A Duranium Can

[Irene Mincine 0]

Personal log, Irene Mincine, junior science staff, USS Excalibur.

I am glad to be off Risa. I spent too long in that Ferengi's basement to ever go back to that place. I've just sent in my report to Commander Hawthorne and I expect another lecture on personal responsibility or something. Of course, last time I expected a lecture I got promoted to personal trainer... and this time it wasn’t really my fault, so who knows. She’s very surprising, not at all what I expected out of a first officer.

Dr. Dubois was able to put my shoulder back together – she’s a miracle worker. You can barely see the scar! That’s Federation medicine for you - the big one on my ribs is Klingon handiwork. Different cultures, different priorities, even when it comes to medical care. The phaser burn’s healed into a starburst of pale splotches - I’m not going to be wearing any tank tops for a while. She said they’ll fade over time as the skin heals and takes on its natural color again.

But… now I'm off duty until I get medical clearance to get back to doing my job. I hate being off duty. It makes me feel like a lump, sitting here in my bunk with my arm in a sling while everyone else is working around me. Nothing I can do about it, though. Doctors outrank ensigns. And it’s probably a good idea not to overexert myself anyway and end up with a permanent injury. Good thing I work a desk job down in the science labs - maybe I can sneak down there and hang out with our cats.

 Personal update - I called Zefram, he's doing all right. He might get the Jovian run soon, that's pretty exciting. P'Lor is fine, too. Zefram sent me a few Klingon opera recordings a week or so ago, so at least I've got something to listen to in my downtime. I told him about my little adventure and he said he’d dig up some more for me. He’s such a great brother!

So the big question, what am I going to do with my time off duty? I’m not sure. Dr. Ryssan suggested catching up on meditation. I suppose it couldn’t hurt, given my behavior lately… I bought some real ritual candles, stamped with the mark of one of the big shrines on Qo’noS, and even made a little shrine at my bunk. (I wish I had quarters, sometimes.) And I heard the chief downloaded some new holoprograms and movies I can check out, too.

But… on a real personal note... I... what I got with Kasmati, I hadn’t felt for a long time. Is it a personal weakness? How do people deal with it on a starship? On extended missions, only around the same hundred people in a duranium can? I don’t know. I suppose not every personal need can be met on a starship - and there’s always the holodeck, right?

I’m just glad to be back here, safe.