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.