We got up at eight a.m. to go to see the Statue of Liberty today. The trains were crazy on the way down, so we didn’t wind up arriving until nearly 10:30.

I’d been there before, back in college when they still let you climb up to the crown. We opted not to do the monument pass and just walked around on the island. It’s hard to get a sense of scale until you get there. I mean, sure, you know it’s a big statue, but standing at the base is a whole different thing. You know the pedestal she stands on? It’s equivalent to a ten-story building.

And the star? I always thought that was part of the base, but it’s not. It’s a fort that was built for the War of 1812. I had no idea.

The weather was gooooorgeous today and the island was so pretty that I almost think it might be worth the twelve dollar ferry ride on it’s own. If there just weren’t so many darned tourists.

Not that he reads my website, but my beloved is 43 today.

No, really. I mean it this time.

I’m extremely pleased to get in because some part of my brain was sure that the April Fool’s Prank was totally going to jinx me out of going. I’m relieved my superstitions didn’t play out. And super excited to be going to space camp. I mean, big telescopes! Real astronomers!

When I was in… (Mom? What grade was I in when I did Dr. Danby’s astronomy class?) Anyway, one summer my mom got me into an astronomy camp taught at the local college. I was definitely one of the younger students, but it wasn’t a college level course. I remember that she would drive me out to Meredith College so that we could stand in a field and look at the stars and planets through the telescopes. I loved it, and not just because I got to stay up past my bedtime.

My dad helped me make a planetarium out of a refrigerator box for my science fair project. We kept it for ages after that and it was one of my favorite things.

So getting to got to a NASA-funded workshop is really a childhood dream come true. I can’t wait.