The Daily Valet. - 4/4/23, Tuesday
✔️ The New Crew
Tuesday, April 4th Edition
By Cory Ohlendorf, Valet. Editor
If you could book a flight anywhere today, where are you heading?
Presented by
Today’s Big Story
NASA’s New Moon Crew
the four astronauts look and feel a lot different than the Apollo crews
This is not your grandparent's moon mission. The Apollo program ended before most of us were born, but a new, modern moon effort is under way: Artemis, named for Apollo's sister in Greek mythology. And for the first time in more than half a century, NASA has named a crew of astronauts headed to the moon.Humans have not ventured more than a few hundred miles off the planet since the return of Apollo 17, NASA's last moon mission, in 1972. Astronauts in 2023 are much different from those back then—when the U.S. was in a race to beat the Soviet Union to the moon. During the Apollo program, 24 astronauts flew to the moon, but only half of them stepped on the surface. All were Americans. All were white men and most were test pilots.This crew reflects a much wider swath of society. Sometime near the end of 2024 (or maybe a bit later), Americans Christina Koch, Victor Glover and Reid Wiseman, along with Canadian Jeremy Hansen, will be the first humans in more than 50 years to circle the moon.As The Atlantic points out, it's a stark contrast to how NASA handled things back in the day. In 1962, Ed Dwight, a Black Air Force pilot, was in the running to become an astronaut (the military recommended him), but NASA passed and never gave an explanation. That same decade, a NASA doctor gave a group of women the same physical and psychological evaluations that he had developed for the astronauts, and although some women outperformed the men on the tests, the effort was scrapped.But I should mention that the Artemis II crew won't actually touch down on the lunar surface. Instead, the mission is designed to test how the vehicles and other hardware NASA is using for its exploration program perform with crew members, setting the stage for a landing the agency would like to conduct with SpaceX sometime in 2025. As for who those fateful astronauts will be, we'll have to wait and see. But they actually have a chance of cementing an even more meaningful legacy than their predecessors. Because they might be the first humans to really live on the surface of the moon.
Dig Deeper:
How does one find out they've been assigned to the moon mission? The head of the astronaut corps scheduled a secret meeting to let them know, but the astronauts were all late.
Trump to Face Arraignment Today
he will surrender to criminal charges, but likely won't have mugshot or be handcuffed, report says
Donald Trump traveled to New York from Florida on Monday to face arraignment in the first indictment of a former American president (or presidential candidate). The booking and arraignment will take place at 2:15pm this afternoon and, according to the Associated Press, are likely to be relatively brief as Trump is fingerprinted, learns the exact charges against him and pleads, as expected, not guilty.The indictment itself—describing the charges filed against Trump and some of the evidence gathered to support them—is expected to be unsealed today as well. Trump faces 34 felony charges but he will not be made to have a mugshot, wear handcuffs or be placed in a jail cell before he's arraigned, sources told Yahoo News. Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg reportedly consulted with the Secret Service and court officials and decided that there was no reason to put Trump through those typical procedures. And with the Secret Service, expect Trump to enter and exit the building in a way that shields him from public view. So we may not see him until his press conference tonight from Mar-a-Lago.Police are bracing for protests by Trump supporters, who share his belief that the New York grand jury indictment—along with three additional pending investigations—are politically motivated and intended to weaken his bid to retake the White House in 2024.
Meanwhile:
According to Forbes, Trump's net worth has plunged more than $700 million after his once-hyped Truth Social media platform has flopped.
Partner
Because you could easily switch to the most-loved insurance in America (and probably save some money too).
UConn Wins March Madness
How University of Connecticut Beat San Diego State to Win Its Fifth N.C.A.A. Title
The University of Connecticut is the NCAA men's champ after completing one of the most dominant March Madness runs in history. According to The Ringer, there were no buzzer-beaters, no comebacks, and never really a moment when it looked like UConn might lose any of the six games they played in this NCAA tournament. They trailed in the second half of a game only once, and for about 40 seconds, in the entire tournament; their average margin of victory was 20 points.San Diego State, which had never before advanced past the round of 16, was trying to replicate what Kansas did a year ago, rallying from 15 points down in the second half to claim a championship. But the Aztecs just didn't have enough offense, shooting 32.2 percent from the field and missing 14 consecutive shots in the first half, when the Huskies seized control.The Huskies have now won five national championships in the past 24 years, under three different coaches, with Jim Calhoun leading the program in 1999, 2004 and 2011, Kevin Ollie in 2014 and now Hurley. ESPN says this officially reaffirms UConn's status as one of the premier programs in college basketball.
FYI:
Jim Nantz's dream 32-year Final Four run wrapped up on Monday as the iconic voice of March Madness soaked in the final moments of his final game.
Google’s New Travel Guarantee
The search engine's got some new tools to help you plan, and will pay you back if it's wrong
Google announced Monday that it's introducing three new Search features to make it easier for users to research hotels, book their next plane ticket and discover things to do while on vacation. But most notably, the company is piloting a new “price guarantee” badge for flights.According to Tech Crunch, if you see a flight with the badge, it means that Google believes that the price you're seeing won't get any lower. If you book with Google, the company will watch the price, and if it drops, you'll actually get the difference back. Makes clicking a whole lot safer. Anyone who watches fares knows that few things are more frustrating than booking a ticket, only to see the price go down later.At the moment, Google is testing the new policy with select U.S. flights on only three airlines—Alaskan, Hawaiian and Spirit. In the long term, Google wants to roll out the new policy to include as many domestic and international airlines as possible, though there is no timeline on when more carriers will be on board. Inside Hook reports that refunds are automatically deposited into your Google Pay account (you will need to set one up for all this to work). But money from Google Pay can easily be transferred to any bank account.
Meanwhile:
U.S. passport delays may now be four months long ... and could get even worse.
In Other News
Dogecoin gained in value after the icon appeared on Twitter.
Have you heard about ...
Partner
Rethink Your Insurance
If you haven’t thought about it in a while, you’re due
There are some things we simply “get done” and don't want to think about again. And insurance is definitely one of them, right? But that's not doing you any favors. Lemonade is an insurance company built for the 21st century. Launched in 2015, with a focus on accessibility and technology, they are a full-stack insurance carrier built to provide the best, most delightful, and most transparent insurance experience in the world. Sounds refreshing, right?They offer hassle-free renters (contents), homeowners, car, pet and life products in the U.S. and Europe. Fully licensed and regulated, Lemonade is just like the insurance company you use now—which underwrite and sell policies, along with handle and pay claims—except they're a whole lot easier to use. And that most claims are handled at record speed, without the usual paperwork and waiting. In short, it's how you wish insurance would work when you need insurance to help you out.
Check Them Out:
With policies starting from just $5 a month, we encourage you to check their prices for your needs.
Shopping
What We’re Buying
A Trucker Jacket
here are few wardrobe workhorses that outperform a trucker jacket. While the first denim jacket appeared around 1905, it din't take off until until 1962, when the Levi's introduced their Trucker model (with its cropped cut and dual chest pockets), that men's style was forever changed. As comfortable as it is durable, it's also endlessly adaptable—you can pair this lightweight outerwear with pretty much everything in your closet. Now’s the perfect time to pull one on, too.
Get It:
Rigid selvedge denim trucker jacket, $130 / $74.99 by Banana Republic
Morning Motto
Embrace the feels.
▾
Follow:
Share today’s motto:
