TGI Friday!

As I mentioned on Facebook, I spent several hours yesterday working at Mission Outreach's Chicago facility. Thanks to funding from various Rotary clubs, the Rotary 6450 Hospital Equipment Logistics (HELP) Committee is sending over 7,000 pounds of medical equipment and supplies to Chitokoloki Mission Hospital in western Zambia. Yesterday's task was handloading all 7,000 pounds into the shipping container. Trust me - we cubed that container out, and aren't sending any pallets or excess packing material. It was good-old-fashioned manual labor, fortunately in relatively cool weather.

A couple of other items caught my eye. First, in Somalia, the pirates are having a mixed day. They bagged one ship and the crew of a second retook their vessel after several weeks of captivity. My (fictional) pirates are smarter - they take the crew off of the ship.

Second, via jaylake, I learn of another attempt to test lightsails in space. For the non-geek, this is using the power of sunlight to move your ship. It's low thrust, but sunlight, like wind, is free.

Lastly, I'm still looking seriously at going to NASFIC in Raleigh, NC. I was planning to drive, but Southwest has some darn cheap flights. For one person, I'm not sure that it wouldn't be the same total cash to fly, especially if one doesn't need a rental car.

I have a Rotary event tomorrow at zero-seven-hundred (7 AM for the civilians), so tonight will be an early evening. Enjoy your weekend!