It can take a long time to get something really big to move, like a freight train with 100 cars or a rocket with a satellite. In this case, getting into the stratosphere has been a decade in the planning and simmering stage, followed by the designing and building stage, and now, the launching and moving stage of science fiction.

As a life long nerd and bookworm, it’s a rather natural place for me to land, here, where a three dimensional chess board collects dust in a corner, a periodic table of elements is posted on the wall, and a photograph of an alien carrying off my child to Area 51 is tacked on the cork board. I live in Las Vegas, so it wouldn’t be a long journey; neither is it very far from The Stratosphere. And this is where the epiphany occurred, that primordial need to tell the story, to educate and engage at the same time with a message of hope for what our future holds if humanity will trust in itself.

Expect photographs, breakthroughs, stories about science and space, biology and technology, a touch of history and a spark for your imagination. I’ll try to bring a little comedy along as well, so we aren’t bogged down in serious details but can soar and exercise your imagination while you nourish your soul.

I must warn you to be aware of animal stories that could appear at any time mixed among the nebulae, robots, aliens, and black holes. I hold a state license as a veterinary technician and although I am not working in a clinic, hospital, school or shelter, I’ve done all of those, from parrots to pocket pets, and live with a few dozen critters that keep me occupied and entertained, which I will pass on to you under the category of “biology”, a legitimate science, but more fact than fiction in these cases!

And it’s 3, 2, 1,  liftoff!