I'm the backup Rendezvous Officer for the upcoming STS-131 mission, which means I'll be working the rendezvous and undocking as backroom support. My shift hours are horrible, as per usual, but at least I'll be working the shift when the crew is awake and doing interesting things!
The primary job of the backup person in my area, in addition to the real-time flight support, is to be the Book Manager for the flight. The Book Manager is in charge of all the rendezvous and undocking procedures -- maintaining them, correcting them, etc. It's a lot of paperwork (both real and virtual) and it can be a headache sometimes, but it's a necessary part of the job to ensure that the rendezvous goes exactly as planned. The "rendezvous book," as we call it, is only one of dozens of books of procedures, checklists, and cue cards that make up the "flight data file" or FDF.
(What, you thought the astronauts just magically remembered how to do everything that has to be done over a two-week flight? They're smart people with good memory, but not THAT good!)
(Also, if you are curious for a closer look at some of the FDF flown each mission, you can view many of the documents on the NASA website.)
The final edition of the book gets published a month or two before launch, and my final act as Book Manager is to go over to the FDF office and check each of the actual flight copies of the book -- the ones that will be packed up, shipped to Florida, loaded onto the space shuttle, and launched into orbit with the crew.
For this flight, there were 6 identical copies of the rendezvous book, along with two sets of cue cards (which are concise checklists for certain activities that are velcroed into place in orbit) and overlays (which are transparencies that they tape over the camera monitor on the flight deck to help them judge their approach rate to the space station). This means 6 separate books to go through page by page to check for errors.
Three of the copies will be flown in space, and the other three stay on the ground as backups and for archival purposes. They're color-coded -- a prime and backup book each for the commander (red), pilot (yellow), and one of the mission specialists (purple).
It's a tedious process to be sure, but it's necessary. In the past, we've discovered pages that are missing, pages with print errors, graphics that didn't come out right, and overlays that are the wrong size. Much better to discover that type of thing on the ground than to be surprised by it in orbit!
I declare these books ready for flight!
I'm pretty swamped with my freelance project and don't have much to report. Work at work, work at home, sleep, repeat. I'm looking forward to the weekend. Even though I'll still be working on the freelance project, there should be time in there for a run, a bike ride, a breakfast with friends, and hopefully a few other fun activities.
For today though, enjoy this email from a few days ago. It's from Jose's friend Meryl. She grew up in Unalakleet, Alaska, a small town on the west coast that is one of the checkpoints along the Iditarod route. This year's race was won on March 16 after just under 9 days on the trail.
The Iditarod dog race is going on right now, and I've been keeping track of the news on it. Today I read about what the mushers are eating along the trail. Some are eating lasagna prepared by their wives, moose chimichangas, caribou stroganoff, chicken alfredo...pretty normal stuff in Alaska. But one guy is eating this:
"Iditarod veteran Paul Gebhardt of Kasilof is packing McDonald's quarter-pounders with cheese. He's also bringing breakfast burritos his wife makes with bacon, eggs, hash browns and salsa, as well as his own concoction: french bread sandwiches with grape jelly spread on one half, Miracle Whip on the other, then heaped with roast pork and ketchup."Sounds delish. He also eats Twinkies along the trail. He explains why, "It's fascinating to school kids because Twinkies don't freeze -- ever," he said. "At 65 below a Twinkie is still soft."
Aren't Twinkies amazing? Just thought I'd give you all something to be hungry for when it comes time to lunch today.
Back in late October, I almost bought a Nintendo Wii completely on impulse. As I was reaching for it, I decided for some reason that a video game system was not something I should buy just because I happened to feel like it that day. Instead, I randomly decided then and there that I would use the Wii as motivation to lose some weight. I set a goal weight that was 8 pounds away. Large enough that it would take effort, but small enough that it wouldn't take forever and ever to get there.
(Don't ask me why I had a sudden flash of rational thought in regards to this particular item, because I have absolutely no idea. I'm a horrible impulse buyer. I can justify almost anything!)
As I think I've alluded to already in recent months, I didn't do anything drastic. I didn't cut anything out of my diet, mainly because my willpower is just not quite that strong. That willpower IS strong enough, however, to watch portion sizes, cook at home more often, bring my lunch to work instead of eat from the cafeteria, and avoid french fries and cookies....at least avoid them most of the time. I'm still a Starbucks addict and refused to give that up, but since my drink of choice is only 130 calories, I declare that my skinny cinnamon dolce latte is acceptable!
I weigh myself every day, despite having read lots of advice over the years that says you shouldn't weight yourself more than once a week. I chalk that up as being applicable to people whose mood and opinion is greatly influenced by what they see on the scale, since weighing yourself every day means you will absolutely see fluctuations. I can be 2-3 pounds heavier one morning than I was the morning before, or will be the morning after. I know this, and it doesn't worry me, because I just monitor the overall trend.
Last week, I saw the number I've been looking for! 8 pounds down! I've now been at that number or just under for 5 or 6 of the last 8 days. I'm calling it. I did it! Woo!
Except now I'm not sure I actually want the Wii. I think I might rather have a fancy camera bag from here or here or here or here. I've been ogling them all lately as I consider getting something to replace my old Crumpler bag. (The Crumpler bag has been great, but it's slightly too small, doesn't have a good spot for "purse stuff" like my wallet and keys, and has a shoulder strap that is too bulky and stiff.)
I've also considered buying myself a sewing machine instead, but I don't think I have the time to learn how to use it right now. Perhaps that would be a good reward for later this year, since my ultimate goal -- i.e. get back to where I was 5 years ago -- is still 10-15 pounds away!
This week is d-day for my annual freelance project -- creating the program for the Miss Houston Pageant. Which means I won't be doing much of anything outside of working, designing, and sleeping this week.
This year we seem even further behind than usual. There are always girls who send their photos late, and advertisers who send their ads late. Lateness would not be quite as big an issue if what they sent was correct. But the ones who send late tend to be the ones who also don't follow the specs. There are the ones who send a 2x3 at 72 dpi photo they saved off the internet despite you specifically request a 5x7 at 300 dpi. And there are the ones who send lovely ads with photos that run right to the edge of the page, but their file is sized to 8.5x11, instead of the 8.75x11.25 I need to effectively print a full bleed, and their text is so close to the edge of the page that enlarging it slightly would mean that the text gets cut off. And there are the ones that insist on trying to fix the file themselves, instead of complying with my polite request to have their photographer or designer send the file directly to me.
It's not their fault, and I'm not blaming them. They're not designers or photographers, and I don't expect them to know exactly how to do things. But I do get tired of the endless polite emails saying "this file is not large enough, here are the requirements, please try again." Perhaps I should make a tutorial. But I doubt anyone would actually read it.
It was an AWESOME weekend. The weather was beautiful, and I took full advantage for some good triathlon training.
On Saturday I went for a 6.3 mile run. At noon. It was a little warm, but still not awful, though it certainly won't be long before running in the middle of the day becomes completely out of the question. I was out for just over an hour, and sunburned my neck. Oops. That was my own fault. Even in March, I can't be outside for that long on a sunny day without sunscreen, but apparently I still have not learned this lesson after 31 years.
L to R: Kathleen, me, Steve (in the gray & blue behind us), Donna, Cleve, and Mike (in the blue in the back)
On Sunday morning, I drove over to Manvel to meet up with some people from my tri club (and hundreds of others) for the Great Escape Ride. It's one of the many MS150 warmup rides that go on in the greater Houston area in the spring, which means it's a supported ride with rest stops, snacks and fluids, and police support at major intersections. They had routes mapped out for people to go 16, 42, 55, and 73 miles. Most of the tri club people rode 55, but I'm not quite ready for that distance yet (maybe next weekend). When the two routes split at mile 20, I rode the rest of the way with my friend Cathy.
The start of the ride was a bit chilly, but it warmed up quickly as the sun rose. By the time we hit the final rest stop, it was warm enough that I took off my tights (which I'd been wearing over my bike shorts) and just tied them around my handlebars for the rest of the ride. It was an awesome day for a ride, and it wasn't even too windy! I took things easy and finished with an average of 16.4 miles per hour. Not too shabby for a nice, easy ride. I still felt good when we finished, so it seems my legs could have handled 55 miles. I'm not sure my butt could have taken the extra 45 minutes in the saddle though!
I was pretty hungry after the ride, and when I got home, Jose was cooking eggs and biscuits. He is pretty awesome.
My first tri of the season is coming up in just under 4 weeks: the Gateway to the Bay tri in Kemah on April 11. I'll be doing the Olympic distance -- 1500 meter swim, 40 kilometer bike, and 10k run. This is a new race, so it should be fun. I love races that are practically in my backyard!
Jose has decided to try his hand at blogging again, with a focus on the subject he finds most interesting: science! If you want to talk about anything related to astronomy, biology, physics, technology, etc, I can guarantee he will be excited to discuss it with you. You can join him here:
As Houstonians, we have to put up with extended heat and humidity for months and months each year. Therefore, during the short period in March and/or April when the weather is beautiful and clear and gorgeous and perfect -- in short, on days like today -- I think there should be a law that no one has to go to work. It's just mean to make me sit here when the view out the window is so tempting.
This kind of lovely, cloudless day happens with welcome frequency in the spring. Last month, one of the crewmembers on the International Space Station took this photo from orbit. Just to the lower left of center is a neighborhood with a golf course running through the middle. (It's easier to see if you view large on Flickr.) That's my neighborhood!
While I was looking for that picture, I also came across this picture of Dubai. I knew they had a palm shaped island. Islands in the shape of continents? That's a new one!
While I don't know if he took these photos specifically, one of the current crewmember, Soichi Noguchi from Japan, has been taking tons of photos from orbit and posting them via Twitter. (He's @Astro_Soichi.) Since I'm on the topic, here are a couple of my favorites that he's posted lately:
"Himalaya in sunset. Lake Manasarovar is still frozen."
He's also been taking photos of the glaciers in Patagonia. They are spectacular. I'm pretty sure we saw both of these when we went to Patagonia in 2006. (I need to repost those photos. Dang I was skinny then.)
"South Patagonia. One of the most beautiful glaciers of the world. 800mm lens will take you there :-)"
"Glacier lake in Southern Patagonia. See the color difference between the two lakes."
We went to the rodeo last night, but we didn't actually see the rodeo.
We got a late start, and traffic was horrendous. By the time we finally walked through the gate, it was 8:15 and the rodeo was 3/4 done. I was really annoyed at the world while we were stuck in traffic and missing the steer roping and bull riding, etc, but after I finally accepted the idea that we were just not going to get there, it was fine. Neither of us particularly cared about the concert that followed the rodeo (Rascal Flatts), so we didn't even bother going inside the arena. Instead, we headed straight for the food and the carnival and ended up salvaging our rodeo outing -- in fact, we had a great time.
We rode the Ferris wheel...
... and enjoyed the view from on high.
Then we rode the swings, which made us dizzy...
...but that was fine, since there was no one else on the ride to witness our stumbling afterwards.
Although the fact that we got dizzy on the mere swings made us decide to forego crazier rides like this one!
These turkey legs looked tasty, but we'd already eaten brisket sandwiches.
We checked out all our options for fried desserts, which included Twinkies, Moon Pies, cheesecake, and tiramisu...
...before deciding to partake of some fried Oreos covered with powdered sugar.
So you know: fried Oreos taste like chocolate doughnuts!
Since most people were inside listening to Rascal Flatts, it wasn't crowded at all!
Jose tried to win a giant stuffed basketball, but alas, luck was not on his side.
At the end of the night, we took the carnival chair lift back to the other side of the park, and waved at the monkey and banana traveling in the other direction! I'm sure they had a fun time on the rest of the rides.
(All photos were taken with the Hipstamatic app on my iPhone. There are a few more on Flickr if you're interested.)
There's not much that tastes better than a cookie straight out of the oven. And unlike most of the things I've been cooking lately, cookies are something I've been making for years and years.
No secrets here. I just follow the recipe that's on the back of pretty much every Nestle Toll House bag. I use Crisco instead of butter. Why? Because that's how my mom always did it, which made me wonder what the difference between butter and shortening really is.
While I don't think shortening is actually any healthier, it does seem to make a difference in the texture of the cookies. I've used actual butter once or twice, and while the cookies taste more buttery (obviously), they come out kind of flattened. With shortening, they come out fluffier. Actually, fluffier is probably not the right word, but they are definitely less dense. I like 'em better that way, and I don't miss the butter flavor.
I found this blog entry this morning that explains why, if you're curious. (The difference is primarily that butter has some water in it and a lower melting point, while shortening does not. Cooking = science! Hooray for science!)
I've used that recipe a hundred times, but often substitute different kinds of chips, which can really change the cookies. I haven't done anything truly crazy, but I've made this same recipe using butterscotch chips, peanut butter chips, M&Ms, white chocolate chips, and Andes mint chips. Maybe some others that I can't remember, too. Anyway, this time I used half a bag of peanut butter chips and half a bag of chocolate chunks. You can also add nuts if you want, though I usually don't.
The recipe says to bake for 9-11 minutes. For years, I always had to bake for more like 8 minutes. I would inevitably forget this, and end up toasting the first pan a bit too much. Apparently this was due to my many crappy electric apartment ovens that ran hot. Ever since we moved into the house with our awesome gas oven (with digital temperature gauge!), these cookies come out perfect after exactly 10 minutes.
Yum!
The photo above of the flower beds in front of our house was taken last July. Everything had just been planted by the builder, and it was the middle of summertime. Lots of sun, plenty of late afternoon thunderstorms to keep thirsty plants happy.
This is what they looked like by the beginning of March. Pretty ragged, right? While I don't expect everything to look as lush and green in February as it does in July, the periods of unusually cold weather have taken their toll. I expect (hope) that most of the plants will make a comeback now that the weather is warming up -- along with the stupid crunchy St. Augustine grass that turns brown in the winter -- but the large fern-like plant that was front and center was obviously a casualty of the freeze and the monkey grass looked like it had all been stomped on by an elephant. It was time for some gardening.
I know basically nothing about plants and shrubs, so we headed over to Maas Nursery in Seabrook. Multiple people had told me it was the place to go, and it was indeed awesome. We said "show us the low maintenance section" and then picked out a couple different plants to start our experiment. We decided to address the front row of the beds for now, since it looked the worst. (Plus, we think the stuff in the back rows will perk up over the next couple months.) Our main criteria was anything that looked nice, was reasonably drought-tolerant, and liked full sun, since our front yard bears the brunt of the afternoon summer sun. We bought:
(Side note: when I googled yaupon holly, I discovered that the scientific name is ilex vomitoria. Yes, vomitoria. What a pleasant name for a plant.)
This past Saturday was an absolutely beautiful spring Houston day, so we spent two hours outside planting all of the new stuff. It was surprising hard work and we were both sore the next day. But the beds look better already!
We replaced the dead fern thing with the big viburnum. The bright green color is really nice, and it should produce flowers at some point. We also dug out most of the monkeygrass and replaced them with alternating holly and sage bushes. Those can grow pretty big if you let them, so we'll have to prune them occasionally, but that's sufficiently "low maintenance" for me.
Before
After
We do still need a new batch of mulch to put down over the whole bed. Any of my truck-owning friends want to volunteer?
Before
After
I still don't really know what I'm doing when it comes to gardening, so who knows, we may be replacing some of these again next year. It's a learning experience!
