C James

It will be less than 100! However, you are evidently in need of a math lesson! Remember, Trevor is now in Australia, and therefor, we must use Australian math. It's similar to the time zone issue, also imparted by their geography. In December (it varies seasonally, due to some areas having daylight saving time) Florida is 13 hours behind Western Australia. But, is it? How can that be, when Europe is ahead of Florida? It's complicated, but, here's how it works out; 1 am Tuesday in Perth is Noon on Monday in Miami Florida and 5pm Monday in London. So, we are used to making adjustments for time going east to west. Going south, however, is complicated in other ways. Australia is in the southern hemisphere, and so is upside down relative to those of us in the northern hemisphere. This is why cyclones and other low pressure systems spin the opposite way, clockwise, down there. This is why their seasons are inverted too. There are a lot of things that are different due to Australia being upside down, and math is just one of them. The first thing we need to remember is that in Australia, 100 minus 75 = 35. It's all a matter of geography. To prove it, let's start with normal math: 100 - 75 = 25. However, in Australia, 6's are upside down and thus become nines. Now, bear in mind that Trevor's first full day in Australia was in chapter 60, so when you turn your monitor upside down to read 60 the Australian way, it makes it 09. and 09 - 100 is 91, so a difference of nine, so if you subtract 9 from 24, you get 15, so therefor, in Australian math, 24 + 84 is 99. (or, in Australia, 66) CJ

The Void? When I saw this thread name, I was thinking he meant the space between my ears! Umm, please be aware of one thing. I utterly suck when it comes to estimating the number of chapters. The story is outlined to the end, and has been since before it started posting, and the final two chapters are written, but that's all been true for over a year. (I like writing the ending early in a story) It's just that when I get down to the nuts and bolts of actually writing the text, it tends to take more than I thought. That's why my estimate for chapter number keeps growing. Circumnavigation won't be over before the end of (northern hemisphere) summer. We'll be seeing chapter 84 today. That means I have just 24 more chapters remaining to keep my promise to bring it in under 100. The good news is, I do not foresee any more chapterless weeks between now and the end. And... hrmmm... when Circumnavigation ends, I very much hope and plan to have another story ready to start posting that same week. I don't know what it will be quite yet, but there are several candidates. One possible delay though; I'm writing a story for GA's premium section, to go with "Jake" which is already there, so that has to be finished first, though it should be done fairly soon. (I'm writing it all in one large batch, so I can adjust early chapter foreshadowing better, before anyone, even my team, sees it).

Benji, I know that Eric from FTL is one of your favorites, so how about an FTL sequel focused on him, as he climbs the ladder of televangelisim?

I'm being misjudged...!! Honestly, it was said often, here in the forum, that one unstable bomb aboard does not a cliffhanger make. Wildone says it best below.. he read my mind! Yes indeed! The sun is, after all, a giant nuclear reactor, and a nuclear reaction is also what creates a nuclear blast.. now, the sun is fusion based, but there was a bit of fusion boosting used to pump up the yield on the Toowoomba device. So, that's sunshine! And yep, you got the bunnies part right too! I'm glad to see you're coming around and seeing things as they are.

Ahhem! Surely you've heard of Angora sweaters, Cashmere sweaters, etc? Those are from goat wool.

One possibility... Trevor, Shane, Lisa, and Joel don't survive, and the sequel is the further adventures of Bridget Bellevue.

Well, yes, Trevor was indeed fearful for his life, due to the bomb and then the pirates, but... he's been told by Gonzalez that the threat (motive to kill him) probably no longer exists. So therefor, he's probably not so worried. And thus, the continuing price on his head is unknown to him, so he's not worried. It's just like when he had the highly unstable bomb aboard in the Suez... He didn't know it at the time, so he wasn't worried. (and, as was also said here in the forum at the time, one highly unstable bomb does not a cliffhanger make). Of course not! Nothing bad ever happens in my stories... it's all sunshine and bunnies. Or it could be something quite innocuous... maybe Dirk sends someone in to reopen the Chandlery for business?

AHHA! I've got you now!!! Me, edit stuff in? I hope you know you likely have my team rolling around and laughing their asses off at that idea... I am known as the King of Typos for a reason! :lmao: Editing is something I clearly have not the skills for. I'm also dyslexic (seriously) so I am notorious for mixing up look-alike words. Waive-wave being one set, out-our another. There are many. So there.

Thanks!!! The good news is that, thanks to my wonderful team, I think I can keep up a weekly posting rate until the end. No more two week gaps.

Thanks!!!!! Actually, I do invite all comments and criticisms, so in my case, it's absolutely okay to say pretty much anything. I saw Trevor and Shane as both wounded, in their own ways. Trevor was changed by his voyage. First, he set out alone and crossed the Atlantic, becoming a bit more confident. Then, Joel arrived, and taught Trevor not to have such big hangups about being gay. Then Trevor was alone again after Cyprus, and really felt the loss. The ordeal of the Indian Ocean changed him further. The Trevor who left Florida is different from the one we see in Australia in many ways. I don't think Trevor as he was could have clicked with Shane. Also, Trevor only ended up in Carnarvon thanks to the pirates, so they are responsible for him meeting Shane. As for Shane, his past, too, makes him what he is. They found what they each needed at the right time: each other. Me? But I can't control what they do... so don't blame me... :ph34r:

Interesting point... And I don' disagree. I do think this chapter would have worked a lot better had there not been a two week wait before it. I never intended that, but real world issues gave me no choice, I simply didn';t have it ready in time. Hopefully, there will be no more such delays. The next chapter is "Taking Care of Business" in a lot of ways, and... well, let's just say I think it gets into areas you've mentioned.

Thanks!!!! And yep, as always, no cliffhangers! HAd I wanted to, I'm sure you could imagine how that chapter could have ended, had Trevor taken a step or two more before turning back. And having a massive rocky precipice part of them looking out on friends family, and future... well, some might suggest a link, but I'm innocent.

More in Florida and elsewhere coming in the next chapter.. and I very nearly did entitle the chapter you just saw "Calm before the storm."

Thanks! It was a fun one to write.

Thanks!

Thanks! I originally wrote this as a private "thank you" for commentators in my forum and reviews... the only way I could think of to say thank you. I posted it here several months later. I intended it as a one-off short story, so marked it complete, but I can't rule out a second half.

Thanks! :-) Things do seem pointing at Northam, don't they? Hrmm, what was Shane almost right about, when they were approaching the beach. Zombie! Aww, they've corrupted you too! That quote actually was plot relevant. What would have happened to Trevor had he not turned back, out of his concern for Shane's qualms? He'd have had his collapse right on the very edge... And, to all who have ever accused me of cliffhangers, I can prove here, once and for all, that I always avoid them; if I'd ever been inclined to have a cliffhanger, here would have been the place. I could have just ended the chapter with Trevor collapsing at the cliff edge,slipping over, holding on to the crumbling edge by his fingertips as the panic attack weakened his grip, with Shane too overcome by fear of heights to be able to save him.... But I didn't. Well, of course! I never use cliffhangers! True, that! Marty! You know I never use cliffhangers.. And, yes, there is a hit out on Trevor, but he doesn't know it, so no worries. And that Garlic crusher did indeed stir up some things, but Trevor is as yet unawares of the happy news that it has been rescued from the southern ocean. They have challenges ahead, 'tis true. And yep, one of the reasons this was all in one chapter was....er, hrmm, I can't say, as that would be a spoiler. Boats are a bit like cars in a way... you get a lot more stress in heavy traffic and maneuvering in tight places than on a wide open road that you have all to yourself. The greatest danger to ships is land. Once Kookaburra is in deep open water, the going is easy most of the time. But., as we saw on the way into Rhys Lagoon, getting her there is far from easy, and she has to go out the same way. I love the travelogues too... Those were fun to write. And before I forget, the title of the next chapter is Taking Care of Business

The Space Shuttle Atlantis left the Space Station for the final time today. If all goes well, in the early hours of July 21st (east coast time) she'll fire her orbital maneuvering engines for the last time, above the Indian Ocean, to begin a re-entry profile that will see her touching down just before 6am in Florida. When her wheels stop, she will never again move under her own power. The last shuttle launch is now history. With Atlantis's landing, the Shuttle program will be over. It has been a long history, over 30 years, since Columbia's first flight in 1981. Atlantis herself first flew in 1985. Her current flight is her 32nd, and last, return to space. The Shuttle era is over. They can never fly again. They are aging airframes, and the decision was made to retire them. There are arguments as to whether they should have been kepty flying a while longer, but those arguments, good and bad, became moot about two years ago, when the parts supply line began being dismantled. Just one example of this is the shuttle external tank production facility in Louisiana; once it shut down, we lost the ability to make external tanks, and without them, the shuttle cannot fly. That is just one example, but there are many; most of the internal components are similarly irreplaceable. The Shuttle was, at once, a magnificent achievement and a magnificent failure. Its primary purpose was to provide cheap, routine access to space. In this, it failed utterly. Each launch had a combined cost of over a billion dollars in today's money, and that made it far too expensive. It was also far from routine; Two shuttles, Columbia and Challenger, were destroyed, killing their crews. The Shuttle had capabilities we are unlikely to ever see again in our lifetimes. Here are six things it could, and did do, that no proposed replacement can. The worst is yet to come. From today and for years to come, the only way an American will reach space is by paying the Russians for a ride. Without the Russians, the US loses the most expensive object man has ever made, the Space Station. If anyone thinks that the Russians won't use this as leverage to the point of blackmail, they are in for a very rude awakening. Nasa does have vehicles on the drawing-boards. Unfortunately, their concepts are an engineering and fiscal disaster. The current idea is a "Shuttle derived" unmanned heavy-lift launch vehicle. The problem is it was designed by a committee of politicians, literally, and the results are what one would expect; a vehicle that saves the worst (and dangerous) aspects of the shuttle program while throwing away its greatest capabilities. This vehicle is derisively called the Senate Launch System in the space industry. Essentially, take a Shuttle external tank, stretch it, and use it as the first stage core of a conventional-looking staged rocket. Tack on two or more enlarged Shuttle solid rocket boosters, and then build an upper stage. It would be powered by five space shuttle main engines, and would be a large cargo launcher. This may sound simple, but it is far from it. Everything would need redesigning, right down to the engines. The Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSME's) are the most advanced hydrogen-oxygen engines ever built, and are made to be reusable. They are also incredibly expensive to build, and we no longer have the ability to build them. With this design, they could not be recovered. The plan is to use existing shuttle engines. That sounds fine, until one realizes that we have exactly fifteen of them. So, an all-new engine would be needed, if there is ever to be a fourth flight of the Senate Launch System. (the actual proposal name is Space Launch System). The development cost would be around ten billion, and per launch costs would exceed that of Shuttle. I grew up as a huge fan of NASA. Therefor, it pains me greatly to say this, but I do not want to see NASA design and operate a launch system, because they have proven that they cannot do so efficiently. This is not all their fault; congressional pork is a huge factor. The Shuttle program is proof of this; it was billed as cheap to operate, and was anything but. The reason is simple; the government turned the Shuttle program into a catch-all and a jobs program. Thus, it failed to deliver what it promised. And incidentally, keeping the costs down is not the only reason I condemn NASA and congressional pork for screwing up the space program. We have seven dead astronauts, lost in the Challenger disaster, who paid with their lives for pork-barrel folly. I can prove this. Remember why Challenger was destroyed; an O-ring (a seal, between two segments of the solid rocket booster)burnthrough, on a solid rocket booster, resulted in a flame jet cutting into the booster support, causing structural failure and the booster rotating into the external tank. Now, why did the o-ring fail? Part of it was the cold; it's rubber, which looses it's elasticity in the cold, and they launched (against the warnings of the engineers) in freezing temps. The other part was design; they'd had blow-by events before, and ignored them. The fix was to redesign the seals to have double o-rings. Here's the damning bit: Why, exactly, is the Shuttle SRB segmented? There are four main segments to the solid propellant, and the o-ring junctions are between each of the segments (where the cylindrical segments join together). This is a rather kludgy way to build a rocket thrust chamber (which is what the entire body of a solid rocket essentially is). Why not build it as one unit? Because it's built in Utah, and it's too heavy to ship whole by air. That means it has to go by rail, and that means, thanks to tunnel diameters and rail curve issues, it has to be segmented, and no larger in diameter than it is. (yep, a limiting factor on a spacecraft was the diameter of 19th century railroad tunnels). So, why build it in Utah? pork barrel Politics. Morton Thiokol's design bid was rated 4th of four by an initial review, because it was both the most problematic and most costly, but Thoikol won the bid anyway, for political reasons. And seven astronauts died. It didn't have to be. Aerojet's bid was for a single-peice, single-pour solid rocket, larger in diameter than an SRB, which would have burned for around 20 seconds longer. It was simpler, cheaper, and safer, and would have made refurbishing the boosters after recovery cheaper and easier too. But they wanted to build it in Florida, near the launch site, for obvious practical reasons. But political and pork beat science and common sense. This is just one glaring example of how political pork and making space a jobs program has screwed the program, made it too costly to operate, and also killed people. So, with the last flight, I remember both the triumphs and failures of the Shuttle program, and mourn also, the loss of what might have been, had the program been done right. I believe that space is mankind's future, so I'm far from advocating an end to spaceflight. I advocate the opposite; routine access to space. To have that, you have to make it affordable. What it boils down to is reducing the price per pound to orbit. There are many ways to do this, with technology we have today. What is clear is that government is not the route; government may be many things, but a cost innovator it isn't. So, if you want low cost, you need to look elsewhere. One place to look; satellite launch companies. They are flying payloads to orbit today, at far lower costs than government can manage. They can fly and recover a space capsule as easily as NASA can. Actually easier today, becuase at this moment, only one organization in the US is currently flying a vehicle that's made to be manned, and have put it in orbit and then returned it safely to earth. It's called the Dragon capsule, and it flew a few months ago, on a Falcon 9 rocket. It's currently intended for making cargo runs to the space station (expect to see one around September), but it was designed for manned use. That capability was built in. All it needs to make it manned-capable is a life support system (easy and fast to do with off-the-shelf parts) chairs, and a control panel. If we wanted to, we could have astronauts in orbit by this time next year, after a couple of unmanned tests, because the rocket and capsule are already operational today. Would it have the capabilities of the Shuttle? No, but neither does anything NASA has in mind. Here's the key difference; cost. The price of a Falcon 9 launch (and they do this commercially) are just under 55 million. Even if your double it for a manned launch (and no estimate I've seen is that high) you're still at under one tenth the cost of a Shuttle launch. SpaceX's Falcon 9 and Dragon capsule aren't the only game in town, either. Sierra Nevada corp has Dreamchaser, a spaceplane that will launch on a rocket and return like a shuttle. There are others, both for launch vehichles and spacecraft. Now, for the heavy lift cargo rocket the Senate wants NASA to build... It simply isn't needed. One reason, it's farcheaper to do it commercially. SpaceX has a design concept, the Falcon Heavy, basically three Falcon 9 first stages strapped together, with propellant crossfeed. Cost per pound to orbit? Around $1000, which is about 1/10th what anyone but SpaceX can do today. Heavy lift? It is, with a payload of 120,000 pounds (initial design, ongoing improvements may well increase that). Shuttle's payload, for comparison, is around 1/3 that to ISS orbit. And the best part of all; this does not need a multi-billion years-long program to develop it. It'll be on the pad in just over a year, preparing for its first flight in late 2012 or early 2013. it's already being built. Here's another number set; the total development cost, including engines, for the Falcon family (Falcon 1 and Falcon 9) is around 700 million, including several flight tests, plus the Dragon capsule, command module, etc.. Pushing this to Falcon Heavy will bring it in just under a billion, most likely. Compare that to NASA, who managed to spend 750 million or more on the Ares 1x launch. Just one launch, using an existing Shuttle SRB as a first stage, and a dummy upper stage. There was exactly zero hardware commonality between Ares 1X and the proposed Ares 1 launch system. NASA is also spending over 2 billion on a capsule from Boeing, that will be years in the development. And no way to launch it. (and forget the Senate Launch system; it's unmanned, and hopefully will be canceled). I think it's time for NASA to start buying rides to orbit from commercial providers; offer a performance-based contact. Let NASA focus on what it does well; missions in space, rather than what it does very poorly; designing and operating a launch system. So, I see the end of the Shuttle program as the end of an era. What comes next? We don't yet know. I can only hope that, this time, the choices will be wise ones. Farewell, Atlantis, the last of the shuttles. You have ridden the fire one last and final time, soon to return forever, to to the earth from whence you came.

It's a bit earlier than the normal time of week, but 83 is up. 84 should be along a week from Tuesday (8 days or so from now), getting us back on our weekly schedule.

The chapter (One Heart) should appear at 5:05 PM Sunday (today) but I dunno what time zone... I'm testing the autopost feature, where you can set it to post on a date and time. If that's Eastern time, as I suspect, it's under an hour from now, because it's 1:11 pm here, and the east coast is three hours ahead of me this time of year (I'm on standard time, not daylight savings). And Benji, shame on you for insinuating I'd ever use a cliffhanger! ACK! But Marty... you';re being mislead.. don't let Benji pull the wool over your eyes; I would never, ever have anything to do with a cliff, or a cliffhanger!

Well, 83 will be along in a few hours. I figured I'd post it a couple of days early, but 84 will be back on the regular schedule. Thanks! I was considering breaking this into two books a few months ago. It was back when chapter 48, The Hand of Fate, was getting ready to post. (that's the one where Trevor had his pirate problem). If I'd have gone that way, chapter 48 would have ended this book, because Trevor would have been unable to free himself, and would have kept going down. Book II would have begun with Lisa and Joel's engagement on that fateful day. Trevor would eventually be noticed missing, and a fruitless search launched, but then the wreck of Atlantis would have eventually been found, after over a year, washing up on a beach in Reunion. Joel would have flown out to her, and finally he and Lisa would figure out what happened to Trevor. The rest of book II would have been them figuring out exactly whee he went down, and then, years later, finally finding him and bringing him up for a joyous reunion, and they all live happily ever after (well, except for the nagging little detail that Trevor would be dead...) Chapter 83 is already loaded into the GA stories software, so the chapter is there, BUT, I'm doing a test (seriously) of the timed-post feature. It's set to post at 5:05 PM Sunday July 17th, but I'm not sure if that's my time zone, or the GA Server's time zone. If it's the latter, which is my guess, it'll appear in under an hour. If it's my time zone, it'll appear about 3 hours later. (I'm mountain standard (Arizona), not daylight savings, so that makes me the same time as California this time of year).

They don't even know it's her boat, just that she used it.

Sorry 83 was late... I had no choice but to make it two weeks between chapter, it just wasn't ready. 83 will be online in a few hours. And of course, no cliffs!!

You got the tangle webs reference! Thanks!!!!

What could possibly go wrong?