SERENITY at 36,000 feet... Kept me sane.

POSTED BY: TheSomnambulist
UPDATED: Thursday, July 3, 2008 14:01
VIEWED: 3853
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THESOMNAMBULIST

Saturday, June 28, 2008 9:57 PM

Curious title I know but let me explain.

Recently I returned from a holiday to Melbourne Australia where my girlfriends family come from. As I'm sure many of you know a trip to Australia from just about anywhere on the planet is a long old journey. Well from the UK you are looking around the 24hours mark. Not 24hours straight, but with a mid-way stop at Hong Kong and general waiting around in terminals you accumulate the hours.

Such an endeavour requires a certian amount of distraction. Now much of that distration, for me, comes from being able to stare outside the window and wonder at the cloud formations, or at the 'cartographic' imagery that the world seems to take on at such great heights and I marvel at the fact that there are no borders between continents!

However with such a long journey nightfall comes quickly and readily. (Twice I think) due to a spinning planet and adverse navigation - I'm not sure. Anyway these eager dark moments for an insomniac are an annoyance, so distrations must come from elsewhere, or insanity sets in or scurvy can't remember!! Well on my particular Qantas flight the 'In flight' entertainment system had failed!!! Yes 24hours of no entertainment whatsoever. I was fearful! Fearful that by the time I reach the UK I would be found having eaten the inards of my seat, or that the oxygen mask may have become an item of play and that at heathrow, upon touchdown I would have become a silly gibbering idiot laughing out of context at the back of the plane having made a paper hat out of the in-flight menu. All credible scenarios I'm sure!

However! In my wisdom I had purchased a PSP for just such an eventuality. Better still was the very great fortune that a friend had given me, not more than a week earlier, his copy of the SERENITY UMD (Universal Media Device) What luck! This is probably one of the few films that I can watch again and again and again!!! And trust me I had to! In all I think I watched it four times and I never tired of it. In fact much of the turbulence we went through added much authenticity to the reaver chase. It was fantastic!!

I was very grateful of SERENITY at 36,000 feet and yet again very apprecitative of Joss and his wonderful imagination.

Anyone else see SERENITY at such a great height?

Just thought I'd share that.
Cheers
Ric

OUT2THEBLACK

Sunday, June 29, 2008 7:03 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by TheSomnambulist:
...Now much of that distration, for me, comes from being able to stare outside the window and wonder at the cloud formations, or at the 'cartographic' imagery that the world seems to take on at such great heights and I marvel at the fact that there are no borders between continents!

However with such a long journey nightfall comes quickly and readily. (Twice I think) due to a spinning planet and adverse navigation - I'm not sure.

I was very grateful of SERENITY at 36,000 feet and yet again very apprecitative of Joss and his wonderful imagination.

Anyone else see SERENITY at such a great height?

Just thought I'd share that.
Cheers
Ric

Thanks for sharing your latest Serenity experience , Ric !

I think you mean that the countries have no borders...The Continents surely do...They're generally called shorelines...

You were probably on a 'great circle' route , which is an oddity to terrestrial folk , generally...There was probably a somewhat 'polar' leg to the journey , which could account for your notions about the evening seeming to come a couple of times...The sun is far south against the face of the globe at this time of year , so a flight leg with a polar component would account for the sun being below the horizon more than one would generally expect...

The astronauts aboard the Int'l Space Station probably get to enjoy Serenity at a height of more than 200 miles...Which is , no doubt , a heavenly experience...

THESOMNAMBULIST

Sunday, June 29, 2008 8:06 PM

out2theblack wrote:

Quote:
I think you mean that the countries have no borders...The Continents surely do...They're generally called shorelines...

Ha. Yes indeed

Except Turkey of course... or North, Central and South America... But yes I get you're point

Quote:
You were probably on a 'great circle' route , which is an oddity to terrestrial folk , generally...There was probably a somewhat 'polar' leg to the journey , which could account for your notions about the evening seeming to come a couple of times...The sun is far south against the face of the globe at this time of year , so a flight leg with a polar component would account for the sun being below the horizon more than one would generally expect...

Fascinating. Out of curiosity how do you know this, about the 'polar' leg of a flight? Is that a common route for commercial flights? I'm always interested in all that lark when it comes to flying, I wish they'd be a little more informative during these things because it is incredible.

Cheers for the feedback.

PHYRELIGHT

Monday, June 30, 2008 3:03 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by TheSomnambulist:
In fact much of the turbulence we went through added much authenticity to the reaver chase. It was fantastic!!

Oooooooooooohhhhh!!! My mind is stiring in an electric cloud of enthusiasm at the thought! Sounds like fun!

(And, yes. I've been through really rough turbulance on a plane before.)

Darksiders can keep their cookies. We have better writers.

Grrr. Argghh.

Really can't wait to see Cap'n Tightpants sing!

http://doctorhorrible.net/doctor-horrible-teaser-video/80/

SCHO

Monday, June 30, 2008 7:38 AM

Scho adds it to the list of things to get before his next flight.

OUT2THEBLACK

Monday, June 30, 2008 8:08 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by TheSomnambulist:
out2theblack wrote:

Quote:
I think you mean that the countries have no borders...The Continents surely do...They're generally called shorelines...

Ha. Yes indeed Except Turkey of course... or North, Central and South America... But yes I get you're point

Quote:
You were probably on a 'great circle' route , which is an oddity to terrestrial folk , generally...There was probably a somewhat 'polar' leg to the journey , which could account for your notions about the evening seeming to come a couple of times...The sun is far south against the face of the globe at this time of year , so a flight leg with a polar component would account for the sun being below the horizon more than one would generally expect...

Fascinating. Out of curiosity how do you know this, about the 'polar' leg of a flight? Is that a common route for commercial flights?

Flyer for more than 25 years now...They expect us to learn and retain a lot of this stuff , and who can blame 'em ?

Yes , the great circle routes are very common , and used every day in long-haul flying , especially if a crossing between hemispheres is part of the flight path .

Turkey's a continent ?

Oh , I think you mean it connects Europe and Asia...OK , that's correct...

Interesting side note , among glider pilots , which I also happen to be , what airplane pilots call 'turbulence' , we frequently employ as 'lift', so that we may Soar...Like a 'leaf on the wind'...

MSB

Monday, June 30, 2008 8:57 PM

Ok I love the turbulence enhanced reaver scene

____________________________________________

Love doesn't make the world go 'round; love is what makes the ride worthwhile.

THESOMNAMBULIST

Monday, June 30, 2008 10:37 PM

Originally posted by out2theblack:

Quote:
Flyer for more than 25 years now...They expect us to learn and retain a lot of this stuff , and who can blame 'em ?

Yes , the great circle routes are very common , and used every day in long-haul flying , especially if a crossing between hemispheres is part of the flight path .

Turkey's a continent ?

Oh , I think you mean it connects Europe and Asia...OK , that's correct...

Interesting side note , among glider pilots , which I also happen to be , what airplane pilots call 'turbulence' , we frequently employ as 'lift', so that we may Soar...Like a 'leaf on the wind'...

Wonderful!! Glad to read you didn't acquire all this knowledge playing a microsoft flight sim!

Gliding too eh! There is a gliding club very near me here in Kent, and last year I did some work with a web designer who was waxing lyrical about it. I came very close to having a go, then work became very busy and I've not found the impetus to look at it again.

One more question if I may please.... Does a video camera interfere with instrumentation on a plane? Because I really wanted to take some footage of a landing on this trip, but everytime on approach about twenty minutes from landing the message would come over: could we switch all electronic equipment off! It's so frustrating! I love landings!!! Just once I'd like to capture it all on film....

Cheers

THESOMNAMBULIST

Monday, June 30, 2008 10:42 PM

PhyreLight and MSB.

Yup! The turbulance added a great sense of interaction. It was cool. Luckily though it wasn't that kind of turbulence where your dinner ends up on your head! Just the gentle kind that lets you know you are flying, and that it's not just a blue screen out the window with landscapes projected over it :D

Cheers

THESOMNAMBULIST

Monday, June 30, 2008 10:45 PM

Originally posted by Scho:

Quote:
Scho adds it to the list of things to get before his next flight.

Indeed do. I use it for listening to music too. It is a lot less fussy than the iPod interface.

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