Becoming Unemployed (…or maybe an astronaut)
After nearly three and a half years, tomorrow is my last day with my current employer. I don’t have any new work lined up, so I guess that makes me unemployed – for the first time in my life (other than 5 weeks between returning to the UK from Australia and starting this job). The decision was entirely mine. For a variety of reasons, which I won’t go into here, I felt it was time to move on.
I’m probably going to take a couple of weeks to recharge the batteries before really focusing on what to do next. It may also give me the time and motivation to put some more work in on some of my own projects, either the existing ones or some new ideas that I have.
I’m still looking out for interesting career opportunities though. I still enjoy software development for the most part, and I’m keeping an open mind on exactly what I’ll be doing and where I’ll be doing it.
With that in mind, I was interested to see that the European Space Agency is about to start accepting applications for its astronaut programme for the first time since 1992 
What I found most astonishing is that, on reading the requirements, I couldn’t see anything that would immediately rule me out of applying. It used to be that I was too tall, too short-sighted, too ignorant of physics and astronomy, and too British to be an astronaut. Now the dream is alive again
Six months in a tin can, exposed to higher-than-normal doses of radiation, a 1-in-100 chance of being blown-up on launch or burnt-up on re-entry (I don’t like the sound of a ballistic re-entry), floating endlessy around the Earth listening to Bowie’s Space Oddity on repeat on the iPod… and they’re expecting 50,000 applicants for the 4 positions. I bet the view makes it all worthwhile though…
on April 25th, 2008 at 10:50 pm
fun serious comment
Dan, how confident must you be to leave your job in a time such as now. The economy is in recession, gas is $4, rice is being rationed, the flu virus is stronger, Mugabe is kicking white farmers out of Zimbabwe again, China is unfairly trading, Grand Theft Auto 4 is coming out… a lapdance in a gentlemen’s club costs a cool $200…
well good luck in Mars
and stop smoking the good shi* dog