Summer 2005 - Alabama

We always get lost in Alabama. This time was no exception. We took a wrong turn somewhere on the way to the Space and Rocket Center and ended up driving through a neighborhood with some nice Spanish style homes. Ah well, at least we weren’t being chased by a hurricane this time.

Some impressions of our most recent vacation:

*NASA and the military are more closely tied together than I realized. Many of the first astronauts were test pilots and the Space and Rocket Center still offers IMAX movies detailing two weeks in the life of those who fly fighter jets.

*The people in the IMAX movie about the International Space Station wore shorts. It made me wonder how the girls shaved their legs in space.

*I also wondered how the first men on the moon figured out who was going to go out walking and who was going to stay with the ship. I feel sorry for the guy who stayed.

*We’re not very brave. We opted –not- to climb the rock wall that simulates the surface of Mars. We decided that we didn’t want to go to Mars either, even if it is the planet most capable of sustaining life.

*The Cheesecake Factory has chocolate mousse cheesecake that is to die for. The Macaroni Grill has good Caesar salad and pork chops too.

*If Kenny has anything to say about it, our children will never know any store but Wal*Mart. We stumbled onto a really ritzy shopping center in Birmingham with prices that left us both open mouthed. I think he’d build a canopy bed himself before he bought one from some of those places.

*I now have a squishy pillow. It is pink and good for hugging.

*Bose Wave Radio is the coolest thing ever. Well, that and TVs that hang on the wall.

*We learned that gorillas are actually prone to illness and infection because their lungs and hearts are weak. The gorilla at the Birmingham zoo has had cardiac surgery. There were pictures and newspaper articles detailing the procedure. It was very sad.

*We didn’t get to see the white tiger with blue eyes. He was off taking a nap somewhere. We did get to see many other animals. Most of them were napping as well. It must have been siesta time at the zoo.

*Did you know that some parrots can live 60 to 80 years? Can you imagine having a pet that might live longer than you do?

*It must have been children’s day at the zoo. There were preschoolers everywhere. What impressed me was how many of them were obviously with grandparents. It’s neat to see that kind of interaction.

*It’s nice to get home to PVR. Kenny has a hard time sitting through commercials in hotels. Even if the show is a good one, like –Monk-.

*-War of the Worlds- was good, but I think someone needs to rescue Dakota Fanning. Poor girl has played a victim/freak/alien long enough. Someone needs to give her a comedy. Or a childhood.

All in all, it was a good vacation. It just wasn’t long enough. Maybe next year we’ll go away for a whole week!

Pictures: Space and Rocket Center | Birmingham Zoo