Neil Armstrong died today at 82. 43 years after he landed on the moon, and 19 days after NASA made it back into the news by landing the Curiosity Rover. Neil wasn’t a fiction writer, but I do believe he was an influence on me, my writing. My love for science fiction, my obsession with NASA and space exploration, they all stem from the first thing I ever knew about space, that we had landed on the moon. I remember the name of the first actor I ever memorized (Ray Bolger, from the Wizard of Oz) and I remember Neil as the first astronaut (really the first non actor/ not fictional character) I ever knew and remembered the name of. “One small step for man, one giant leap from for mankind.” Say all you want about grammar, but that’s a great line. Bye Neil, you will be missed.