T.R. Kerth, Contributor Published 12:38 p.m. ET Aug. 28, 2017

Livingston Daily photographer Gillis Benedict, away from the hordes who ventured to see the total eclipse, witnessed the magical approach of darkness at Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area near Cadiz, KY in timelapse. Gillis Benedict/Livingston Daily

T.R. Kerth(Photo: Submitted)

OK, people, the eclipse is over. Time to come back down to earth, wipe the awestruck tears from your eyes, and stop OMGing the wonders of the natural world as you ponder your place in the universe. Lets put the spiritual tizzy behind us, shall we? Its all fun and games until somebody becomes a druid.

Not that I didnt think it was cool.

It was.

For the record, I wasnt at any of the ground zeroes of totality that arched across the nation like a celestial skid mark. I have friends who went, but not me. I stayed home and was out on the sidewalk in front of the house, where it was about 89 percent of perfect totality, which was plenty for me. I dont think Ive ever been closer than 89 percent of perfection in any other thing Ive ever done.

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Still, you knew it was a special moment when several neighbors on my block set out their lawn chairs on the sidewalk just after noon on a Monday. We usually wait until after dinner to do that.

But there were signs that this gathering was special and unique, like the fact that none of us had a beer in our hand. Eclipses can make you do strange things.

I didnt have those special eclipse glasses that were all the rage, but one of my neighbors had a big X-ray sheet his doctor had given him years ago, and he let me look through it to see the eclipse. I was amazed how much an eclipse looks like a broken wrist bone. Or maybe I was looking at the wrong thing.

When the sun was finally 89 percent covered, the day grew dim, although I wouldnt say it was 89 percent dimmer than a normal day proof that an awful lot of daylight just goes wasted. We could probably get by with just 50 percent of the suns power most days and not even notice. Thats good to know, since the sun is scheduled to burn out in about 5 billion years, so were probably good to go for at least another 3 billion years or so as it fades away. Its nice to be able to make plans.

But the eclipse is over now. The sun and the moon have gone back to their daily humdrum routes, and were all left with our own deep thoughts about the experience and the lasting lessons we will come away with.

For one thing, consider how far we have come from the days when an eclipse was seen as an evil omen or a harbinger of troubles to come, like the death of kings or the failure of crops. We now know that those disasters are caused by gluten.

For my part, I was amazed at how accurately weve learned to predict an eclipse, not only to the hour, minute and second, but also to the mile, yard and inch of where it will pass, allowing us to manufacture and stockpile all the glasses, T-shirts, coffee mugs, ball caps and Parking $20 signs we would need well before the event. Primitive man was always taken by surprise by an eclipse, which is why those poor saps were always broke. But today, because we knew exactly when and where the eclipse would happen, hotels, motels and entrepreneurs all along the path of totality saw an infusion of wealth that was nothing short ofwell, astronomical. MoonPies enjoyed record sales.

But when youre talking about the perfect yin-yang union of light and dark that is a total eclipse, for every bit of bright, cheery yang there has to be some dark, gloomy yin to keep the universe in perfect balance.

For example, as eclipse entrepreneurs raked in their dark-dealt dough, how many workers in other jobs can say it was business as usual as the eclipse slid past outside the window? According to the analysis of one accounting firm leading up to the eclipse, American employers will see at least $694 million in missing output for the roughly 20 minutes that workers will take out of their workday to stretch their legs, head outside the office and gaze at the nearly two-and-a-half minute eclipse.

Its not clear yet if those capital losses will wipe out the gains, but as with all things, it probably comes down to location, location, location. Thanks to bustling crowds, businesses sitting under the moon-shadow ended up doing the cash register cha-ching dance. Everybody else left out in the light spent an extra 20 minutes on hold, cursing and listening to the voice say, Please stay on the line, because your call is important to us. Thats the way it is with yin and yang.

And if that isnt enough yin and yang for you, consider this:

Many observers of the eclipse noted that animals were completely fooled by the sudden darkness and lay down to sleep as if it were night.

But the universe stayed in balance, because the eclipse made me miss my nap.

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The author splits his time between Southwest Florida and Chicago. Not every day, though. Contact him at trkerth@yahoo.com. Why wait a whole week for your next visit to Planet Kerth? Get T.R.'s book, 'Revenge of the Sardines,' available now at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other fine online book distributors. His column appears every Saturday.

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