Shuttlegazers,

Tom and Emily picked me up early Friday evening for our third trip
down to Florida's Space Coast in order to experience the ultimate
Space Shuttle Launch experience on the NASA Kennedy Space Center's
Causeway. STS-127 is Endeavour's current flight-in-waiting on Launch
Pad 39A.

We left from Hampton and cruised on down I-664 and then on Rt. 58 on
over to I-95 South. Traffic was nothing, thankfully. I've spent some
long waits recently getting across the bridge-tunnels to and from the
Southside, but it was smooth sailing Friday night. A few hours latter
dinner was at a most scrumptious Carolina BBQ joint. What a hoot.
Delectables started with a basket of pork rinds. You know like when
you go to a Mexican place and you get chips, only different. I had
fried chicken and shrimp with mac 'n cheese and turnip greens. Tom was
able to polish off a fairly large portion of liver and onions, and
Emily had what looked to be a very yummy BBQ sandwich with fries. I'm
still chuckling over the pork rinds. There were yummy, by the way.
Yummy, yummy for everyone.

The continued journey down I-95 was smooth and positive. Emily kept up
with the printed choreography from CBS Space Place and timelines while
checking live updates on the laptop. Nothing like traveling with
AstroBuddies. Life was good. Friday night's objective was getting as
far South as comfortable and then checking into hotel rooms for the
sleep and reset before heading out on Saturday for the casual downward
leg onto the Causeway. We decided to spend the night in Waltersboro,
South Carolina. I couldn't figure out how to get a Priceline
reservation online after midnight for that night, so we just asked at
a couple of places and stayed at an Econo Inn for only $50 a room. Not
on my list of future recommendations. Bypass Waltersboro, yes, better
things are further on down the road.

Saturday morning was beautiful and full of promise. We topped off the
Odyssey and continued South. Updates still showed good news coming out
of Kennedy. At some point past around Jacksonville launch scrub number
three took place. It was kind of like roadkill without smearing the
bumper or leaving a clump on the road. It felt bad none-the-less. We
pulled off, called home, and discussed options with the home front and
then thought and discussed things some more. After some pause we
headed on down into Jacksonville to enjoy a most appreciated
Chipotle's lunch while we continued to explore options. Good call.
Lunch was delicious and very much enjoyed by all. Tom decided to
continue on for Sunday's fourth launch attempt. Emily needed to be
back by Monday morning, so we were going to experience Sunday on the
Causeway and then head back up to JAX airport, put Emily on a plane,
and then Tom and I would zip on the magic I-95 ribbon back home to
Virginia.

A vegetarian burrito with guacamole hit the spot for this carnivore.
After lunch we visited a Barnes & Noble and relaxed at what has to be
one of the largest shopping areas in the country. There were hundreds
of stores. It was fun. We were after all down on one of the country's
greatest vacation spots - Florida's Beaches. The weather was perfect.
It was time to sit on back and enjoy the time together and reset the
expectations by cruising on down A1A. There we were on a pull through
just South of Jacksonville on the beach. I checked out the pelicans
and shore birds in my Minoltas while Tom and Emily swam in the Atlanic
Ocean. This really is a beautiful country. Families were playing in
the surf, flying kites, and enjoying picnics on the dunes. There is
nothing like hearing soft laughter, feeling light breezes and actually
taking the time to enjoy a special moment out of the daily grind. Very
nice.

A1A was great. huge estates, condos, and expansive ocean vistas. I am
so thankful that the launch was scrubbed so early Saturday morning so
that we could take advantage of a free day of vacation in Florida. We
took the whole day to make it down to Daytona Beach. We ate dinner at
the Daytona Ale House out on the cafe tables outside with a light
breeze cooling things down. Bonus for me was being able to watch the
day's Tour de France highlights on one of the many HDTV screens. Go
Lance Go.

I had a very refreshing steak and onion ring salad. Emily had some
Conch chowder and a burger. I'm spacing on Tom's. Yummy, yummy! Tom
went ahead and reserved Emily's plane ticket after Emily checked for
updates. Driving time from Titusville to JAX was three hours plus the
time to get off of the Center. That was the big wild card. Previously
we had a span of only twenty minutes to over three and a half hours to
get off of Kennedy. We had float. No worries.

We spent the night in the Holiday Inn Express right next door to the
Daytona Ale House. Bugsy and I stayed there a few launches ago. The
rate was double that of the Econo Inn, but man was it nice having a
working air conditioner and breakfast outside on a table in order to
maximize the vacation break all that much more. I really appreciated
being able to talk with Judy on the hotel's computer over facebook,
Saturday night after we'd checked into our rooms.

Sunday was another deliberate day of relaxation, book stores, and
cruising down A1A onto the Causeway. Perfect weather, yet again. Lunch
was at El Leoncito, the Cuban restaurant where Bugsy and I had eaten
previously. Life doesn't get any better than sharing time and stories
out on the deck with AstroBuddies, delicious food, the expected
launch, and the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) in the foreground. Tom
and I had Cuban coffees. Tom had black been soup and a Cuban sandwich.
I had spicy seafood and rice dish with french fries. It was to die
for. Across the street several families were parked in the cars and
RVs waiting for the launch in four or five hours. We must have watched
a million motor cycles lumber on by.

There wasn't any type of line at all as we drove onto Kennedy Space
Center. Woody, the gate gate that told us to pull a u-turn after the
last scrub, was there at the gate to wave us on through this time.
Nice change, that. Just after we showed our pass and ID at the second
gate, we were blocked on the roadway by a security cruiser that was
securing the roadway for the astronauts motorcade to zip by. There was
a helicopter overhead and then the motor home full of astronauts
passed right by heading to the launch pad. That was really, really,
cool to see. Traffic was then released so we continued on down to the
Causeway. We were some of the first to arrive. There were less than a
dozen cars already parked waiting for us. We pulled into what had to
be the best vantage point for observing the launch. First priority was
getting STS-127 t-shirts and patches. That completed, we just opened
the hatch and set up the chairs and tripods. We didn't even need to
walk down to the rope boundary. I had the SGB. Emily was calling all
her buddies while sitting on a blanket with an umbrella screening out
the Sun. Tom had a video camera on a tripod, along with some
binoculars. We spent almost all of the next four hours before the
launch meeting new people and sharing views in the SGB. The viewing
angle was perfect. We saw several dolphins, birds, and Glen's jumping
fish. There is nothing like tailgating with all the AstoBuddies in
anticipation of the Shuttle Launch. It really is a unique experience.

The updates were broadcast over loudspeakers that were very easy to
hear on the Causeway. Everything was falling into place. The weather
forecast was 70% favorable weather by launch time. Unfortunately they
called a scrub when rain clouds entered the 20-mile radius of the
landing field that could be used in an emergency abort. Everyone was
disappointed, but in balance we did get to meet some very interesting
people out there. And in comparison to the previous two u-turns at the
KSC Gate, we had a long time to enjoy the Causeway.

It didn't take but about half an hour or more to get off of the
Center, thank goodness. We took A1A North to avoid the traffic mass
heading West the I-95. After a few miles we cut on over to I-95 North
and headed on our way home. Since the traffic was so light, we chose
to continue on home with Emily and cancel the flight. Tom was even
able to get a full refund for the plane ticket. Excellent.

We spent the next thirteen hours doing the tag team driving routine
home. I know that to most it sounds a little crazy, but it was easy
compared to the first and second attempt trips. We were back in
Yorktown by 8:30 am. Wow. We dropped Emily off and then Tom drove me
on back home.

I can't begin to thank you two for including me in such a great
adventure. I know that it was very disappointing to watch another two
scrubs, but the journey was really fun. I'm still hoping to catch up
on some sleep tonight, but it really is amazing to think of all the
great and exciting things we were able to do and see over the last
four days. I really appreciate it.

I watched the fifth scrub tonight on NASA TV. Let's cross our fingers
that they finally get off the ground on Wednesday night's attempt. I
hope that we can catch one of the other seven launches over the next
year and half on the Causeway.

Clear Dark Skies,
Bird