Speaking of Shuttle launches….
Today was the last Shuttle launch and it reminded me of another Shuttle launch, that I shared with my College Gal Pals from Cal State Fullerton.
Marci, Tammy & Lezlie waiting for the Shuttle Launch in Downtown Tampa!
Tammy, Lezlie and Marci came to Florida one year, to visit with us briefly, and I think because Marci had some business to handle at Epcot Center. They all ended up at my house in Tampa, and one day, they wanted to drive all the way to Cape Canaveral (which is on the other coast), to watch a Shuttle launch.
Being the great hostess that I am, I told them that it would be stupid, to drive all the way across the State, when we could watch the Shuttle launch, from any tall building in Tampa! No matter what they said, I put my foot down, and told them they would just end up being disappointed, if the Shuttle didn’t launch for some reason, and we would have driven all those hours and miles, and dealt with all the crowds for nothing. I told them I would take a photo of them, with the Shuttle in the background, on top of the building in Tampa, and it would be just a great day, all around!
Lezlie showing “how” the Shuttle launched and Marci “pointing” to it!
I have no idea why they listened to me, because Tammy and Lezlie usually overruled anything I wanted to do.
So, I found the “tallest” building in Tampa, and we sat there and waited for the Shuttle to take off…we (I) forgot to take into account that it was an overcast day, and because of that, we couldn’t see all the way across the State!
Marci is one of the funniest people I know. You only have to meet her once, to remember her crazy laugh! She will start out asking a question, in a normal voice, and by the end of the sentence, she has cracked up in this really loud cackle! So, when the radio report tells us that the Shuttle had already taken off, and we missed it, Marci turned to me and asked seriously: “M – how were you going to get a photo of us, with the Shuttle in the background, if we can’t see the Shuttle?!” She is then laughing so hard, and we are all laughing hard and we are trying to figure out how to “document” this momentous day.
My brilliant idea was that they could just pose “indicating” that they were watching the Shuttle and that would be ok! The photo would then give the illusion that they had seen the Shuttle launch. Hence the photo above!
Marci “visibly” upset over missing the shuttle launch
Marci then decides to “one-up” the emotion and pretends to start crying! I don’t remember if she was supposed to be crying because she saw the Shuttle or because she missed seeing the Shuttle launch?! In any case, it is a hilarious photo!
Who were we kidding anyway? Our main goal that day was drinks on the Beach, not a Shuttle launch, so we set off for our true destination which was the Tiki Bar at the Adams Mark Hotel, on Clearwater Beach.
Marci might have missed out on a Shuttle launch but she got a Sunset by the Beach instead! Priceless!
