Sorry I didn't explain my "eclipse veteran" terminology, I just meant that I've experienced one total eclipse, traveled to see another but got clouded out :-( a

Sorry I didn't explain my "eclipse veteran" terminology, I just meant that I've experienced one total eclipse, traveled to see another but got clouded out :-( and have done quite a bit of study into how to view them safely. I viewed the 1979 total eclipse with unfiltered binoculars, and it was an awesome sight - truly an experience of a lifetime. Alas, I didn't get to travel to the path of totality for this year's eclipse, but I viewed the partial eclipse from home with binoculars - of course this time with professional quality solar filters covering the front! Several of the neighbors stopped by to take a look. Back to your comment about the protective glasses, I can only speak for myself: I didn't use them at all in the 1979 eclipse. I'd seen partial eclipses before - they happen fairly often and you can see them from a wide area. What I traveled to Oregon for was totality. So I and the other people on the hillside with me simply ignored the partial eclipse. During the first partial phase we put on our sunglasses and looked away from the sun, waiting for the interesting effects that would happen on the ground as the moon's shadow approached. Then when it became total, we turned around, took off our sunglasses, picked up our binoculars if we had them, and viewed the solar corona directly.