So again, it has been a long time since I last wrote anything here. Like usual, I can come up with all sorts of reasons for it. But what it comes down to is this: In my mind, I haven't done anything worthy of writing down here.
However, as of late, I have had a bit of an attitude reversal. To start out with, I have been learning that there are lots of things out there that just aren't exciting. There are many normal things that seem to get a lot of attention because they happen to people who have been deemed important. On the other hand, there are extraordinary things that happen to normal people every day.
Take me for example...On Thursday of this past week I sent about 10 commands to a multi-billion dollar, international vehicle that is moving around the planet at around 17500 miles per hour. These commands actually did something to make a difference. On top of that, the commands were sent at the beginning of an EVA (spacewalk). I thought that was pretty cool. :)
Every day that I go into work, I spend hours upon hours reading manuals and updating federal documents. These are things that are pretty boring on the surface, but when I step back and think about it it is pretty cool.
Another pretty cool thing is that I have begun working on simulations at the Control Center. That means that I have begun the journey to becoming a full flegged flight controller. Basically, I spent 9 hours sitting at a console and fixing things as they broke. I also got to make decisions that would matter if it were real. I can think of no way to describe the feeling of it other than awesome.
For those of you who read this, I can't wait until I get to see you down here. I am thinking that most of you will probably want to try coming down in the middle of winter. I would tend to agree with that thought. We have been having weather in the 50s-70s. The only problem is that we have been getting a ton of rain. But I think that I would rather deal with rain than scraping ice off my windshield.
Well, I am pretty good for now, so I am gonna get going. I will try to be more diligent about updating this, but I know that things will be very busy over the next several months. You will probably be able to keep up with the major things that are going on in my life by watching the news. I think that I will have a nice little break in June or July, but until then I know that things will be insanely busy at work gearing up for the flights.
However, as of late, I have had a bit of an attitude reversal. To start out with, I have been learning that there are lots of things out there that just aren't exciting. There are many normal things that seem to get a lot of attention because they happen to people who have been deemed important. On the other hand, there are extraordinary things that happen to normal people every day.
Take me for example...On Thursday of this past week I sent about 10 commands to a multi-billion dollar, international vehicle that is moving around the planet at around 17500 miles per hour. These commands actually did something to make a difference. On top of that, the commands were sent at the beginning of an EVA (spacewalk). I thought that was pretty cool. :)
Every day that I go into work, I spend hours upon hours reading manuals and updating federal documents. These are things that are pretty boring on the surface, but when I step back and think about it it is pretty cool.
Another pretty cool thing is that I have begun working on simulations at the Control Center. That means that I have begun the journey to becoming a full flegged flight controller. Basically, I spent 9 hours sitting at a console and fixing things as they broke. I also got to make decisions that would matter if it were real. I can think of no way to describe the feeling of it other than awesome.
For those of you who read this, I can't wait until I get to see you down here. I am thinking that most of you will probably want to try coming down in the middle of winter. I would tend to agree with that thought. We have been having weather in the 50s-70s. The only problem is that we have been getting a ton of rain. But I think that I would rather deal with rain than scraping ice off my windshield.
Well, I am pretty good for now, so I am gonna get going. I will try to be more diligent about updating this, but I know that things will be very busy over the next several months. You will probably be able to keep up with the major things that are going on in my life by watching the news. I think that I will have a nice little break in June or July, but until then I know that things will be insanely busy at work gearing up for the flights.
posted by Greg at 13:02
1 comments
