1960s: Space Fever, Vacations and a Changing City
Early 1962, a space fever has caught the world. For months there has been speculation about the Mercury 7 mission and sending John Glen into space, but time and time again it has been postponed. But now it seems like it will actually happen. The media is at a frenzy with headlines such as
For Arthur, the launch means another full day in the control room. Edwards is one of several tracking stations used to monitor the spacecraft in orbit, relaying telemetry data such as speed, altitude and Glen vitals, to Mercury Control Center in Florida, and help the Control Central keep in contact with Glenn during the flight.
It's a nerv-wrecking start, as they know everything that can go wrong with a space craft, and a relief and glee when Glen is actually in orbit - until it's time for reentry and the nervousness takes hold again. Outside the control room, a rescue team is standing by, hoping they'll never need to be used. Edwards is the designated contingency landing site, in case Glen needs to abort the mission early, but they all know that is the option they never want to use. The space craft is designed to land on water, and a landing on earth would be dangerous. So when they see a problem with the heat shield, Bikle's heart is about to give out and Arthur can feel his own heart racing, but when all is said and done, the problems with the heat shield are solved, and Glen lands exactly where he is supposed to land.
It's a celebratory Arthur, who return home to Audie and the girls that night, hugging them both in turn, spinning them around before kissing their mother to the girls' absolute horror. But seeing mummy and Arthur kiss is soon forgotten, for the girls are all up in arms over the flight themselves, having listened to it live in school. The way they talk about it at the dinner table it's almost as if Arthur wasn't the one listening to feeds they'd never hear, but he doesn't interrupt the girls, but listen with interest to their version before Audie cuts them off and tells them that it's time to do their homework and then go to bed.
With a successful launch completed, Arthur can finally go on that honeymoon! They wait until it's time for the summer holidays, drive the girls to Josephine and Nash's where they will stay while Arthur and Audie drive down to Mexico to get two whole days just for themselves. The girls are a bit nervous about staying with their new grand parents at first, but once they hit the pool they seem to be doing just fine.
Arthur and Audie arrive late at their hotel in Cuidad Enarmorada, so on their first night there isn't much to do but to head up to their room, and the next morning both are a bit tired and in need of winding down so that day too is mostly spent around the room. They swim in the pool, relax on the floats and woohoo in their generous bed. Only after do they venture out into the city to explore. They spend almost the entire day in the park, buying a picnic blanket and eating lunch under the trees and playing games in the bar there. At night they head to a night club where they dance the night away.
They're not the only ones taking a well deserved rest. Thomas and Betty pack up the kids and go camping, something Thomas has always wanted to try. They go to Granite Falls, and find a space for their tents by the lake. For the next few days the spend their days outside. The kids swim in the smaller of the lakes, where the water is warm and the currents not as strong. Thomas fish, Susan and Carl goes exploring, and Steven mostly just plays with the toys his parents have brought.
It turns out, however, that eating fish you catch yourself is not always a good idea. The next day all kids, one after the other, feels nauseas and suffer stomach pains. Luckily, Thomas brought medicine and the family can continue their vacation. With a little more care about what they eat.
A much more dramatic event catches Josephine's attention as she turns to the newspaper one morning.
All over the country, newspapers report the same news, and TV news are quick to follow the dramatic escape. Over the next few days more and more details of the escape leak. How they created paper heads to look asleep, how they dug out through the walls with spoons, how they used life jackets to create a vessel to escape with. Did they have outside help? Did they survive? Authorities say no, that no one can survive those waters, but no bodies are found and people do love to speculate.
Barbara and her friends are no exception, and the escape is their number one topic of discussion for a while. Josephine, however, is up in arms. "You have to come home!" she tells her daughter. "There are criminals on the loose!"
"If they survived, they're not stupid enough to stay here," Barbara laughs, not bothered by her mother's worry. "If it's them you're worried about, this is probably the safest city in the world right now."
"But you're alone, in a big city, who knows what people like that might try."
"But I'm not alone, as you and dad so often point out. We'll be fine, I promise."
But for all of Barbara's bravado, there are worries in her life. Things are changing in ways that Barbara is not entirely sure she likes. Ginsburg and his boyfriend has moved to San Myshuno, while others are lost to alcohol and drugs. Some are more politically involved than ever, while others are more indifferent. The scene is changing, shifting, and Barbara isn't sure of how that change will fall. She loves the new imagery of Warhol, but has no wish to move to San Myshuno to be apart of the group that is starting to grow around his studio. Gordon is considering it, however, talking about an expanded "freedom" there. Barbara is hoping he'll stay. It's been the three of them forever, and now Barbara is no longer sure it will be. For now though she holds on, and will enjoy things as long as she can.
- Countdown Begins for Glenn’s Space Ride!" (The New York Times)
- "U.S. Set for Historic Space Shot" (Washington Post)
- "John Glenn: America’s First Orbital Astronaut" (San Francisco Chronicle)
For Arthur, the launch means another full day in the control room. Edwards is one of several tracking stations used to monitor the spacecraft in orbit, relaying telemetry data such as speed, altitude and Glen vitals, to Mercury Control Center in Florida, and help the Control Central keep in contact with Glenn during the flight.
It's a nerv-wrecking start, as they know everything that can go wrong with a space craft, and a relief and glee when Glen is actually in orbit - until it's time for reentry and the nervousness takes hold again. Outside the control room, a rescue team is standing by, hoping they'll never need to be used. Edwards is the designated contingency landing site, in case Glen needs to abort the mission early, but they all know that is the option they never want to use. The space craft is designed to land on water, and a landing on earth would be dangerous. So when they see a problem with the heat shield, Bikle's heart is about to give out and Arthur can feel his own heart racing, but when all is said and done, the problems with the heat shield are solved, and Glen lands exactly where he is supposed to land.
It's a celebratory Arthur, who return home to Audie and the girls that night, hugging them both in turn, spinning them around before kissing their mother to the girls' absolute horror. But seeing mummy and Arthur kiss is soon forgotten, for the girls are all up in arms over the flight themselves, having listened to it live in school. The way they talk about it at the dinner table it's almost as if Arthur wasn't the one listening to feeds they'd never hear, but he doesn't interrupt the girls, but listen with interest to their version before Audie cuts them off and tells them that it's time to do their homework and then go to bed.
With a successful launch completed, Arthur can finally go on that honeymoon! They wait until it's time for the summer holidays, drive the girls to Josephine and Nash's where they will stay while Arthur and Audie drive down to Mexico to get two whole days just for themselves. The girls are a bit nervous about staying with their new grand parents at first, but once they hit the pool they seem to be doing just fine.
Arthur and Audie arrive late at their hotel in Cuidad Enarmorada, so on their first night there isn't much to do but to head up to their room, and the next morning both are a bit tired and in need of winding down so that day too is mostly spent around the room. They swim in the pool, relax on the floats and woohoo in their generous bed. Only after do they venture out into the city to explore. They spend almost the entire day in the park, buying a picnic blanket and eating lunch under the trees and playing games in the bar there. At night they head to a night club where they dance the night away.
They're not the only ones taking a well deserved rest. Thomas and Betty pack up the kids and go camping, something Thomas has always wanted to try. They go to Granite Falls, and find a space for their tents by the lake. For the next few days the spend their days outside. The kids swim in the smaller of the lakes, where the water is warm and the currents not as strong. Thomas fish, Susan and Carl goes exploring, and Steven mostly just plays with the toys his parents have brought.
It turns out, however, that eating fish you catch yourself is not always a good idea. The next day all kids, one after the other, feels nauseas and suffer stomach pains. Luckily, Thomas brought medicine and the family can continue their vacation. With a little more care about what they eat.
A much more dramatic event catches Josephine's attention as she turns to the newspaper one morning.
All over the country, newspapers report the same news, and TV news are quick to follow the dramatic escape. Over the next few days more and more details of the escape leak. How they created paper heads to look asleep, how they dug out through the walls with spoons, how they used life jackets to create a vessel to escape with. Did they have outside help? Did they survive? Authorities say no, that no one can survive those waters, but no bodies are found and people do love to speculate.
Barbara and her friends are no exception, and the escape is their number one topic of discussion for a while. Josephine, however, is up in arms. "You have to come home!" she tells her daughter. "There are criminals on the loose!"
"If they survived, they're not stupid enough to stay here," Barbara laughs, not bothered by her mother's worry. "If it's them you're worried about, this is probably the safest city in the world right now."
"But you're alone, in a big city, who knows what people like that might try."
"But I'm not alone, as you and dad so often point out. We'll be fine, I promise."
But for all of Barbara's bravado, there are worries in her life. Things are changing in ways that Barbara is not entirely sure she likes. Ginsburg and his boyfriend has moved to San Myshuno, while others are lost to alcohol and drugs. Some are more politically involved than ever, while others are more indifferent. The scene is changing, shifting, and Barbara isn't sure of how that change will fall. She loves the new imagery of Warhol, but has no wish to move to San Myshuno to be apart of the group that is starting to grow around his studio. Gordon is considering it, however, talking about an expanded "freedom" there. Barbara is hoping he'll stay. It's been the three of them forever, and now Barbara is no longer sure it will be. For now though she holds on, and will enjoy things as long as she can.
Comments
Post a Comment