Trip to see Atlantis return to Edwards

A few weeks ago, we took a trip up to the Northern edge of Edwards AFB to see the space shuttle return from its historic mission to repair the Hubble space telescope for the second time. After three days in a row with the weather in Florida not being favorable to welcome back Atlantis, we were lucky enough to be here to see the astronauts come home. It was incredible to see and exciting to hear the sonic booms when the shuttle re-entered. Afterward, we had breakfast at the Mojave Airport in a little restaurant called The Voyager. The Mojave Airport (Space Port) is the home of both Voyager and SpaceShip One. Voyager being the first airplane to fly around the world on a single tank of gas. SpaceShip One being the winner of the X prize for going into space twice in the same week. It was definitely an aviation bonanza for the boys that day.

The maroon arrows mark where Atlantis is located in the picture I took above.

Everett and kids playing with a soccer ball in the Mojave desert while waiting for Atlantis.

Mojave Air and Space Port where we ate breakfast at The Voyager.

I couldn't help but take this picture of a cool sign on the side of the road. We estimate that it is from the 60s. See the pretty mountains in the background?

See ya next time...

May Recipe

I have decided to post a recipe each month either developed by Fred or myself. Hope you enjoy!

I came up with this recipe as an alternative to the tuna fish sandwich. It is robust with flavors and instead of being mixed together like a salad, they are layered so each ingredient is showcased on its own. They are more fun to eat than a sandwich and very filling.

Tuna Tostadas

2 Corn tostadas
1 can tuna in olive oil (NOT water!!!) Genova or even Sunkist will have it in olive oil.
Diced Tomato - use as much or as little as you desire
2 or 3 Diced Green Olives per tostada
Diced white or yellow onion
Chiffenade some spinach
Freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of kosher salt rolled between your fingers to break it up a bit

Notes: Don't drain the tuna until it is bone dry, leave some of the olive oil to add flavor and keep the moisture. There is no mayo in this recipe so keep some of the olive oil. Look at the calorie count on the tuna can. Sunkist tuna in plain olive oil (not flavored) is 110 calories per serving. Use the whole can, which is two servings or 220 calories.

The tostadas I use are 50 calories per tostada. There are different sizes out there so take a look at the label if you are watching calories.

I split the can of tuna between the two tostadas and use the tuna as the first layer. Then I add the rest of the ingredients one layer at a time...that's it! I have also squeezed fresh lime onto these tostadas, yum.

The next time I make these, I will take a picture to add to this post.

Enjoy!

Gem Hill

This morning, Fred hiked 1000 feet to the top of Gem Hill, which sits at 3100 feet above sea level. This is also the mountain we see through the back windows of the house and the silhouette of this mountain at twilight is so beautiful. Along the way, Fred saw lizards, an abandoned mine shaft, and the beautiful views of Rosamond. He also saw jackrabbits, but they were too fast for the camera.

On the way to Gem Hill

View from atop Gem Hill facing North

Hiya lizard friend...

Besides the heat of the Sun, there is no doubt that we live in the desert from the pictures Fred took on his hike. Oh, by the way, 100 degrees is the projected high for today. Yesterday, we surpassed the projected high by 4 degrees, leaving us shy of 100 by only one degree.

See you next time...and a bit tanner.