My internal clock is wrecked. Over the past 2 weeks I have stayed up to watch SpaceX launch the Falcon 9. Then I stayed up to watch Dragon dock with the International Space Station. Then I stayed up to watch Red Bull Stratos postpone, then postpone, then postpone, then abort.
Last night I stayed up to watch Red Bull Stratos, postpone, then postpone, then postpone, then postpone, then, well, THIS!
So I watched the launch, the 2.5 hours it took to hit the ceiling, then I watched a man, 127,000 feet in the air (and I use the term air loosely). This man stepped out at the edge of space from a capsule…and jumped. I saw it live. When he pulled out of his spin and I got my breath it occurred to me that my face was absolutely covered in tears.
Friends, this is us.
Nearly once a month I watch the movie Vision Quest. In it, the protagonist Louden Swain trains to tackle his epic quest of defeating legendary high school wrestler, Shoot. His older coworker takes the day off of work to watch the match. The following scene sums up things perfectly.
Anyways, I then proceeded to go to sleep at noon. Now my clock is busted.