Hi Spacelab & All,
Geoff (Starkler) wrote:
"Your Son obviously wants to see you happy, but without a demonstrated interest and desire to get into stargazing I think its foolish to run out and spend 3k like that ..."
Absolutely spot-on advice Geoff.
It is difficult to tell from the tone of your post as to whether you really aren't that interested any more and are finding it hard to tell your son, or you are interested but really have no idea where to start.
Why not see if you really still do have an interest that a telescope can do justice too first?
There are several astronomical societies out there which run practical astronomy courses for rank beginners. The Sutherland Society is one of them and it starts soon (3 September):
http://sasi.net.au/content/view/13/27/
Alternately, you could do one/some of the courses on offer at Sydney Observatory:
http://www.sydneyobservatory.com.au/..._education.asp
I'm sure there are other courses out there. Most evening colleges run a course or two on astronomy.
You could also buy one of the several astronomy magazines out there
to see whether the subject matter really seizes your imagination.
You could do the course, read a few magazines and gauge whether you are really interested in astronomy and can then make an informed decision on what to do -- join a club and get a 'scope (in that order) or pass.
If you're not interested, I'm sure he will understand and be thankful you were able tell him so and not simply waste the money because you thought it would make him happy!
Best,
Les D