Yes, but sometimes it is difficult and mundane just like anything else. What more is there than service to a higher purpose? I would just as well clean toilets. I am blessed to have rare skills in high enough demand to be paid decently to do what I enjoy.

Is that question rhetorical, or an actual question?

Answer is optional and genuinely invited.

Was surprised as hell to find out they will be orbiting more than 100 miles further out than the ISS.

Yea, that was intentional, a request by the billionaire footing the bill. No doubt these guys crossed into space!

Amazingly uneventful launch. Of course this is a much simpler setup than the Shuttle. Good for these four folks, wish I was there with them.

There was one point right at the launch where the support tower falls away, and the rocket is lifting that the angles made me think the rocket was listing to the right rather than the tower falling away. I had a momentary "oh sh*t" moment until I realized what it was.

I'm pretty sure I had the exact same thought at that moment and was sure I was just being pessimistic and seeing things incorrectly lol.

Don't lie. We all watch launches and auto races for the same reason. I don't want to see anyone hurt but the pucker-factor is always there.

Hope for the best, expect the worst pretty much describes how I watch these.

Also describes every single mission I flew in the A-3.

Also describes my view of going into work at my job nowadays.

Job wise - I was fortunate in that I found the work rewarding from a number of angles. The big downsides were some of the individuals I worked with in the latter stages of my career. University administrators and faculty seem genetically ordained to have an adversarial relationship. That was never a problem. But, for the first 25 years of my academic life I had had the good fortune work with genuinely good groups of people. The last 4 were Snakes on a Plane.

As to why I watch daredevil things like rocket launches and motor races - I'm not entirely sure. I guess the pucker factor has something to do with it, but part of it is to experience, even at a distance, the vicarious thrill of pushing the boundaries of the proverbial envelope. Those endeavors are just SO - DAMN - COOL.

Really I watch it because I just think rockets are cool. I have no real desire to see one blow up, particularly with souls on board.

This for me. Plus like I'm sure I've mentioned here already before, my dad was a big rockets / NASA guy in the 60's/70's so it's like my chance to see what his perspective of the space race was like.