I was just outside trying to see if the meteor shower was visible; apparently, around 1:40 AM was supposed to be the best time to catch them in the eastern United States. Well, I was out there for probably about five minutes, and only saw one shoot through the sky, a little bit next to (what I think is) the Little Dipper.
What amazed me was neither the meteor nor the biting coldness of the night (it’s literally 2º outside), but rather the night’s complete stillness. There was absolutely nothing moving outside, no sound of anything. I clicked my tongue and heard it echo around the yard. No crickets, no animals, no people, and—thank God—no speeding tractor-trailers. Silence is golden.
