Transportation: December 2004 Archives
This sculpture was hanging in the skylights of the A terminal at Intercontinental. The setting sun made the colors stand out.
It's New Years Eve and I'm heading to Atlanta for a couple nights. Back to Charlotte on Sunday, and back to Houston on Monday. My holidays have passed in a blink.
I got to the airport well in advance of my flight last week, expecting crowds and long lines. Instead, because I was not flying Continental (which has its biggest hub in Houston), I left from the A terminal which was practically deserted. I went straight to the ticket counter and checked in and found myself with almost two hours to kill before my flight. My backpack and I were the only occupants of a row of at least 20 chairs.
In July 1961, Liberty Bell 7 was the second Mercury spacecraft into space, piloted by Gus Grissom. It was a suborbital flight that splashed down a few hundred miles east of Florida.
As Grissom waited for the recovery ship to pick him up, the explosive bolts on the hatch and the capsule began to flood. Grissom swam out and was rescued. The helicopter tried to lift the craft, but it had already taken on too much water and had to be cut loose. It sank 15,000 feet to the bottom of the Atlantic.
In July 1999, exactly 38 years later, Liberty Bell 7 was .
The spacecraft is currently on display at Space Center Houston, behind glass and in a dim room (for dramatic effect, I suppose). After 38 years at the bottom of the ocean, you can still clearly read the painted words on the outside, "Liberty Bell 7" and "United States."
A final shot from the Boat Parade, and another close-up of my favorite boat with the 3D Christmas tree lights.
I ended up with a few blurred shots of the boats passing by, but this one ended up looking cool, I thought.
My favorite boat was the one pictured yesterday, with a Christmas tree hung in 3D on the mast. They were Phil and Renee's neighbors, and accomplished the effect with a lot of PVC pipe. Here's a closeup.
Last night I watched the Clear Lake Holiday Boat Parade for the first time, eager to both see the decorations and attempt to get a few good pictures. I wasn't disappointed by the parade, and hope you won't be disappointed by the photos!
We watched from the marina where Phil and Renee live (on their beautiful 42-foot sailboat). The waterway narrows as it goes past their docks, so we got a great view of the boats both coming and going.
