RASC membership card for the noted observational entity OG, supposedly created in the 1970s, but more likely of recent manufacture. Card stock, printer's ink, fountain-pen ink, and red "substance", possibly ink. Note the characteristic bitemark in the lower left quadrant.

commentary

In the 1970s (as occasionally at other times) the Toronto Centre of the RASC had an active, and ambitious Observing Group. At some point in the latter portion of that decade the Observing Group acquired a nearly eponymously named mascot, OG (=Observing Group). OG could be described as an ontological construct, with symbolically large-aperture light collectors, and a distant resemblance to the owl of Minerva. For reasons which have never been formally explained, not everyone found his plush presence particularly pleasing at Centre events. With escalation of this, misconstruing of that, and triangulaton of whatever by whomever, an unfortunate incident ensued. In the event one fortunate sequella of the unfortunate incident was the creation of the North York Astronomical Association (NYAA) in 1980, where OG is a venerable figure of note, with an observing site named after him, certainly an honour for an ontological construct. The NYAA is best known in the astronomical world for Starfest (1982-), their longstanding and very highly rated star party, and, in a manner of speaking, OG can be said to be an efficient cause of Starfest (according to the followers of Aristotle).

significance

Very few artifacts of OG's time within the RASC survive. Images of OG are also unaccountably rare. This is purported to be his membership card. For various internal reasons expert opinon considers this document is most likley a latter forgery. If it were proved to be authentic, it would be the only known example of OG's signature. Expert opinion also considers the "revenge of OG" to be an urban myth, only of concern to those who don't observe enough.