Friday, September 23, 2016

Leading Ladies

       PHOTO: NASA Johnson Space Center
BECOMING:  This week, NASA Johnson Space Center and recording star Grace Potter released a new, collaborative space-themed music video. Filmed at at the space center,  it features Potter performing her song, “Look What We’ve Become,”highlighting NASA women engineers, scientists and astronauts at work.
Per a NASA press release, “So much of this song is about when you are coming up through any part of your life and you face challenges, there are so many different ways that that can affect you and change the course of your life,” said Grace Potter. “I think that it creates a strength within you if you do make the choice to push onward and say, ‘I know that this might be more difficult than another path. That’s why I want to do it.”
The press release says NASA’s goal with the video is "to inspire young women everywhere to plot a course for a career in science, technology, engineering and math, and then stay on that trajectory, no matter the challenges, and become a part of something historic." 

GET OUT THE VOTE: The United States has a presidential election coming up this November, and if the lone American on the International Space Station can cast her vote, for sure you should be able to find a way to do likewise. :)
Above, NASA astronaut Kate Rubins is pictured. She doesn’t know yet whether she’ll return to Earth in late October as planned, ahead of the election. Fact of the matter is, the Russians have delayed the next crew launch for technical reasons. It was supposed to take place this Friday, but it has been postponed for at least a month.

And Rubins and her crewmates — a Russian and a Japanese crewmember — can’t come home until the next three-person crew arrives. 

Knowing that sometimes things change, Rubins got an absentee ballot before she rocketed away in July, just in case. The Houston, Texas, resident will list her address as “low-Earth orbit” if she's not back in the Lone Star State in time to vote.

BTW, Rubins, 37, is a professional virus hunter by profession. Last month she became the first person to perform full-blown DNA decoding, or sequencing, in space. 

ANNABELLE, FOR THE RECORD: Last summer, Annabelle was fortunate enough to be a part of a "Cool Girls in Aerospace" program. The week-long experience in Everett and Mukilteo exposed young women to STEM-related career paths and opportunities they might not otherwise know about.

In this week's Mukilteo Beacon, in a column by Mukilteo mayor Jennifer Gregerson, Annabelle was quoted regarding her experience in the program. In part, she said, “It was a terrific opportunity to see and do things most girls my age don’t get a chance to experience,” said sixth grader Annabelle Kisky, one of the participants. “It certainly opened my eyes to a world of possibilities.”


Thursday, September 22, 2016

Migrations

LOCKS WALK: On this first day of fall, 2016, we took a leisurely walk along the estuary between Lake Union and Puget Sound. 

As always, we saw boats navigating the Locks, including this research vessel. 
Between the large and small locks channels, we found a hardy rose growing out next to a concrete control station.
As the saying goes, "Life finds a way." Certainly true for this pretty plant.
 We were happy to discover a second rose bush on the other side of the building.
We went down to the underwater viewing area. There, we spied dozens of coho making their last, long journey to spawning grounds. 

BACK AT THE BALLPARK: Yesterday morning, just a couple hours before first pitch, we decided to head to the ballpark.
There were compelling reasons to stay away. The Mariners had been playing terribly for the past few games, the stadium was going to be overrun with Toronto Blue Jays fans, and the last time we watched Felix pitch in person - just five days prior - he got shelled.

Christian and I went back and forth, trying to talk ourselves into and out of going to the game. We finally concluded even the worst day at the ballpark is better than most anything else.

And where better to spend the last full day of summer than with the boys of summer?
We watched the first couple of innings out in right center field, on a landing overlooking the Dave Niehaus statue.  Eventually we migrated all the way across the stadium, to the topmost row of the west side.
What a game it was! The Ms had the slimmest lead, 1-0, from the third until the ninth inning. The Jays scored a run in the top of 9, and the game was tied. They played three tense extra innings before the Ms managed to put one on the board in the bottom of the 12th. Mariners win! Mariners win!

It was a great day at the old ball game.

SIBLING STYLE: Last week, we went to see Canadian astronaut Col. Chris Hadfield, who was promoting his new Children's book, "The Darkest Dark." During the presentation, he showed us a short video about how the books illustrators, brothers Eric and Terry Fan, worked cooperatively on the project. 

Now, you can watch the video, too!
https://youtu.be/7UeMab4U9p4


Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Tickets to Ride

FAIR, FUN & FOOD: We spent most of Monday in Puyallup, at the Washington State Fair.

It was raining fairly hard, with ominous skies in all directions. But we'd checked the forecast, and it was supposed to improve as the day went on. We took a chance, drove the hour plus to the fairgrounds, and started on some rides in the rain.

Easing into things, the kids relived childhood memories (ha ha) and rode some tiny coasters.

 And they enjoyed a small swing to get into the swing of things. 
Fun houses were a place to hide out as the rain continued. 
 And since it was Talk Like a Pirate Day, they checked out the haunted pirate house, as well. While they were inside, blue sky made an appearance.

We made our way to the midway where the bigger rides were located. They enjoyed multiple revolutions on a sky high swing. 
 Their colorful pants helped me pick them out of the riders as they whizzed overhead.
On the swing ride I couldn't help but notice some of the classic portraits painted on it are looking worse for the wear this year.
There was a pair of Ferris wheels they rode, of course. 
And they checked out a cool new ride with a fancy flame paint job.
Naturally, there were roller coasters to be ridden. The kids are in the front car, below.
Later, on the same coaster, they rode in the Ol Yeller cars. They were third from the back on that go 'round. 
 I love checking out the faces of the riders as they start down the BIG drops. (Click on the photo to make it larger.)
  
CJ is blocked in the photo below, but you can see Annabelle's expression. 
I thought it warranted a closer-up look. She definitely looks more terrified than thrilled at that particular millisecond.
Of course, it wouldn't be the fair without gawking at the array of mind-blowing (and questionable) food choices. There were really big burgers ...
 as well as cotton candy, of course. 
This 'ice cream bar' looked OK from a distance. The Nikon's big lens made it look significantly less appetizing. 
 There were cookies (near the cow barn, ironically). 
 When we saw this booth, CJ was wishing he had more money and empty calories to spend. 
 He was especially attracted to Velveeta, deep fried and served on a stick.
 Fortunately, he had just filled up on an official Fisher fair scone. We'd never tried them before, and vowed this was the year.
 I have to admit, the bite I had was tasty - and only $1.50, a bargain there!
Incredibly, Fisher scones have been a fair mainstay for 100-plus years!

One new thing at the fair this year was a superheroes sideshow. CJ and Annabelle enjoyed the photo opps within, but passed on meeting the fake Superman and Supergirl.

Here are Annabelle's brief thoughts about her fair visit this year. 
The Puyallup Fair this year was fun. They had almost all of the rides from last year and a couple of new ones! It was especially fun to see the makeover they gave the WildCat roller coaster. It had blue and green, and even a new 12th man cart! My favorite ride at the fair this year was the Classic Coaster, a wooden roller coaster. It’s the last of its kind! It was super cool seeing all the agriculture displays as well. My favorite display was one with a baseball diamond made of seeds, beans, and eggs. The fair really has something for everyone and I can’t wait for next year! 
Of course, a fair wouldn't be complete without some chainsaw art ...  
And we always enjoy the Washington State Grange displays, but ESPECIALLY loved this baseball themed one!
The bracelets we bought ahead of time for access to all the rides included a couple of midway games. Christian and the kids took on the Kentucky Derby game, which involved aiming a water stream at a vessel. While that was going on, horses would run. The first one to fill up their vessel won. 
Annabelle was the family's sharp shooter. She got a stuffed unicorn (!) as her bounty. 
Our last stop at the fair was the face painting booth. Frequently, face painting booths are on site in places we visit. And always, there are long lines at those booths. Not yesterday. She walked right up and got a small constellation of glittery stars, no waiting! 
Here's CJ's summary of the experience
Every year for quite some time, our family has visited the Washington State Fair, more commonly known as the Puyallup Fair. According to their website at http://www.thefair.com, the Washington State Fair is the largest single attraction held annually in the state of Washington. The Puyallup Fair continually ranks as one of the largest fairs in the world. The Puyallup Fair hosts two annual events, the 21-day Washington State Fair every September, and the four-day Spring Fair in Puyallup every April. Recently, my family visited the Washington State Fair, and I will tell you about what I consider to be the most memorable moments from this trip:
First off, I could not talk about the Puyallup Fair without talking about the Wildcat. The Wildcat is a large roller coaster near the northern part of the park that is pretty fast-paced. Although the lines for the Wildcat are long, the experience is probably worth it. Like most other roller coasters, the Wildcat has dips, or places where the cart takes a plunge down a steep part of the track. Unlike most other roller coasters, though, the Wildcat has three dips, all of which are marked by a small number sign.
Placed very close to the Wildcat is the Classic Coaster. The Classic Coaster is, as its name implies, an old, but refurbished roller coaster. According to the Puyallup Fair's website, the Classic Coaster has been a mainstay at the Fair since 1935, and has just completed a five-year renovation to last the next 100 years. In the 1970's, there was a fire that destroyed some of the coaster, as well as several other parts of the fairgrounds. The Classic Coaster is apparently the last coaster of its kind to feature carts that resemble minecarts (I can't remember the exact name), thus making it special. To me, wooden roller coasters like the Classic Coaster are often scarier than their modern counterparts, probably because they sound rickety, and you can see the wooden framework coming dangerously close to your head and limbs.
Lastly, there was the Giant Slide. The Giant Slide, as its name implies, is a very large slide, located near the southern part of the fairgrounds. The Giant Slide is mostly colored yellow and red, which makes it stand out from other parts of the fair. At the bottom of the Giant Slide, riders will grab a rug from a nearby pile, which they will slide down on, presumably to protect them from plastic burns. Riders then climb a pretty tall staircase, which eventually takes them to the top of the slide. At the top of the slide, an attendant will help the riders get mounted on their rugs, and, once the coast is clear, slide down the bumpy slide. Riders then take their rugs, and add them to the aforementioned rug pile.
In general, I enjoyed the fair this year, and I look forward to going to it again.

Monday, September 19, 2016

Fairy

DO THE PUYALLUP: This is just a placeholder post. We spent a long day down south, in Puyallup, for our annual trip to the Washington State Fair.

It was stormy skies and raining all the way down from here to there, and we got rained on good (to use bad grammar) for our first hour there. However, we lucked out, the forecast was right, and it was a really nice afternoon!

You can expect a full report tomorrow. Until then, here's CJ, Annabelle and a friendly carnie.