LJWorld.com

Previous: Part 4: Houston

Chapter 5: Johnson Space Center

The third interview was with an older gentleman named Gene. He was probably getting close to retirement, and had a faint southern accent. He was looking for a number of people to fill openings at the "Space Center", meaning Kennedy Space Center.

He didn't ask specific technical questions, but talked about the projects I'd worked on and gave me an overview of the kinds of jobs that he was hiring for. He was friendly and easy to talk to. Several times as I spoke about specific things I'd done, he nodded and indicated that they were not unlike what "those young guys", or "the guys today" were doing. He'd been at "the Cape" since early in the space program. Though we didn't have enough time to allow me to ask most of the questions I'd have liked, he clearly had seen a lot of history unfold. I'm sure he would have had plenty of stories to tell.

I had a good feeling about the interview and he made arrangements for me to speak with an HR person before I left that day.

After that, I had one more interview. I recall it was for another position in Houston, at JSC (Johnson Space Center), but I don't recall the name. I'm pretty sure they were interested because I clearly recall leaving the day with 3 offers (and a maybe) from the four interviews, but a lot was happening very quickly, too quickly for me to absorb it all.

The two last things I remember from that day were talking with the person from HR. He was, I believe, the head of USA's HR in Florida. We set a tentative date for me to come to Florida to fill out paperwork, etc.

I mentioned that I was going to visit KSC tomorrow. Looking back, I guess I was an idiot, or taking a chance, because I believe I could have signed on the dotted line, right then, for either position--I learned later that most people did--but I wanted to go have a look at both departments first. It didn't occur to me that I was being more selective, and perhaps risking everything.

Since I was going to visit JSC the next day, they placed me in a room at the same hotel that night. I remember looking out the window at Galveston Bay and calling home. Only vaguely do I remember the conversation with my wife and probably with my two young sons. They were eleven and seven at the time

The next day, I stopped at the main gate at JSC and they had a pass waiting for me. They were actually going to let me drive onto the Center (yes, capital "C"). Somehow I managed to find my way to the building I was to meet the lady (darn, still cannot recall her name).

The building was fairly large and their were rooms with several mockups, each for a difrerent part of the shuttle.

I should tell you now, one of the first things I was to learn is that when you are referring to the entire Space Shuttle, you refer to it by that name, i.e. "Space Shuttle", but when you refer only to the part with wings where the crew rides, that is the "orbiter". It is the part that orbits the earth. It is not the "Shuttle", or the "Space Shuttle", it is the "orbiter". So when you hear the names "Atlantis", or "Columbia", they are oribiters, and not shuttles.

As we walked through the halls, she pointed out several people dressed in blue jumpsuits. Those were the astronauts and they were a common site.

Let's face it, you may well know the John Glenns and Alan Shepards, but you probably can't name any current astronauts. To be honest, even then, I could perhaps have named only a few, and the ones I'd have named and recognized that had flown the shuttle were most likely all retired. So there were no familiar faces as I passed those in blue jumpsuits in the halls.

I did get a chance to speak with one of the veteran programmers in her department. He had black framed glasses and a flattop haircut. I learned he'd been there since the Gemini program, which was from the mid 60’s and he looked right out of the movie “Apollo 13”—even though it hadn’t been made at the time. We spoke about the systems they were using and the architecture of the software they used. A lot of the hardware and software were pretty old, even then. Much was in Fortran and that was becoming pretty rare even then (1997).

Around lunch I met again with the manager of the department and she took me too lunch. She explained that much of what I would be doing, at least initially, was on their older, i.e. legacy, systems. Seeing parts of the shuttle simulators that the astronauts used had been an amazing privilege, but I had a few reservations.

I didn't voice them except to say that I had an offer from KSC and felt that I needed to look into that. It seemed clear that I could have the job if I wanted it, and she was willing to wait until I had a chance to check out KSC.

Working there would have been a great experience. I know she (whatever the heck her name was) would have been a good manager and the work would have been interesting and exciting.

But there was just one thing--you can probably tell where I'm going with this…

I was going to be going to visit Kennedy Space Center and at Kennedy Space Center they do one important thing that they don't do in Houston.

They launch these big, loud, bright rockets into space. Houston runs the missions and it is where all the astronauts live and work most of the time.

But Florida is where they launch rockets. You’ll recall that a couple of thenm took men to the moon.

I know I’m repeating myself. Did I say that they launch rockets at KSC?

And that was where I was headed.

Somehow I got back to Lawrence from Houston. That means I must have driven the car from Houston back to the airport and taken a plane back home to Lawrence. Don't remember it. But since I got home somehow, I must have. When I returned there were hugs from the kids and excitement in their eyes. Excited and amazed as I was, I couldn’t miss the fact that there was a bit of apprehension, too.

There is so much I don't remember, but I do recall thinking that I was going back to KSC, and this time I wouldn't be riding in the tour bus!

Previous:Part 2

After returning from Florida, I returned to my regular routine. Most of my workday was spent in my cubicle at AlliedSignal. Each day was filled with phone calls: people who couldn't remember their passwords or who had documents which wouldn't print.

It couldn't have been more than a week or two after my return that I received a call. Since my job was computer support, I answer all my external calls with my name and company. The voice on the end was that of a mature, educated, professional woman who was clearly accustomed to making calls like this.

"David, this is (some female name which I cannot remember) from the UnitedSpaceAlliance, the company that operates the Space Shuttle for NASA."

One might think I would be surprised at a call like that under the circumstances which were, as far as I knew, none. Surely I would have been except confusion was much then a much stronger emotion than surprise.

To be truthful, I don't know if those were her exact words, all I remember clearly is "Space Shuttle" and "UnitedSpaceAlliance" and, I think "operates" or "maintains". The rest may not be verbatim either, but it's as close as I can recall.

She went on, "We received your resume and we'd like you to fly down to Houston next week to interview."

I'm pretty sure that all the blood drained from above my neck and I'm not sure my reply was even intelligible.

"Ok," or maybe I just grunted an "Unhhh."

From there on the rest of the conversation grows even dimmer. I think she said that someone would contact me about travel arrangements. Before I knew it, the conversation was over and I was sitting in my cube, wondering if I'd just imagined everything.

It took me a while to figure out how this had happened. As the confusion wore off, I remembered how a few months before I'd been on the web, looking at space related stuff. Maybe it was because of my planned trip to Ft. Lauderdale and the hoped for visit to KSC. It's just as possible it was random chance that brought me to the web site of the UnitedSpaceAlliance, the contractor who did virtually all the work (as I was to learn) on the Shuttle.

I found their website because it had a page that showed where the shuttle was in real time. Somewhere, I also happened to see that they were hiring and on a lark, decided to take a look at their openings. To my surprise, a couple of the positions were actually a good match for my experience. Unix, Windows, C and C++, scripting... You may not know what those all mean, but to me they meant that it was not a ridiculous idea for me to apply.

So apply I did. It was probably the first resume and application I'd ever submitted through the internet. In reality, my expectation was just that I would then be able to say, "Hey, I applied for a job working on the Space Shuttle." I really did not think of it again. Even during my tour of the Space Center it didn't cross my mind a single time. Never, in a million years, did I expect anything to come of it. OK, well maybe for about 30 seconds after I clicked "Send", I thought I might have a shot. After that, it was out of my mind until that call.

I don't remember telling my wife, my kids, or my mother. I'm sure, though, that I told everyone including people standing beside me in line to checkout at the grocery store.

It is perhaps not obvious to you, but to someone with my background and interests, this was pretty much equivalent to winning the lottery. As far as I was concerned, I didn't have to even get a job in order to exceed my expectations. In fact, the possibility of actually working in the space program was still something that seemed outside the realm of possibility.

But, I was going to Houston, the Houston of "Houston, we have a problem". And I was going to be talking with people who did work in the space program.

That was plenty good enough for me.

I've been out of town... again...

Didn't take my "good" camera, but my little point and shoot does take short videos. Just before I left today, I took the following.

Orlando_014.jpg

And here are two short videos.

Next: Part 3
Previous: Part 1

DSC_6793_shuttle_kscvc.jpg

The KSC visitor's center is a lot like a theme park, but except instead of rides it had many large rockets and exhibits.

This was back in 1997 and, to my surprise, it was free to park and go in.

As you enter, you had the chance to sign up for a bus tour. Those weren't free, and I don't remember the price, but even though I have the reputation for being "frugal", it seemed a pittance.

My recollections from the visitor’s center include a close up look at the shuttle replica I mentioned before. Also nearby is the Rocket Garden with the rockets that took Alan Shepard and John Glenn into space.

I spent a little time wandering around, looking at the Astronaut Memorial. At the time, most of the names were from the Challenger Accident. I can’t remember if I saw the IMAX movie before or after the bus tour. Regardless, I recommend seeing “The Dream is Alive”, narrated by Walter Cronkite. It is so old that the shuttle tank was still painted white (it was left its normal orange after the first few flights).

Soon, though, it was my turn to get on the bus for the tour of Kennedy Space Center.

The bus tour takes you past the security gates and guards. It includes stops at the Saturn V (five) center. You first go through a replica of an Apollo era “firing room”. I recently took the tour again and this re-enactment still strikes me as well-done and impressive.

When it’s over, you exit into a large, and very long uhhh… room(?). Hanging from the ceiling is a complete, restored, Saturn V rocket. It is over 500 feet long. On either side are models, space suits, a theatre where you can relive the first moon landing. BTW, that landing was not as smooth and trouble free as you might think.

While there, I got a bite to eat and sat outside. Off in the distance, at several places where launch towers and other towers and buildings. There was no map of KSC so I had no idea of where anything was.

The next stop was out between the two shuttle launch pads. It was just a small mound, maybe 20 ft tall, and a paved parking lot where the bus parked and let us out. To either side were pads 39A and B. Pad A is where all of the moon missions were launched from. Shuttles are launched from both pads A and B. I took a lot of pictures. I hope I can still find them.

One of the things that struck me is that most of what surrounds the launch pads, and pretty much everything else, is swamp. Swamp filled with alligators, birds, wild pigs… Well, actually, I didn’t find out about the wild pigs until later.

Anyway, to either side were the two launch pads. Unfortunately there were no shuttles on either pad that day. Behind us was the Atlantic ocean, only a few hundred yards northeast of the pads. The contrast of the shuttle and launch pads and the peacefulness of the waves lapping on the beach with birds squawking overhead left a powerful impression on me.

The next stop was near the launch control center. It gave us a view of the VAB, the Vehicle Assembly Building, where the shuttles, and before them, the Apollo/Saturn V moon rockets were assembled.

We were near a couple of buildings with offices. The parking lot had a few cars, and I remember noticing they were all shapes, sizes, and conditions. There were a few oil spots in the parking lot and I remember thinking that these people might not be that much different than those I knew and worked with.

The tour ended with a stop at the Space Station processing facility where we saw mockups of the soon to be launched International Space Station. We also crossed a catwalk to a viewing room where we could look down and see Node 1, “Unity” that was soon to be launched.

Then it was back to the bus, back to the visitor’s center. Another week in Florida and then I was back home in Kansas. The trip had been a great one for me and was a closed to space as I’d ever hoped to come…maybe closer.

Sometimes, though, strange things happen—once in a lifetime type things.

And sometimes they happen to you, whether deserve them or not.

I'm sure they're typos...and I'm sure you'll let me know about them...

:-)

Next:Part 2

Recently I posted a photo of the Space Shuttle that I took during a trip to Kennedy Space Center. That trip had a lot of meaning for me. I don't assume that this story will be of interest to everyone, but I think that if the little photos I take around town every week find interesting viewers, then this might, too. There will even be a few pictures

I plan to tell the story in small installments, hopefully at least one each week...sound familiar? Don't know if I'll be able to do a picture and another part each week. And if you know me, typos creep into my work. Right now, my urge to tell this story may exceed the time I have to review and edit it.

In the summer of 1997 I worked as a computer administrator for AlliedSignal in Olathe, Ks. The story of how I got thereseems interesting, but probably only to me.

It seems to me that there are times when a couple of events in your life can change it's direction significantly. This summer, a single event--or maybe two--led me on a path that I consider to be the most signifcant, and proudest of my life.

In July of that year I found myself spending two weeks in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on business for AlligedSignal. Since I was only a few hours south of Cape Canaveral and Kennedy Space Center, on the first free Saturday, I made the three hour trip north to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor's center.

Everything in Florida seems just slightly different. All the paved roads are a very light grey compared to the darker asphalt in the midwest. Little reflectors separate the lanes on almost every highway. Palm trees and evergreen are everywhere. And then there's the water. Pretty much everywhere, in every city and town, low spots filled with water.

Wildlife, too, is different. Alligators and large birds. Pelicans, eagles, flamingos... all large and magically unusual.

But that's not the part of the story I'm impatient to tell.

On that Saturday morning, I found myself driving north on I-95, with a map on the seat beside me, following the signs on the road. KSC...might as well start in with the NASA acronyms now, is easy to find. Signs from every major highway.

Soon I was passing familiar names, Cocoa, Cocoa Beach (remember "I Dream of Jeanie"). I cut over from I-95 to Merrit Island and started up towards Cape Canaveral, passing through countless orange groves.

Anyone who knows me knows of the interest, just short of a passion, I've had for science, technology, and the space program. I graduated from a small, rural, Kansas high school with 19 other people. I did not have the confidence or determination to believe I could follow my dreams. Like most there, and probably like most people everywhere, I mostly went with the flow. My substitution for the space program was the US Air Force and electronics, which eventually evolved into a career in computers and a degree in Computer Science.

No complaints. Being an engineer is a career that suits my skills and temperament well.

Now as I approached the gates at KSC, I have to confess that my excitement started to build.

Many of us, maybe most of us, have taken at least a few peaks at NCAA games on the internet.

As a computer nerd, I know that when you watch video on the internet, what you see is normally delayed a few seconds while the viewer program delays and buffers (i.e. saves) a few seconds of video so that if the connection momentarily slows, the video won't stop or get jerky.

Tonight, I thought it would be interesting to see how much the internet video on NCAA.com was delayed, so I brought up the site and watched the New Mexico St. vs Michingan St. game.

Surprise, surprise, surprise (as Gomer Pyle used to say). The video on the internet was a couple of seconds AHEAD of what I was watching on TV.

So the question is, if they TV video is delayed from what I'm seeing on my PC, how much is the video on the internet delayed from what really live.

All of this begs the question--just how "live" is "Live"?

Note: After watching a little more, I see that sometimes the TV is ahead of the what's on my PC, sometimes behind.

Previous:IPS 1/13/2010
Next:IPS 1/27/2010

dancemomx2 returns to the winners circle this week. See the end of the post for the answer.

Sometimes you just like the colors and texture of the photos you take--and so it is this week.

Image #1:

DSC_5821a.JPG

Image #2:

DSC_5821b.JPG

3rd image:

sDSC_5821c.JPG

The image(s) above is(are) a part of a photo I took somewhere in the area. I'll add additional parts of the picture over the next few days. You are invited to try to guess the subject and location of the photo. I'll notify the first person who correctly identifies the subject or location of the entire photo. That subject or location won't be revealed until later, after the answer is obvious. I suggest that people indicate that their guess is "Final" as opposed to just speculation and limit themselves to one final answer per person.

You can check my twitter account to see when new images are posted, or just check back here. I normally post a new picture each Wednesday evening.

Suggestions for interesting, out of the way (or not so out of the way) subjects are welcome. Hey, this is harder than it looks....well, sometimes at least.

Are you actually reading the "fine print" I include with these posts?

Well, if you are, here's another idea. If you have something (an event or subject) that you'd like me to photograph, or write about, that you think would be of interest (or value) to others, contact me and I'll see what I can do.

Previous: IPS 1/6/2010
Next:IPS 1/20/2010

hujiko's domination continues. See the bottom of post for the answer.

Hey, no one pointed out that I was a year off with the date in last week's post. What's up with that?

OK.

Well, last week I resisted the temptation to make the first image of a pile of snow.

After the quick identification of Fraser Hall, this week the urge is somewhat irresistible.

saDSC_5666a.JPG

And, apparently, I couldn't resist.

Image #2:

saDSC_5666b.JPG

The image(s) above is(are) a part of a photo I took somewhere in the area. I'll add additional parts of the picture over the next few days. You are invited to try to guess the subject and location of the photo. I'll notify the first person who correctly identifies the subject or location of the entire photo. That subject or location won't be revealed until later, after the answer is obvious. I suggest that people indicate that their guess is "Final" as opposed to just speculation and limit themselves to one final answer per person.

You can check my twitter account to see when new images are posted, or just check back here. I normally post a new picture each Wednesday evening.

Suggestions for interesting, out of the way (or not so out of the way) subjects are welcome. Hey, this is harder than it looks....well, sometimes at least.

Are you actually reading the "fine print" I include with these posts?

Well, if you are, here's another idea. If you have something (an event or subject) that you'd like me to photograph, or write about, that you think would be of interest (or value) to others, contact me and I'll see what I can do.

http://media.lawrence.com/img/blogs/entry_img/2010/Jan/15/saDSC_5666.JPG
Yes, I know I've done the Chi Omega fountain before, but the sculpture by Matthew Farley, "Frozen Assets", is a new (and temporary) feature.

Previous: IPS 12/31/2009
Next: IPS 1/13/2010

I wasn't clever enough to fool hujiko this week. See the end of this post for the answer.

Almost didn't get this posted tonight. Haven't been out as much with the recent bad (depending on your perspective, I guess) weather.

This week's first image should be a bit more challenging, even, than usual. Sometimes, the first image has been way too easy, so this week it's time to even things out.

Image #1:

acDSC_5651a.JPG

OK, just kidding, here is something a bit more reasonable:

sacDSC_5651b.JPG

The image(s) above is(are) a part of a photo I took somewhere in the area. I'll add additional parts of the picture over the next few days. You are invited to try to guess the subject and location of the photo. I'll notify the first person who correctly identifies the subject or location of the entire photo. That subject or location won't be revealed until later, after the answer is obvious. I suggest that people indicate that their guess is "Final" as opposed to just speculation and limit themselves to one final answer per person.

You can check my twitter account to see when new images are posted, or just check back here. I normally post a new picture each Wednesday evening.

Suggestions for interesting, out of the way (or not so out of the way) subjects are welcome. Hey, this is harder than it looks....well, sometimes at least.

Are you actually reading the "fine print" I include with these posts?

Well, if you are, here's another idea. If you have something (an event or subject) that you'd like me to photograph, or write about, that you think would be of interest (or value) to others, contact me and I'll see what I can do.

Previous:IPS 12/23/2009
Next: IPS 1/6/2009

Irish finally broke the jinx and identified the location of this week's subject. See the end of this post for the location.

I thought that I didn't have a picture this week, then I remembered that I'd wondered around town on a cold and snowy Christmas Eve. It was colder, snowier, and windier than it looks like in this week's photo.

Image #1:

caDSC_5580a.JPG

2nd image:

caDSC_5580b.JPG

3rd image:

scaDSC_5580c.JPG

The 4th, and probably final, partial image:

scaDSC_5580d.JPG

OK, here is the complete picture:
http://media.lawrence.com/img/blogs/entry_img/2010/Jan/02/scaDSC_5580.JPG

A second view of this week's subject:
http://media.lawrence.com/img/blogs/entry_img/2010/Jan/03/saDSC_5579.JPG

The image(s) above is(are) a part of a photo I took somewhere in the area. I'll add additional parts of the picture over the next few days. You are invited to try to guess the subject and location of the photo. I'll notify the first person who correctly identifies the subject or location of the entire photo. That subject or location won't be revealed until later, after the answer is obvious. I suggest that people indicate that their guess is "Final" as opposed to just speculation and limit themselves to one final answer per person.

You can check my twitter account to see when new images are posted, or just check back here. I normally post a new picture each Wednesday evening.

Suggestions for interesting, out of the way (or not so out of the way) subjects are welcome.

Are you actually reading the "fine print" I include with these posts?

Well, if you are, here's another idea. If you have something (an event or subject) that you'd like me to photograph, or write about, that you think would be of interest (or value) to others, contact me and I'll see what I can do.

The subject this week was the sculpture(?) in Buford Watson park. It is located near "Emergence". This page on the City of Lawrence website doesn't identify the sculpture, so I don't know exactly what it is.