Skip the "paper" bit, where do I sign?

Where do I sign up? (photo from the BBC news website)

Just recently I read another story about the need for people who have to get up there and clear the Low Earth Orbit region of debris of defunct satellites, rocket stages and other space trash. Space garbage men. I would love to become one. I think that would be one of the most challenging and adventurous jobs I can think of. And you get a tremendous view while doing it.

In the news today: NASA needs more astronauts. There seem to be only sixty or so left. The rest went away to corporate jobs or retired. Now NASA doesn't seem to have enough of them spaceboys and girls to do the jobs up there.

Sign me up, people. Unfortunately there are some things to take in account that are against me becoming an astronaut: Being almost forty-one, being Dutch, being bad at maths, colour-blind, and being out of shape for a couple of years. Now the last one is something to work on but the others surely will deny me of a foothold to a career as an astronaut, I am afraid.

For as long as I can remember I wanted to become a space traveller. I had it all planned out: First I would become a jet pilot, then I would go to America and become part of an astronaut training program and then I would go into space. Like that.

It just went a little different. And now I just am a Paper Kosmonaut.

But hey there, you people at NASA, if you have some place left, I wouldn't mind being janitor on the ISS.