After passing a sign reading, "Danger: falling aliens," New Mexico artist Roy Lohr and his dog, Yoda, lead visitors to the "spaceport" he has built in his backyard out of wine bottles and cement.
It is no wonder the lanky 69-year-old embraces the real Spaceport America in his town's backyard, the world's first space base built expressly for commercial launches. It soon will be the site of the first space flights with Briton Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic.
"It is hard for locals to realize the impact it is going to have, but it is slow coming, and this is a tiny little town," said Lohr. He has no doubt that "things are happening."