Mmmm....chocolate cake for breakfast... I pull out the birthday cake from the community fridge in the 5s breakroom. I figure I'd make room in the crowded fridge. Yeah, right. I'm starved. The cake has been there for five days without a cover. The frosting is still good, but the cake portion is a bit crusty on the outside...still it's not bad.
It's different being an on-site contractor at JSC. On-site contractors receive a few perks. For example, today we are being offered free flu shots.
When I received the email, I was supporting a Cadre Scenario Training, but nothing is happening right now -- at least not for me. I just have to maintain the O2 and N2 pressure inside the space station (simulated of course.) I pick up a black phone handset, press a button on the hand portion and say over the loop that I will be on-call, but I'll have my cell. I then head off to Building 2.
JSC has a central square or park around which the majority of buildings encircle. The park has a few ponds with water fountains and trees. Ducks and I think even Koi use to populate the ponds, but not anymore.
Wide wheeled Huffy type bikes with baskets on the handlebars roam between the buildings. You can take one, ride to any building and just leave it. Building 2 isn't far away and the weather is nice (Nice is relative when you live in Houston. It's a bit humid but what's new?) so I just hoof it. Someone heading away from Building 2 warns me that the line is long. I guess he saw the flu form in my hand.
Building 2 is the old Visitor's Center when JSC still provided free tours. The old Lunar Lander simulator hangs high overhead. This simulator was rocket propelled and allowed the astronaut to practice actual landings in normal gravity. I heard that the fields near the backgate still has mockups of the Moon craters. Now only deer graze on it.
In Building 2, display cases with plaques and gifts still line the walls. I see an autographed photo from the Queen of England including trinkets carried up on various flights such as medallions and flags. LBJ's bill signing desk is behind glass as well as various pens provided by the crew of Air Force One. A trophy case for the Russians commemorates Mir and the Soyuz-Apollo mission. A tall mosaic of the STS-107 mission patch is also here. STS-107 was the last flight of Columbia . It was presented by the Trinity high students of Midland. A carved wooden plaque of the Apollo 1 mission patch hangs on a wall as well as a painting of the Challenger crew and an American flag that was raised in DC after the Columbia accident. Another wall is dedicated to Gilruth to whom Building 5 is named. Apollo 13's Caution and Warning panel has even been converted to a plaque.
They must be stopping people from joining the line since the line behind me is much shorter. The shots were being administered till 11. It's now 1055 - 35 minutes since I started, and I finally make it to the table where they check my paperwork. I move to a much smaller line inside the Teague Auditorium. During launches and landings, employees and their family can watch the live broadcast on the big screen. Six or more people are administering the shots which is why the line is moving so swiftly. It's a little after 11, and I am back on console.
Okay, this is cool
Growing up, I saw the Cannonball Run and The Gumball Rally. I always thought they were cool movies. When the game "Need for Speed" came out, I had to play it. There's a real road rally called Carbon Black. They claim they are not racing, but how do you push high performance cars to their limit if not racing? They race exotic cars across Europe - usually starting somewhere in England. I wonder how they would do on Amalfi Drive? They even track the cars real-time on the Internet. I wonder about this since that means the law can track them as well. It would be cool if they had live video feeds.
For grins I did a search on Gumball Rally and found the following website: Gumball3000.com. It appears to be just like Carbon Black.
It's different being an on-site contractor at JSC. On-site contractors receive a few perks. For example, today we are being offered free flu shots.
When I received the email, I was supporting a Cadre Scenario Training, but nothing is happening right now -- at least not for me. I just have to maintain the O2 and N2 pressure inside the space station (simulated of course.) I pick up a black phone handset, press a button on the hand portion and say over the loop that I will be on-call, but I'll have my cell. I then head off to Building 2.
JSC has a central square or park around which the majority of buildings encircle. The park has a few ponds with water fountains and trees. Ducks and I think even Koi use to populate the ponds, but not anymore.
Wide wheeled Huffy type bikes with baskets on the handlebars roam between the buildings. You can take one, ride to any building and just leave it. Building 2 isn't far away and the weather is nice (Nice is relative when you live in Houston. It's a bit humid but what's new?) so I just hoof it. Someone heading away from Building 2 warns me that the line is long. I guess he saw the flu form in my hand.
Building 2 is the old Visitor's Center when JSC still provided free tours. The old Lunar Lander simulator hangs high overhead. This simulator was rocket propelled and allowed the astronaut to practice actual landings in normal gravity. I heard that the fields near the backgate still has mockups of the Moon craters. Now only deer graze on it.
In Building 2, display cases with plaques and gifts still line the walls. I see an autographed photo from the Queen of England including trinkets carried up on various flights such as medallions and flags. LBJ's bill signing desk is behind glass as well as various pens provided by the crew of Air Force One. A trophy case for the Russians commemorates Mir and the Soyuz-Apollo mission. A tall mosaic of the STS-107 mission patch is also here. STS-107 was the last flight of Columbia . It was presented by the Trinity high students of Midland. A carved wooden plaque of the Apollo 1 mission patch hangs on a wall as well as a painting of the Challenger crew and an American flag that was raised in DC after the Columbia accident. Another wall is dedicated to Gilruth to whom Building 5 is named. Apollo 13's Caution and Warning panel has even been converted to a plaque.
They must be stopping people from joining the line since the line behind me is much shorter. The shots were being administered till 11. It's now 1055 - 35 minutes since I started, and I finally make it to the table where they check my paperwork. I move to a much smaller line inside the Teague Auditorium. During launches and landings, employees and their family can watch the live broadcast on the big screen. Six or more people are administering the shots which is why the line is moving so swiftly. It's a little after 11, and I am back on console.
Okay, this is cool
Growing up, I saw the Cannonball Run and The Gumball Rally. I always thought they were cool movies. When the game "Need for Speed" came out, I had to play it. There's a real road rally called Carbon Black. They claim they are not racing, but how do you push high performance cars to their limit if not racing? They race exotic cars across Europe - usually starting somewhere in England. I wonder how they would do on Amalfi Drive? They even track the cars real-time on the Internet. I wonder about this since that means the law can track them as well. It would be cool if they had live video feeds.
For grins I did a search on Gumball Rally and found the following website: Gumball3000.com. It appears to be just like Carbon Black.
