My Dad was a "space junkie." We watched every launch by NASA on television, and he awakened me to see the first man walk on the moon broadcast live. When rockets started taking off from Cape Canaveral (Cape Kennedy), we could view them from the end of the street. While I lived in Florida, I would watch lift-offs on the television, then run outside to see them in the sky....
Today, I watched Elon Musk's SpaceX send the Falcon Heavy rockets skyward. It was something that had never been done before - three connected rockets with a combined force of 27 engines shot up from the rocket pad in Florida. The two side rockets detached perfectly, on time, and the main rocket's first stage booster disengaged right on schedule. The sights were fabulous! I even was able to see the two booster rockets pass over the cameras on the ground in Florida, on their way back to Earth for recovery and re-use.... Amazing!
Looking back in history, what have I seen take place in my own lifetime?
1. Desegregation in the southern United States
2. The first man in space
3. The Civil Rights Movement and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
4. The first moon orbit
5. The first walk on the moon
6. The space shuttles
7. The International Space Station
8. The first African-American President of the United States
9. The first successful launch of a heavy-lift rocket by a private company
It's stupid that 45 (the current person in the White House) is hoping for a government shut down over immigration laws; that he has opened National Parks and National Monuments to open rape of the Earth; that he is thinking of shutting down NASA; that he is hoping to cease funding the International Space Station; that he has encouraged his appointees to openly "kill" laws that were for the protection of people and the environment... That man is a sacrilege in and of himself.
Tuesday, February 6, 2018
Monday, February 5, 2018
Football Photos
The players I dislike...
Ben Rothlesberger
Taunting Philip Rivers
A player I love and one I dislike:
Brandon Graham and (ugh) Tom Brady
Odell Beckham Jr and Eli Manning in an NFL comercial
Eagles were the under-dogs in the Super Bowl
And the Eagles score...
Quarterback Nick Foles and daughter Lily with the Lombardi Trophy
Post (American) Football
If you're an American, and you're scratching your head about the title, it's because, in most countries around the world, "football" means what we call "soccer." Other than the Philadelphia Eagles' celebration parade to exhibit the Lombardi Trophy after last night's Super Bowl, the professional football season has ended.
I grew up watching football on television, and at high-school and college fields. Dad always rooted for the under-dog team, even though he had a few favorite college teams. And, of course, he cheered for my sister's and my school teams. I have never, personally, been to a professional football game. I like to be able to see the game clearly, via cameras, and to see instant replays. I can easily go to the bathroom, without waiting in a line, and I don't have to pay an exorbitant ticket fee and outrageous prices for food and drink.
I used to be an avid football fan, with a wide array of likes and dislikes on both the college and professional level. Since almost every single one of my favorite players is no longer playing - except two, but one was injured and missed almost the entire season - I haven't been watching. I still the the plays and the moves and the fakes, but I'm no longer personally invested like I was before.
Yesterday, and last night, I was hoping the Eagles would defeat the New England Patriots. Number one, the Eagles were the under-dogs. Number two, I really dislike Tom Brady. So I was quite excited when I checked on-line last night and saw the Eagles were trailing by a single point with over 8 minutes left in the game. I actually became hopeful that the Eagles would be able to beat the Kraft-Belichick-Brady machine. When people were running around screaming in the restaurant parking lot last night, I checked the final score - and did a little jig beside my desk chair.
When I was a kid, I remember that the quarterbacks and receivers were the "known names," but that they always said it was a team effort and most shied away from the spotlight. Joe Namath began the change - and I have to admit that I always laughed at Joe, even though he was a good player. I've always loved the defensive players - they never seem to get that much credit, unless a quarterback sack is made...
In any event, there are three professional football teams that are anathema to me, just because of their quarterbacks - Tom Brady of the Patriots, Philip Rivers of the Chargers, and Ben Rothlesberger of the Steelers. I have to say that I pretty much "hate" all three of those quarterbacks, even though they are good players. It both their attitudes, and their actions that I dislike. - And, so, stupidly, I dislike the entire team.....
But, way to go, Eagles!!! You did it, men!! A 41 to 33 win! Thank you!
I grew up watching football on television, and at high-school and college fields. Dad always rooted for the under-dog team, even though he had a few favorite college teams. And, of course, he cheered for my sister's and my school teams. I have never, personally, been to a professional football game. I like to be able to see the game clearly, via cameras, and to see instant replays. I can easily go to the bathroom, without waiting in a line, and I don't have to pay an exorbitant ticket fee and outrageous prices for food and drink.
I used to be an avid football fan, with a wide array of likes and dislikes on both the college and professional level. Since almost every single one of my favorite players is no longer playing - except two, but one was injured and missed almost the entire season - I haven't been watching. I still the the plays and the moves and the fakes, but I'm no longer personally invested like I was before.
Yesterday, and last night, I was hoping the Eagles would defeat the New England Patriots. Number one, the Eagles were the under-dogs. Number two, I really dislike Tom Brady. So I was quite excited when I checked on-line last night and saw the Eagles were trailing by a single point with over 8 minutes left in the game. I actually became hopeful that the Eagles would be able to beat the Kraft-Belichick-Brady machine. When people were running around screaming in the restaurant parking lot last night, I checked the final score - and did a little jig beside my desk chair.
When I was a kid, I remember that the quarterbacks and receivers were the "known names," but that they always said it was a team effort and most shied away from the spotlight. Joe Namath began the change - and I have to admit that I always laughed at Joe, even though he was a good player. I've always loved the defensive players - they never seem to get that much credit, unless a quarterback sack is made...
In any event, there are three professional football teams that are anathema to me, just because of their quarterbacks - Tom Brady of the Patriots, Philip Rivers of the Chargers, and Ben Rothlesberger of the Steelers. I have to say that I pretty much "hate" all three of those quarterbacks, even though they are good players. It both their attitudes, and their actions that I dislike. - And, so, stupidly, I dislike the entire team.....
But, way to go, Eagles!!! You did it, men!! A 41 to 33 win! Thank you!
Saturday, February 3, 2018
Oh, The Wind.... Wind... Wind.... WIND!
Sitting here, safely enclosed within my second floor apartment, I can easily understand how many pioneer women were pushed beyond their sanity limit by the constant blowing of the wind. I grew up, pretty much, in the east; I was three when we moved from Virginia to Tennessee, and was five when we left Kingsville, Texas for Gainesville, Florida. I grew up with stories of tornadoes and the Dust Bowl in Kansas and Oklahoma, and with stories about hurricanes and high water on Chincoteague. Spending my school years in Florida, I was highly conversant with hurricanes and hurricane winds. We always lived in the suburbs, and had neighbors near by.
The winds that I have encountered in Boulder, Colorado are of a different variety than the sudden rain squalls on the island, and from hurricane winds. I find I get very tired after the wind has been blowing here for 8 hours or more. It doesn't matter if I'm in an apartment, a small house, or a huge mansion - the wind is tiring. Here, in the apartment I call home, I live on a corner of the building. We have a full size sliding glass door onto the balcony, a single large window in my bedroom looking west, another large window facing west in Bea's room, and she also has two smaller south-face windows, one in her walk-in closet. The only way to get fresh air inside is to open either of the two bedroom windows, the slider onto the balcony, or the entrance door.- Not that we want to open things up when it's windy.
The exhaust flap for the dryer is above my bedroom window, as is the exhaust vent for the stove. When the wind blows, both of those flaps move with the air. I hear it in my bedroom, in the hall beside the dryer, and in the kitchen near the range. With big gusts, the windows shake and shudder in their frames. Now, I know that this building was built to withstand straight-line winds of up to 120 miles per hour - but it's not something that's easy to get used to.
So, when I'm getting myself worked up about the wind, and how edgy it makes me feel, I think of pioneer women. Women who were used to hard work and privation, who were used to "making do" with what was available, but who had grown up with a large family, usually where another house was within walking distance... And here they are, inside a soddy, or a small cabin, probably not well sealed, listening to the wind blow and blow and blow, through the cracks, around the corners... blowing sand, snow, whatever inside, insinuating itself through every vestigial opening. No one to speak with, except a husband, who was busy with his own worries... And, frequently, no other women around except in a day's travel time. It is no wonder that so many women were placed into institutions, or killed themselves, or left to find a place without wind, and disappeared into the prairies and mountains.
I am very lucky that I can retreat into books, or music, or the television. I usually read during windy days... today I'm working on my family genealogy, but I find myself getting irritated when the PC slows down, or the *@#^$%* Comcast connection interrupts service. So, I think I'll go back to a book - and read - because of the wind.....
The winds that I have encountered in Boulder, Colorado are of a different variety than the sudden rain squalls on the island, and from hurricane winds. I find I get very tired after the wind has been blowing here for 8 hours or more. It doesn't matter if I'm in an apartment, a small house, or a huge mansion - the wind is tiring. Here, in the apartment I call home, I live on a corner of the building. We have a full size sliding glass door onto the balcony, a single large window in my bedroom looking west, another large window facing west in Bea's room, and she also has two smaller south-face windows, one in her walk-in closet. The only way to get fresh air inside is to open either of the two bedroom windows, the slider onto the balcony, or the entrance door.- Not that we want to open things up when it's windy.
The exhaust flap for the dryer is above my bedroom window, as is the exhaust vent for the stove. When the wind blows, both of those flaps move with the air. I hear it in my bedroom, in the hall beside the dryer, and in the kitchen near the range. With big gusts, the windows shake and shudder in their frames. Now, I know that this building was built to withstand straight-line winds of up to 120 miles per hour - but it's not something that's easy to get used to.
So, when I'm getting myself worked up about the wind, and how edgy it makes me feel, I think of pioneer women. Women who were used to hard work and privation, who were used to "making do" with what was available, but who had grown up with a large family, usually where another house was within walking distance... And here they are, inside a soddy, or a small cabin, probably not well sealed, listening to the wind blow and blow and blow, through the cracks, around the corners... blowing sand, snow, whatever inside, insinuating itself through every vestigial opening. No one to speak with, except a husband, who was busy with his own worries... And, frequently, no other women around except in a day's travel time. It is no wonder that so many women were placed into institutions, or killed themselves, or left to find a place without wind, and disappeared into the prairies and mountains.
I am very lucky that I can retreat into books, or music, or the television. I usually read during windy days... today I'm working on my family genealogy, but I find myself getting irritated when the PC slows down, or the *@#^$%* Comcast connection interrupts service. So, I think I'll go back to a book - and read - because of the wind.....
Thursday, February 1, 2018
Cleaning
I have never claimed to be a "good housekeeper" - if I did, all of my friends, associates, and family would be rolling on the floor, laughing hysterically. Both of my parents were folks who "held on to things", just in case they might become useful again. We were a family of "pile its" - we piled books and magazines over there, and pieces of wood in the utility room, and we had a closet full of clothes that were out of style. Our house wasn't spotless, but it was clean. The only thing was, that growing up, I never saw Mom clean anything, other than the dishes, after we ate. My sister and I were in charge of vacuuming the house on Saturdays, and making our beds up every day. That was it. Mom washed and waxed the floors and dusted while I was away at school, or outside playing.
We vacuum the apartment every week, do laundry when we have a load, and wash dishes after every meal. I clean the kitty litter boxes every morning. I shower daily. I dust my computer daily, and I clean the monitor and keyboard every two weeks. I thought I was keeping my keyboard clean. I broke a nail the other day, and I sat down at my desk to clip my nails. A tiny piece popped away, and landed between keys on my keyboard. I couldn't get it to blow out, so I decided to use the nail-cleaner attached to the clippers.
Oh, my word! I ended up with over two handfuls of cat fur, not to mention crumbs, dandruff, and tons of dead skin dust.... Horrors! I'm still pulling small tufts of cat fur from between keys, as the stuff gradually works loose. It's amazing, and I'm appalled at how stupid I was to think that the fur never accumulated in the keyboard.... Well - live and learn. I'm still learning new things at the age of 61 - and I hope to continue to learn new things until I die!
We vacuum the apartment every week, do laundry when we have a load, and wash dishes after every meal. I clean the kitty litter boxes every morning. I shower daily. I dust my computer daily, and I clean the monitor and keyboard every two weeks. I thought I was keeping my keyboard clean. I broke a nail the other day, and I sat down at my desk to clip my nails. A tiny piece popped away, and landed between keys on my keyboard. I couldn't get it to blow out, so I decided to use the nail-cleaner attached to the clippers.
Oh, my word! I ended up with over two handfuls of cat fur, not to mention crumbs, dandruff, and tons of dead skin dust.... Horrors! I'm still pulling small tufts of cat fur from between keys, as the stuff gradually works loose. It's amazing, and I'm appalled at how stupid I was to think that the fur never accumulated in the keyboard.... Well - live and learn. I'm still learning new things at the age of 61 - and I hope to continue to learn new things until I die!
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