Goodbyeee

I’m told that old soldiers never die, they just fade away. I hope the same is true of old astronauts, even though no one famous has ever given that exact quote. I’ve strutted and fretted my hour upon the stage, and hopefully have provided a bit more than just sound and fury. What? You think I’ve never read Shakespeare?

Anyway, as you may have guessed, I’m signing off. Tholian will take over the blog and the house next week. I don’t have to, not just yet, but Dad turned things over to me a little early too, so that much leniency is permitted. There’s no realistic way for any of the other kids to take over from him anyway. As for me, I’m not quite ready to go yet, but age takes its toll on all of us, and on me no less. I look good for an old lady, no doubt, but I am an old lady now and it’s time for the young bucks to take the reins.

Fine, I’m an old lady now. But I’m still a good looking old lady, and don’t let me hear you say otherwise.

So what else is there to say? Plenty. It’s been a good run but it ain’t over just yet.

First off, I may be an old lady but I’m married to an old man and he still finds me good looking. He caught me out by the garden after my birthday and made sure I knew that. You’re not going to catch me complaining. He’s always loved me, right from the beginning, and I think I was a very lucky woman to get him.

See what I mean? Charlie still has the hots for me.

And speaking of Charlie, he finally did it. Made it to the top. Just call him Agent 86 – and he’s almost as secretive about the whole thing as Maxwell Smart. I’m proud of him, of course. Oddly, he’s just as proud of the fact that he finished up our microscope slide collection on his way to finishing up his new job requirements. He’s an odd duck sometimes.

All the microscope slides. And no, we don’t normally keep them on display.

OK, OK, I’ve been putting off the big news. Gorn got married. Yes, he moved out too, but this time I don’t feel so bad about it. He met Janessa and the two hit it off in a big way. The clever little boy proposed to her right outside our observatory, and let’s just say I’ve got a pretty good idea what they were doing in there right beforehand. Hey, I don’t mind. Get me my grandkids sooner rather than later.

A sweet proposal, even if they were making a bit too much noise in the observatory right beforehand.

But Gorn didn’t run right off and we were able to give them a wedding as big as a bull on steroids. Janessa looked lovely, even if she didn’t wear a white gown like I wanted. And Gorn changed out of his tux right before the actual ceremony for reasons I’ll never understand if I live to be as old as Methuselah’s grandfather. And in the end, none of that mattered. They were married, the family was together, and we were all happy. I was still sad to see them move out, but not so much as when Vulcan left us. And Charlie didn’t complain at all this time.

Janessa was a beautiful bride. The whole family was there to watch them.

I decided to build a new spaceship. Mine is great, but I got it when I started flying, and can do far better now. It’s something to leave for the kids, and maybe my grandkids. They shouldn’t be flying something held together with spit and bailing wire.

I’m not having my gasndkids fly in that old bucket of bolts – build them something new.

However, I’ll confess not everything went according to plan. Somehow I walked away from that crash too. I don’t have proof yet, but I’m still sure we come from somewhere out there. Space won’t kill me.

Well, that didn’t work out quite like I planned.

What about the twins, I hear you ask. Tholian continues to amaze me. That child has an astonishing focus and I don’t know where he gets it from. I guess he justifies all of Dad’s rules, since he’s already doing amazing things. He took up music, just like Dad, but he wanted to show he’s not the Holy Gr’Alien, so he took up the violin. He mastered it in no time, and has already published his songs. Sometimes I wonder about him – he decided to do Holst’s The Planets on a single violin, but he renamed them a bit mockingly. “Neptune, the Wet Blanket,” for instance.

Tholian mastered the violin before he was an adult. Who knows what the future holds for him?

Still, what a talent he is.

Horta, if not for her twin, would be a shining star set high in the firmament. She does it all. She cooks for the family, tended bar at the wedding (and finally got herself a hat like Cathy Tea’s from our vacation – well, kind of like that.)

See, I got a hat like Cathy’s. What do you mean a lion’s an angry hat. Lions are fun! Roar!

And for fun, she’s well on her way to becoming a video game champion. And she’s amazingly good at all of these things. The twins humble me.

Ha! You been pwned.

As do you, for staying on and listening to my rambling. It’s been my honor and privilege to oversee my father’s legacy for this generation, and to pass it on to my children for the next. Thank you for listening.

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