[MJA]

Thanks Jim for the great story. You are a good writer, and it was fun to read about Iceland. I'm sorry you didn't get much of the lights though, I saw them once. It was many years ago so the details are not so fresh.
I was 18 around 74' or was that 74 around 18' and crusin the streets in a small town in southern Minnesota in my GTO. They appeared with no warning or understanding. I don't think I had ever even heard of them before. That night the entire sky lit up in swirling bands of multi-colored lights. It was the rarest of sightings and perhaps the only time ever at such a low latitude. I remember trying to warn everyone that the martians or something were landing, seriously, but could find no others to scream with. No one was out and about but me, as usual. I went home as fast as I could, wet my pants, and called the police. By then I think it was all over already and they said: what did you see? I probably said never mind and hung up. I think it might of made the news papers, I'm not sure, but eventually I found out they were the northern lights.
It was the night of the martians!

Star date December 2007

I was walking to work at 6 am the other morning before sun rise and a meteor the size of a dime went fly across the eastern sky with very long tail on it. The entire thing was multi colored because I assume it was flying through our atmosphere. It disappeared over the horizon and I readied myself for what I was sure to feel next, a large earth quake.
But none came and so I did not scream or sound any alarms. When I got to work I asked if anyone had seen the meteor, they said: what did you see?
That's the story of my life.

=
MJA