I received a notice from NASA saying that SpaceFlight Magazine has verified my request for media credentials and that I have passed the security check. Does this mean that I'm a member of the working press? Not quite yet. NASA still has to approve the completed application. I noticed that the clearance for traditional media lasts longer than the one for social media. Social media gets two days at the space center and traditional media gets a week. It would be weird if I manage to get credentials for both on the upcoming Solar Orbiter launch. In the long run I think a real press pass would be more valuable than social media credentials. I could be wrong though. Social media might actually be more important to NASA these days. Either way, I'm slowly but surely establishing my credentials. This won't be the last launch I'll be attending.
I'm still trying to get back in touch with Sky and Telescope. I received a really encouraging letter back in October after submitting my initial article but since then it's been crickets. Does my contact even work for the magazine anymore? Have they decided that they're not interested in the observatory after all? It would be nice to get some answers.
It would be nice to get some answers about the house too. I'm not having much luck here either. I struck out with the sliding glass door company. I learned today that their telephone has been disconnected. This is a pretty sure sign that the company has gone out of business. The one roofer who hasn't completed his bid still isn't able to give me a price. He says that the framer he wants to use to add a pitch to the roof is still too busy and wants me to wait another month or so. The tree guy wants to postpone things too. I'd be really mad at these developments if I wasn't a procrastinator myself.
We're spending longer at the kennel now, so I wasn't able to take my full walk when we returned home. No great loss. I was on my feet most of the time at the kennel. I still managed to get 14,000 steps on an abbreviated walk before it got dark. I was surprised at how cold it felt today. Just looking at a thermometer won't give you the whole story. If it's damp or windy outside it will always feel a lot colder.
It doesn't look like a particularly busy week. The only thing still on my agenda is getting a haircut. Oops. I forgot about the leaves. We've still got to move all the big bags of leaves out to the street as bulky trash day approaches.
Taylor is today's Dalmatian of the Day |
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