Valentine's Day Wishes to Everyone.

Hello Troops,

A Happy Valentine's Day to our Space Center staff, volunteers and campers! I sent Mr. Howell,our resident florist, out early this morning with flowers for our favorite staff, volunteers and campers, but word has it he missed the bus to the Imaginarium's Wonderland Station. So if you see a forlorn unkempt florist sitting at a bus stop holding a bouquet of flowers, please stop and offer him a ride. And if your flower doesn't arrive, remember it's the thought that counts, right?

A Day Spent Pushing the Very Limits of Society's Norms

Caution, the following pictures may not be suitable for younger audiences. These pictures show a sheer disregard for law and order. They portray people flaunting the established order. The anti social behavior illustrated in these pictures prompted Scandinavian governments to ban them outright.

Viewer discretion is advised.

Sticking it to The Man at the Lunch Table.

Don't tell me where I can and can't tear open my ketchup packet.

Rebel with a Cause is what they call me!

Shocking isn't it? Afterwords the can was left on the table for
someone else to clean up!

Rudeness on an Industrial Scale!

I know, this one photograph caused you to wince.

I hesitated to include it, but felt it was my duty as an honorary member of the 99%
to show the 1% what we are capable of doing when pushed to the breaking point.

This stopped the queue dead in its tracks at the Grocery Store. The Management was brought in to sort out the confusion. I won't include the vulgar language spewed by the sheep waiting in line.

Admit it, you secretly wish you had the guts and mental fortitude to pull off something like this.

And Finally, Just For You on this Day Celebrating all that's right with Love

The Story of my Life

Happy Valentine's Day from the Space Education Center!

Mr. Williamson

A Beautiful New Sign for the Voyager

Hello Troops,
It was just after a quarter past eight Saturday evening when my home phone rang. I glanced to see who was calling. The screen said "School's Public". I reasoned it was Jon Parker and Kyle Jones calling to tell me the new Voyager's backlit sign was successfully installed and working as designed.

"Hello," I answered.
"Vic, we need you to come down and help," Jon said. What Jon didn't know is that I was nearly horizontal in my favorite recliner watching my beautiful 65 inch DLP television (watching is a wishful term for what I was actually doing. Passing between the conscious and subconscious states was more like it. It's what I do on a Saturday night. I know, you might as well open a grave and drop me in, but remember I usually get about four hours of sleep on a Friday night at the Space Center so I have a pass on spending my Saturday nights inebriated with a frothy draft of drowsiness).

"I'll be right down," I replied. I knew they wouldn't be able to install my new sign without my expertise. I made it to the Battlestar without shoes. I was too lazy to put on a pair. I only live three minutes from the Space Center by car so why bother.

When I arrived I saw Jon and Kyle wrestling with my new sign.

"Stand back boys and let a professional at it!" I pushed my chest out, flexed what muscles I had control of on a Saturday night, cracked my knuckles and walked over to the metal stairs leading up to the Voyager's Decontamination Hallway.
"What do you need me to do?"

"Hold the frame up while we screw it into the studs," Kyle said.

Well, at least it wasn't anything too taxing. I held the sign overhead while Jon and Kyle worked magic with the electric screwdriver. Five minutes later my job was done.

Now, skip ahead to this morning.

I got to the Center at 8:00 A.M., walked to the Voyager and switched on the lights.
I went through the turning door and stepped into Decontamination.


I walked to the end of the hallway and turned to see the new sign in all its glory. I was not disappointed. There it was - a masterpiece to my creativity and willingness to approve the expenditure, Emily's graphic design and Kyle and Jon's construction.

The new sign as seen from the bottom of the stairs looking up to Decon.

The Voyager is a fine lady with a new frock for all to enjoy.

Thanks Kyle and Jon for the extra hours on Saturday to get the job done.

Mr. Williamson

News from the Central Work House for Incorrigible Youth

News from the State Central Work House
Department of Incorrigible Youth

Pleasant Grove

Warden Williamson of the State Central Work House for Incorrigible Youth authorized the awarding of medals last week and today to our incorrigible youth who've gone above and beyond their assigned tasks at the Work House.

The Central Work House on a Summer's Day
in Beautiful Pleasant Grove

Case File: A427
Bed Number 4. General population. Galileo Ward.
Name: James
Sentence: undetermined
Social Worker: Stacy

James was awarded the Galileo Ward's medal for achievement. While unsure of his cognitive grasp of the situation, Caseworker Stacy approved the awarding of the medal.
"James has been cooperative. Something we saw little of during his first few years at the Home," she explained. "In fact, his behavior has improved to the point where we feel it appropriate to let him use a fork again."

Case File: A428
Bed Number 7. General population. Galileo Ward.
Name: Nolan
Sentence: two years
Social Worker: Stacy

Nolan was approved for the Galileo Ward's Achievement Pin.
"We all remember the explosion in the greenhouse last year," Stacy wrote in her recommendation. "Nolan has since shown signs of remorse and we feel this improvement should be rewarded. He will be given the pin and allowed access to hand soap only. The greenhouse will still be off limits along with any access to fertilizer."

Case File: A448
Bed Number 17. Special population. Odyssey Ward.
Name: Nabil
Sentence: undetermined
Social Worker: Christine

"Nabil did very well on his supervised day out last week," Christine explained in her written essay on why Nabil should receive the Odyssey Ward's Achievement medal."We stayed away from crowds. I knew he wasn't ready for them. Crowds, purses and wallets are too much for a young man with Nabil's talents."

Case File: B221
Bed Number 12. Gifted population. Odyssey Ward.
Name: McKay
Sentence: Waiting on recommendations from the Dept. of Homeland Security
Social Worker: Christine

McKay was excited to receive the Odyssey Achievement Pin during last week's assembly held before the ward's evening television time.
"The ward's computer crashed two weeks ago. McKay was given access to the computer under proper supervision. McKay repaired the problem without attempting to access the internet. This deserves recognition."

McKay was brought to the Work House under a Federal judge's order. The near collapse of the nation's air traffic control system, while a remarkable achievement for one so young, means that McKay may be with us for quite some time.

Case File: B221
Bed Number 11. Special population. Odyssey Ward.
Name: Jordan
Sentence: Soon to be released

Social Worker: Christine

Jordan is soon to be released from the work house. His social worker thought the Odyssey Achievement Pin would be the icing on his rehabilitation cake.
"We believe Jordan will do fine in the general population providing he's learned his lesson about involving people in questionable investment practices."

Case File: C238
Bed Number 9. Special population. Phoenix Ward.
Name: Miranda
Sentence: Miranda's file is marked Top Secret by the CIA.
Social Worker: Dave

While far from trustworthy in the general population, Miranda is improving and has been released from solitary confinement. Having been in total darkness for so long, Miranda found the light in the ward too bright for her eyes. The young resident in the photograph below noticed she had put her shirt on backwards.


Miranda doesn't take criticism well and flew into a rage.


The boy is expected to be released from the Work House's hospital in two to three weeks.

Friday Night at the Space Center

"Goodnight Jon," the boys sleeping in the Bridge Sick Bay just sang out in a somewhat mocking tone. Jon is making his rounds reviewing the Space Center's safety procedures.
"Goodnight Jon!"
"Goodnight Zac!"
Two more rounds of the goodnight chorus rang out from the Bridge Sick Bay - surprisingly in unison.

Tonight we are hosting students from Barratt Elementary located in American Fork. Thirty nine are settling down for a long winter's night. Joining them are over twenty of our valiant and stalwart staff, sleeping in the Magellan, Odyssey and on the stage.

One boy just called to go home. The thought of staying here overnight was more than he wanted to handle, having just survived several hours in a simulator defending universal liberty and justice. He will return in the morning refreshed and ready to take on the forces of galactic evil.

The loft sleeping compartment is creaking. The wooden platform holding the mattresses creaks every time on of the boys changes position. It's just loud enough to wake me up in the middle of the night.

The rooftop heating unit just switched off. It does that at midnight every Friday night. It switches back on at 12:10 A.M. It is eerily quiet without that monstrous fan blowing continuously. It becomes the background noise you grow accustom too - never stopping to notice unless it switches off.

One of the Barratt boys stood in the school's hallway just before I assigned the boys their sleeping areas an hour ago. He held up both hands to cover his eyes.


"I'm a weeping angel," he said to a friend sitting in the lobby.

"You're a Doctor Who fan," I chimed in. He nodded. Speaking would take him out of character. He crept forward every time his friend took his eyes off him. Then he lashed out for the kill. His friend jumped up and took off down the hall. Jon and I watched, marveling that this ten year old had the patience to sit through an entire episode of Dr. Who.

I just remembered I forgot to ask the boys if they walk in their sleep. I put sleep walkers on the bottom bed of our three level bunk beds. Oh well, I'll find out soon enough when I'm woken in the middle of the night by the crash and scream of one of them falling from a top bunk to the hard floor beneath or find them shuffling through the office, moving things on my desk or rummaging through the bookshelf.

The worst case of sleepwalking at the Space Center occurred several years ago. One winter's night I heard the Voyager's outside door open. The cold rushed into the office. I jumped up and ran to the emergency exit. Outside stood one of the boys, standing in the snow in his underwear - no socks or shoes and looking quite bewildered. I knew it wasn't an escape attempt by the look on his face. I turned him around and escorted him back into the school and back up to the sleeping quarters. He recognized his sleeping bag and jumped right in - asleep instantly. He remembered nothing of it in the morning.

It's nearly 12:30 A.M. I'm falling asleep at the computer. Time to go to bed.

"Goodnight," we all say in unison.

Mr. W.

50 Years Ago - Tiros 4 Launched to orbit

Tiros Weather Satellite.

FIfty years ago NASA launched the 4th member of the Tiros weather satellites. The launch occurred on February 8th from Cape Canaveral with a Thor-Able rocket blasting off from Launch Complex 17A. I have another source which claims the rocket used was a Thor-Delta configuration. Thor-Deltas were generally launched from LC-17. The Thor-Delta was the forerunner to today's Delta-class rockets.

Thor-Able rocket.

Thor-Delta rocket.

Both rocket configurations are similar. In either case, the Tiros-4 weather satellite was placed into orbit and began sending photos and data back to Earth within 24 hours. The satellite was about 42 inches in diameter, and cylinder-shaped. Two different telephoto cameras were installed, with other sensors and communications systems. The Tiros weather system enabled forecasters to more carefully watch cloud cover, storm systems, and photograph weather events from orbit.

By Mark Daymont
Spacerubble.blogspot.com

50 Years Ago - American Atlas problems delay launch

Friendship 7 on Atlas rocket.

Fifty years ago, it was the USA experiencing all sorts of rocket problems. NASA was behind the Russians on launching men into orbit of the Earth, and was eager to send up astronaut John Glenn in the Mercury Capsule, nicknamed "Friendship 7," on top the Atlas rocket. The Atlas had more thrust and fuel than the Redstone, used to launch Alan Shepard and Gus Grissom into sub-orbital flights over the Atlantic.

The launch would have taken place on January 27, but weather played a part in cancelling that flight. Astronaut Glenn had patiently waited for more than five hours strapped in the capsule until word came down that the bad weather would prevent flight controllers from monitoring his liftoff during the first critical few minutes.

Then on January 30, worse news was given to the press and the waiting American public: a fuel leak in the Atlas booster would need repairs. As John Glenn put it: "Sure, I'm disappointed, but this is a complicated business. I don't think we should fly until all elements of the mission are ready. When we have completed all our tests satisfactorily then we'll go." On February 1st, NASA announced that repairs would be completed by February 13, and the flight could be launched then.

John Glenn practices entering Friendship 7, with the help of Gunther Wendt, the famous German rocket scientist-turned-American-rocket-engineer-now-pad leader who led the team of engineers working on the launch pad.

Also on February 1st, the American public began showing their frustration with the delays. Politics were involved in space back in 1962, just like today. Congressman James G. Fulton, who was the top Republican on the House Committee on Science and Astronautic, said "There's no doubt our overall space program is slipping despite the high words and fine praise coming from the White House... if it continues to slip we'll be lucky to get a man on the Moon before 1980."

Remaining positive, on February 3rd Glenn announced to the press that the scheduled rocket flight on February 13th "can only bode success." He was still unaware, of course, of further delays to come.

Meanwhile, on February 4th, the world was quite relieved to see a prediction fail to come to pass. It just so happened that Hindu astrologers had predicted that because of an unusual alignment of five planets and the Sun occurred. According to their prediction, a previously unknown and invisible planetoid named Khentu would also move into alignment and cause Earthly disasters. Of course, nothing happened, and the Indian Prime Minister chided the astrologers and their public believers for such nonsense.

Posted by Mark Daymont
Spacerubble.blogspot.com

KAOS Joins Forces with Anonymous. Its 1:15 P.M. at the Imaginarium

Hello Troops,
I woke up this morning, checked my email, looked through Facebook for anything remotely interesting - found nothing expect for my brother in law's birthday. Wasted too much time reading through everyone's status and can't for the life of me figure out why. I'm wondering if our subconscious is preprogrammed with a nosey inquisitiveness source code at birth.
Then I did something I usually don't do, I checked out the Space Center's Web Site. This is what I found


"Odd," I thought to myself.
I quit out of Firefox and pulled up Safari.


The web site looked normal on Safari. I pondered over the problem, wondering why the website would look OK with one browser and complete gibberish on another.

"KAOS!" I shouted. Our nemesis must have joined forces with Anonymous, the world wide organization of professional hackers bent on replacing our ordered societies with mayhem, anarchy and chaos.

"That's it!" I shouted again. Chaos and KAOS - it all made sense. We've been hacked. The Space Center has finally made it into the big leagues alongside the FBI, the Pentagon, the Kremlin and the entire United States Government.

"What to do, what to do," I fretted over my Cheerios. Who did we have at the Space Center capable of reversing the damage done by Anonymous? Who could engage them in a stare down and have a reasonable chance of blinking last? The answer was as obvious as the lack of butter on my toast. I just had to think for a minute. I shot an email to Brent Anderson. Brent is our Batman to their Joker. He is our prime rib to their liver. And what supreme super hero ventures into murky water without a side kick? Who was Brent's Robin? I'll send another email to Matt Ricks.

Hopefully our Dynamic Duo will have the problem solved quickly. While we wait, how about a few things from the Imaginarium?

It's 1:15 P.M. at the Imginarium Station. Let's disembark the Wonderland Express and
see what mischief we can get ourselves into.

Who would have imagined that Mr. Bean also attended the venerable
Hogwarts School of Magic and Wizardry? It's all becoming clear to me.

Take an everyday household item, add imagination, and suddenly
You've made Magic

In the 1950's and 60's we thought the future was bright and full of promise.
We thought peace and goodwill towards men was achievable.
It was the early days of space travel. We had our sights set on the stars.

What happened?

I still believe the impossible is possible.
I still believe mankind is capable of great things.
I believe the future is bright and full of possibilities.
I believe we spend too much time listening to politicians and doomsdayists. They seem to share the same agenda - control and manipulation through fear. If they keep us frightened
we will take our sights off the good and look only to the their predicted coming night.

Will our own fear be the genesis of our undoing?

Take a moment and tell her you love her.
She won't be with you forever.

Wise words.



And finally, words as art -
A symphony of imagination

I'll see you in the trenches.
Let's make this a good and fearless week.

Mr. W.