tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59905856450479991692024-02-22T01:35:59.550-08:00Higher OrbitsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-49491414498107137112014-05-12T16:01:00.003-07:002014-05-12T16:01:45.398-07:00Sponsorships!Well, as you well know, all non-profits exist on the generosity of others. Right now, Higher Orbits biggest project is Mission Discovery. I am very excited that we have so many Mission Discovery events scheduled for this summer.<br />
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As you may know, one of the very unique things about Mission Discovery is that out of each event/camp (call it whatever you prefer) we will pick the best experiment to be launched into space to the International Space Station! I certainly wish I could've done something like that when I was that age!<br />
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<a href="http://www.mission-discovery.info/">www.mission-discovery.info</a><br />
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Obviously you don't have to be a rocket scientist (sorry couldn't resist!) to recognize that launching something into space doesn't happen without cost.<br />
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So with that in mind...<br />
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Higher Orbits is working to find some sponsorships for our 2014 summer Mission Discovery programs. There are a variety of ways that this can be done and I'd be happy to discuss any and all options with anyone who is interested. Please don't think that any amount of sponsorship is too little from a company. Every dollar helps! Likewise, we are also looking for individual donations that we will pool to fund scholarships for deserving students to attend Mission Discovery at the various locations. Here's a blog that tells you more about how you can make a donation.<br />
<a href="http://higherorbits.blogspot.com/2014/04/a-great-umbrella-not-quite-what-you.html">http://higherorbits.blogspot.com/2014/04/a-great-umbrella-not-quite-what-you.html</a><br />
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Corporate Sponsor? Here's a list of sponsorship opportunities and the benefits that go with them!<br />
<a href="https://www.dropbox.com/sh/tfmqhhfonybmoed/AABLiZwVs2VnZ0gLXhrl9PMJa">https://www.dropbox.com/sh/tfmqhhfonybmoed/AABLiZwVs2VnZ0gLXhrl9PMJa</a><br />
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Please consider helping in any way you can... our next generation of Scientists, Engineers, Mathematicians and Leaders are counting on you!<br />
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.....and please spread the word! :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-52321447819242525162014-04-21T05:43:00.005-07:002014-04-21T05:43:58.349-07:00A Great Umbrella! (Not quite what you think it means...)<br />
I feel fortunate today to announce that Higher Orbits has an umbrella to thank for helping us out...<br />
Now that may sound a little odd to you that I am thankful for an umbrella (especially given that it's not raining!) but let me explain...<br />
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There is a wonderful group in California called EEG (a non-profit tax exempt educational foundation that has been in existence for 42 years) that is an "incubator" for similar minded non-profits. Since the task of getting 501c3 status is an arduous one and it takes quite a bit of time, this group helps out those in need in a variety of ways. They've kindly offered guidance on a variety of topics, which are very important but I won't bore you with, but there's something else they do that is much more important...<br />
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By being under their umbrella it helps me with donations in the immediate timeframe. Why? Well let me explain. You can make a donation to Higher Orbits TODAY and the check can be written to Higher Orbits. Higher Orbits will happily take that donation and put it to very good use. But since Higher Orbits is still awaiting it's tax-exempt 501c3 status (even though it's a non-profit, the actual IRS process for the tax exemption takes a year or 2!) you might not be able to claim it as a tax "benefit" for 2014 if the status doesn't come through this year. Whenever the status comes through you can retroactively claim it however. (Confused? Sorry!) Now how EEG is helpful.... if you're worried about your donation DEFINITELY being applied to this years taxes (as a company who might be willing to write a big check might be) you can make your check out to EEG but send it to Higher Orbits. They will accept donations on behalf of Higher Orbits and will then give Higher Orbits the money with only a few % taken out for administration costs. This definitely helps us to be able to go out and solicit even larger donations so that we can provide even more scholarships and programs to deserving students!<br />
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So - you want to donate? THANK YOU!<br />
You can write your check to Higher Orbits or EEG (based on what you've read in the paragraph above) and mail it to:<br />
Higher Orbits<br />
Attn: Michelle Ham<br />
32 Upshur Rd<br />
Annapolis, MD 21402<br />
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I can promise you that your donation will be used to support some very worthy programs including Mission Discovery (<a href="http://www.mission-discovery.info/">www.mission-discovery.info</a>) for some incredible and deserving students!<br />
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A great big huge THANK YOU to EEG for taking Higher Orbits under their umbrella and providing such wonderful support.<br />
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P.S. Right now Higher Orbits can only take checks but I'm working on taking credit cards soon and will let you know as soon as we get that sorted out!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-52172035332916506502014-04-15T05:11:00.000-07:002014-04-15T05:11:01.383-07:00Exercise! Astronauts Do It - Do You?Well with this blog I am going to admit that I'm writing it at the encouragement of some other friends of mine who are much wiser in the realm of social media etc. than I am. They pointed out that some of my followers on this twitter account might be interested to learn more about upcoming run especially since exercise does tie directly to some space stuff. I'm not sure wether you all really want to know about this or not but I thought I'd give it a shot. (I do generally do my best to not post too much that's not truly space stuff.) Here's to hoping I don't lose too many followers! For those of you who want pure space stuff, don't worry, in just 2 weeks I promise this line of tweets will end!<br />
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So there I was... minding my own business.... Oh wait that's a different story ;) Let's see how to begin this one... I know - with something space!<br />
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Do you have any idea how long ISS astronauts work out every single day? 2 hours! Every. Single. Day! It is absolutely essential for their health that they do so. I won't get into the nitty gritty here (because I think many of you already know all this) but micro-gravity wreaks havoc on your muscle and bones so without exercise your body would be a total mess! (Yes that is a technical term!)<br />
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<a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/teachingfromspace/dayinthelife/exercise-adil-index.html">http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/teachingfromspace/dayinthelife/exercise-adil-index.html</a><br />
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Quick version of types of workouts is that they spend half their time doing resistance exercise and half of it doing cardio. I could go into much more detail (and perhaps I will in a future blog) but for this one that info will suffice. I remember, during my days of being an Ops Plan Flight Controller in MCC, thinking that in some ways it sure would be nice to be SCHEDULED for exercise every day. Because let's face it, most of us lack the time and/or motivation to work out some days.<br />
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So here's where I diverge from space a bit... I'm a firm believer that a healthy body helps make a sharp mind. Don't get me wrong - there any many days when the last thing I want to do is exercise (and it's certainly not to say that I exercise every day because believe me - I don't!) but I also know that my mind feels sluggish if I am not keeping my body healthy and fit. So while I certainly don't work out as much as the astronauts on ISS, I do my best to work out several times a week.<br />
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So back to that lack of motivation thing - I am signed up to run the Nike Women's Half Marathon in DC on April 28th and to say I haven't trained is an understatement. It's been too cold for me to run outside and I am not a fan of the treadmill. But not only have I signed up for the run, 2 very special young ladies have signed up to run this with me and they will be traveling in from the West Coast to do so, as such, I've got to get myself motivated! So each day I've been posting to my personal Facebook page some sort of picture that I find motivational. Surprisingly, it is sort of helping! Shall I share those with you too? Here are the first 2 days of pictures:<br />
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Day 1 of Pictures: The signs I saw in the Gallery Place Metro in DC this past week</div>
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Day 2 of Pictures: My Running Shoes- As you can tell I like colorful :)</div>
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So let me ask you - what do YOU do to keep your mind and body at its healthiest? Do you Train Like An Astronaut? <a href="http://www.space.com/22714-train-like-an-astronaut-nasa-s-physical-fitness-program-video.html">http://www.space.com/22714-train-like-an-astronaut-nasa-s-physical-fitness-program-video.html</a> You may not have 2 hours a day to workout like the astronauts but who on Earth does?! Motivation comes in many forms so perhaps you can find something to motivate you... If I can be of any help let me know :) </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-60770723868898343502014-03-16T10:43:00.001-07:002014-03-16T10:43:37.256-07:00Women In AviationWhat a treat it was to get to attend the 25th annual Women in Aviation Conference at Disney in Orlando. This conference is always an amazing gathering of so many fantastic women! I am honored to have been part of it!<br />
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The first time I ever got to attend the Women in Aviation conference, it was as a result of a scholarship. I'm pretty sure the year was 2002 and it was in Reno. Since that initial conference I have been to 2 others before this one. I hope to make it a more regular occurrence to attend!<br />
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This year I feel fortunate that I not only got to attend the conference, but I also had the opportunity to exhibit and tell so many great people about <a href="http://www.higherorbits.org/" target="_blank">Higher Orbits</a> & <a href="http://www.isset.org/" target="_blank">ISSET</a> and that I got to spread the good word about <a href="http://www.mission-discovery.info/" target="_blank">Mission Discovery</a>!<br />
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Since I have been fortunate that throughout my life there have been people (individuals and companies) kind enough to offer scholarships to various things that I was interested in and wouldn't have been able to afford otherwise, I was extremely happy to be able to offer a scholarship to any Mission Discovery through the Women in Aviation Scholarship program.<br />
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At the conference we got the idea to solicit donations $1 at a time (because that's the kind of grass roots effort we are!) to fund a scholarship for a woman (of high school or university/college age) to attend any Mission Discovery. The idea was for this scholarship to be funded solely on the kind donations of the Women in Aviation Conference attendees. Unfortunately we got the idea a little late so while some individuals were happy to donate more than the $1 requested, we only made it halfway to our goal of $500 (which is a full scholarship).... here's where you might come in :) Did you attend the conference and not get a chance to stop by and make a donation? Well here's your chance!! Help us reach our goal of funding 1 woman who is interested in STEM to attend Mission Discovery based on the kindness of donations from WAI Conference attendees. Every dollar counts! You can make your check out to Mission Discovery and mail it to<br />
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Mission Discovery </div>
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Attn: Michelle Ham </div>
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32 Upshur Rd </div>
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Annapolis, MD 21402</div>
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Make sure to put WAI in the notes section so we know to be sure to apply it to this special scholarship specifically.</div>
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Thank you so much for your support!!</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-69366240473122067352014-03-03T14:10:00.001-08:002014-03-16T20:14:25.818-07:00Once a Brickie, Always a BrickieWell for all of you who are not from "The Region" I am sure that you are wondering - what the heck is a Brickie?! Don't worry, I will get into that more in a bit but first I want to tell you about my incredible day at Hobart High School... Perhaps it deserves a bit of background first though....<br />
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I was born in Hammond, IN but within the first 6 months of my life my parents moved to Hobart, IN (both in the Chicagoland area). Hobart is where I spent all of my years until I left to go to Purdue University. So naturally I attended Hobart High School. Worth mentioning, I attended the OLD Hobart High School... why is that worth mentioning? Well let me tell you...<br />
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I was excited when the Hobart Superintendent Dr. Peggy Buffington reached out to me and asked me if I would be willing to come by the high school and give a talk. I was excited for 2 reasons... first and foremost I was obviously excited to get to meet some great young minds and to share some thoughts with them. The second reason was because Hobart built a new school that I have heard amazing things about and I was psyched to get to check it out!<br />
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My morning started with meeting Dr. Buffington and I have to say I immediately knew that I was going to like her! She is this force of positive energy that just draws you in. Her devotion to Hobart and the students is unmistakable - it's truly an amazing thing! After a quick stop in the school board room to drop off me coat we headed to the theater. Even before we got in the door there I could tell that this new HHS was a far cry from our old HHS. Attention has been paid to every detail and as a result the school looks amazing!<br />
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I was fortunate enough to speak to a large group of students for about an hour about space and life and well a bit about me and how I got where I am. Naturally I also told them about Mission Discovery and I REALLY hope to see some of them at <a href="http://isset.org/mission_discovery/upcoming/Valparaiso/" target="_blank">Mission Discovery Valparaiso University</a> this summer! They were such an attentive group with some great questions (including 1 question that I think I will write an entire blog about at some point.. just gotta find the time!) and I hope I left them with some thoughts to think about and perhaps a piece or 2 of advice for them to carry with them in life. It was a real treat to get to be there and to interact with some great Brickies!<br />
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After the talk, Dr. Buffington was kind enough to take me on a tour of the whole high school.... All I can say is WOW! Hobart High School has so many amazing opportunities for students that certainly weren't available when I was in school there and the facility is sincerely world-class! Clearly a lot of thought and caring went into the design, building and execution of HHS. The programs and facilities are so much more than just a school though... they have a real community feel to them.<br />
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I truly look forward to being able to do more work with Hobart High School... so be on the lookout! You never know when I will be back there!<br />
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Oh and I bet you are wondering what a Brickie is ;) Well check this out...<br />
<a href="http://hobart.schoolwires.com/site/default.aspx?PageID=1887">http://hobart.schoolwires.com/site/default.aspx?PageID=1887</a><br />
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I am proud to say I am a Brickie!<br />
Once a Brickie, Always a Brickie!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-39836880867903313842014-02-27T21:12:00.000-08:002014-02-27T21:12:29.818-08:00Announcing Our First Scholarship WinnersOne of the big reasons that I wanted to create Higher Orbits was to be able to offer opportunities for students to attend programs that they might not otherwise be able to attend. One of the obvious ways to do this is through scholarships. Clearly Mission Discovery is a program that I am incredibly vested in and believe in whole-heartedly. I wish something like Mission Discovery had existed when I was a student because it truly is a life changing experience for many students. I am so thrilled to be able to pour my energy into such a worthwhile endeavor. (Just how crazy has life been in working on Mission Discovery lately? Well I can tell you that all is going great but the answer to what all I've been up to in working on it is worthy of another blog all in and of itself!)<br />
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Our First Scholarships are all being awarded to students to attend the Valparaiso University Mission Discovery in July 2014.<br />
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<a href="http://isset.org/mission_discovery/upcoming/Valparaiso/">http://isset.org/mission_discovery/upcoming/Valparaiso/</a></div>
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It is with great pleasure I announce the first winners of our first set of scholarships....<br />
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** Tara Marlow, from Indian Creek High School, has devleoped a love for the cosmos over the years and is considering becoming an <span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 32px; text-indent: 48px;">astronautical engineer because, " I would have the opportunity to correlate my ideas with others and produce exceptional solutions to problems"</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 32px; text-indent: 48px;">**Megan Mitchell, from Kankakee Valley High School, is passionate about space exploration for many reasons including that she believes it helps broaden our knowledge about the universe and creates new advances in technology. Exploring a career in aerospace has been a goal of hers since she was a little girl</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-indent: 48px;"><span style="line-height: 32px;">**Emily O'Fallon, from Roncalli High School in Wisconsin, has always loved "new" things and has found a passion about space and hoes to pursue an education in astrophysics. She joined the rocketry team and while she loved building the rocket, launch was really what hooked her!</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-indent: 48px;"><span style="line-height: 32px;">** We have 2 more winners but I have not heard back from them yet and do not want to publish their names without permission... I will tell you more about them when I hear back from them.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-indent: 48px;"><span style="line-height: 32px;">How about a big round of applause for all these amazing young minds!</span></span><br />
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I really look forward to all of these students joining us at Mission Discovery in July. Don't you want to attend too? You can register today to insure your spot! Additionally there will be more scholarships posted in the not too distant future on the Higher Orbits website (which is about to actually about to start looking like a proper website thanks to the help of some friends I think!) - check out <a href="http://www.higherorbits.org/">www.higherorbits.org</a> and be sure to click on the Scholarships page/tab.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-24972792741564041432013-10-21T05:29:00.003-07:002013-10-21T05:29:50.676-07:00Bummed I Missed An Opportunity...Have you ever noticed that smoke detector batteries always fail in the middle of the night? Well they do at our house at least. And the kicker of it is that when they do it starts yelling at you every minute something along the lines of.....<br />
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<i>CHIRP!</i> LOW BATTERY! <i>CHIRP!</i></div>
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Then as you pull out the old battery and put in a new one, <u>all</u> the smoke detectors in the house (because they are all connected) sound for a minute and yell.... </div>
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Chirp! Chirp! Chirp! Fire! Fire! Carbon Monoxide Warning? Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!</div>
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(Whoever created this system exactly this way should be beaten as far as I am concerned.....)</div>
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So yep that's what happened this morning at 3:57am. To make it worse we have a friend staying with us for a few days who is in need of some rest and needless to say this noise doesn't exactly lend itself to a restful night!</div>
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You may be wondering why I am posting about this middle of the night experience on my space blog.... well I was just realizing (as I am still trying to fully wake up because I didn't sleep so well after the smoke detector debacle) that when all that noise was going on and I got woken up - I wish I'd had the alertness to realize that I should have stepped outside to see if I could see any of the Orionid Meteor Shower since it was supposed to peak before sunrise today. BUMMED!!! Completely missed out on that opportunity :( What can I say - I am definitely not a morning person.</div>
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I hope some of you got a chance to see it and I hope it was absolutely spectacular!</div>
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Oh and for all of you who have fire/smoke detector concerns about us... don't worry the plan is to go and change all the batteries so they all have fresh ones.....</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-73960281601549753192013-10-16T11:00:00.001-07:002013-10-16T11:00:15.529-07:00It's Not All "Glamorous" - But I Love It!For those of you who don't know me well let me divulge something about myself... I am a very "tell it like it is" kind of person... sometimes this is a good thing and sometimes... well... not so much :) I do my best to temper it where I can.<br />
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The reason I tell you this little tidbit about myself is that I think it will explain this post a bit....<br />
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I could tell you that everything about what I do for Higher Orbits and my work with ISSET is all fun and glamorous... but that wouldn't be realistic.... I have people say to me very frequently things like "Oh how amazing that you get to travel to all these places and do all these cool things" or "You're So Lucky" or things like that. They're right it is amazing that I get to travel and do the things I do. And they are right that I am lucky to have been able to make a career out of my passion. But I also have to give you a little reality...<br />
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It's not ALL glamorous (the word I am choosing - if you have a better word than that fill that in)...<br />
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Here's how I have spent many hours the past day or so....<br />
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We have many postcards (that look absolutely amazing thanks to the guys at ISSET) for our events that I used for the AIAA Space Conference last month. However we've had some additions to some of our programs that I want to be sure to promote. Instead of printing new cards (that would be so wasteful of what we have) I went and bought labels that I could print the new info on and then affix it to the postcard. Of course it's never quite just that easy right? I also had to go through and cut each label in half and trip the edges too in order to make it fit.<br />
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These postcards are headed to the SEDS National Conference. We have a partnership with SEDS where they get credit for referrals to our programs. (Are you interested in a similar partnership with us? Let me know!) These postcards I am working on will go into the conference bags for each participant. I wanted to make sure that if someone signs up for a program as a result of SEDS that SEDS gets credit so I've added stickers to each postcard to remind them...<br />
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All that said - this may not be glamorous work but it's work that has to be done and at the end of the day I love what I do! So I'm happy to do this along with all the stuff that people consider to be the "glamorous" portions of my job....<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-18085009296282640152013-10-08T04:55:00.001-07:002013-10-08T04:55:26.159-07:00GravityThe Movie <i>Gravity </i>with Sandra Bullock and George Clooney...<br />
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I am sorry folks - I really wanted to like this movie but the short answer of what did I think of the movie is....<br />
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It was bad. It was just bad.<br />
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As I said in my first tweet about this - I am not sure who liked it less... myself, Ken or the NASA HQ friend of ours who just happened to end up in the same theater at the same time....<br />
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Let me preface with a variety of things....<br />
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<ul>
<li>I will do my best to not give away too many spoilers. (Honestly I am trying not to give any spoilers but I think by virtue of a few of the things I am saying I may sort of do so....)</li>
<li>I will admit I am probably harder on the movie than the average person...</li>
<li>If you've seen it and you've enjoyed it I am glad! Truly! Just because I didn't doesn't mean I want you to have had a miserable 2 hour experience....</li>
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So how do I make my comments without giving too much away.... or being too Neil Tyson (since someone told me not to go All Neil Tyson on the movie).... Let's be clear - I am NOT smart enough to be Neil Tyson so I would actually be honored to be compared to him!! How do I articulate this... bear with me! </div>
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Let me start off with if you are going to go and see this you absolutely ought to go see it in 3D. Visually it's worth the extra money it will cost to see it that way.</div>
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To say there were some technical inconsistencies would be a gross understatement. I get it that they can't get absolutely everything right. (Though that said <i>Apollo 13</i> did a pretty decent job!) I get that there is some stuff you need to do to enhance the drama. However some of it was just so bad I really couldn't get passed it no matter how hard I tried. Some of the absolutely basic physics was just WRONG! And we won't even get into the Orbital Mechanics... and I am not talking difficult Orbital Mechanics I am talking basics... Let's put it this way - in regards to that it was SO bad that I actually laughed out loud about it during the movie several times. I won't go into listing all the issues (not sure I could type that much - my hands my fall off) because I will give too much away and I don't want to go into that much detail... let's just say they were numerous and apparent. </div>
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That said they got some very minor details correct which I was impressed with... The PCS display was pretty accurate, some of the other displays were accurate, the vehicles in general were pretty accurate, the space suit on the outside looks was very close and they had the appropriate timeline (OSTPV - Onboard Short Term Plan Viewer - software that is very near and dear to my heart) on the computer. These are just to name a few - yes there were others including using the right nomenclature for some things.</div>
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Let me set the stage in the best way I can I think... The first oh I don't know 10 minutes there's a conversation going on between the astronauts in space and the ground (don't worry that fact isn't giving anything away)... it was SO bad an irritating the way they did it that I thought I was going to have to walk out then. (Talking with Ken about it later he apparently was thinking the same thing.)</div>
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Yes many of the visuals were stunning but I tell you what - to get that go see the ISS 3D movie or something like that. You'll actually get even more stunning views.</div>
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I get that this movie makes people think about space more than they previously might and while at first blush that seems like a fantastic thing.... I am not sure this movie is a good thing for that and I will explain in a second...</div>
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Here's where I have to make a comment that may give something away about the movie that you don't want to know.... if that's the case I suggest you stop reading here and pick-up where I say Spoilers Over in big bold letters.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">SPOILER ALERT!!!</span></div>
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The reason I am not sure that this movie is a good thing is that it is overwhelmingly a negative movie. I get that it's the story of one woman's journey to get back home but set in the context of space it means that absolutely everything in space (ISS, shuttle, HST etc.) is completely destroyed. Why is NASA embracing the message of negative things happening in space when there are so many positive aspects we are failing to promote? I mean at one point the main character says "I HATE SPACE!" Really? This is the message that we the space loving community want people to go see and embrace - the idea that all our foothold in space can be wiped out quickly and it ends in tragic loss of life? Call me an idealist but that's not how I want to get people talking about space.</div>
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Add to that last point the fact that the space shuttle breaks up in orbit and there are lots of pieces of various space vehicles burning up as they come back into the atmosphere and those of us who were part of the space world when Columbia happened have a bit of a hard time with this imagery. It honestly was hard for me to watch at that point - the visuals were just a little too close to something so tragically still a very tender painful memory. </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">SPOILERS OVER!!!</span></div>
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Here's the bottom line (as if you didn't already know this) - I just didn't like it. This does NOT mean I think anyone who does is crazy! (So please don't get all offended as if I am attacking you personally by disliking this movie.) I can see how cinematically it could be good entertainment. (I can't tell you how many people I have gotten emails from who really liked it. For you Chivers out there - I don't think John will mind if I tell you that he absolutely loved it.) Cinematically they did a good job with keeping you on the edge of your seat. I will admit there were a few times they had done such a great job of creating drama and suspense that even I was on the edge of my seat hoping they came through (no matter how scientifically illogical the premise was of that given instance) so in that aspect they did a good job. </div>
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What I would like to see is another space movie - this time one that highlights the positives... Maybe it's time for me to start writing that script....</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-80964837693469325402013-10-03T04:14:00.000-07:002013-10-03T04:14:10.386-07:00WOW! Just WOW!!Last night was the beginning of the "festivities" for the Naval Institute History Conference about space and to say that it was amazing is only the tip of the iceberg. For those of you who know me, you know that I can tend to talk just a little bit... well I think I may struggle to adequately find the words to describe how I felt meeting some heroes of mine so please bear with me!<br />
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To start my day of awesome we go to a little unofficial event that I was lucky enough to be invited to sit in on thanks to Ken. General Tom Stafford wanted to "pre-flight" his slides in Alumni Hall so I got to sit and watch that. I could listen to General Stafford tell stories all day long! And that's a lot of what it was.... He was going through his slides but he was just casually telling many stories... what an incredible treat to be there and to get to listen in. My crowning achievement in this hour and a half was that I was able to quickly look up where the Mercury capsule that had been on display here at the Naval Academy had gone for General Stafford - it's great to feel useful to such an American Hero!!!<br />
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The evening brought with it a reception at Buchanan House where the Superintendent resides. (On a side note - let me just tell all of you that if you ever have the opportunity to go to an event there - GO! Do whatever it takes to get there. The events are always amazing!) The hospitality of Admiral & Mrs. Miller is always impressive. This reception was so full of astronauts that everyone (not just me and the Midshipmen - all sorts of Navy Officers too!) was in awe! The sheer magnitude of spaceflight experience represented in that house was so incredibly impressive. As we all mixed and mingled I was happy to catch up with some amazing folks I already knew but I think I had the most fun introducing my best friend to some of the astronauts she had never met such as Charlie Bolden, Bob Cabana and Bob Crippen. (I am so lucky to have a bestie who works for the airlines and can just show up at cool events with us!) Captain Lovell and General Stafford were so surrounded by other folks that we didn't get a chance to chat with them there but that was ok.... I knew there would be other opportunities! n<br />
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Miles O'Brien was the Forrestal Lecturer last night and while I already know I need to write a whole blog about Miles (and I will just give me a little time!) let me just say that he did an amazing job of being not just informative but also entertaining. Everyone truly enjoyed it. I couldn't believe my luck that I was sitting behind Jim & Marilyn Lovell for this event. WOW! I was star struck! More on that later too...<br />
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The end of the official evening was the singing of the Navy Alma Mater<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navy_Blue_and_Gold">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navy_Blue_and_Gold</a><br />
I get this chills just typing this thinking of all the amazing people who literally surrounded me.... Jim Lovell, Frank Culberston, Bill Readdy, Ken Reightler, Charlie Bolden, George Zamka, and my wonderful husband Ken Ham too of course! Such a poignant moment...<br />
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Sorry folks I know this blog is containing a lot of "more of this later" comments but I just has so much more than I can quickly summarize (I warned you I might have trouble finding adequate words!) and now I absolutely must go and get dressed for the day.....<br />
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Stay tuned for more.....<br />
As I mentioned before I will be doing my best to do some live tweets via @spacechelle<br />
and might I suggest you become an official follower of this blog so you know when I post more?<br />
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Have a stellar day everyone! I know I plan to!!!<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-13465500244323137352013-10-02T04:14:00.002-07:002013-10-02T04:17:36.885-07:00I'm So Excited!I'm so excited.... and I just can't hide it!!<br />
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For all of you who I've now gotten that song stuck in your head, I do apologize, it's just that I've been singing it since I woke up this morning!<br />
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I am so excited!<br />
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Every year the Naval Institute hold a big conference at the Naval Academy and this year the theme/topic is space!<br />
<a href="http://www.usni.org/events/2013-us-naval-history-conference">http://www.usni.org/events/2013-us-naval-history-conference</a><br />
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I feel lucky to get to be here at the Naval Academy to be able to experience this and the fact that Ken has been kind of the "point guy" here at USNA helps get me access to some extra cool stuff!<br />
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Even though the Government is shutdown this event is still happening. Sadly the current astronauts (or anyone who technically still works for NASA wether they are a current astronaut or not) such as Chris Cassidy, Suni Williams and Charlie Bolden will not be able to attend which is a bummer because it would be even more epic to have them here. However, there are still so many amazing folks who will be here! Astronaut speakers include Mike Lopez-Alegria, Frank Culbertson, Bob Crippen and more! While I am super excited to see those guys I must admit I am absolutely beside myself about the fact that I am going to get to meet Jim Lovell and Tom Stafford! Talk about living legends!!!<br />
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I promise I will take LOTS of pictures. I will also do my best to do some Live Tweeting from the event (assuming I can get my phone to connect while in Alumni Hall - sometimes service in there is not so good) so feel free to follow me on Twitter if you want. My handle is @spacechelle<br />
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It all begins tonight with a special reception at the Superintendent's House followed by a Forrestal Lecture (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Forresta">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Forresta</a>l) by Miles O'Brien.<br />
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I'm so excited!!!<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-25519646572215291972013-09-22T06:33:00.001-07:002013-09-22T06:33:14.537-07:00Higher Orbits LogoWell this blog is really a reaching out for a bit of help...<br />
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Still working on getting a logo for Higher Orbits and I have some great ideas from some amazing artists. Before I fully select a path of one to work with I wanted to ask all of you for your ideas... Don't worry I am not asking for you to actually create a logo, I am asking you to share some words of ideas/thoughts/expectations with me... If you don't mind of course :)<br />
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So here are a few questions and if you were so inclined to do so I'd love your answers/feedback :)<br />
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Remembering that Higher Orbits is a non-profit that uses space to excite students about Science Technology, Engineering, Math and also Leadership and Teamwork...<br />
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Remembering that Higher Orbits will be targeting (mainly) high school and college/university students... (That's not to say that we won't do things with younger students they just aren't the main demographic)... But also Higher Orbits will be reaching out to Industry/Business for sponsorships...<br />
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<li>What kind of logo comes to mind for you? What are the elements of it?</li>
<li>What colors are used in the logo?</li>
<li>Does the logo include the full name Higher Orbits or is it just a picture logo?</li>
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These are some leading questions (for lack of a better way of putting it) to try and get you thinking. That said - if you have thoughts/ideas/comments that fall outside those questions please send them my way. </div>
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Thanks to all who are interested in Higher Orbits!!!</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-59913994288085919842013-09-17T11:31:00.000-07:002013-09-20T05:40:50.111-07:00It's a Small WorldIt's a Small World After All... It's a Small World After All.. It's a Small World After all... It's a Small Small World..<br />
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Sorry - now that I've got that stuck in your head :) What can I say - after having visited Disneyland and the experience I had at the AIAA Space Conference in San Diego I definitely had this in my head...<br />
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For those of you who don't know I recently returned from a trip to California - this trip was mostly work but had some fun thrown in too! So why am I singing "It's a Small World" you may ask...<br />
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I flew into LA for a few days before heading to work in San Diego. My reason for doing so was that my dear friends Gillian, Kevin & Katelin were in LA for some work. I met Gillian from 29 Studios (<a href="http://www.29studios.com/">http://www.29studios.com</a>) on our Gobi Desert Astronaut Leadership Experience and we became good enough friends that a few months later I visited her in her home of Glasgow, Scotland. While there I met her amazing husband Kevin and exceptional daughter Katelin as well as Pappy (Kev's wonderful Dad.) When I found out they would all be in California at the same time as me, and I knew we had some business we wanted to talk about, I figured I ought to modify my travel plans slightly and make a stopover in LA on my way to San Diego. We enjoyed some fun time together (including a trip to Disneyland to all be big kids together!)<br />
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And no it was not all fun we did some work too! We had some great business talks and we are all excited about the work we can do together. I'll tell you what given that Gillian and I went from seeing each other in Mongolia then Glasgow then Los Angeles - it makes me feel like it's a small world after all!<br />
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But wait - there's more! :)<br />
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Then I headed to San Diego for the AIAA National Space Conference where I was exhibiting for ISSET & Higher Orbits. (Okay to be fair everything only said ISSET because I didn't have anything printed up with Higher Orbits because I had only just gotten the name etc. legally approved and I don't have a logo yet... but I did talk about Higher Orbits!) At this conference I was astounded at just how small the world of space is! Forget 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon - Space is where it's at!<br />
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(Don't know what 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon is? Check this out <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Degrees_of_Kevin_Bacon">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Degrees_of_Kevin_Bacon</a>)<br />
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At the conference the thought of it's a small world after all ran through my head numerous times...<br />
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<li>I have been living on the East Coast for over a year as has Pam Melroy but we haven't managed to get together yet even though we live within an hour of one another... however I saw her at this conference which was held more than 2,000 miles from where we live!</li>
<li>I met an incredibly cool guy named Greg who it turns out is great friends with a few of my dearest friends (Stacey & Kevin) in Houston. We'd both heard stories about each other but never met even though we'd lived in Houston at the same time... so we met for the first time in San Diego!</li>
<li>I met several people from all over the Globe who I've gotten to know Twitter-wise</li>
<li>I saw not 1, not 2, not 3 but no less than a half a dozen astronauts who I have worked with either as their instructor for a mission or in Mission Control for their Mission (or when they were CAPCOM)</li>
<li>I met a Purdue SEDS student who is a student of my Purdue Mentor Dr. Steven Collicott (I think I may have to do another whole different blog on that!)</li>
<li>I met a guy who works in Texas at SpaceX with the brother of one of our favorite mids </li>
<li>And literally with almost everyone I met we had a mutual friend or a mutual friend of a friend...</li>
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It's A Small World After All.....</div>
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I think that's why the space community feels so much like a family. With that said - Let's Make This Family Bigger! Let's keep spreading the good word about space and get others excited!!!</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5990585645047999169.post-69411198617642341932013-09-01T14:28:00.000-07:002013-09-01T14:28:03.884-07:00I Introduce To You....Cue the trumpets..... Or maybe a drumroll... Confetti Cannons perhaps?<br />
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Anyway - give me some pomp and circumstance in your mind as you get ready to read this next bit because I am SUPER excited about it....<br />
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It's is my great honor to introduce you to a new Non-Profit Organization that will use space to get students of all ages interested in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math....<br />
I give you.....<br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Higher Orbits</span></span></div>
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I had many many many great suggestions from folks about names and many that I liked but I chose Higher Orbits for a wide variety of reasons some of which include the fact that some names that were suggested or I liked were already taken or Trademarked, some of the names ended up being a great acronym but a mouthful to explain (Ken reminded me how much it drives me crazy to have to spell out ISSET all the time), some names appealed to some of the demographic I need to target but not others etc etc. Bottom line is I was lucky to have so many great suggestions from so many great folks so...<br />
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THANK YOU! GRACIAS! MERCI! DANKE! SPASIBO! ARRIGATO! MAHAL! XIE XIE!<br />
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Thank you all for being so wonderful and helping me with suggestions or taking my surveys to see what names you like or just being a sounding board when I started rambling about my ideas. Thank you so very much. I appreciate it more than words can express.<br />
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I would be remiss to not give an extra special Thank You shout-out to a very special gal who does marketing and branding for a living and was so enthusiastic in her help with finalizing the name. A HUGE Thank you to Lisa Witzig from Ideen LLC. I can whole heartedly endorse that if you need some help with marketing branding, naming etc. Lisa absolutely should be your go-to-gal! Check out her webpage at <a href="http://www.ideen-llc.com/">http://www.ideen-llc.com</a><br />
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I still have a lot of work to do.....<br />
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<li>Lots of paperwork to get my official IRS non-profit status (I won't bore you with the details but the basics is there's a general legal part to becoming a non-profit and then there's the IRS side... the IRS side apparently takes ages... but I'm ready to get to work on that!)</li>
<li>Logo - Luckily I have some amazingly talents friends who have given me some great ideas and now I just have to decide what exactly I want to have represent Higher Orbits for all entirety (no pressure to make the "right" choice or anything!)</li>
<li>Website! I've secured the domain and put a lame Coming Soon page but will be working on getting that really functional soon! Bookmark <a href="http://www.higherorbits.org/">www.higherorbits.org</a> to check back there periodically</li>
<li>Fundraising! I have some amazing ideas of ways to fundraise to provide scholarships to individuals for events like Mission Discovery and I can't wait to get started on those. I know how life changing it was for me when I received a scholarship to go to Space Camp so I can't wait to return that "favor" to some students!</li>
<li>And much much more but I'll stop rambling for now :)</li>
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I will still be doing all the same work with ISSET but now Higher Orbits will become a partner to ISSET and Higher Orbits will have additional things outside of ISSET as well. (Yeah I wasn't busy enough you know how all I do is sit around and watch TV and eat bon bons. LOL!)</div>
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For now you can start following Higher Orbits on Twitter if you want @HigherOrbits</div>
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And you may have noticed this is a separate blog than my personal blog - this will be a Higher Orbits official blog so perhaps sign-up to follow this blog too :)</div>
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And I promise to keep you all posted as things progress..... as you might be able to tell I am REALLY REALLY excited!!! </div>
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Here's to Higher Orbits!!!</div>
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