RIP

Well, I was missing more than a week, indeed, but today I've got a lot to write about. I just wish it wasn't so sad news...
Kurt Vonnegut died last night, at the age of 84.
Mr. Vonnegut suffered irreversible brain injuries as a result of a fall several weeks ago, according to his wife, Jill Krementz.
I can never forget a chapter from "Cat's Cradle", the chapter about the duprass. "Horlick Minton, the New American Ambassador to the Republic of San Lorenzo, and his wife, Claire...They were lovebirds. They entertained each other with little gifts: sights worth seeing out the plane window, amusing or instructive bits from things they read, random recollections of times gone by. They were, I think, a flawless example of what Bokonon calls a duprass, which is a karass composed only of two persons." The members of a duprass die within a week of each other. A true duprass can't be invaded, not even by children born of such a union.
It reflects part of my understanding of relationships.
I think it's time for me to read Vonnegut again. It's just a pity that the occasion is so sad.

Space Flight

Last year I was teaching my students about stars and planet and rockets. The Lebanese book wasn't very interesting indeed so I told the kids additional facts, first man in space included. But I realize I've never known the exact date of Gagarin's flight. Thank you, Google - the search engine is celebrating 12 April with a special logo
There are a lot of speculations about the flight, Gagarin's death etc., but I have keen memories from my childhood - we knew songs and poems about him and I suppose this day was celebrated as a holiday. I was always passionate about the outer space, maybe that's why I'm a big SciFi fan.
I will not put links to sites with information about this day - there are plenty and Google helps a lot ;) I just feel spacey today.