Out to Pasture

IMAGE CREDIT: NASA/Bill Ingalls

ROLLING, ROLLING, ROLLING: Our breakfast 'entertainment' this morning was watching orbiter Atlantis rolling down Cape Canaveral roads toward its final resting place, a display at Kennedy Space Center Visitor's Complex.

The slow, final parade was both cool and awful to watch. Sure, it was great seeing the shuttle in motion, and appreciating its place in history. But it was also like watching an eagle with clipped wings plodding along. :( This particular 'bird' has soared 125,935,769 miles during 33 spaceflights. It made 12 trips to the ISS and back, and was the very last shuttle flown, landing on July 21, 2011. 

It's the shuttle we saw in person, with our very own eyes, leave the planet for STS-132. And now, it's a museum piece.

Of course, NASA big wigs, including administrator Charles Bolden, tried to remind us that it's not the end. This is a transition, and that back in the day shuttle was the new thing, after the Apollo program was retired. (Of course, I don't find it all that reassuring. In the '60s and '70s we put men on the moon, in the '80s and '90s we were flying astronauts to low Earth orbit, and now, we can't fly any astronauts anywhere. But I digress. ...)

Anyway, we watched Atlantis be put out to pasture this morning. Sigh.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Jaw dropping post-Sandy images continue to flood the media. Today, I found an interactive image from NOAA/AP using Google Earth with a slider on it that shows pre-and post-storm along the Jersey Shore. Just use the orange slider in the center of the image here: http://seattletimes.com/html/picturethis/2019591918_before-and-after-images-of-sandy.html

LAZY DOG: Kirby has taken up residence in the laundry basket at the foot of my bed. I hate to break it to her that it's not a permanent fixture. 

I must say, it looks exceedingly comfy. I wish it were large enough to accommodate me. 

RAINBOW CONNECTION: Thursday, when we came out of yoga and were walking back to our car at the library, a double rainbow arced over the building. Pretty, even via my crappy cell phone camera.

FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS: We'll be celebrating Diwali for the first time tomorrow night. I know, we're a bit late to the party, as it's a centuries-old celebration.

Today we learned that Diwali is a five-day festival celebrated between mid-October and mid-November, and that it commemorates the return of Lord Rama from his 14-year exile and defeating the demon king Ravana. 

Our participation in Diwali will come in the form of Annabelle dancing with her Bollywood troupe at a Diwali celebration at the NewHolly Gathering Hall in southeast Seattle. It ought to be interesting and I hope to get some decent photos.