Greetings,
I am coming to you today from a Starbucks in Liberal, Kansas, this is the first time I have sat down with my laptop this week, and it is overdue.
I have been busier than usual over the past weeks, so writing has taken a back seat to work. Free time is in short supply between my full-time job and my side hustle as a jewelry tradesman.
For those who may not be familiar, I've been a jeweler for the better part of 18 years. I started as an apprentice in 2005, then got thrown into the thick of it at my parents' jewelry store that used to be in Colorado. More than a few years later, I still do jewelry work for fun. My day job isn't jewelry related, but I am in sales. I've been fortunate to work for Apple and now AT&T again with my position at Cricket.
I still love being a jeweler, so I do contract jewelry work out of my studio. You can check out my entire portfolio here if you're interested.
Apologies for any future momentary breaks or pauses with the posts and podcasts; writing for fun takes a back seat to my other commitments. I'd love to get some feedback or questions, so please leave a comment here or email me at john@thespaceshot.com.
I have some ideas for upcoming episodes and posts for the next podcast season. But I've burnt out on the space history encyclopedic-type posts. I did that the entire first year of my podcast, and retreading old ground isn't interesting. I have also been chipping away at a series of posts for the Cosmosphere to celebrate the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Skylab missions. Stay tuned for details on these posts.
Pop Culture Update-
I have made time for an hour a week to watch Star Trek, and Season 3 of Picard is fantastic. I grew up watching The Next Generation on TV during its original airing and reruns. Episode 5, appropriately titled "Imposters," is one of the best episodes of Star Trek I've ever seen. This episode is a psychological thriller with intrigue and action and marks the return of a beloved TNG character. My wife can attest to the fact that I kept saying, "Oh my God," "what," and "whaaaaaat?" while watching this episode.
If you haven't already, get a subscription to Paramount+ so you can watch Picard. It's 100% worth the price of admission!
The USS Titan warps onto the screen this season as well, and I love the retro “Neo Constitution” vibes. Until next time… I’ll catch you on the flip side.