And Now, You Know

One day last week, July 20, was the 49th anniversary of Apollo 11 Moon Landing. American Astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first human being to ever land on the moon. There were 3 Astronauts on that Apollo 11.

 

Neil Armstrong, Commander of Apollo 11

Buzz Aldrin, Lunar Orbit Pilot

Michael Collins, Command Module Pilot

 

The general rule in NASA is if someone was to spacewalk, it was always the junior person. The space commander will stay inside because he has to be safely behind the controls and in a better position to take action if there was an emergency. On Apollo 11, it was Buzz Aldrin who was junior in rank.

 

So it should have been Buzz Aldrin as the first man on the moon. But some mucky mucks in NASA decided to break the protocol. Their reason? The lunar module posed logistical challenges that made this order impossible.

 

There is a rumor that Armstrong pulled rank and made the authorities change the protocol of who should get out of the spacecraft first.

 

After stepping on the moon, Armstrong said: One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.

 

Aldrin set his foot on the moon 20 minutes after Armstrong.

 

Here is what Aldrin said:  It sucks Armstrong was the first man on the moon and I am the second man on the moon.   But I was promised I would be the first one when we land on the sun. (This is my attempted joke.)

A Page from the Past

I read a news item that 2 PIA (Pakistan International Airlines) female pilots, Commander Maryam Masood and her First Officer, Shumaila Mazhar, flew from Islamabad to Gilgit and back safely. The airline said this route is “"very challenging and requires a lot of precision and technique".

 

Captain Maryam Masood (L) and First Officer Shumaila Mahar (R)

 

This reminds me of an incident that happened while we were living in Salt Lake City, Utah. I was going to Chicago on a Sunday morning on company business. I was traveling in Economy. I had the aisle seat. In the middle and window seats were a young newly married couple on their honeymoon. The lady was in the middle and her new husband was in the window seat.

 

The moment the plane was air borne, the weather turned worse. The plane was shaking a lot. The flight attendants did not get up from their seats. These 2 newly weds were very nervous and literally shaking. The girl was more nervous than the guy. I started to talk to her.

 

She said they are on their honeymoon. They both are afraid to fly. And, this turbulence makes her more nervous. I told her not to worry and the plane is more safe than the car or train. She calmed down a little but still nervous. She asked me if she could hold my hand. What can I say? I agreed.

 

I then used the call button to get the attention of a flight attendant. One of the FAs came near us. I explained the situation to her and asked her to get two glasses of double vodka with little orange juice and give to them. (Before calling the FA, I got the information from this couple they enjoy drinking vodka with orange juice.) The flight attendant brought a strong Screw Driver to this couple. They seem to calm down a little.

 

Finally the plane made a safe landing in Chicago. While still taxi-ing, they both thanked me. I told them both the commander and the copilot of this plane are female. (When I entered the aircraft in Salt Lake City I looked inside the cockpit and noticed both pilots are female.)

 

The young lady told me: Thanks a million for not telling us this information while in the air. I would have died on the spot.

 

As for as I am concerned the gender of the pilots has nothing to do with how they perform. I have no problem flying with 2 female pilots.

 

Are you comfortable with 2 female pilots operating the plane in which you are flying?

President Trump and the Queen of England

We all know the left wing American news media (Newspapers and Television Stations) hate President Trump. No matter what he does, it is always wrong. I am not saying he is perfect. He makes his mistakes. But these left wing news media write with a vengeance against President Trump.

 

Yesterday, he visited England and met with the Queen of England. All the left wing news media have the following complaints:

 

Trump is clueless and breaks all protocols.

Trump and Melania defied protocol and did not bow or curtsy.

Trump and Melania opted to just shake hands.

 

What is this? Give me a break.

 

American President does not bow or curtsy anyone except God. America’s founding fathers fought hard so that they bow to no leader. (As a matter of fact, no one, except the British subjects, are required to do curtsy to the Queen of England.)

 

Americans stopped serenading royalty after 1776. Someone should tell the left wing news media what happened in 1776.

 

Yet when liberal actress Susan Sarandon broke Royal protocol a few weeks ago by approaching the Queen and introducing herself, the left wing media thought it cute and charming. They even wrote “the Queen loved it”. I am not making this up. Look at this headline:

 

 

Trump as an individual may be a bad guy. But, did England give the due respect to the President of the United States? If USA was not involved in World War 2, the whole of England will now be speaking German as their first language.

 

I hope Trump wished the Queen Happy 4th of July.

Dog Robber

Dog Robber? I heard this term for the first time today. Then I did some research. Here is what I found out.

 

During American Civil War, enlisted men in the army were called “Dogs”. The commander of the army unit had a personal assistant. His job is to get the best available things for the commander = Food, Clothes, Liquor, Girls. He would most of the times steel from the enlisted men (Dogs) and bring to the commander. In other words, the personal assistant will obtain whatever his superior wants by any means necessary, legal or otherwise. Therefore, this personal assistant was called Dog Robber.

 

During World War 2, this name was changed to Aides in the US Army.

 

In India, they are called Orderly or Aide-de-camp. Even police officers have orderlies in India. Though they are not supposed to do any personal household work, it is what they do all the time.

 

Here is an interesting story. There was an Army General in India. His daughter went to a name brand university in a city in India to do a special course for 6 months. The General transferred a Major (who knew the local language and familiar with that city) to that city for 6 months on special assignment. His assignment? Take care of the needs of his daughter.

Spelling Bee

Indian origin kids have dominated the Scripps National Spelling Bee Championship. They have now won 7 years in a row and all but 4 of the last 15 years.

 

This blog and this picture is to recognize those kids. This is not a made up picture. This picture was taken in a school in the East Coast of USA. I just blacked out the faces and the names to protect the innocents.

(After thought) Please take a closer look at the word "spelling" in this picture.

 

 

 

Congratulations to all Spellimg Bee Champions.