"Our mission was called "a successful failure," in that we returned safely but never made it to the Moon. In the following months, it was determined that a damaged coil built inside the oxygen tank sparked during our cryo stir and caused the explosion that crippled the Odyssey. It was a minor defect that occured two years before I was even named the flight's commander. Fred Haise was going back to the moon on Apollo 18, but his mission was cancelled because of budget cuts; he never flew in space again. Nor did Jack Swigert, who left the astronaut corps and was elected to Congress from the state of Colorado. But he died of cancer before he was able to take office. Ken Mattingly orbited the moon as Command Module Pilot of Apollo 16, and flew the Space Shuttle, having never gotten the measles. Gene Kranz retired as Director of Flight Operations just not long ago. And many other members of Mission Control have gone on to other things, but some are still there. As for me, the seven extraordinary days of Apollo 13 were my last in space. I watched other men walk on the Moon, and return safely, all from the confines of Mission Control and our house in Houston. I sometimes catch myself looking up at the Moon, remembering the changes of fortune in our long voyage, thinking of the thousands of people who worked to bring the three of us home. I look up at the Moon and wonder, when will we be going back, and who will that be?"
-Commander Jim Lovell-
Apollo 13
A couple of minutes ago, I was watching the movie, Apollo 13. In fact, it was the second time I watched it. I know that this movie was made a long time ago but if I had to rate any movie for sheer quality, this would be amongst the top 10. What attracted me to this movie was the sheer intensity of the story line. Because, no matter how intense things got, there was always a moment to think about the human element of the movie. Every character, no matter how small, how powerful, how vulnerable, how heroic, all of them displayed real grit, courage, humanity, teamwork, calmness, all under pressure and if the movie was this powerful, I can only imagine what it must have been like for all those involved and for all those who witnessed this drama unfold right before their very eyes over thirty seven years ago. Amazing.
I always believed that they don't make movies like they used to anymore and this, this is a testament to my belief and I am sure that I am not alone in this belief.
To the men and women who helped bring the stranded astronauts back home and to the astronauts themselves for an amazing display of character.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Monday, September 24, 2007
Bad Dream
When I was informed of the news, I hoped that I would be the last one. But it turned out that I am not the last one, I am not the only one. There are more unbelievable ones. No. This is not happening and I refuse to belive that this is happening. I wish that it was all a lie, a bad dream which I will soon wake up from. But deep down inside, I know it isn't. And I know it is not what I would have loved to hear. All I can hope for that the words are harsher than what is actually happening.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Lady In Black Veils 2
The cool night wind blew across his sweat glistened body as the two teenagers hid away in an abandon house down the street from where the crime had taken place. He leaned against the door frame and was relieved to finally receive some sort of ventilation besides the small pocket fans they were able to pick up from the convenience store. Yellow police tape had closed off the crime scene or house if you wanted to call it, and was pretty much left alone. Until the case was solved and closed, he was pretty sure nobody would bother cleaning up the mess and at the same time the police didn’t want the chance of allowing the perpetrator to escape was washing away critical evidence. Sometimes it took a few attempts of combing through the place before stumbling over a possible clue that they might have missed.
The youngsters had made a run for after realizing that the teens that the police were in hot pursuit for were actually them. The female was still in a slight state of shock and had pretty much retreated into her shell as the taller male led her from the flat that they shared.. Blond hair tied into a messy ponytail, she remained seated cross legged across the room, mumbling to herself and he thought it best to let her be. They had to be thankful that the cops had not barged onto them last night and handcuffed them for what was believed to be of their doing. This implied that their identities had yet been found out but they wouldn’t be taking any chances. This was life they were gambling with; he best play his cards well for he was only given one hand.
Surely he thought that though they had not committed the offense, there was no other explanation for the deaths of the old lady and her niece. No other suspects and then there was the questioning of the lady with the black veil. Had she been there while they were in the house? He had no clue as they had remained downstairs and left soon after a short goodbye to the blind woman, neither did he recall hearing any movement or sound that indicated anyone else was upstairs.
He was lost in his thoughts when smaller hands covered his and gave them a soft squeeze. Azure orbs stared back at him as his female friend kneeled in front of him. Her lips were pursed into a thin line and just very slightly, the sides of those lips curled upwards into a wiry smile. A moment later she bit her lip and looked away as though trying to gather the courage to say something. Oddly, he cocked his head to the side, urging her to go on.
“ We have to go back to the house.” Blue eyes bore back into his as she stared at him with utmost intensity, he was almost sure a fire had been ignited behind those almond shaped orbs.
“ Why? What use would it be? We’d get caught!” The reason in him refused to back down as he could only wonder what had possessed his normally rational friend to want to return to the place that had begun all of this.
“ Maybe there was something in that house that could help us prove that we were innocent. You’ll never know until we try.” The chestnut brown haired man looked away from her, his slender fingers running through his hand indecisively.
“ Trust me.” She squeaked out and bore into his eyes once again. He wondered when she had become so domineering but thought nothing of it. It must be the stress and shock of being accused of such a serious offense.
For a moment he pondered; an internal battle going on inside him. He did trust her, with many things. The only thing in question was that if he trusted her enough to allow her to drag them both to what might be their undoing. There might be a trap there, and they might get caught while snooping around. A high risk such as that must be thought out carefully.
“ Alright. But it’s a huge risk.” He couldn’t believe he was saying that; actually agreeing to snoop around a restricted place? They had no clue what they were looking for, this was impossible.
He regret consenting to her plan the moment those words that slipped out of his mouth but there was no going back now. Here they were, crouched behind dense hedges and trying to stop their heart from jumping out of their chests. He fished out a couple of torch light from the backpack he had draped lazily over his back and handed one to his female companion. His nerves were raw and every sound made his wary of his surroundings; all in all he was paranoid and that wasn’t helping.
With his blond haired counter part walking ahead of him, they made their made pass the yellow police tape and into the house through the back door. It surprised them to find them door ajar and hesitated momentarily before the azure eyed creature pushed the door open more. A loud creaking sound was given off and he was sure they’d be done for if anyone had heard it. Cautiously they slid into the room and found themselves in the kitchen.
The rays of the torch traveled along the furniture and walls of the room as they split up. The young male wanted to stand but was afraid someone might notice his shadow or movement as he staggered across the crime scene, his footing wobbly and unsure. Cringing his nose as the smell of dried up blood wafted forcefully into his nostrils. He had never felt so disgusted in his life and felt like he was about to puke. An outline of chalk was seen on the floor, signifying where the body had once laid and he avoided it at all cost.
The hair on his back began to stand for some reason and a shiver ran down his spine. An eerie feeling had crept into the room and was scaring his senseless. He wanted to bolt for the door but he couldn’t; legs nailed to the ground by some unseen force. He was frozen as he felt movement come from behind him. A squeak of the floorboard confirmed it even more that someone, or at least something was moving around behind his squatting form.
“ Dawn?” He called out to his partner in crime, praying she would answer him.
He hadn’t taken note which direction she had scurried off in and had no idea where she was. Had she ventured upstairs all alone? She seemed like a timid girl so she wouldn’t have gone up there all by herself, had she?
A sudden pain was felt on his head as he fell forward onto the floorboards that creaked under his weight. His defense mechanism snapped into action as he turned to see his attacker. His hand immediately clutched over his throbbing wound which was dripping with crimson liquid and he tottered about trying to make sense of all of this. His attacker swung at his again with the bat that was help between small palms and he had barely been able to avoid the oncoming assault by mere inches. He landed on the ground with a loud thud and groaned in agony as he hit his injured head against the cabinet.
Blood was collecting in a pool around him and was dripping down his neck as he tried to get up. The brown haired man was loosing too much blood and the shock, not to mention anxiety of it all was only forcing the blood to gush out at an increased rate; not helping him keep conscious. The torch light that had been in his hands only moments ago had rolled to one corner when he fell the first time, completely out of his reach. He felt the room began to spin and he clutches his cranium willing the pounding to halt, the sting away. He knew he was slipping from his consciousness and the last thing he recalls is mumbling some unintelligible things only to be over powered by a shrill laughter resounding in the small confines of the kitchen. After that, everything went dark.
What’s going on here?
Written by Rachel Soon as a sequel to The Lady In Black Veils 1
The youngsters had made a run for after realizing that the teens that the police were in hot pursuit for were actually them. The female was still in a slight state of shock and had pretty much retreated into her shell as the taller male led her from the flat that they shared.. Blond hair tied into a messy ponytail, she remained seated cross legged across the room, mumbling to herself and he thought it best to let her be. They had to be thankful that the cops had not barged onto them last night and handcuffed them for what was believed to be of their doing. This implied that their identities had yet been found out but they wouldn’t be taking any chances. This was life they were gambling with; he best play his cards well for he was only given one hand.
Surely he thought that though they had not committed the offense, there was no other explanation for the deaths of the old lady and her niece. No other suspects and then there was the questioning of the lady with the black veil. Had she been there while they were in the house? He had no clue as they had remained downstairs and left soon after a short goodbye to the blind woman, neither did he recall hearing any movement or sound that indicated anyone else was upstairs.
He was lost in his thoughts when smaller hands covered his and gave them a soft squeeze. Azure orbs stared back at him as his female friend kneeled in front of him. Her lips were pursed into a thin line and just very slightly, the sides of those lips curled upwards into a wiry smile. A moment later she bit her lip and looked away as though trying to gather the courage to say something. Oddly, he cocked his head to the side, urging her to go on.
“ We have to go back to the house.” Blue eyes bore back into his as she stared at him with utmost intensity, he was almost sure a fire had been ignited behind those almond shaped orbs.
“ Why? What use would it be? We’d get caught!” The reason in him refused to back down as he could only wonder what had possessed his normally rational friend to want to return to the place that had begun all of this.
“ Maybe there was something in that house that could help us prove that we were innocent. You’ll never know until we try.” The chestnut brown haired man looked away from her, his slender fingers running through his hand indecisively.
“ Trust me.” She squeaked out and bore into his eyes once again. He wondered when she had become so domineering but thought nothing of it. It must be the stress and shock of being accused of such a serious offense.
For a moment he pondered; an internal battle going on inside him. He did trust her, with many things. The only thing in question was that if he trusted her enough to allow her to drag them both to what might be their undoing. There might be a trap there, and they might get caught while snooping around. A high risk such as that must be thought out carefully.
“ Alright. But it’s a huge risk.” He couldn’t believe he was saying that; actually agreeing to snoop around a restricted place? They had no clue what they were looking for, this was impossible.
He regret consenting to her plan the moment those words that slipped out of his mouth but there was no going back now. Here they were, crouched behind dense hedges and trying to stop their heart from jumping out of their chests. He fished out a couple of torch light from the backpack he had draped lazily over his back and handed one to his female companion. His nerves were raw and every sound made his wary of his surroundings; all in all he was paranoid and that wasn’t helping.
With his blond haired counter part walking ahead of him, they made their made pass the yellow police tape and into the house through the back door. It surprised them to find them door ajar and hesitated momentarily before the azure eyed creature pushed the door open more. A loud creaking sound was given off and he was sure they’d be done for if anyone had heard it. Cautiously they slid into the room and found themselves in the kitchen.
The rays of the torch traveled along the furniture and walls of the room as they split up. The young male wanted to stand but was afraid someone might notice his shadow or movement as he staggered across the crime scene, his footing wobbly and unsure. Cringing his nose as the smell of dried up blood wafted forcefully into his nostrils. He had never felt so disgusted in his life and felt like he was about to puke. An outline of chalk was seen on the floor, signifying where the body had once laid and he avoided it at all cost.
The hair on his back began to stand for some reason and a shiver ran down his spine. An eerie feeling had crept into the room and was scaring his senseless. He wanted to bolt for the door but he couldn’t; legs nailed to the ground by some unseen force. He was frozen as he felt movement come from behind him. A squeak of the floorboard confirmed it even more that someone, or at least something was moving around behind his squatting form.
“ Dawn?” He called out to his partner in crime, praying she would answer him.
He hadn’t taken note which direction she had scurried off in and had no idea where she was. Had she ventured upstairs all alone? She seemed like a timid girl so she wouldn’t have gone up there all by herself, had she?
A sudden pain was felt on his head as he fell forward onto the floorboards that creaked under his weight. His defense mechanism snapped into action as he turned to see his attacker. His hand immediately clutched over his throbbing wound which was dripping with crimson liquid and he tottered about trying to make sense of all of this. His attacker swung at his again with the bat that was help between small palms and he had barely been able to avoid the oncoming assault by mere inches. He landed on the ground with a loud thud and groaned in agony as he hit his injured head against the cabinet.
Blood was collecting in a pool around him and was dripping down his neck as he tried to get up. The brown haired man was loosing too much blood and the shock, not to mention anxiety of it all was only forcing the blood to gush out at an increased rate; not helping him keep conscious. The torch light that had been in his hands only moments ago had rolled to one corner when he fell the first time, completely out of his reach. He felt the room began to spin and he clutches his cranium willing the pounding to halt, the sting away. He knew he was slipping from his consciousness and the last thing he recalls is mumbling some unintelligible things only to be over powered by a shrill laughter resounding in the small confines of the kitchen. After that, everything went dark.
What’s going on here?
Written by Rachel Soon as a sequel to The Lady In Black Veils 1
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Journeys
Quite some time ago, while having dinner with my father, I told him that once I had completed my degree in Aerospace Engineering, I had no intention at all to work as an engineer in any engineering firms. I continued by saying that I was not interested in a nine to five job and that I had wanted to do something that wasn't really heard of in our community. I said, I wanted to work as a columnist or a photographer for the National Geographic Society. I told him that among all the other things in the world, I enjoyed adventure the most. I enjoyed putting myself in the middle of a gunfight, scaling down the lava filled mouths of volcanoes, staring a hungry lion in the eye, exploring long forgotten ruins and ancient marvels, and most importantly, documenting life itself. I continued by describing that the routine like nature of a common life just doesn't strike me enough to want me to live by its mundane nature. After which, I ended my statement. A disaster you say? Imagine spending a colossal quantity of hard earned money on your son's exotic, never heard of degree only to let you know that he really doesn't want to have anything to do with it once he has earned it? And at this point, I was expecting a long lecture from my dad which would describe the benefits of leading a normal life, the benefits of doing what society asks of you, the benefits of having a stable job and things like that. After all, he had and still is giving me hundreds of debatable reasons as to why I should not, I repeat should not pursue my dreams of earning a degree in Aerospace Engineering which was bad enough and now I expected him to put forward even more reasons as to why I should not become an explorer with the National Geographic Society. But apart from some advice on the dangers of an explorers job, he hardly put any opposition into it. Which to me came as a massive surprise.
But returning to my earlier statement. It is true that I am completely unimpressed by the routine like nature of a common nine to five job. I am even more unimpressed by the mundanity of leading a normal life. A life which would most probably go somewhere along the lines of go to school, go to college, earn a degree, work, earn even more certificates, get married, have some children, climb up the corporate ladder, invest all of you earnings into your child's education, forget your dreams of owning a sports car or having a holiday home in the Alps, forget all your desires, those are only for people who live in fantasy land, concentrate only on raising your family, get old, die and leave whatever you have to your kids. And that's it. You have done your duty as a human being.
To me this is just unacceptable. I believe that there is more to life than just going along the lines which I have just mentioned. I think that life is too precious to be wasted on things that at the end of the day hardly gives you any satisfaction, any thrill, any sense of accomplishment.
To me, working as an explorer would certainly come across as the best way for me to live out my dreams of going on numerous adventures. Photographing amazing scenes, witnessing humanity at its rawest of forms, witness nature and so many other things. Things which importance are often over looked by our status chasing society. Things whose importance has been forgotten and forgetting it has allowed us to make many mistakes, repeat many mistakes and has allowed us to kill in the name of foreign and economic policy.
I even once mentioned to my mother that I would like to become a volunteer for the United Nations, going into places such as Darfur, Afghanistan, and other poverty stricken nations to help with the ongoing humanitarian efforts.
But to think of it, only money and status will allow a person to set trends. And just like in any humanitarian effort, only the availability of funds, aid and a trustworth team would guarentee that help reaches where it is needed the most. Therefore, to make an even bigger impact on such things, I think that it would be much wiser to attain power and wealth before going on a crusade for humanity.
So, what should I do now?
But returning to my earlier statement. It is true that I am completely unimpressed by the routine like nature of a common nine to five job. I am even more unimpressed by the mundanity of leading a normal life. A life which would most probably go somewhere along the lines of go to school, go to college, earn a degree, work, earn even more certificates, get married, have some children, climb up the corporate ladder, invest all of you earnings into your child's education, forget your dreams of owning a sports car or having a holiday home in the Alps, forget all your desires, those are only for people who live in fantasy land, concentrate only on raising your family, get old, die and leave whatever you have to your kids. And that's it. You have done your duty as a human being.
To me this is just unacceptable. I believe that there is more to life than just going along the lines which I have just mentioned. I think that life is too precious to be wasted on things that at the end of the day hardly gives you any satisfaction, any thrill, any sense of accomplishment.
To me, working as an explorer would certainly come across as the best way for me to live out my dreams of going on numerous adventures. Photographing amazing scenes, witnessing humanity at its rawest of forms, witness nature and so many other things. Things which importance are often over looked by our status chasing society. Things whose importance has been forgotten and forgetting it has allowed us to make many mistakes, repeat many mistakes and has allowed us to kill in the name of foreign and economic policy.
I even once mentioned to my mother that I would like to become a volunteer for the United Nations, going into places such as Darfur, Afghanistan, and other poverty stricken nations to help with the ongoing humanitarian efforts.
But to think of it, only money and status will allow a person to set trends. And just like in any humanitarian effort, only the availability of funds, aid and a trustworth team would guarentee that help reaches where it is needed the most. Therefore, to make an even bigger impact on such things, I think that it would be much wiser to attain power and wealth before going on a crusade for humanity.
So, what should I do now?
Friday, September 21, 2007
?
What should one do when all one can ever do is to sit and stare at the wall hoping for an ounce of inspiration? Inspiration that seems so near, but like air, cannot be held with a closed fist. How should one think, when all of its thoughts are in a state of entanglement. Hardly making any sense to even the most complex of minds? What should one do when there is nothing more to do but to just sit and wait? But the wait yeilding nothing more than nothing? Its is extremely difficult not being able to do what one is asked of. It is extremely disappoiinting not being able to do what one sets out to complete. It is extremely of no use when one forces itself upon something that really isn't there. What else can one do?
There is nothing left to do. Nothing at all. Everybody else is busy.
There is nothing left to do. Nothing at all. Everybody else is busy.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
