I’m nearly finished with one of the best non-fiction books I’ve ever read. It’s David W. Brown’s current latest book, THE MISSION, or: How a Disciple of Carl Sagan, an Ex-Motocross Racer, a Texas Tea Party Congressman, the World’s Worst Typewriter Saleswoman, California Mountain People, and an Anonymous NASA Functionary Went to War with Mars, Survived an Insurgency at Saturn, Traded Blows with Washington, and Stole a Ride on an Alabama Moon Rocket to Send a Space Robot to Jupiter in Search of the Second Garden of Eden at the Bottom of an Alien Ocean Inside of an Ice World Called Europa (A True Story).
As my three long-time readers know, Mars has been my imaginary planetary boyfriend for most of my long, long, long life, but Mars is sort of the antagonist in this book, sucking the $$$blood from any Europa project proposed. And, as this book is about Europa projects, Mars comes off as twirling the ends of a handlebar mustache.
Bad Mars! No biscuit!
So much to love about this book! Brown gives the scientists, engineers, politicians, and … well, pretty much everybody involved the reality they deserve. Nobody is just some guy. He also tosses in information that’s not vital to the story but interesting, nevertheless. Never did I think that, in reading a book about the struggle to explore Europa, I learn what “the Katy” was in the blues song, “She Caught the Katy (Left Me A Mule To Ride”. It’s the train that runs between Kansas, Tennessee, and Memphis!
And his style!
The negotiations were quick (“You’ll write it for free.” / “OK.”).
David W. Brown, THE MISSION
It just races along, all this politicking and heartache, as it should, but as it probably wouldn’t under the pen of another writer.
I probably should have done my nails in a planetary theme this week, but I didn’t. Because I don’t have to match my nails to anything, if I don’t wanna. Nobody ain’t the boss of me.
ANYWAY, I did fish. Or, as Sara says, feesh.
I used L.A. Colors Color Craze 424 for the base coat because it’s so sheer the bubbles showed through it. Maniology Bam! White for the stamping, because Bam! White is da bomb. I used NicoleDiary 157 plate for the fish, and I got the bubbles off NicoleDiary-179.
And remember:
A WRITING PROMPT FROM ME TO YOU: Write about bitter rivals, each of whom is good.
MA
RAAckerman@Cerebrations.biz
June 28, 2021 at 10:25amGlad to see you chose blue to house the pheesh!
Alicia Butcher Ehrhardt
June 28, 2021 at 4:01pmA popular attempt at this is the many stories that have tried to portray the battle between good and evil angels as somehow both sides having a good argument for their beliefs. I’m sure I’ve seen that trope regularly. It starts with something like, “How could God’s favorite angel be completely wrong? He’s just misunderstood.”
In the real world, I’d try a battle between a patient trying to make the best decision in her individual case vs. the whole medical profession pushing what the ‘guidelines’ recommend, regardless of potential harm to individuals. It’s a perennial – my cardiologist, for examples, pushed guidelines that harmed me. I found the latest research, questioned her, she went ballistic and threatened immediate massive heart attack. I switched cardiologists, and the new one (in the same practice!) mentioned that guidelines are usually 10-15 years behind the research because it takes that long for those in charge of guidelines to consider, evaluate, and then create new guidelines; we got along fine. The year was 2017.