Finally got my new plastic model of the Forbidden Planet C-57D Starcruiser. It'll be a while before I have time to build it, but pleasant memories of a great movie...

I have a sidewalk by the garage that's dark at night. Got some of those little lanterns at the hardware store with a tiny solar cell on top. Recharges at day, runs the light for a while after dark. I was just out there a few minutes ago. The lights use some kind of white LED, which casts a cool, bluish light like dim moonlight. I watched these lights, attached to no wires, with no filament in the bulb, glow by the sidewalk. If you had the right kind of battery, they might still be working after hundreds of years.

I suddenly remembered the Mushroom Planet books of my childhood, with Mr. Bass and his unearthly lanterns that cast cool, blue-green light from an unknown source.

I am fortunate that I have collected most of those old Mushroom Planet books--they go for hundreds of dollars now--and I have them to read to my kids.

A quick check on heavens-above.com...

The walls of my garage are filled with shelves, and the shelves are filled with books. Many of them old science fiction books. I thought about Ray Bradbury, then, and his story "The End of the Beginning" from his book, "R is for Rocket." It was about the first space station, written back when all space stations were spinning wheels.

"...he remembered the song again about the wheels and the faith and the grace of God being way up in the middle of the sky where that single star, among a million motionless stars, dared to move and keep on moving."

Late this month the Space Station will be back in my evening sky again, where I can go out and watch it move across the motionless stars. I am happy that Ray Bradbury is still around, and can watch it too.

Okay, sort of off-topic.