Two Triumphs and a Disappointment

I hardly know where to start, so I guess I'll start with the disappointment. Spacex's launch of their Falcon 1 rocket failed shortly after launch. I was one of the approximately 4500 people watching via internet streaming video. I was really hoping the launch would be a success. As a true believer that spaceflight will become commercially viable for independant companies and not the sole territory of national governments, I follow these projects with great hope. You might think of Burt Rutan's successful manned attempt, but this was truly more ambitious. They were trying to put a satellite in low earth orbit; much higher than the Rutan/Virgin project. I'm not denigrating that. That was a milestone, but it doesn't reach high enough and the payload is too small.
On the plus side, they are not giving up and folding up shop. They have a good team, Truthfully, I would like to be one of them, but I just don't possess the qualifications. I truly hope that after they go over the telemetry from the flight, they discover the clue they need to make the next launch a success.

Moving on we have triumph number one. I received the written verification that our petition for and alien fiance has been approved. By the time I fly to Japan next month I should have received the written confirmation that the information has been sent to the Tokyo Embassy so we can start the VISA process. I'll cover this in more detail in my other BLOG.

Thursday I went to have my shoulder looked at again. It appears to be healing nicely, although the fracture isn't fully healed yet. I'm going to need to stay in the sling for another couple of weeks but it looks like I won't need surgical repair. Perhaps not earth shattering in the way of triumph's, but it's great news for me.