Houston, how are the brownies?

So, there I was sitting in Mission Control on a typical Thursday morning. I had just gotten on shift and the previous incarnation of myself had just stepped off. Like most mornings, I was just getting my stuff together for what was supposed to be a very slow day (it was) when the phone rang (which is not uncommon). The caller ID came up with some random person I've never heard of (I haven't heard of a lot of people) and when I put the phone to my ear my head was filled with background noise. Imagine putting a shell to your ear to hear the ocean and then cranking up the volume. Of course, my first thought was, "who is the jackass bothering me at 8 in the morning (I'm not a morning person)?" Then the dude at the other end of the line started talking. Turns out it was John Phillips. Right. You're thinking, "who the F is John Phillips? (he's not that well known)" For all you non-space geeks out there, Johnny-boy is the American astronaut currently onboard the International Space Station. Turns out he's got a habit of calling people in Mission Control just to shoot the shit (what do you say to a man floating 270 miles about your head?). Here's more or less how the conversation went:

JP: Hello! This is John Phillips! How are things going at the BME console?
Me: Oh, they're going pretty well. We just finished handover so nothing very interesting is happening yet.
JP: That's good to hear. How's everything in Mission Control?
Me: Oh, they're going pretty well. It's calm right now but there are no cupcakes or brownies today.

How do you like that jewel? There are no cupcakes or brownies. This man is making history by spending 6 months of his life travelling at 17,000mph (if you throw in relativistic effects maybe it's less than 6 months...) and I'm informing him about the state of dessert in the Flight Control Room. Riveting stuff. I only said it because it's very common for someone to bring in some kind of treat. There's always a party for someone and cakes just end up there. I should a write a book. This stuff is gold.

Me: How are things going up there?
JP (Probably still thinking about the brownie comment): Ok. We've got some work to...up...I think...a...internal...source.
Me: Yeah, you've got a lot of people talking about that down here. Hopefully it's exactly what you said it was.

The rest is even more insipid than what I've already wrote. What made it tougher is the fact that our satellite coverage wasn't so great and, as a result, he was breaking up considerably. That more or less ended the conversation. Nice guy, really. He's made it a point to call down to the various consoles relatively often. It's a nice gesture and it lets everyone feel a little closer to the astronaut, a smart move by JP because it's in his best interest to make all of us like him. I won't say he's the most personable astronaut that I've worked with but he's definitely not the most disliked. But this whole phone call thing is definitely a nice touch.

And for all you tech geeks out there, he was able to call me on the phone because his computer is set up with VOIP software. Granted, he relies on relatively blocky satellite coverage, but it's still interesting to know that he uses the same technology we use down here. Typically the technology they use up there is what are parents used in the 70's (i'll save that rant and rave until another time).

Happy thought for the day: Leaving work an hour early

Quote of the day: Working for a living, taking what they're giving. I'm taking what they're giving 'cuz I'm working for a living.

Some things gained are never lost

Friendships are a strange animal. They pop up in front of you when you least expect it. Sometimes they disappear, leaving hardly a sign that they once existed. I've come across those that you've enjoyed for years only to wake up one morning and realize that that friend has become no more than a casual acquintance. Then there are those friendships that lay dormant for years only to explode in your face with brilliance and wonder. These are all friendships to remember, for the that love is created and grows between two people is something to be cherished, regardless of how it all looks years later.

I've had all these types of friendships, and it's not uncommon for me to wonder what happened to them all. I cling tightly to those which have survived the trials and tribulations of time; they are my life and to lose them would be akin to losing part of myself. Those that have slipped through my fingers make me sad because I'm left to wonder what kind of joy those people would have brought to my life, and me theirs, if we had continued through life hand in hand, side by side. I can take solice, however, in knowing that once touched we are never the same. The reflection I see in the mirror is shaded with all those people, past and present, who have walked some ways down the road with me.

Happy thought of the day: Getting in touch with long lost friends

Stranger in a Texas Land

What does it mean to be an outsider?

Recently I told a friend of mine that I felt like an outsider, that guy who stands outside in the cold, dark rain watching the party inside through the window. Truth is, this is not a new feeling. It's something I've carried with myself for a long time now though it's only become blatantly obvious recently. Not that I mind it so much. Admittedly, I do get some satisfaction knowing that I am different from everyone else. I can't pinpoint what it is that sets me apart from my peers, nor do I make any claims of superiority. All I know is that a separation exists and I'm in a never-ending quest to bridge that gap.

And in the whirlwind of never ending inquisitiveness I call my brain, I have to wonder if the gap is totally and completely imaginary. I mean, really, to say that me being different is an excuse for isolating myself is really a bunch of bullshit. Everybody is different. If that wasn't true this big blue marble called Earth would be inhabited by nothing else
than a bunch of engineers named Dave, and we all know how untrue (and unnecessary) that is.

No, the truth is that everyone has a gap, but it's that gap that actually draws us closer together. The simple joy of making a new friend is learning absolutely everything about them. No gaps and you'll have the pleasure of meeting yourself, something I'm sure is overrated and understimulating. We learn, we grow, we become better people because of the people that surround us. No new experiences come from the status quo. The only thing we have in common are our gross differences and our desire to share them.

I used to think my open mind was what set me apart from everyone. Now I can see the irony. If I spent more time bridging the gap and less time making the trench wider, the gap would not cease to exist, but it's most core definition will change. Isolation will give way to uniqueness and the subtle attitude of superiority will turn into compassion and love and respect. No longer will it be me versus everyone because the idea of separation will diminish in importance and desire to be part of something bigger will replace it. The gaps are not obstacles to separate us, but boundaries to define who we are so our identities do not get lost. Blurring this idea will most certainly leave any of us to be an island to unto ourselves.



Happy thought of the day: Seeing my nephew in a few days.

Ethan and Me 

Quote of the day: "Minds do not set us apart, only those that use them carelessly"

Bonus quote of the day: "All the little boys and girls, living in this crazy world, all they really needed from you, is maybe some love" - Real Life, John Lennon