One small step

It’s not so much the events themselves that fascinate me. It’s the time gap between two historical events.

December 17, 1903, Orville Wright flew the Wright Flyer at Kill Devil Hills near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. He went 120 feet.  They would do several more flights that day –  the one last going 852 ft. Sadly, after the last flight of the day, the winds flipped the Flyer over, badly damaging it. It would never fly again. The seed was firmly planted, though. Mechanically powered heavier-than-air flight would eventually become commercially viable.

A mere 66 years later, Neil Armstrong would set foot on the moon.

What a crazy time to live in that era! My grandparents were around to see both these events. Can you imagine being born in a house that didn’t have indoor plumbing and dying when cars zipping down a highway are commonplace? My mom’s parents were well educated and born in America. They embraced the changes and were curious as to where new technology and engineering feats would take the country. My dad’s folks were immigrants and feared it. My grandfather did not believe the moon landing was real. He would say in his native Slavic tongue – it’s just pictures… it’s just pictures.

Yeah, I know. Some people still think it didn’t happen. I’m not here to entertain conspiracy theories 😉

I was barely four when the lunar lander set down on the moon. I remember it, though! I’ve seen the exponential growth of technology since, and it is equal parts fascinating and terrifying, especially with AI being more real every day.

Maybe it’s not as far along after all. I can’t get it to faithfully duplicate an image of the Wright Flyer. Everyone knows it’s a canard style pusher prop with skids. 😉