MMTT4S - We're GO Flight.

Captain's log: Stardate 16 July 2019, Earth

Houston, give me a go/no-go for launch...

I've been fascinated by the cosmos for as long as I've lived. My childlike wonder of the great expanse has never died. If anything, it's stronger today than ever.

For one thing, the universe is big. Trying to fathom its size is beyond my meager capabilities. But that doesn't stop me. I totally geek out on space. I catch myself staring skyward at night long enough for people around me to start whispering to their companions, asking if something is wrong with "that strange man." I'm addicted to identifying the heavenly bodies that appear in the nighttime sky. I use an app on my phone called Star Chart for assistance. It's awesome and it lets you wow (interpreted as "bore" or "annoy") your family and friends by allowing you to point to a star and say things like, "You see that star right there? Yeah, that's not really a star, it's a planet. Venus to be exact." Pointing out Mars or Orion's Belt for the 18th night in a row doesn't stir my family like it does me. Around day 4 it really doesn't stir them at all, actually. They just accept that I'm weird that way.

On July 16th, 1969, NASA sent three astronauts into space on the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon.

Image courtesy of TexasMonthly.com

While, Michael Collins orbited the Moon in the command module, Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong took the lunar lander Eagle to the surface on 4 days later - July 20th, 1969. These 2 heroes spent over 21 hours on the lunar surface. Could you imagine? That would be 21 of the greatest hours of my life. Right after the seventeen three hours of my wedding and reception, and the hours of my two kids' birth, of course. After the jaw-dropping views and experiences of the space flight, to then skip around on the Moon would just be one speechless moment after another. I'd go now. I'd go tot Mars. I'd hang out in the Space Station. Heck, I'd settle for Disney's Space Mountain right about now.

If you haven't paid much attention to real news lately, which is becoming more difficult to find, or if you didn't do the math earlier, we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Mission to the Moon, when man stepped foot on the Moon for the first time ever. There are some out-of-this-world celebrations going on around the nation. This Space Tourism Guide lists commemorative events planned all across the country. If you can't make it to an official celebration, you can do your own thing. Here's a suggestion from Space.com. Here's another from NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab. Radiotimes.com gives a listing of TV, film and radio shows that are celebrating the historic event as well. Lots to do. And why not? 

I, of course, have a Jimmy Buffett offering for you as well. Buffett and I share a passion for outer space, even though when it comes to the grand debate I'm a Star Wars guy and he's a Trekkie. He mentions the moon, Star Trek, Captain Kirk, Vulcan, stars, rocket ships, and more space-related stuff numerous times throughout his voluminous library of music. Today's tune is titled "Beach House on the Moon." Somewhat appropriate, right? It appears on his album by the same title that was released in 1999. It's a children's story, one he probably adapted from a bedtime tale he told his son, Cameron. It's fantastical and imaginative. He sings, "...'teach your children' to go fishing with their minds," and that's exactly what he does in this tune.

Image courtesy of Amazon.com

So as you celebrate this epic achievement in the history of mankind, take a moment to tune in to this lunar tune, maybe as you gaze off into the cosmos, and let your dreams and wonders carry you to your own beach house on the Moon. And, by the way, that bright star leading the Moon through its orbit right now is Jupiter.  A dimmer Saturn will be following its larger neighbor's trail near the Moon as well. And hapless Pluto is right behind Saturn but you'll need help spotting it. Just in case you're interested.

Aloha, amigos!