Halves and quarters; two bright stars are about to vanish

Mercury's at greatest elongation this week. Saturn's still up in the evening. Jupiter's about to turn around. Venus and the moon pair with a dragon star. Mars is still missing. English speakers say the moon is at first quarter or last quarter. People who come from non-English speaking cultures have another view. It's not often that an asteroid passes in front of one bright star. But it will happen twice next week!