The walk from Building 4838 to Simulator Alley was quiet, and calm. A beautiful day in the desert, the sun’s tender rays warming the lakebed to a delightful 76 degrees, with a whispering light breeze rustling the leaves in the trees, gently kissing you with welcomed coolness. It was a perfect day for an adventure. The group accompanying me was quiet, reserved, together, and well mannered. I, on the other hand, felt like I was jumping out of my skin. I find it hard to believe, even now, that these other people were not just as excited about the upcoming event, but I was the only one childlike enough in my exuberation to feel the sheer joy that shakes you from within, and makes children run in circles around trees in parking lots waiting for Disneyland to finally open. I truly get to work at my Disneyland Park, and this was my opening hour, and my ticket was at hand. I was going to go play on the F-18 Simulator at NASA Dryden’s Flight Research Center. A long a waited moment of sheer boundless joy. My boys have been, so have some of my friends, but I had not, until now, had the pleasure of going. This is not something you sign up for, it is a “by extended invitation” only event. And the person extending the invitation has to be one with connections. Me, I have no connections, I am the lowest (wo)man on the totem pole of Dryden, and I am thrilled to be on it at all.
I know I have told you the people I work for are brilliant, but today was just another piece to the puzzle of just how great they really are. In a trivial information turn of events, I found that most of the big dogs in the IT God Forum have come from Simulator Alley. In fact most of them built it themselves. Yes, I said built it! To fully appreciate this marvel one should really experience it themselves due to the simple fact that there really is no words that can adequately capture it with justice. However, for the sake of simplicity let me just say, the F-18 Sim has a half circle wrap around full view screen. It contains an in depth view of Rodger’s Dry Lakebed, the spaceport, runways, Boron, and even the mine. It is beyond amazing. I had Ken at my side coaching me all the way. He increased speeds, and lowered landing gear, while I tried to fly. All I can say is, it is so much harder then it looks, and it really showed me first hand how much skill and training these pilots really have. The coolest part is that these simulators can really be hooked up to the F-18 down stairs in the hanger. There is a large window that allows you to be in the simulator room and still be able to view the actual F-18 below. When the pilot rolls one way, or moves to another side, the actual plane moves so that the engineers can see first hand how the plane will react BEFORE they send one of our pilots up. The simulators are not just million dollar toys, they are huge educational learning centers, as well as invaluable safety nets.
This week we (The Edwards AFB Community) lost a pilot, not from NASA, but from the Air Force side, a Lockheed Martin test pilot in an F-22 raptor. A tragic loss of a gifted and skilled, dedicated, pilot. What these precision trained pilots do with the technology that is out here is truly inspirational. They risk their lives so that we, as a nation, have better, more functional air systems at the ready for so much more then just military applications. In fact technology being tested today for ACAT may have saved the pilot we just lost, by landing the plane safely when the pilot was unconscious or worse, unable to control the plane prior to crashing.
It is the entire elite team we call Dryden that is the vast melting pot I call unsung heros. The Engineers who think beyond the possible, the test pilots who make the missions come off without a hitch, even the IT Gods that make solutions that will work with problems not even thought of yet. All to stay atop of a game no one knows were it will lead, that is the amazing mushroom cloud of Dryden. It is the marvel of the machines, the technological advances, the people, the passion, and the path of uncharted mysteries. I got to fly a real piece of Americana history today and I truly loved it! How very grateful I am for the blessings of this place, of these people, and of this time I get to be a part of it. I am living my own American dream. Tuesday, March 31, 2009
F-18 Simulator @ NASA Dryden’s Flight Research Center
The walk from Building 4838 to Simulator Alley was quiet, and calm. A beautiful day in the desert, the sun’s tender rays warming the lakebed to a delightful 76 degrees, with a whispering light breeze rustling the leaves in the trees, gently kissing you with welcomed coolness. It was a perfect day for an adventure. The group accompanying me was quiet, reserved, together, and well mannered. I, on the other hand, felt like I was jumping out of my skin. I find it hard to believe, even now, that these other people were not just as excited about the upcoming event, but I was the only one childlike enough in my exuberation to feel the sheer joy that shakes you from within, and makes children run in circles around trees in parking lots waiting for Disneyland to finally open. I truly get to work at my Disneyland Park, and this was my opening hour, and my ticket was at hand. I was going to go play on the F-18 Simulator at NASA Dryden’s Flight Research Center. A long a waited moment of sheer boundless joy. My boys have been, so have some of my friends, but I had not, until now, had the pleasure of going. This is not something you sign up for, it is a “by extended invitation” only event. And the person extending the invitation has to be one with connections. Me, I have no connections, I am the lowest (wo)man on the totem pole of Dryden, and I am thrilled to be on it at all.
I know I have told you the people I work for are brilliant, but today was just another piece to the puzzle of just how great they really are. In a trivial information turn of events, I found that most of the big dogs in the IT God Forum have come from Simulator Alley. In fact most of them built it themselves. Yes, I said built it! To fully appreciate this marvel one should really experience it themselves due to the simple fact that there really is no words that can adequately capture it with justice. However, for the sake of simplicity let me just say, the F-18 Sim has a half circle wrap around full view screen. It contains an in depth view of Rodger’s Dry Lakebed, the spaceport, runways, Boron, and even the mine. It is beyond amazing. I had Ken at my side coaching me all the way. He increased speeds, and lowered landing gear, while I tried to fly. All I can say is, it is so much harder then it looks, and it really showed me first hand how much skill and training these pilots really have. The coolest part is that these simulators can really be hooked up to the F-18 down stairs in the hanger. There is a large window that allows you to be in the simulator room and still be able to view the actual F-18 below. When the pilot rolls one way, or moves to another side, the actual plane moves so that the engineers can see first hand how the plane will react BEFORE they send one of our pilots up. The simulators are not just million dollar toys, they are huge educational learning centers, as well as invaluable safety nets.
This week we (The Edwards AFB Community) lost a pilot, not from NASA, but from the Air Force side, a Lockheed Martin test pilot in an F-22 raptor. A tragic loss of a gifted and skilled, dedicated, pilot. What these precision trained pilots do with the technology that is out here is truly inspirational. They risk their lives so that we, as a nation, have better, more functional air systems at the ready for so much more then just military applications. In fact technology being tested today for ACAT may have saved the pilot we just lost, by landing the plane safely when the pilot was unconscious or worse, unable to control the plane prior to crashing.
It is the entire elite team we call Dryden that is the vast melting pot I call unsung heros. The Engineers who think beyond the possible, the test pilots who make the missions come off without a hitch, even the IT Gods that make solutions that will work with problems not even thought of yet. All to stay atop of a game no one knows were it will lead, that is the amazing mushroom cloud of Dryden. It is the marvel of the machines, the technological advances, the people, the passion, and the path of uncharted mysteries. I got to fly a real piece of Americana history today and I truly loved it! How very grateful I am for the blessings of this place, of these people, and of this time I get to be a part of it. I am living my own American dream. 
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Pi Day with the NASA I.T. Gods!!!
I knew this entry was coming, and have put so much more thought into it then any before it. I have pondered at length what exactly I wished to convey, any yet it all seems so inadequate. A description which at best is corny, and at worst is down right silly. How on earth could one possibly understand this eccentric woman’s passion which permeates from the sheer glee of scheming, plotting, and executing a totally geeky celebration such as Pi Day? I went under the guise of better to ask forgiveness then to ask permission. I work at the greatest organization in all of the United States of America… within a department of the most brilliant minds, hardest workers, and truly talented individuals, for a Chief Information Officer, and a Deputy CIO that I really admire, like, and respect. And here is the best part, they don’t know their own value!!! In fact for so long I have been alone in my bizarre fascination with the weird techy, nerdy, totally out of the box, brain boys playground, that I began to see myself as unique, and strange. And while this still may be true to some extent, I have found others out there just like me, and I am finally home. Rob literally has a binary welcome mat in front of his door, and obsolete original hand held calculators with the magnetic memory strips in his display cabinets in his office. I love it here, finally I look mild mannered. Living in Boron who could help resist wanting a shower curtain with the periodic table on it? Or cubicle toys such as floating magnetized pens for the desk? I am telling you, if anyone understands me, it is this group of people I work with now.
It all began innocently enough… Rob meanders up to the counter and says “Hey, you know Pi day is coming up. You know Pi, as in 3.14…., Well, March 14th is coming up. We should celebrate with a real pie.” We all laugh, and everyone walks away. But a wheel is turning, a circuit fully connected as if by the flicking of a switch….hummmm Pi day. I bet I could make that happen. This is when the treasure hunt began. It started simple enough… making a simple banner off the computer. My mother is known to many affectionately as the Pie Lady. Of course, I am no Pie Lady, but I mean, if anyone could pull off Pi day it should be the Pie Ladies daughter. Initially I thought of selling out and getting Marie Calendar’s to make a bunch of pies, but since I live in the middle of the Mojave Desert and Marie’s is over an hr away, I took it upon myself to create them myself. I mean, if my mother could make a zillion pies for Thanksgiving each year why couldn’t I do a much smaller scale for my co-workers? Then it became apparent… I am so not my mother. This pie buffet is tougher then this woman has EVER made it look before. So how, am I going to pull this off? I mean what am I thinking? Do I really think I could fill my mother’s shoes? Uh No! So it occurs to me, as Hitch so eloquently taught me, stick to what you are good at. If you are the Pie Lady do pies, if you are me, you go mass cookie production. But how on earth does one make a Pie Cookie, let alone a Pi cookie? Thank Goodness for the World Wide Web… I hit online on a Pi Cookie cutter, oh it is too easy!!! This is going to be soooooo good! The excitement is building; I am giddy with my find. The days prior to its arrival were like a kid waiting at Christmas to open the presents until AFTER breakfast. While the childlike anticipation grew with each moment, floods of ideas came… what if I made us shirts? Would Rob or Ken even wear them if I did? And if I did, and they agreed to wear them what would I say? Memories wash over me of my son, Colton, now 14 years old, but then no more then 6 years old standing in front of me listening to some horrible lecture, in serious trouble, and out of no where he looks me in the eye and says “I like pie.” It dawned on me that to this little tyke I was nothing more then a Charlie Brown adult, and all he was hearing was wa wa,wa wa, wa wa. And I lost it, I began crying with laughter so fierce that is brings tears of joy to my eyes with just the memory. THAT is what I was going to put on the shirts. I like Pi. I created the designs, and took them to a shop to get them done… with one slight modification. My shirt, the space princess herself, in all her glory put Cutie Pi on her shirt. In retrospect I wish I would have put QT Pi, but hey it worked.
Then like so many of us the week went to heck in a hand basket. Rob had the day off so he wasn’t even going to be able to come. Friends were on travel assignments and missing, old boyfriends showed up in town doing drive bys, the church asked me to make lasagna for their relief society birthday dinner. There were just not enough hours in any day to make this come to fruition. And yet, faith precedes the miracle. I knew I could do this, I just did not know how. Friends, Family, and community came together to orchestrate the neatest turn of events for MY Pi Day. The cookie dough batter was made on one day… 6 batches of sugar cookie dough. The next day 200+ Pi Shaped cookies were baked and cooled on my kitchen counter. (Kudos to Mrs. Claus, and her manly man elf!) The next day 6 pies were baked, including my favorite of all time… a cherry one with the Pi Symbol out of the top. Mmmmmmmmmmmm Tons of soda flat boxes were taped and stacked on end to be filled with decorated cookies for transport. The house smelt heavenly, I finally understand those infamous words “slept with the vision of sugar plums danced in their heads”, for as I put my head to my pillow that Pi Day Eve Night, I was excited, and giddy, and full of childhood delight.
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