Night Vision...

"It's better if you don't look directly, but sort of sideways. Use your peripheral vision."

"Why?"

"I don't know why. I just know it works better. Everyone does that thing where they open their eyes really wide and stare. That doesn't work. Sideways. Look away and sort of sneak up on it."

"You want me to sneak up on what I'm looking for in the dark, when I can't see what I'm looking for to sneak up on it?"

"Yeah. Well, no, I mean, I know you can't see what you're looking for so you aren't really sneaking up on it, but you are sort of sneaking up on the whole night this way."

"Okay..."

"I'm serious. It really does work better."

"How about if I just turn the flashlight on my phone on?"

"So that's great if you are looking at a specific spot. Like if you are walking a trail and don't want to trip or something, that would work, but if you are looking for things in the dark then that just makes everything outside of the flashlight beam basically invisible. Plus it totally wrecks any night vision you might have."

"So no flashlights, no direct looking, anything else?"

"Try to be quiet."

"Excuse me?"

"Not now. I mean when you are looking. Listen. You can't see well, but your hearing is still good. And there is less other activity in the dark so it seems like you can hear things much quicker than you would in the light."

"If there's less activity in the dark why don't we look in the light?"

"Less human activity. Less daily noise. Radios, cars, cell phones ringing, TVs blaring, kids playing outside. All of that settles down. Eventually. I mean you have to wait until full dark."

"Full dark? Like after sunset?"

"Oh no. Like after midnight. Maybe even closer to 2 or 3 AM. Full dark. Time for the light of the day, natural and manmade to fade."

"So how often do you go look?"

"Basically just a few days each month. I look when the moon is full and look when the moon is new."

"Wouldn't a full moon mean there was too much light?"

"Reflected light. So sometimes that helps. But honestly I find more during the new moon. I think I was taught to go out during the full moon to be seen as much as to see."

"To be seen?"

"Yeah."

"By what?"

"Look sideways. No flashlights. Listen closely."