Yakkity Yak

I'm not really sure what the video above was created for, but I thought it was cool -- it shows a time-lapse video of two artists making a detailed drawing of the space shuttle. It reminded me of a drawing I've got buried somewhere deep in my closet at home that I did in high school. It's only half finished, but it was done from a newspaper photo of the shuttle landing after a mission. At the time, I loved both art and NASA. It's funny to think that in a way, I still do. Like I wrote a week ago when I got my 10-year service award, I don't really know whether I will still work here in another 5 years. But wherever I go, I know I will still love NASA and what it stands for.

I had a rendezvous sim all day yesterday, my fourth in the "front room." I'm feeling more comfortable out there, at least in the sense that my heart no longer flutters from nerves for the entire 8 hours. After four sims though, and especially after the last two, I've come to the conclusion that I need to talk more. I know that's an odd thing, since I rarely have issues with not talking. (Ha.) But a big part of being a front room flight controller, often even bigger than actual technical knowledge since people usually have that by the time they get to the front, is communication and trust. I know that I need to give flight directors confidence in both me and my ability to make good decisions and give them the necessary information. And so far, I've been too quiet. I have my midpoint evaluation scheduled for the end of January, so I'll have one sim before then to work on it!