Monday was the solar eclipse, and it felt like everyone I knew hopped in their car to drive to Wyoming or Nebraska to be in the path of totality. In my town in Colorado, we were at 94% totality . . . and it mostly felt like a cloudy day for an hour or so. I peered at the eclipse through solar glasses, and it was cool, and then I ran errands at SuperTarget.
But! I know folks who left home at 4 am to see it. A photographer I know experimented with lenses and exposures for months before the eclipse to capture the best images possible. Friends pulled kids out of school, took the day off work, found divey hotels in the middle of nowhere, and camped in stranger's fields (with permission). One writing buddy had in-laws who flew from England to see it.
They all cared a lot more than me.
Part of it is that I usually have to be talked into having a good time, but also, I just wasn't that into it. I've been thinking about how eclipse-interest-levels apply in so many areas of life--books, movies, cuisines, hobbies, activities. I love having friends excited about things I'm indifferent to, because it keeps life interesting. And that's the fun of writing different characters, for me--I love diving into heads that are completely unlike mine.
Maybe I'll write an eclipse into my next manuscript, just to see how my characters react to it.
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