Johnson Space Center - Houston, TX

No visit to Space Center Houston would be complete without the NASA Tram Tour of the Johnson Space Center. The Space Center covers more than 1,600 acres and employs 14,000 people. The federal facility houses Mission Control where astronauts are trained and the Space Shuttle program is managed. We had an opportunity to see the real mission control, but it was largely empty on the weekend. Although in another room, there were people communicating with the International Space Station. The employees include contractors, civil servants, and doctors.

In another area, we saw the Saturn V Complex at Rocket Park. It was amazing. When you see the rockets and shuttles on television, it really doesn't do justice to how truly big the whole thing is. However, the majority of it is fuel. The actual shuttle where the astronauts are housed is a small cramped space.

I was so amazed by the sheer size of the fuel tanks, I had to know just how much fuel it took to get into space. Luckily, the Kennedy Space Center gave me the answer, "At liftoff, an orbiter and External Tank carry 835,958 gallons of the principle liquid propellants: hydrogen, oxygen, hydrazine, monomethylhydrazine, and nitrogen tetroxide. The total weight is 1,607,185 pounds." To put that in context, let's say your car holds 16 gallons of fuel at a time and you refuel once a week. You could drive around for almost a year with the amount of fuel it takes to launch a space shuttle. That means in an eight minute launch, a space shuttle could use as much fuel as you do in a year! (That is, if your car ran on hydrogen, oxygen, hydrazine, monomethylhydrazine, and nitrogen tetroxide.)

The Johnson Space Center is an absolutely inspiring example of human ingenuity and invention. The sheer magnitude of what has been invented to allow space travel along with massive manpower required to maintain it is staggering. It shows an incredible dedication to higher cause of science, knowledge and exploration. Currently, researchers on the International Space Station are conducting experiments and asking questions we could never do on Earth. Along the wall of the Saturn V Complex, there are signs about past missions and astronauts you can read as you walk along the shuttle. You get a sense of how far we have really come and all we have achieved. More than that, you have such hope and inspiration for how much farther we could go.

The Cinema of George Lucas Exhibit at Space Center Houston - Houston, TX

It doesn't take much to get my nerdy little heart going pitter patter. But the special exhibit "The Cinema of George Lucas" at Space Center Houston had it thumping in my chest. It included nearly fifty props and special artifacts from Lucas' iconic career along with interactive activities based on his most famous films.

Memorabilia included Bail Organa's airspeeder and General Grievous' starfighter from Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith, Mutt's motorcycle from Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull; the original screenplay from American Graffiti and the original Star Wars, and Howard the Duck's red electric guitar. But most importantly, it included the real R2D2 and C3PO!

I will say this now - I'm a Star Trek fan before I'm a Star Wars fan. Judge me as you will but I can easily spend an hour explaining why Captain Janeway of Star Trek: Voyager is the most underrated captain of the franchise. Still, I remember watching the first Star Wars film (you know, the best one) over and over again when I was a kid before I ever heard iconic voice of William Shatner. And who doesn't love Indiana Jones? Sure, James Bond would kick his ass in a bar fight but Indiana Jones is still a great action franchise. So while I'm not the biggest George Lucas fan (his interpretation of "punk" in Howard the Duck probably made Sid Viscious roll over in his grave), I still have a deep love for all things geek.

For those wanting more of a hands-on George Lucas experience, there is "Live the Adventure!" The line was far too long for Anna and I (we wanted to make sure we went on the Johnson Space Center tour) so we passed. But for those interested, you can become part of your favorite George Lucas movies. Be Luke Skywalker speeding through the Death Star Laser Maze Challenge. Be like Indiana Jones in the Temple of Doom Obstacle Course or the Indiana Jones Mayan Ropes Adventure.

The Beer Can House - Houston, TX

What would you do if you were tired of mowing the lawn? Re-landscape with concrete. What would you do if you were tired of painting your house? Decorate it with beer cans. At least that's what you would do if you were John Milkovisch.

In 1968, the retired upholsterer covered his lawn with concrete and redwood then decorated it with marbles, rocks and bits of metal. Next, he turned his attention to his house. For eighteen years, Milkovisch used around 50,000 discarded beer cans to cover his home's exterior. When asked what compelled him to do it, he said, "I guess I just thought it was a good idea. And it's easier than painting." Fiscally, it proved to be a smart move. It saved on the cost of paint and lowered the house's energy bills. Not to mention it was a great way to recycle all those empty beer cans he had lying around. I think Milkovisch was ahead of his time. Decades before today's green, eco-friendly culture, he found a great way cheaply save the planet while drinking beer at the same time. That's one hell of an inspiration for a conservationist kegger!

It's a very amusing and very impressive home. The sides are paneled with beer cans while curtains that hang from the roof are strings of circular beer can tops. Milkovisch wanted to make the house "sing" in the wind. There are also bits of Milkovisch's sense of humor everywhere. The outdoor planter - also covered in beer cans - has words like "Is," "Pie," and "Not" on it. They don't actually mean anything. Milkovisch just thought it would be funny to watch people stand around trying to decode some kind of message from the planter.

Inside, visitors can see how Milkovisch worked and learn about the life he shared with his wife Mary. (Fun Fact: When asked what she thought of his decision to cover their home in beer cans, she said, "I thought he was off his rocker but I'm used to it now.") You can see where he cut up cans and worked on his designs. There are also displays where you can read about Milkovisch's biography, the history of the house, and more amusing anecdotes of Milkovisch's clever sense of humor. (Fun Fact: At the beach, he would sometimes put an old faucet in the sand just to watch people come by and try to get water from the spout.)

While Milkovisch thought of his project as an amusing past time, it has become regarded by the Houston community as a city landmark and work of art. The Orange Show Center for Visionary Art acquired the Beer Can House after John Milkovisch and his wife, Mary, passed away. The Orange Show Center is now working on a massive restoration project to keep the house's original integrity.

Travel Distance: 27 miles
Total Trip Time: 1 hour
Soundtrack: Do I really need to say we were still listening to country radio?

National Museum of Funeral History - Houston, TX

One of the many reasons I love visiting my friend Anna is that she has always planned a visit to somewhere interesting and just plain weird. In Chicago, we tried to visit the International Museum of Surgical Science but that plan was derailed by the fact there is no parking in the city. Her plan for Texas, however, was brilliant and came to full fruition with our visit to the National Museum of Funeral History. Anna and I share a morbid sense of humor, so this was a treat for both of us.

The National Museum of Funeral History has little to do with death or any of the gory details. It is more about funeral business. The first exhibit is about carriage hearses. Interestingly, they don't mention much about the person who would have been carried in the carriage. It is about the vehicle itself - how it was constructed, the materials used and the time period that influenced the design. The same follows with coffins. Mostly, they about how they were constructed (there is a 1900's coffin factory display) and what influenced different designs. There is, of course, the occasional gruesome story. One coffin was constructed to fit three people - it was commissioned by a couple after their child had died. They planned for him to kill her and then himself and then be buried with their child. They never followed through with their horrifying murder/suicide pact and the coffin is now on display in the museum.

Not all the coffins are simple or gruesome. Some are extravagant like a coffin with real dollar bills and coins in it. In this case, I guess he can take it with him. There are also the whimsical coffins from the "A Life Well Lived: Fantasy Coffins- Kane Quaye" exhibit. Ghanaian sculptor Quaye created coffins to symbolize aspects of the deceased's life. It includes twelve coffins carved to look like a KLM Airliner, a Mercedes Benz, a Fish, a Fishing Canoe, a Leopard, a Chicken, a Bull, a Crab, a fish Eagle, a Lobster, a Shallot, and a Yamaha Outboard Motor.

Other exhibits are devoted to the funerals of the famous. In one area is an exhibit for Presidential funerals. It displays small keepsakes from the historical occasions. Most of these are items specifically for the occasions such as programs from the memorial service, mourning ribbons and newspaper article about the event. There are also personal items from attendees such as the boots worn by a member of the armed guard at the funeral. But like the coffins, there is also the occasional gruesome tidbit - like a piece of scalp taken from Abraham Lincoln's head after he'd been shot.

One of the largest exhibits is "Celebrating the Lives and Deaths of the Popes." The papal exhibit includes a full-scale replica of Pope John Paul II's crypt, an exact reproduction of the coffin used in the funerals of three previous Popes as well as replicas of other Papal vestments. As a result of my good Catholic education, I already knew most of these traditions. But I was thrilled to see something I've never seen before - a Popemobile! Oh I'd seen it on television and seen pictures of it in books, but never had I seen real live Popemobile. For those unmarred by a Catholic school education, the Popemobile is a white Range Rover with a plexiglass case on the back where the Pope stands and waves to people.

There are smaller exhibits describing ancient and current funeral rituals from other cultures, such as Mexico's Day of the Dead and Egypt's mummies. But I was quickly distracted by exhibits on embalming. After reading Mary Roach's "Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers," I got curious about embalming. (Really Weird Fact: The Father of Embalming, Dr. Thomas Holmes, went insane in his later years and lived with parts of cadavers he had embalmed - such as heads on tables in the living room.)

Embalming gained notoriety during the Civil War when 10,000 to 40,000 soldiers were embalmed so they could be transported home for burial. The process has developed and improved over time, often by accident. In nineteenth century Paris, a well-known man died and was embalmed before burial. Later the police suspected he might have been murdered and dug him to re-examine the body. They found arsenic in the body and charged the man's mistress with murder. The embalmer, Dr. Gannal, came forward and revealed arsenic was a component in his embalming fluid so the woman could not be found guilty on that evidence. As a result, Europe outlawed the use of arsenic in embalming fluid in the 1840's. The United States followed suit in the 1870's.

It is was a weird, morbid and educational museum. I left feeling oddly upbeat - like the museum's slogan says, "Any Day Above Ground is a Good One."

Total Travel Distance: 80 miles
Total Trip Time: 3 hours
Soundtrack: You guessed it - Country radio!

Large (But Not World's Largest) Armadillo - Houston, TX

With our nails freshly painted and our bellies full of cupcakes, Anna and I had some stocking up to do. We needed fresh provisions. As we were making our rounds to pick up the necessities, I saw some weird things, like a puddle of urine in aisle two of a store, a chipmunk in the yogurt display of Target, and a palm tree farm (explaining why there were palm trees everywhere even though they don't grow in Texas).

These things were weird, but this is Texas. And the truly weird things can not be seen in a grocery aisle. No, they are gigantic roadside attractions. Like a Large (But Not World's Largest) Armadillo in Houston, Texas.

Goode's Armadillo Palace in Houston isn't easy to miss. Especially with a giant, horned armadillo perched on a rock out front. Armadillo is Spanish for "little armored one" and this particular giant's shell is made from reflective metal so it literally glimmers and shines in the sunlight. The longhorns are an artistic addition and true to Texas heritage. The armadillo is the official small mammel of Texas while the large mammel is designated as the longhorn. Adding longhorns to the giant armadillo is a way to honor both of Texas' special creatures.

While Goode's armadillo is two-stories tall, it is not the largest. The actual World's Largest Armadillo, named Killer, can also be found in Texas. Killer, created by sculptor Marc Rankin of Strawn, was built in 2002 for a celebration at Six Flags over Texas. Constructed from scrap steel, Killer is 48 feet long and weighs 4 1/2 tons. (Fun Fact: A typical Giant Armadillo weighs an average of 28kg, so Killer weighs as more than 145 live Giant Armadillos put together!) The World's Largest Armadillo now resides at Fall Creek Farms in Granbury, Texas and still has the title in the Guiness book of World Records.



Total Travel Distance: 30 miles
Soundtrack: Country radio (What else are you going to listen to in Texas?)