Rocketing to the redbud planet

1st redbud on the Richardson trail

Coming soon to a galaxy near you--SPRING!

That's a good thing.

Rocketing through space with your spouse for 501 days to circle Mars is ... an insane thing. Or, as NASA spokesman David Steitz said, "It's a testament to the audacity of America's commercial aerospace industry," and possibly  an indicator of the perverse desire to be on the worst reality t.v. show ever.

Not sure what possessed me to type "1822 H" into Google. Maybe a brief flashback to the bright red shag carpet in our first married apartment circa 1977.  It doesn't take too many square feet of red shag littered with popcorn to test even a honeymooner's annoyance barometer! Just one bedroom with waterbed, and a tiny living room/kitchen with macrame plant hangers... 

Dang, give those married astronauts some macrame plant hangers so they can moisten seedlings with their recycled urine. We began our married life as the resident managers of the Sterling Apartments, a three story eight-plex at 1822 H Street in Lincoln, Nebraska. And you can buy the Sterling Apartments today for $210,000. 

The real estate description of a "nearly maintenance-free exterior" does not mention the hours spent by the resident manager wife of the resident manager law student pushing the lawn mower through the weeds. Even real-estate poetry cannot describe the many happy predawn hours with the balky snow-blower trying to clear a patch out of the eight off-street parking stalls to the gravel alley. Try chopping a couple inches of ice off that shaded entry walk .

The two-bedroom one-bath apartments on the street side of the building were spacious and a good rental value. I could happily live in one of those today. It would be better than flying to Mars or being married.


© 2013 Nancy L. Ruder