I was supposed to write about
Arlington Cemetery in Part 3, but it's been a busy summer between trips out of town (Chicago, New York, Milford, CT), an intense work schedule, and preparing for grad school in a few weeks.
So instead, let me tell you about something that happened across America, and which I happened to enjoy if not in "totality" in near totality. The solar eclipse. It was as if the world had suddenly become children again, and our sense of wonder was restored for those precious hours watching the moon slowly cover the sun.
I was at my beloved haunt, the
Air & Space Museum, where the kind staff handed out free eclipse glasses (Nasa certified!) with no thought of letting anyone go without. Thank you, Smithsonian! So the sight of all these folks looking up in their glasses was a treat, reminiscent of the 60s, when the new space program also inspired a sense of wonder and skyward gazing.
I realize I can't recommend coming to DC to watch the eclipse, but hopefully there will be something wonderful for you on your visit. Go to the Smithsonian
Air & Space Museum and check out an airplane popular in the 50s, see clothing worn by TWA "stewardesses", read about thrust and drag, buy a spacesuit for your infant nephew, learn a thing or two about the ISS, and get your kid on.
I was supposed to write about Arlington Cemetery in Part 3, but it's been a busy summer between trips out of town (Chicago, New York, Milford, CT), an intense work schedule, and preparing for grad school in a few weeks.
So instead, let me tell you about something that happened across America, and which I happened to enjoy if not in "totality" in near totality. The solar eclipse. It was as if the world had suddenly become children again, and our sense of wonder was restored for those precious hours watching the moon slowly cover the sun.
I was at my beloved haunt, the Air & Space Museum, where the kind staff handed out free eclipse glasses (Nasa certified!) with no thought of letting anyone go without. Thank you, Smithsonian! So the sight of all these folks looking up in their glasses was a treat, reminiscent of the 60s, when the new space program also inspired a sense of wonder and skyward gazing.
I realize I can't recommend coming to DC to watch the eclipse, but hopefully there will be something wonderful for you on your visit. Go to the Smithsonian 
Air & Space Museum and check out an airplane popular in the 50s, see clothing worn by TWA "stewardesses", read about thrust and drag, buy a spacesuit for your infant nephew, learn a thing or two about the ISS, and get your kid on.
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