Columbia tragedy, 10 years later

Ten years ago today, the Columbia broke up over Texas.

I remember it because I was sick as a dog with a stomach virus. About 8 a.m., about 15 minutes after I had blown chunks, my phone rang and somebody said "Hey, I heard the space shuttle just crashed in Podunk!" Listened to the police scanner for a minute and the dispatcher mentioned they had lost contact with Columbia.

So I called my boss and gave him two pieces of bad news. That was one fucked-up day.

 

I was out in my driveway, watching it go across the sky. To this day I kick myself for not having my camera with me.