Today's Challenge:
Not everyone wants to travel the world, but most people can identify at least one place in the world they'd like to visit before they die. Where is that place for you, and what will you do to make sure you get there?
Today's Entry:
This one's going to sound a bit crazy. I hesitate to write it, because some people are going to assume I'm only doing it as some kind of extreme oneupsmanship. Even if you don't usually take me seriously (which is probably a sign of intelligence on your part), please believe that everything I'm about to say in this post is completely sincere.
I wrote on Day 3 that "I believe that I'll see the Earth from space one day." I meant that. I grew up at the tail end of the space race and the beginning of the Shuttle program, and, like most boys my age, was obsessed with space travel. When I was a kid, my grandmother gave me a National Geographic book called "Our Universe" — it had a spaceship on the cover and gorgeous, full-color pictures of the solar system, and I could flip through it for hours.
One of the first movies I ever saw on IMAX was "". The first movie I saw on IMAX was "Beavers: The biggest dam movie you ever saw". Sadly, I'm not kidding. I was 18, and we all make mistakes that we later regret.
Getting back to my point. "Blue Planet" was filmed, in part, by NASA, and had minutes of amazing footage of the earth from space. The IMAX screen brought it to life, and I knew right then that, someday, I would have to see it for myself.
Of course, getting there is a bit tougher. Plenty of people have suggested that I be launched into space, but I don't think they were trying to help me fulfill my dreams.
For a long time, this idea seemed like it would remain a childhood fantasy forever. Then, a couple of people hitched a ride with the Russian space program. Granted, they were billionaires, and I'm guessing the Cosmonauts were pretty annoyed, but still, they took the trip.
Not long after, the X-Prize came along, and even more importantly, someone actually won it. SpaceShipOne reached an altitude of almost 70 miles, and the commercial space era was born. In 2005, Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic started booking trips — starting at only $200,000. SpaceShipTwo is currently in testing, and what seemed like a crazy dream is many, many steps closer.
Ok, so $200K is a bit of a stretch, I admit. I'm hoping to have a good 40 years left in me, though, and I think this is going to happen. Eventually, I think the price tag may even drop down closer to the cost of a European luxury car. So, I'm forgoing my midlife crisis convertible and saving my pennies for space.
