't miss. But luckily, upon reaching work Mother Nature saw fit to grant us all a gift. The clouds rolled in at just the right amount so that the eclipse could be viewed safely with the naked eye. As always, I had my trusty Ixy DC with me:

Even with a partial eclipse, the streets were noticeably darkened:

Fate's a funny thing. I saw a segment on the evening news that lots of HKers went up the Shanghai - predicted to be one of the best vantage points - to witness this spectacular site. And yet before the eclipse really began rain came pouring down, blocking any view of the sun. Ironically, conditions here at home were so beautiful that anyone who wanted to could see the event unaided.

Ha, even the best laid plans of mice and men...