About the Song
I Can't Blieve They Pay Me For This (J. Webb) –This is a song describing what it is like to be an astronomer teaching at a university, doing original astronomical research, and pondering the wonders of the universe. Most of my students, family members, and people I speak with on a commercial flights ask me “What does an astronomer do all day?” Most people think all we do is teach, some realize we do research, but most people don’t realize a job as a college professor never ends when you leave the campus. Research is a never ending aspect of ones’ consciousness. One can get an idea about the physics of an object watching a fireworks display, watching cigarette smoke break doing into a turbulent flow, or realizing something in a dream. Your mind is always focused on your work even when at home plucking on a guitar. This song takes the listener through my career. The first verse describes driving up the Quinlan mountains southwest of Tucson Arizona to observe at Kitt Peak National Observatory. Gathering data about the universe is one of the most important things one can do to understand the universe we live in. The second verse mentions driving around the Washington D.C. beltway to get to the Goddard Space flight Center, where I worked as a resident astronomer for the NASA International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE) satellite telescope. After the short break, the third verse refers to my “day job” teaching astronomy and physics at Florida International University (FIU). This is one of the most rewarding parts of my career, getting young people thinking logically and inspiring them. The last verse refers to the concept I mentioned before about research. The researcher is always thinking about the problems, even relaxing on the back porch playing guitar, at some level the mind is still inquiring, still drifts to the bigger problems such as the creation and evolution of the universe.
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Lyrics
Traveling out to the mountains, up to that sacred peak
Using my long eyes to find out where we are, reaching for distant galaxies
Circling around on the beltway, going through the guard gate with a pass
You can feel the knowledge of mankind progressing, with each rocket launch from the pad
chorus
I can’t believe they pay me for this, I’d ponder these questions for free
To search for the answers and teach what I know, to help the young minds expand and grow
lead
Life on campus is special, surrounded by young minds still asleep
Trying my best to give a wake-up call, and help them learn to think
Strumming my guitar in the back porch, sun setting over the palms
Thinking about question that no one can answer, pondering the universe’s fate
chorus
I can’t believe they pay me for this, I’d ponder these questions for free
To search for the answers and teach what I know, to help the young minds expand and grow
chorus
I can’t believe they pay me for this, I’d ponder these questions for free
To search for the answers and teach what I know, to help the young minds expand and grow
To help the young minds expand and grow
To help the young minds expand and grow
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