The First Open Source 3D printed Gun

Pretty interesting.

It survived six shots, and with improved materials , I'm sure it will get better.

Full story located here on Extreme Tech. 

The Weapons Shops of Isher comes to mind......

Rather than  "The right to buy weapons is the right to be free", we'll have "The right to produce weapons is the right to be free".
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Stick Family Decal on Window

I forget who posted the stick family on a rear window being chased by a hockey mask wearing, chainsaw wielding stick person, but when I received this in an email, I thought I'd share it.

 

And here's the original one, courtesy of my friend The Wandering Minstrel.

Thanks, Bob!

Enjoy!

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Headed Home......

Price of satellite: $60,000,000

Price of Launch Vehicle: $20,000,000

Cost to operate two ships at sea: $1,000,000/day

Price of launch: $95,000,000

Empty hangar on Launch Platform and scorched deck from liftoff: PRICELESS

Should be home on the 11th, and I'll be taking a few days off to clean all the guns, and then hit the pistol range and rifle range with my son. We'll definitely go to Angeles Shooting Range *before* the Christmas break, as the place is just NUTSO crowded between Christmas and New Year's.

They "deferred" our Thanksgiving holiday, and we get two "bonus days" for going on the launch.

I'll be "working" on the Saturday Sunday before we get back so I can "flex" my schedule to take those two days off during the week, and with taking a couple of more days out of my vacation account, I'll be off until the Christmas break, so I won't have to be back until AFTER the New Year.

And I've already started making up my "List Of Things I'll Miss About Working Here" that I'll post about after I retire.

Sucessful Spaceraft Separation, and Ground Station Acquisition

And our job as a "You Buy 'Em, We Fly 'Em!" spacecraft trucking company is over for now.

next launch is set for the middle of January. The spacecraft and Payload Accommodation are already in Home Port, waiting for our return.

Since I have five days coming to me, I'll take the rest of next week off after we get back on Tuesday, and use the other two "owed" days the following week.

If I get real ornery, I'll pop for a couple of days of vacation, and won't have to be back until after the 1st of the year.

At this point, I'm "One And I'm Done"!

Since we have no launches sold for 2013 other than the January one, I think I'll just let my career here peter out, and retire/go back to working for myself, like I was doing before they called me back.......

I'm pooped....been running for 12 hours straight. Think I'll take a shower, finish reading "Unintended Consequences", and hit the hay early.

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L-3 Hours, and Counting

They just brought the last of the crew from the Launch Platform over, and they're chilling down the fuel.

Fuel and LOX loading will begin in 30 minutes.

L-5 Hours, 30 minutes, And Counting

Looks like it will be a nice day for a launch.

Today's payload is EutelSat 70B, a 5000 kg communications satellite that will serve Europe, Africa, and Central/South East Asia.

I've been up since 0230 to support the weather balloon releases, and trying to cat nap between releasing balloons, setting up antennas, and putting out other little "fires" that pop up.

More info here at this link, including a link to my employer's website where the launch will be carried live.

Back to work.......

We Have Arrived

At the launch site, that is.

I woke up this morning to the familiar "Vertical Rumble" of the ship being held in place with the Dynamic Positioning System. Our stern is into the wind and waves right now, which means every so often a big roller will come along, and pick up the stern, causing us to slap back down with a big WHAM! after it passes.

The two ships will be moving around for the next couple of days as we transfer people and gear back and forth using the link bridge and the helicopter, and then settle down into the final launch position about 24~36 hours prior to launch, depending on a lot of things I'm not privy to.

Hopefully we'll get this bird off the pad on time, and then head back home on December 4th.

So probably light posting until then.

Peter Gabriel "In Your Eyes"

From the "Secret World Live" concert.

This concert always blows me away.....a masterpiece in staging, lighting, and performing.








love I get so lost, sometimes
days pass and this emptiness fills my heart
when I want to run away
I drive off in my car
but whichever way I go
I come back to the place you are

all my instincts, they return
and the grand facade, so soon will burn
without a noise, without my pride
I reach out from the inside

in your eyes
the light the heat
in your eyes
I am complete
in your eyes
I see the doorway to a thousand churches
in your eyes
the resolution of all the fruitless searches
in your eyes
I see the light and the heat
in your eyes
oh, I want to be that complete
I want to touch the light
the heat I see in your eyes

love, I don't like to see so much pain
so much wasted and this moment keeps slipping away
I get so tired of working so hard for our survival
I look to the time with you to keep me awake and alive

and all my instincts, they return
and the grand facade, so soon will burn
without a noise, without my pride
I reach out from the inside

in your eyes
the light the heat
in your eyes
I am complete
in your eyes
I see the doorway to a thousand churches
in your eyes
the resolution of all the fruitless searches
in your eyes
I see the light and the heat
in your eyes
oh, I want to be that complete
I want to touch the light,
the heat I see in your eyes
in your eyes in your eyes
in your eyes in your eyes
in your eyes in your eyes

ARRRRGH!!!! NO MILK!!!!

They had some kind of failure in one of the refrigerated conatiners that they store some of the food in, and ALL the milk was determined to be unfit for human consumption.

SO.....all we have are boxes of "Shelf Stable" milk, and ONLY for breakfast.

I think I'm gonna cry.......

Here Be Dolphins

The photo guys were out zooming around today taking 'beauty shots' of the two ships in formation, and they noticed a group (pod?) of dolphins.

They were swimming between the two ships, and heading the same way we are.

They took dozens of pix, but I thought this one looked the most interesting.

Enjoy!

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Light Posting Due To Busyness

Well.....at least they served us a very nice Thanksgiving dinner.

The turkey was moist, the potatoes were smooth, the gravy was great, and the stuffing was excellent.

I'm told one of the Admin Assistants back in Home Port sent the Chief Catering Officer onboard several recipes, along with strict orders to NOT deviate from them!

While most of the time the food is pretty good here, there are times when the Norwegian cooking staff will make some "modifications" to standard American food with some pretty bizarre results.

A raw egg on a hamburger?

Pickles on Pizza???

Corn on Pizza????

WTF??

And our customer has been playing games with the scheduling of their test events that my group supports.

They won't begin their RF testing until MIDNIGHT the day before launch, finishing up at 0200!

And we have to be back on-console at 0600 to start the countdown for a launch at 1245.

They don't seem to realize or understand that if they slip even an hour, or God forbid TWO hours, we'll most likely have to scrub the launch for that day, as we have pretty strict requirements for crew rest.

Given their track record (the day we worked 18 hours), I'm not holding out much hope for this launch to go off on time.

Hope you're all having a great weekend. I had to work today, but Sunday will be a day of rest and contemplation.