Okay, so I was really sad to see the space shuttle program go. I know NASA has its reasons for backing off of manned space flight, but for me--a child of the 80s--that's just what the space program is about. Huge, powerful telescopes and rovers on Mars are super cool, and I get a thrill every time astronomers report the discovery of a new celestial structure, but space exploration has to involve people in jumpsuits doing slow backflips in outer space and eating pudding out of midair while talking to second-graders live via video feed. I wanted to be Sally Ride.
That's why the science-fiction-y concept of commercial space flight is such a thrill to me--even if the government doesn't feel compelled to put humans back into space, private companies (hopefully) will be able to pick up the slack in terms of discovery and general childlike wonder. And this morning, I got to watch via live feed as the SpaceX capsule Dragon docked with the International Space Station. The Boy and I both remember the thrill of watching rocket launches when we were little, and we were sitting rapt the entire time as the docking happened in real time, right in front of us. It made me hopeful for the the future, and not a lot of things really do that a lot.
What's good (for the week ending 5/25):
- The Replacements. I'd spent enough time quoting this movie that I finally managed to convince The Boy to sit down and watch it, even though he doesn't care about football or Keanu Reeves. But of course he loved it, and now when I say, "Get the ball! Get the ball! I'm comin' for ya, blue eyes!" he laughs because he knows what I'm talking about, not because I seem slightly unstable and it's best to humor me.
- Google Chrome
- Otis Redding
- Kayaking. I'd never done it before, but The Boy bought a kayak, because it was half-off, and who can resist a half-price kayak? and I thought it would be fun to try. Dude. That's the most intense upper-body workout known to man, and it's transportation, and it puts you right next to the water on a hot day.
- Nutrisse Nourishing Color Foam in Light Intense Auburn
What's bad:
- Ants. Holy crap, y'all. Once again, I volunteered with the airport's annual disaster drill, and holy crap, the ants, y'all. The organizers laid us out in a field next to the (unused) runway, and by the time rescuers finally got to my "unconscious" body, I'd gotten about two dozen ant bites on my lower back and… crackular region. It's like I have an ant-bite tramp stamp. (Also, I died. But it was of severe head trauma, not my ant bites. And obviously I'm better now. So it all worked out.)
- Fifty Shades of Grey. Do read my thorough and lengthy review before subjecting yourself to this book. TL;DR: poorly written, disappointingly vanilla, still in some ways not as bad as Twilight
The Ten:
1. The Drifters, "Under the Boardwalk"
2. Justin Timberlake, "What Goes Around… / …Comes Around Interlude"
3. Jay-Z, with Rihanna and Kanye West, "Run This Town"
4. Dashboard Prophets, "Ballad for Dead Friends"
5. Jump, Little Children, "B-13"
6. Ashlee Simpson, "Undiscovered"
7. Mike Doughty, "I Hear the Bells"
8. Madonna, "Express Yourself"
9. Madonna, "Beautiful Stranger"
10. The Killers, "Human"
Your favorite space program memories, and your Ten, go in comments.
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