Moonset Over Alcatraz

Two nights ago I woke, oh it must have been somewhere around 3:00 in the morning, to a spotlight shining in my face. I've been sleeping with the roller shades up and even though it's too hot and muggy to open the windows, I can still hear the sea, I can see various lights reflecting on the water. It took me a few seconds to realize that the spotlight was the moon. Have I ever been able to see the moon from my bed? Even when I lived on the beach in Oregon I had to walk downstairs to the kitchen to see the moon over the Pacific Ocean. I remember being able to see the full moon from my bed in one of my Portland apartments but I lived in too many to remember which one - maybe the third floor apartment on NW 22nd or the second story apartment at NW 29th and Thurman.

The moon moved across the sky. I closed my eyes for a few minutes and when I opened them I saw the strangest sight. The moon was sitting atop Alcatraz Island, balanced like a big yellow ball. Then it began slipping down the other side. Never in my life have I seen a moonset. In the winter, that is the exact same spot where the sun leaves us.

All the while this is happening I'm telling myself to get out of bed and get the camera. But I also know that my camera won't do it justice. So I decided to enjoy the experience, try to get a shot the following night.

Last night I practiced nighttime shooting which, as you can see from the photo, was a near failure. This is a shot of the moon over the muelle (pier).

Right on schedule, I woke when the moon was directly overhead. Which was the problem - it was overhead; not low enough to shine in the bedroom windows, not low enough to see from the bed. Its path was much higher and therefore the moon was going to pass Alcatraz without stopping. I consoled myself with the thought that there's always next month...and the next and the one after that...