I ate breakfast this morning while watching the astronauts get strapped in for the final shuttle launch today. One nice thing living in Huntsville is that local cable carries NASA TV, so we were able to watch this happen for the last time. And though I was in a meeting during the time of the launch, I was able to catch it later on-line.
I am a bit surprised at being a little emotional over this being the last launch. It seems like an important era is coming to a close. I remember the first shuttle launch back in 1981 quite well. I was in fourth grade, and I really didn't want to miss the launch because I was in class. I asked my teacher if my dad could bring in a tv so that we could watch. She agreed. Nice tv's weren't small those days, so he brought in our little black and white, which she placed on top of a filing cabinet so the class could see. I remember him having to do this often, because I seem to recall that there were several delays to the launch. Every time it was rescheduled, Dad would come in with that tv. Finally, it lifted off, the beginning of an era...
Ironically, I find myself back in school (this time as an administrator) watching this last flight, this time on my computer...
Lift-off, and the end of an era.
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