My First Launch

A few weeks ago, I read Tom Wolfe's "The Right Stuff." If you saw the movie in the 80s or have read this fantastic book, you're familiar with Chuck Yeager, the military pilots that were the first in space and the sheer amazing feats these guys accomplished. One of the better books I've read in the last six months, hands down.

Well, last night was about as close as I'll ever come to getting in a rocket. I'm in Orlando and, as you may have seen on the news, Discovery took off from the Space Coast last night around 10 o'clock. We went out into the front yard with the rest of the neighborhood and watched the red and orange glow of the booster rockets from some 60 miles away. The comradery of neighbors witnessing history being made was almost, almost as cool as the bond we shared in St. Louis when the Cards won the Series... but I digress.

Now, having witnessed my first launch and the rolling thunder of the takeoff some 20 minutes later, I want to go to a real launch. Like, up close and personal. Will it happen? Probably, but until then, I'm satisfied to know that just an hour's drive away, we continue to push into the future.

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