Open Book Blog Hop – 22nd June 2026

On By Steven SmithIn Open Book Blog Hop

Welcome back to another Open Book Blog Hop!

Do you wish you could travel the stars or the deep (oceans)?

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Photo by Matteus Silva on Pexels.com

I’ve always been fascinated by the idea of travelling and exploring the unknown. While the oceans would be quite interesting from the perspective of seeing the flora and fauna and how they survive in such extremes as the ocean’s depths. But for me, the interest has always been space. Something so vast and so empty is incredibly fascinating. Firstly, the process of getting to space and the sheer force required to “slip the surly bonds of Earth to touch the face of God” would be, frankly, an incredible experience. The vastness of space and all that there is to see and learn would be incredible. The risk of space travel and deep-sea exploration, in fairness, is significant. But the potential for learning and experience is immense. To drift amongst the stars and see if there really is life beyond our own planet would be amazing to explore!

14 thoughts on “Open Book Blog Hop – 22nd June 2026”

  1. I’m with you there. Being at the mercy of stormy waters, some days I thought I might glimpse first hand what was underneath. Which is probably a similar feeling to being shot into space.

    And, like Space hardware, all ships are built and equipped by the lowest bidder!

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    1. Steven Smith's avatar Steven Smith

      Alan Shepard when asked what he thought about when sat atop Redstone waiting for launch: “the fact that every part of this ship was built by the lowest bidder…”

      I’d still love to have taken a trip on a Saturn V or shuttle…

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      3. Steven Smith's avatar Steven Smith

        I can only imagine what the sensatiin of all that raw, unrestrained power must feel like pushing in your back!

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    2. Is that true if they’re privately built? As a young person, I worked for a campground here in Alaska and we had an industrialist stay with us one summer. Nice guy…would help us move picnic tables and scooped other campers’ dog dung. He and his wife were doing the Alaska grand tour and using Fairbanks as their hub. Anyway, he explained that in his factories they didn’t often go with the lowest bidder because “we’re not the government and we want to do a better job than that.” So, I’d think…if he was building space craft rather than widgets…he’d avoid shoddy workmanship. Now that lowest bidder thing–it’s why Alaskan roads look like the surface of the moon within three years of being rebuilt.

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      2. And, yet, my brother lives in a subdivision that has privately maintained roads. It’s not a fancy neighbor or gated community. It’s called a road service district and it’s just how we do non-major, non-urban roads in Alaska. His RSD does a GREAT JOB. You have to dodge potholes to get there, but once you do, the roads for that neighborhood are in wonderful shape. They manage their district funding (based on fees paid by the property owners in the imediate area rather than the broader community) incredibly well. Not all districts do that, though.

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    2. Having chosen to live in Alaska, I suspect my view of “familiar” is a little skewed. I regularly hike into the Alaska wilderness with a water filter, bug dope, and a 357 as my only protection against the things out there that want to kill humans. But, I admit, the thought of sealing myself into a glorified tin can to launch into an environment with extreme pressures (either way) gives me pause. I might still do it, but I’d want to talk to the engineers first.

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