12/13/14 Geminid Meteor Shower 2014 - a podcast by Alex G. Orphanos, Science Communicator

Hello Everyone!
This is my first ever blog-post or whatever it is that I'm doing with this website haha

I figured the best time to write was IMMEDIATELY after I experienced something, and then write as I slowly think over what just happened.

This time I am writing about the meteor shower tonight. Honestly, I grew up never really experiencing the same things someone who's interested in Space does (or at least that's what I think right now).

I've never seen a meteor shower, although I used to see individual meteors during band camp in Maine (which was ALWAYS a treat). I've never been to a rocket launch, or visited NASA or Cape Canaveral. I've never looked out of a telescope powerful enough to see planets that (so i hear) look like they are just stickers on the end of the lens. But I want to do those things. So this show is my way of making those things, and my other dreams, somewhat of a reality. And the beauty of it is (if you actually read this) you can see/hear/read about it too!

So, today I spammed alllllll of my "internet friends" about the meteor shower tonight, because I hope it's something that's not the regular - "hey, everyone sucks, I'm awesome and you'll never be as cool as me" crap or the depressive "you will never do anything" droll. OR it is at the very least interesting and if one person can get something positive or intellectually beneficial out of it - I AM HAPPY. But it's also nice to be able to post a link to my own website - I do enjoy that too

As usual - I have no idea if anyone even looks at this stuff. I will get a "like" or two on facebook. And twitter, forget it. I have no idea how to use that fucking thing. So for all I know, I'm just filling space. But the thing that makes me want to keep doing this is when I get someone to say to me "Hey that thing you posted about blah blah in space was really cool" and we get to have a conversation about it, in person, human to human. I will do this forever if I can get that to happen. The two part interstellar episode? THAT's the magic right there.

But today I got to talk to 12 people individually about the meteor shower, talking about tons of different things and topics: Constellations, Mythology, Light Pollution, Mars, NASA, SpaceX, the Moon, WHAT is a meteor, WHAT's actually happening when I see a meteor streak through the sky, WHAT is the "Geminid Meteor Shower", the connection between Gemini and Geminid(!), etc, etc, etc. No person had a bad question, some questions didn't have answers, some we looked up using the internet. But each one was actually a good conversation. People working through what it means, visualizing it. I love that shit. Learning without even realizing it because the subject matter is so....I'm not even sure what word goes here haha. I guess interesting?

But enough about that, this is about the meteor shower I just watched haha

So i geared up, put on my ski pants, two sweaters, my leather jacket and my patriots hat with a fuzzy warm hat over it to keep my ears warm. I figured I'd be out for a while. It was about 11:15PM on the last sequential date until about a century from now. The weather had been clear ALL night, and I could see Orion perfectly and it was the best viewing night I've seen all year (I've been boned on this a few times this year - terrible viewing conditions).

So I get outside and start enjoying the view. I lied back on the picnic table and just stared for a while at the different stars. My head kind of drifted off and I started thinking about everything that happened this week, people I had seen or didn't see. Then I started thinking about the millions of projects I have going on at the same time between this website, the podcast, my 3D printer and I start getting excited and actually start thinking of some good ideas. I made sure to write them down because I ALWAYS forget them if I don't. I caught two meteors out of the corner of my eyes and was kind of irritated - but I was excited just to catch a glimpse of another one (I saw one earlier tonight when I was out). Then I moved around because I was worried I was missing the meteors. Then in typical New England fashion, the weather seemingly starts to change right before my eyes. A front of white clouds start coming over to take away my view, and I start looking right at Orion hoping to see one more. I caught two more meteors before the clouds started to leach my view. It was actually kind of nice to see the constellations with a different backdrop of different shades of dark. But of course, that's me, a person who lives in terrible light pollution just enjoying what I have - which is a pretty awful view of the night sky. I stayed out just long enough to catch one more meteor streak by Orion's "bow" - which I was thankful for. So all in all - a VERY successful New England viewing of the Geminid Meteor Showers.

Now I am inside, luckily warm and I am attempting to write again - which I really tried to avoid when I went to college to become and engineer. Little did I know I would end up writing countless scientific reports, project proposals, and would end up keeping extremely detailed scientific notes and journals during my time as a Research & Development (a.k.a. R&D) engineer. I really didn't like writing at all - I despised English as a class throughout most of my time in public school. I made a movie with friends of the "Scarlet Letter" as my book report (in order to avoid writing) and I burned my copy of the book at the end and rolled the credits to "Burning for you" by Blue Oyster Cult.

We all got 100's on our reports.

I guess the point I'm trying to make is that writing is inevitable as a form of communication and you should learn how to do it in your own style. Mine, as I've been told by countless professors in different scientific fields, is very colloquial. And that you can hear me talking if you know my voice. I take those as compliments.

The other point, I guess, is to do what you love. Or at least love what you do. It doesn't come across as work and time goes by way faster. I worked as a flooring contractor for 10 years. Yes, a decade. It paid well, but I was always tired and you had to wake up super early. I had money to pay for necessities and some extra stuff, but it was a chore. The days were really long and tough. If I wasn't doing it with my Dad, I probably wouldn't have stayed in it as long as I did. But it taught me a very important lesson - that I better find out what I WANT to do, because this shit is tough and is waiting for me whenever I want it back. Back-splashes? Wood Floors? Bathroom tiles? They are there when I'm ready. The sore muscles, early mornings & 6 hours of going up and down flights of stairs with supplies? Yeah, I think I'll try my brain out and see if there's something with this Space stuff.

That's it for now because I am dozing off - but make sure to check out Monday's episode. It's all about the dwarf planet Pluto and the New Horizon Mission.

SCIENCE!!!!

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