Thanks for the memories

For the times way back when, before security became an obsession, when you could actually watch a shuttle launch so closely that you cussed because the ground shook so bad the vibrations made your photos blurry.

For the times when the 747 and piggyback shuttle flew up and down the beach and kids ran out of schools, workers ran out of offices and shoppers ran out of stores - just to see the show. People cheered, clapped their hands, and whistled. Kids just plain screamed; that show beat anything they'd seen on TV, hands down.

And for the heroes the space programs gave us to admire. Make sure you don't miss Discovery on her final launch. This is history happening, folks. Right in your own backyard. Be there!

Note: the guys on the podium are the Apollo 7 Astronauts on the 20th anniversary of their walk on the moon.
The date was July 20, 1989. The setting? John F Kennedy Space Center. Because he believed in the program.