Sundog

 

To my knowledge, I experienced my first official Sundog over the weekend.  After receiving a text message saying that ‘there is a rainbow around the sun. look outside’ I did just that.  And then my phone stopped working.   The guy I received the Sundog message from became a father to a baby girl 2 days later, which was 2 weeks before their due date.

So…what’s up with the Sundog?

The scientific name is Parhelion or Parhelia for ‘beside the sun’.  It is a common bright circular spot on a solar halo, hence the reason why my buddy called it a ‘rainbow around the sun’.   Small ice crystals reflect and refract sunlight, making an atmospheric optical phenomenon.   Pretty cool stuff.

There is a soon-to-be musical titled ‘Rainbow Around The Sun’ – a musical odyssey of a man finding himself by losing his mind.

I sometime wonder if I’m losing my mind.  I was wondering if I was losing my mind at the time of the ‘rainbow around the sun’.  I could send text messages via cell phone, but could not make outgoing calls via cell phone.

So, I quickly forwarded the text so others could enjoy the ‘rainbow around the sun’ viewing pleasure.  I soon received a reply, stating that it means that the weather is about to change and that the ‘rainbow around the sun’ is actually called a Sundog. 

I’ve also heard it described as an ‘old Indian thing’ and ‘a blessing on the hunter sent by the great wolf to his children’.

….And to think that I was notified of the Sundog by a soon-to-be father!

Bizarre, I tell ya, B.I.Z.A.R.R.E.

 

ps I have a new cell phone now.  Verizon did not understand why it stopped working.