Discovery Space Center's Holiday Galaxy Camp. DSim Films Scenes for New Mission. The Imaginarium.

Hello Troops,
     Last night I chaperoned for the Discovery Space Center's Holiday Galaxy Camp.  Galaxy Camps last three days and two nights.  I'll be back tonight for round two.  
     The night went very well; the kids were fantastic, well behaved, and intelligent.  Several of the boys debated the question of Star Trek vs. Star Wars while they ate their bedtime snack of  cookies and hot chocolate.  Carter asked for my opinion on the issue at hand.  "StarGate," I replied.  They gave me a confused look before taking a sip of chocolate and continuing.  
     "Just think about it.  You've got this stick that lights up for a weapon.  A phaser could easily disintegrate that light saber, so Star Trek is better," one boy reasoned.  
     The other shot back. "A Jedi could use the force to take the weapon away before it got fired." The debate raged on until bedtime.  I told them to stop for the night.  During the night they could dream up some new things to say to support their argument. 
     One young teen saw me sitting at a table with some of the other staff.  She walked over to the table carrying a hand made book and pen.  "Mr. Williamson," she asked.  She held out a handmade book. I recognized the cover picture from my Troubadour story, An Enemy From the Dark. "Can I have your autograph?" 
     "Wow, somebody is actually reading it." I took the book and pen and signed the front cover.  
     She smiled.  "I'm in love with Captain Carick," 
     I didn't understand her at first. "What did you say?"
     She took the book and looked longingly at the picture of the USS Voyager's Cadet Captain Carick on the front cover.  "I'm in love with Captain Carick." 
     Bradyn saw my shocked expression. "Is that the first time someone's asked for your autograph?"  
     "Yep," I replied thinking how awesome it was that someone was in love with a character created out of my imagination.   
     Todd Rasband knew I was always looking for things to right about in The Troubadour.  "I'll bet this gets in Blog," he interjected.   
     I thought for a moment before lying.  "No, that would be bragging and I never brag about my work." 
     To the young teen on the Galaxy Camp, thank you for making my day.

Mr. W.

DSim Films Several New Story Scenes for Checkmate, a New Mission Written By BJ Warner.
   
     BJ Warner sent a few pictures taken yesterday during the filming of a few tactical scenes for Checkmate, a new DSim, DSC, and Lakeview simulation mission.
     Checkmate is a thrilling game of mental chess with a new and noteworthy villain of the Colonial Command universe. He pits man against himself with puzzles, games and moral decisions. More on the mission can be found on the DSC website.

     The people in the shoot were Robert (acting as this mission's Admiral, dressed to give the mission briefing) Steven Stufflebeam (our sound man and visual director), Andrew Mallory (the expert camera operator and overall movie master), Jordan Winger (acting as one of our news reporters and stage hands), BJ (writer and director) and Johnny Call (staring as the Chess Master).  Be sure to get a group of friends together and go on this new mission!  

Friday's Imaginarium

No one said it would be easy to make the ordinary, Extraordinary.

Really?  Does IKEA really think Americans are that stupid?

Great Quotes from Great People to Start your New Year

A sign in the doorway of a home for their kid's friends.

An unusually dressed Shepard.

Imaginative "Slippery When Wet" sign.

 A Real Hobbit 'like' Home

The World going down the drain. Street Art

Europe, North Africa as the years changed.

Discovery Space Center Gets New Director. Big Changes Coming to the Discovery Space Center. The Imaginarium Takes Us Out of 2013.

It was a very good year

Discovery Space Center Gets New Director and a Face Lift.

    Fact:  Casey Voeks has been named the new director of the Discovery Space Center in Pleasant Grove.
     Fun: "I want to thank everyone for their support and prayers," Casey said in his tearful delivery of the news to the DSC's staff and interns. "The way you little people are always there for me really warms my heart and teaches me that even people like yourselves can play a part in the making of a man."  Casey went on to thank his parents, grandparents and others who played a part in his upbringing.
     "Abe Lincoln had his log cabin," he said to a hushed room.  "That humble start in the backwoods town of Hodgenville, Kentucky crafted and molded him through hardship and trial and made him one with the people and a great leader."  Casey pointed to those seated in the hall and paused for dramatic effect before raising his voice as he raised his outstretched hand toward the heavens. "You are my log cabin.  You are my Hodgenville.  I'm one of You!"  The room erupted in thunderous applause.  Casey then removed himself while the staff and interns continued to clap.   Moments later he reappeared in his working clothes: jeans and a red Tshirt which had "I'm ONE of you!" printed across the front.  He walked over to the platform scheduled for removal, picked up a hammer, held it over his head and froze.

   
   
 "You're suppose to get a picture of that for The Troubadour," Brandon Wright whispered into my ear.  I quickly snapped the photo.
     "What's he doing?" came a shout from behind me.  I turned around and saw Jorden Osborn, Endeavor Set Director,  jump up from his seat and bolt toward the front of the room. "Mr. Voeks, that hammer hasn't been disinfected.  People have used it!  Oh the Humanity!" Jorden exclaimed as he bounded over rows of chairs to reach his boss and mentor. He unzipped his fanny pack and produced a ziplock bag stuffed with Clorox Wipes.  "Carefully put the hammer down, " his instructions were clear and direct.  Casey set the hammer back down on the platform. "Kindly step away and let a pro handle this."
     Jorden draped three Clorox Wipes over the hammer.  He pulled a pair of rubber gloves from his pack  and put them on.  Next, out came a small bottle of hand sanitizer.  "Hands," he ordered.  Casey held out his hands.  A generous amount of sanitizer was squirted into each.  "Scrub," he ordered. Casey did as directed.  Jorden then wiped the hammer throughly before setting it back down on the platform with a grunt of approval for a job well done.  He returned to his seat after spraying Casey down with a bottle of Lysol Spray kept in his backpack for emergencies.
     I snapped a picture of the very clean hammer.

 

 The Facts:  The Discovery Space Center is renovating the USS Endeavor simulator.  It will get all new computers, several of which will have touch screens.

The Endeavor as it looked yesterday - before the remodeling commenced.  

The light channel running across the ceiling will be redone along with several other modifications meant to bring the Endeavor up to snuff.  "It could well be the coolest ship here at Discovery," Casey explained.

The DSC's Simulator Hallway

   
 Our next stop was great entrance room into the DSC once called the Galileo Room.  "All of this will be changed," Casey pointed to the places on the wall where new flat screen TV's will be placed.  "Crews will come in here, sit down and watch their mission briefings and job explanations - just like Disneyland."  The TV's sat in their boxes waiting to be mounted on the walls.  "Everything else in here goes.  We want to clean this room up. I think declutter is a better word," Casey said as he pointed to old equipment and desks crowding a corner of the room.  

The Discovery Staff getting things ready to be moved from the Galileo Room

  

     
     Casey led me from the Galileo Room and into Stone Gate's main foyer and entrance.  "Total immersion is what we want here at Discovery.  We want the campers to feel like they're in their mission where ever they are in our section of this building," he said as we walked into another room right off the foyer.  "This will be our new birthday party room."
   

This will be the DSC's new birthday party room

   
There was a bang from the foyer.  Jorden, Scott and Aleta were busy moving equipment from the Galileo Room to storage.  Jorden was afraid things would come spilling out of the under cabinet.

The DSC's large planetarium was moved to another section of the building.

   
 Our tour of the facility continued down the hall and into what was once one of Stone Gate's dance studios - now the primary field trip classroom.  Aleta Clegg,  DSC's Curriculum Director, explained her vision of how the room would be remodeled to house up to 50 students at one time.

Aleta in the DSC's new field trip classroom.

   
Things are changing at the Discovery Space Center.  Be sure to keep up on the news by making The Troubadour your first stop when surfing the web.   Also, be sure to visit the DSC's web site to book your next mission or overnight camp:  discoveryspacecenter.com.

     

BJ in DSC's Kitchen.  "A clean kitchen is a happy kitchen," he always says.

   
Finally, be sure to say hello to BJ Warner, Lakeview Space Center's Director, who is usually found hiding out in the DSC's kitchen when manual labor and heavy lifting is required :)

Mr. W.

The Imaginarium

The ordinary becomes the Extraordinary

Bring in the New Year with a bit of Joy!  Watch as this little boys steals the show (at 1:05 on the video if you need to fast forward a bit).  

What a great practical joke

A montage of a couple's life together on the staircase

Great things start small.  Let that be a lesson to you

Time for a little rest and relaxation