This was not--we repeat, NOT--the "Mr. Irrelevant News Story of the Day": "Toilet Is Fixed on Space Station"Seems a toilet pump in a laboratory broke, and it fell to Colonel Gennady A. Padalka and flight engineer Frank De Winne to fix it. Who knew that "flight engineer" was a euphemism for plumber? And do you suppose that you need a certain rank in the Russian military before you're allowed near a cosmic commode? "I'd like to help, Sir, but I'm just a lieutenant. I lack the proper clearances."
Amid all the reminiscences and celebrations of the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, it seems both ironic and appropriate that the next day's news highlights the mundanity of spaceflight. We've come far enough in our conquest of the heavens that shuttle launches and spacewalks are routine, and the words "space station" are no longer confined to science fiction. Yet we still remain prisoners of our earthbound needs.
We can't help but feel a certain disappointment that we haven't gotten farther.
(Image from The New York Times)
Drat you! I wanted to write about the space station bog.
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