Soul Thumping

Thinking I'm Responsible for the Space Shuttle Disasters

With the passing away of Neil Armstrong last month, and Space Shuttle Endeavour heading for retirement, it is with considerable trepidation that I face my self-diagnosed "NASA anxiety."  Born exactly 6 months (to the day) before the first landing on the moon (or, if you are a conspiracy theorist, the theatrical production of the first landing on the moon), this Gen Xer takes our space program seriously, sometimes, and this is why I'm now confessing that I hold myself responsible for the space shuttle disasters.  

I hold myself responsible because I insisted on watching them live.  January 28, 1986, in high school, I voted "YES" (along with the majority of my classmates) to watching the live take off of Space Shuttle Challenger during a Social Studies class.  Our teacher was excited because Sharon Christa McAuliffe, the first teacher to fly in space, was a crew member.  History in the making folks.

Just over one minute into the flight, we saw the infamous blast of bright light, and we watched in horror as the space shuttle disintegrated, fiery pieces falling from the sky.  LIVE.  The reporters were at a loss for words.  For the first time all year, that classroom full of high school students went completely silent.

Fast forward to February 1, 2003.  I got up early that morning to watch the landing of Space Shuttle Columbia.  I sat on the sofa with my bowl of cereal and a blanket, watching the television screen like a cat watching a mouse.  A few minutes before 9am, the shuttle is nearing the coast of California.  A play-by-play announcer on television made the whole thing that much more exciting.  But then, something went wrong, because Columbia wasn't appearing where it should be, over Texas, at least that is when I remember feeling anxious.  "Roger, uh, bu --" was the last contact.  I won't go through all the details because those are readily available all over the internet, but I spent the entire day engulfed in the drama.  I watched all the NASA press conferences, eyewitness accounts, conjecture from engineers, scientists, meteorologists, laypersons, family of the crew, etc.

I was sad but mostly stunned.  Then, because I'm neurotic, I thought, "Damn, I did it again!"  It was at that moment I decided my watching the space shuttle landings and take-offs was the cause of these freak disasters and I would watch no more.

As curious as I was, I chose not to watch the Endeavour make its way to California last week.  As much as I wanted to watch it pass over the Golden Gate Bridge, I wanted more for it to make it safely.

It still has some road traveling to do before it arrives at its final home, the California Science Center, so someone let me know when it's all over and I can turn on the television again.

Challenger Flight Crew - By NASA [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

 

 

--Fortuitous Observer

Anniversary of Dorothy Parker's Death - The Original Queen of Snark

Last week, June 7th to be exact, was the 45th anniversary of Dorothy Parker's death (August 22, 1893 – June 7, 1967).  For those who have no idea who I'm talking about, she was an American satirist with the sharpest, snarkiest of wit!  I started reading Ms. Parker in my mid-twenties, and I've had a girl crush on her since.  I sometimes quote her on Facebook, simply because it feels like a Dorothy Parker quote kinda day.

So, in honor of this anniversary, and because I'm feeling witty this afternoon (though some might disagree), I've decided to list some of my most favorite Dorothy Parker quotes.  A few of these are quite famous (or infamous, depending on how you see it), and this list is by no means exhaustive, but please enjoy and slap a smile on your face, and maybe read these to your cats later.

"The first thing I do in the morning is brush my teeth and sharpen my tongue."

"This wasn't just plain terrible, this was fancy terrible. This was terrible with raisins in it."

“That would be a good thing for them to cut on my tombstone: Wherever she went, including here, it was against her better judgment.”

"That woman speaks eighteen languages, and can't say 'No' in any of them.”

"Men seldom make passes at girls who wear glasses.”

“Beauty is only skin deep, but ugly goes clean to the bone.”

“I require three things in a man: he must be handsome, ruthless, and stupid.”

“I'm never going to accomplish anything; that's perfectly clear to me. I'm never going to be famous. My name will never be writ large on the roster of Those Who Do Things. I don't do anything. Not one single thing. I used to bite my nails, but I don't even do that any more.”

"I don't care what is written about me so long as it isn't true.”

“I'd like to have money. And I'd like to be a good writer. These two can come together, and I hope they will, but if that's too adorable, I'd rather have money."

“If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to.”

"I've never been a millionaire but I just know I'd be darling at it."

 

 

--Fortuitous Observer

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George Washington a Pisces?

Yesterday, February 20th, was my birthday (somebody make them stop already...crap, scratch that...the alternative is becoming worm food or having my ashes strewn across parts unknown, and I'm not ready for that just yet).  Poseidon and I went to the mall (egad) and then dinner, and while hanging out during our 15 minute 30 minute wait time, we started jabbering about the place being crowded obviously due to peeps celebrating President's Day (apparently it is an occasion to patronize your local chain restaurant).

Our discussion led us to down the path of Washington's actual birthday, and I said I believed it to be the 22nd of February, so we assumed naturally that G.W. was a Pisces.  Poseidon and I both being Pisces didn't see George as being the flighty, dreamy sort that we are known to be (other signs may use less fun words to describe us fish, like:  procrastinator. shilly-shalliness, etc.).

Anyway, I was doing some reading on our first president this morning, and I learned some cool things.  For instance, his actual date of birth was February 11, 1731, which would make him an Aquarius, but Britain changed to the Gregorian calendar (in 1752?), and this put his birthday on February 22, 1732, making him...wait for it...a Pisces!

Reading this brought me back to the original discussion Poseidon and I had, and what fishy traits did old George have?  I found an interesting site which explores business success through Astrology, and they listed the Piscean leadership characteristics attributed to the Father of our Country, and by George (I of course completely meant to do that), he is a Pisces (though I'm sure they could just as easily have linked him to the sign of Aquarius as well):

 

 

 

• Each sign has its keyword, a phrase which captures the essence of the sign.  The keyword for Pisces is “I believe.”    At the highest level, Pisceans operate from an instinctual, connected space, tapped right in to the wisdom of all.
• “The only true freedom for Pisces comes through spiritual orientation.  When they are true to their real nature Pisceans have a high and holy destiny and are the true saviors and servants of mankind.” (Isabel Hickey, Astrology A Cosmic Science)
• “Pisces is the most sensitive sign of the zodiac and emotions are strong and deep in this sign.  They are moody and introspective and hard to understand.” (Ibid.)
• “Pisceans need to be alone and …retreat from contact with the world in order to retain their equilibrium.” (Ibid.)
• “[Pisceans] never feel that they do enough so they often overwork, putting stress and strain on the physical body.” (Ibid.)
• “The mutable signs (Pisces is the mutable water sign) express themselves as a desire to find knowledge; and with their flexible and adaptable approach, they are not only able to find new knowledge but also have the ability to use it. They bring new ideas, new facts and new ways of seeing things into the world view of the tribe.” (Bernadette Brady, The Zodiac:  Urban Tribes)
• “Pisces is a water sign, thus [they are] empathic, [they feel] the emotions of others or of patterns. They can empathize and understand, blending their energy with all things. To them the world and its events are a feast of omens and signs.” (Ibid.)
• Mutable water indicates the quality of…nourishment – flowing everywhere, without limitations, distinctions, or judgments. (Eric Meyers, Elements and Evolution)

 

Happy birthday to all my fellow Pisces swimming out there!

 

--Fortuitous Observer

Ooh-la-la. A Generation Xer's Trip Down Holiday Decoration Memory Lane

As a child (I am a Gen Xer), my grandparents and my mother would bundle us up in December, throw us in the car, and drive around to look at neighborhood Christmas lights.  Each time we saw a house we particularly thought special, we all repeated the phrase "ooh-la-la!"  I don't know why, but it was a tradition.  I catch myself still doing this; however, I usually say it in my head, not out loud.

There was rarely anything spectacular about these displays of my youth, usually consisting of blue, and sometimes multi-colored lights adorning the gutter of a home, or a sparsely draped tree in a front yard.  Nothing that would warrant an enthusiastic "ooh-la-la" from the peanut gallery.  I mean, we saw nothing elaborate like gigantic 9 feet tall snow men or a Santa Claus hydraulically popping up and down from an inflatable chimney belting out, "Ho, Ho, Ho!"  that one sees (and unfortunately hears) proudly displayed on lawns today.

No, the childhood holidays of Generation Xers were much different.  Simple, serene lights twinkling in the distance (and I grew up in rural West Virginia, so when I say distance, I mean it) against a dark night sky was enough for us.  Chilly evenings driving around in a car oohing and ahhing at the subtlety.  No garish, obnoxious snow globe balloons taking up three blocks...oh my God, I have now become my mother.

 

Found these "vintage" Christmas lights on ebay

 

--Fortuitous Observer

 

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What Generation X Watched Monday Night on TV in 1984

Today some of my coworkers were discussing current television shows running on the major networks and cable and for a minute I was so overwhelmed with the show titles folks were spewing that my head began to throb.  Egads.

How is it possible to keep up with every show on all networks, and cable?  I haven't seen a TV guide in years (do they still print those things?), and the only show I know is House on Monday night and sometimes I can't even remember if it is on at 8pm or 9pm.  Seriously.  Am I the only Xer who doesn't keep up with TV because I'm, well, too tired to keep it straight (and underwhelmed by the offerings)?  I can't be!

Now, imagine if you will, Generation X, the year is 1984 (just a random year I've selected, no real significance).  ABC, CBS, and NBC.  That was it, until FOX was added to the mix in 1986.  I knew what was on the idiot box (television for those youngsters out there) every morning/afternoon/evening and the times.  I was a walking TV Guide.

Now there are so many cable channels in the fray, and I believe I've simply thrown in the towel.  I don't want to know what is on because my short-term memory isn't what is used to be and I have too many important things to remember, like eating, sleeping, walking, breathing, etc.  There is no room in my head for such trivial data at this point.

So, welcome to a cold, grey Monday evening.  What is on TV tonight you ask?  I have no idea (except House is on at some point tonight, I think), but I can tell you what was on Monday night in the fall of 1984 (thanks to Al Gore's invention of the Internet).  Here it is Generation X...what we watching on Monday night in 1984.  I'm Larry, this is my brother Darryl, and this is my other brother Darryl. 

MONDAY NIGHT LINEUP - 1984

ABC - 8pm Call to Glory; 8:30pm ABC NFL Monday Night Football

CBS - 8pm Scarecrow and Mrs. King; 9pm Kate & Allie; 9:30pm Newhart; 10pm Cagney & Lacey

NBC - 8pm TVs Bloopers & Practical Jokes; 9pm NBC Monday Night at the Movies

 

--Fortuitous Observer

A Gen-Xer's Delima: Atari or Wait for a Nuclear Bomb?

A few weeks ago I posted some inaniloquent musings about things I miss (mostly from my childhood in the 80s), and my Generation X nostalgia crept in again this morning with flashbacks of everything "80s" like television shows, games, friends, playing outside, nukes, and of course our Atari system.

Growing up as an Xer during the Cold War was such an anxious time (at least for me) because the threat of nuclear annihilation lingered constantly in the back of the mind, like that musty smell in an attic that no amount of mothballs can shake (I honestly prefer the musty smell to the mothball smell).  I remember riding my bike one evening and the sky looked strange, purple and dark grey, and I thought, "Oh, know, the bomb has been released and I'm going to die."

Doom and gloom were always a part of me, so when Atari came along, and my parents decided to buy the system for us, it was something new and wildly exciting that took my mind off exploding into a million radiated bits.

My parents (like many at that time) were worried that we would no longer want to play outside and that we Gen Xers would become zombies, addicted to this new fangled machine with it's hideous graphics (I'll be honest, we didn't find those graphics hideous at the time because we had nothing to compare them to, except Pong, and hands down, Atari graphics were much better), replete with sound effects.

It turns out, parents of Generation X didn't need to worry about coercing us into video gaming rehab or forcing us to go outside and get some fresh air.  We wanted to be outdoors.  Sure, trying to figure out the new Raiders of the Lost Ark game or improve our Missile Command skills was fun stuff, but after a while, the outside world called our names, boredom with the Atari system would set in and we would be jonesing (now there is a lost but not forgotten 80s term for you) to get outside and pass the football around, or build a tree house, or dig in the dirt.

Being in the outdoors seemed less scary after playing indoors with the Atari, though I'm not sure why.  The foreboding war still loomed in the background as before, but perhaps my desire to "live" or my bravery intensified after experiencing being shot at by space creatures, dodging barrels hurled at me by Donkey Kong, or swinging over a pit in the jungle to escape deadly scorpions?  Game Over.

 

--Fortuitous Observer