It’s been around 10 years since I last attended a conference for the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the professional association for aerospace engineers. I attended the AIAA Space 2018 Forum this week, and it felt like a different experience from when I was a NASA contractor 2006-2012. I also wasn’t attending as a reporter or for a job, just Bart Leahy, AIAA Member and interested space geek. Part of that could be my age, part of it was a reflection of what’s happening in the space business now. Exciting times to be in the business or just observing it as an interested member of the public. What follows are some of my notes from the various sessions for your reference. Continue reading “Impressions from AIAA Space 2018, Part 1”
Category: Personal
What Have I Seen?
You look at me and you see a boring old white guy. I understand. It’s perfectly natural. I’ve got glasses to correct my crap vision. I’m a coward most of the time, preferring inaction over uncertain actions. My body isn’t exactly muscular or lean. So what could I possibly have done with my life that would be of interest to someone younger than me? Continue reading “What Have I Seen?”
Concert Review: Return of the Jedi
Yes, you read that correctly. The Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra (OPO) played a symphonic concert of John Williams’ soundtrack to Return of the Jedi at the Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center in downtown Orlando, Florida. Having missed the first two concerts (Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back), I was determined not to miss this one, if only as a belated birthday present to myself. And wow, I wish I’d gone to the other two. What a marvelous experience! Continue reading “Concert Review: Return of the Jedi”
Living the 48-Hour Film Experience
My buddies Dede (D2) and Curt have been trying to get me involved in the 48-Hour Film Project (hereafter 48HFP) for a while now. This was the first year I was able to participate. Not going to lie: I came out of the experience exhausted and ached in places that I’m not used to aching, but the experience was a hoot, and I highly recommend it to anyone (not in the video-making business) seeking to do something different with their free time. Let’s dive in! Continue reading “Living the 48-Hour Film Experience”
Pushing 50
A year older, not much wiser.
He’s just the same
as all the rest:
He’s not the worst,
He’s not the best.
–Pink Floyd, A Momentary Lapse of Reason
Poetry Interval: Straightening Up
Straightening Up
He’s not quite sure what normal’s like
But he thought he would give it a try
The quest to be healthy is quite a hike
When he’s used to just getting by
But he’s exorcising the various demons
Clearing out his multiple neuroses
And trying to acquire a free man’s
Life without pills or doctors’ diagnoses
He’s learned a few things pushing fifty
It’s really about time that he did so
Being a happy, healthy guy could be nifty
It’s never too late to settle down and grow
/b
7/19/18
Declaration of Independence
This entry is a little long, so the short version is this: the people–especially the bullies–we encounter in our youth can greatly affect our confidence and our thinking years after we are free of them. I’ve had enough of that sort of foolishness, and this is my long-delayed, Declaration of Independence: I’ve had enough of you, and you are no longer going to live rent-free in my head. Continue reading “Declaration of Independence”
