“The Rocket Dominatrix” revisits SpaceX after Spectacular Super Heavy Rocket Launch

Or “ When Elon asked me to name the next rocket “

Last night I dreamed that I made out with Elon Musk.

If you have ever spent any time hanging around SpaceX you totally get it.

He said “dance with me , I love Bruce Springsteen”

and I said “ok, I do too , but this is actually Bob Seeger”…..

photo credit j Barlow

Then somehow the song changed to “When my guitar gently weeps” while we were dancing.

He told me I could name the next rocket and I said “ Peacetrain” and he said but it’s a rocket and I said that’s why it’s funny.

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Flashback to 2021

The Rocket Dominatrix.

This was a blog that ran for about six months; an outrageously innuendoed commentary on the SpaceX phenomenon in Texas, where Elon Musk is building what he calls StarBase; with rockets aiming for Mars.

The concept of “The Rocket Dominatrix” evolved as I lived in the valley of southern Texas in the border town of Boca Chica Beach.

This once sleepy town had been absorbed, bought and paid for by Elon Musks enterprise SpaceX, displacing local residents and now swarming with reporters, journalists and photographers from all over the globe.

This was a quirky, cutting edge, cultish community both mesmerizing and addictive, that just happens to be designing and playing with the most innovative complex rocket engineering on the planet.

Elon and his then partner, the singer Grimes and their one year old son X Æ A-Xii ( yes, it’s true) had a small, modest cement block house right in the village. Elon was there in person during rocket launches, at least back then.

Now rocket science is interesting to a point ; but after rubbing shoulders with NASA folks and rocket geeks with slide rulers in their pockets all day , I felt the need to spice it up a bit. I mean who doesn’t like a little kink?

It was just a name , but I had a following.

We camped right on the beach but had to evacuate during static fire tests or actual launch attempts.

We walked right up to the construction zone where they were building the now famous “ skyscraper tower” with arms that caught Super Heavy this week as it descended into the exact spot where it had just launched from a short time before.

Boca Chica beach ( photo credit Jade Barlow) Super Heavy Launch tower on far right under construction

Super Heavy Launch Pad under construction ) photo credit ( Jade Barlow )

Close up view of Super Heavy Launch Pad .. we did get chased away by security a few minutes after I snapped this pic . ( Photo credit Jade Barlow)

When I was there , it was a virtually security free zone and we were able to wander about almost without restrictions, taking pictures and collecting burned charred pieces of wreckage in the debris field of previous rockets that ended in explosions.

We once got a nice little visit from men in black wearing dark sunglasses from NASA , demanding to see the large piece of debris my friends had painstakingly hauled off the beach.

Somehow they saw it all and tracked it right to the campground.

It was a good time and a fantastic concept that ran out of time before I had the chance to really develop the character.

I had some great interviews and lots of innuendoed headlines, all easily imagined , thanks to the provocative shape of the rockets themselves.

Eventually my lack of funds and the southern Texas heat drove me westward far too soon.

The Everyday Astronaut and I could have had a long run...🚀