Playing astronaut

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Boomerang
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Playing astronaut

Post by Boomerang »

Well i'm sure i'm not the only one who use to play astronaut when i was a kid so i figured we could compare notes on what we use to do to play astronaut as a kid. Well my first space capsule was my grandmothers hall closet. That would develop into other stuff though. At one point i had a white space suit with helmet and NASA walkie talkies one of which was a back pack style that looked god with the suit. Later my grandmother got a cardboard capsule from a mail order catalog. It was roughly the shape of an apollo capsule but looking back was closer in size to mercury. On the inside it had pictures of windows looking into space as well control panels. I remember actually sleeping in their as a kid. My other grandmothers house had a perfect place to play like it was a shuttle cockpit. The back of her living room had several windows going around the rear part sort of like the shuttle. She had a coffee table back their and we had some small kids chairs. My brother and i use to lay the chairs on their backs for launch then sit up once we were inspace and the coffee table was the control panel. Crude i know but it was a start atleast. Later i got my first space camp flight suit and even use to sleep in it. I had thew top bunk of bunk beds and when my brother got his own room and took the bottom bunk with him id block off the space under the top bunk with a sheet and turn it into a space craft. Ok sure it seems silly now but thats how i got my start playing astronaut. How about everyone else?
Jason original callsign Loverboy
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Post by Richasi »

Actually, a lot of my childhood revolved around Space Camp and the spacecamp ideals. I was also a big Star Trek TOS fan (still am) and a lot of the astronaut things i did also coincided with Star Trek.

But, of pure astronaut play... I created this visor and breather apparatus out of (get this) two yellow sunvisors (one of which was turned upside down) and some tubing and a shampoo bottle.

I took this over to my friends house who had some other gadgets and we turned the front half of a motorcycle (just the window and controls) into the shuttle... did a mock launch and landing on the moon (yeah, I know) and did an EVA and returned to earth. Was quite fun.

Other times I'd do mock launches with the ATARI 2600 "Space Shuttle" game. Was cool.
Space Camp • June 11-16, 1989 - Session 31 - Martin Marietta
Space Academy, Level 1 • June 16-21, 1991 - Session 24 - BDM
Adult Space Academy • September 26-28, 2003 - Session 52 - Discovery
Alumni Camp • June 14-17, 2007 - Session 38 - Challenger
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Post by Boomerang »

Glad im not the only one who did that kind of stuff as a kid.
Jason original callsign Loverboy
SC 1991
SA Level 1 1993
AC Intermediate 1996
ASA 1998
Corporate Space Camp 2005
AC Counselor Summer 07 callsign Boomerang
Adult Alumni Camp 2007
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Post by Richasi »

I did try and turn my room into the bridge to "Earth*Star Voyager" once... but it never worked out... LOL

Most of the time I'd put my imagination to good use on my space Legos and act out what I wanted there... I created such a storyline that it lives on to this day - of course, not with legos - but in story form... and it always amazes me how its endured...

Anyway, back to the subject...
Space Camp • June 11-16, 1989 - Session 31 - Martin Marietta
Space Academy, Level 1 • June 16-21, 1991 - Session 24 - BDM
Adult Space Academy • September 26-28, 2003 - Session 52 - Discovery
Alumni Camp • June 14-17, 2007 - Session 38 - Challenger
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Post by Boomerang »

Is it just me or do we really souind like we were geeks as little kids?
Jason original callsign Loverboy
SC 1991
SA Level 1 1993
AC Intermediate 1996
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AC Counselor Summer 07 callsign Boomerang
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Post by Richasi »

Yeah, geek... pretty much.
Space Camp • June 11-16, 1989 - Session 31 - Martin Marietta
Space Academy, Level 1 • June 16-21, 1991 - Session 24 - BDM
Adult Space Academy • September 26-28, 2003 - Session 52 - Discovery
Alumni Camp • June 14-17, 2007 - Session 38 - Challenger
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Post by Boomerang »

Well i'm glad i'm not the only one who thinks that. And where is everyone else you and i seem to be the only ones posting anymore.
Jason original callsign Loverboy
SC 1991
SA Level 1 1993
AC Intermediate 1996
ASA 1998
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AC Counselor Summer 07 callsign Boomerang
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Post by Richasi »

Yeah, it looks like we've taken over the board again.

Either people are afraid of us (as in afraid we're mentally unstable) or they have lives... either way it looks bad for us :lol:

I've been thinking if there was anything I could do to add to this topic but I guess not. I'm not sure what else there is to talk about.

I was a total geek and i'll be the first to admit it. I was a person who stayed to himself a lot, didn't have many friends, and really turned inward for any kind of play. This is probably why my imagination is as strong as it is...
Space Camp • June 11-16, 1989 - Session 31 - Martin Marietta
Space Academy, Level 1 • June 16-21, 1991 - Session 24 - BDM
Adult Space Academy • September 26-28, 2003 - Session 52 - Discovery
Alumni Camp • June 14-17, 2007 - Session 38 - Challenger
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Post by Boomerang »

Well as for the two of us being the only ones posting io think its a combination of the two.
As for the rest i was the same way i was always a loner as a kid and had a big imagination. Heck with a few topys of all kinds i could create a whole new world right on my bedroom floor. And i loved to do it all the time.
Jason original callsign Loverboy
SC 1991
SA Level 1 1993
AC Intermediate 1996
ASA 1998
Corporate Space Camp 2005
AC Counselor Summer 07 callsign Boomerang
Adult Alumni Camp 2007
Adult Alumni Camp 2008
Official Space Camp Ambassador
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Post by Richasi »

Yeah, thankfully I became a lot more outgoing once I got out of High School... otherwise... man. But you go through phases... I went through my "online" phase back in 1996 where I'd spend literally all day online. I'd get up at 8am and plug in and I'd be there until 1am the next morning... in a chat room, surfing, writing and hanging.

BUT, oh the worlds I could create with legos.... it's a shame I can't go back to that... the world was so much simpler back then. LOL
Space Camp • June 11-16, 1989 - Session 31 - Martin Marietta
Space Academy, Level 1 • June 16-21, 1991 - Session 24 - BDM
Adult Space Academy • September 26-28, 2003 - Session 52 - Discovery
Alumni Camp • June 14-17, 2007 - Session 38 - Challenger
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Post by Boomerang »

Well i went through the same online phase aroiund 1996. Funny thing is ive had the same screen name all these years. And its true i wish i could go back to those care free days sometimes but id hate to have to go through all that schooling again.
Jason original callsign Loverboy
SC 1991
SA Level 1 1993
AC Intermediate 1996
ASA 1998
Corporate Space Camp 2005
AC Counselor Summer 07 callsign Boomerang
Adult Alumni Camp 2007
Adult Alumni Camp 2008
Official Space Camp Ambassador
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Post by monkeynautt »

I never played astronaut as a kid. Where I live it's hard to find anything to do with space. There's only a couple of stores that sell good space stuff.
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Post by Boomerang »

Well that sucks. I'm lucky i have 1 NASA center and 2 space museums withing 15 minutes drive and 2 more NASA centers within a few hours drive from here so i guess i grew up with Space.
Jason original callsign Loverboy
SC 1991
SA Level 1 1993
AC Intermediate 1996
ASA 1998
Corporate Space Camp 2005
AC Counselor Summer 07 callsign Boomerang
Adult Alumni Camp 2007
Adult Alumni Camp 2008
Official Space Camp Ambassador
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Post by Space Nerd »

Hate to ruin your geek moment lol but i too was a huge geek when i was litle (still am) But the point being lol i had a few little space like legos but most of all my mom would build me a little house out of a cardboard box and i would pretend that was my shuttle and i also did the lay the chair down thing! It was so much fun and i never dreamed someday i would get to pretend i was an astronaut with real sims, this is why i love space camp lol.
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Post by Boomerang »

Ok well atleast i know i wasnt the only one who did stuff like that. I was lucky to be going through my early childhood during the haydays of the shuttle prior to challenger. I was 2 years old when columbia flew in 81 but i grew up when people actually still watched shuttle launches and the shuttle had so much promise and i think that had alot of influence on me.
Jason original callsign Loverboy
SC 1991
SA Level 1 1993
AC Intermediate 1996
ASA 1998
Corporate Space Camp 2005
AC Counselor Summer 07 callsign Boomerang
Adult Alumni Camp 2007
Adult Alumni Camp 2008
Official Space Camp Ambassador
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