VASA

Pops went to Michael's this morning and bought a rocket.

We have these athletic fields in the middle of the complex, and since he's got that sixth sense when it comes to rocketry, he just knew they'd be perfect for rocket launching.

I helped Dad glue said rocket together in between making hamburgers. (This required a lot of hand washing with all the burger gooblies and whatnot, and we all know how I feel about washing my hands.)

We had a slight problem with the recovery streamer--the recipe (wait, do rockets have a recipe) called for masking tape and we don't have any. So Pops decided to use the model cement to glue the streamer to the cord and to itself. It got real exciting for a few minutes; Pops couldn't get the streamer to lay flat, then it started getting hot (I guess the glue was melting it?), then it started sticking to everything but itself.

We finally got the streamer attached to the cord, but only after we'd walked away from it from about 5 minutes and let it dry by itself.

The rocket was finally constructed, we'd eaten dinner and were getting ready to go to launch, when Pops realized something.

"We forgot a wire. Do you guys have a wire?" He asked.

"Pops, we only have five washclothes. Do you think we'd have a spare wire lying around somewhere? Bare essentials here, Pops, bare essentials."

We determined we'd have to go to the Home Despot to purchase a wire and a 9V battery. The 9V battery, of course, was to be the "thrust"to launch the rocket. (We finally just finished Chicken Run.)

Wire and battery purchased (and after having sampled the wire cutters in the store to expose the wire) the boys came back out to the car where Mom and I were waiting. We had the battery ("Lick it, Jenna, and see if it works," said Joey. I declined.) the rocket, the coat hanger/rocket launcher and, most importantly, our VASA sign.

During dinner we had decided that we were probably the Village Aeronautic Space Administration since we were launching a rocket. Joey and quickly made us up a logo (for the purpose, mainly, of amusing Andrew) and we felt very official.

This also served as something that made us look official so if the cops tried to stop us from rocket launching we could tell them we were doing some kind of top secret government testing.

Here is Dad and Joey pre-launch. See how proud they look?

It was getting very dark (I think it was about 7:30 p.m. when we first got to the field), so the VASA team (um, Pops and Joey) set to work immediately setting our launch rod (dad's former coathanger) so the rocket wouldn't land on the clubhouse or any passersby, launch wire (the lamp cord they bought at Home Despot), Rocket (an Estes Gnome) and 9V battery set up.

We didn't have something to keep the rocket off the wet ground (it had poured rain all after noon), so they set the rocket on the plastic container the batteries had come in.

Mom and I were told to stand back and begin the countdown.

We did.

At the command from Pops, who was standing with the 9V battery in one hand and the lamp cord (attached to the rocket) in the other, Mom and I began to count.

Joey stood at the ready to catch the rocket that I was just sure was either going to go straight through the top of a passing car, or land on the roof of a nearby apartment.

But, as Pops says, we were at least guaranteed one launch.

"3-2-1-BLASTOFF!!" Mom and I yelled, femininely.

The lamp cord and 9V battery made connection and.....WOOSH--the Gnome took off into the sky. (i was kind of amazed, actually.)

As it WAS getting dark, we had a hard time tracking the rocket. Pops began saying the traditional, "There it is--ohhhh, ohhhh, I lost it!" and Mom and I pretty much had to admit that we never really saw it in the first place. (Well, aside from the original trail of smoke when it was blasting off....)

Joey began hopping from one foot to the other crowing, "I see it, I see it!" He took off running, dodging puddles as he went.

Mom, Pops and I discussed how none of us could still see the rocket.

Amazingly, the rocket didn't go very far at all. And the haphazardly glued on streamer stayed attached, too.

"Yessssss!" Pops said. "More launches tomorrow!"

His idea for the morning is to try to launch the little guy off two AA batteries. Last night he was fairly convinced that this would work. This morning he's not so sure. He keeps saying stuff like, "I don't think those two AA batteries are going to work" and pacing around in front of the sliding glass doors. (Maybe he had a dream about it not working or something?)

I'll be sure and keep you posted if the VASA team punctures the top of any moving or stationary cars, maroons the spacecraft on the top of an apartment building, or otherwise causes a public disturbance.

I have a feeling we will.