I am plugged into social networking of all sorts. Well, except MySpace, but I think we can all agree that one doesn't really serve my demographic effectively. As a 43-year old female, white, heterosexual, college graduate, full time employee outside of the home, I do have a Facebook account, a LinkedIn account, and *two* Twitter accounts. I am often recommended by various of these social networking sites to connect with folks just like me.
I get lots of people I went to high school with, and lots of former and current co-workers. Most of them are reasonable suggestions, except for the one co-worker that I really can't stand who keeps showing up on everything. But until today, I had NEVER had a recommendation to connect with a real live rocket scientist.
Imagine my surprise when I popped open LinkedIn and found that *I* had been recommended to connect with the Lead Systems Engineer for Payload Integration on the International Space Station.
Huh?
Yeah. You read that right. Lead. Systems. Engineer. HAH! I fancy myself to be a smart one. But International Space Station smart? Not so much...
Turns out my rocket scientist turned out to be the brother of my college roommate, who already has an exponentially more interesting life than me. And, a rocket scientist brother to boot.
I've enjoyed some quick little email chats back and forth, and he recently sent this photo to me. It's taken from the international space station, looking down on the earth far below.
Kind of makes my life feel a lot more simple....
