When you walk into any toilet stall to find its contents unflushed, you take it in stride because, hey, the Evac system is quirky like that and you can't always come back in an hour to see if it's working yet. Also toilet related, the fleeting but altogether serious thought that the toilet might, in fact, suck you down from across the room invariably happens. People, the toilet flushing causes air currents in the bathroom. I kid you not.
You eat at set times. Every day. And if you skip breakfast on the weekends, you also skip lunch because you weren't there to pack a sandwich (unless you have a fantastic roommate like mine who kindly does it while you are sawing logs).
Privacy is very different. Curtains may separate you and your bunkmate from your other four to eight roommates, but you all share the same bathroom, phone, and internet jack.
On a related note, sound travels only slightly faster than word of mouth. Flushes, phone conversations, movies, and private conversations are mostly audible. And in such close quarters for eating, sleeping, working, and playing, not much is private.
You don't find it at all odd that your supervisor, surgeon, fellow nurse, ship engineer, or roommate is making and serving your coffee to you in the only Starbucks for thousands of miles.
Showers are only a necessity now and certainly not luxurious. They don't always drain fast enough and you'll flood it if you keep the water running while you're sudsing up. But you shouldn't be doing that anyway because, really, that's wasting water.
Commuting is a foreign concept here. For me, a short walk down the hall places me at work. For others, it's only a few decks away at the most. Leaving for work literally two minutes before shift is giving yourself plenty of time for "traffic."
As small as your room is, the communal areas are an extension of your living space only in so far as you're welcome there anytime. No lounging in pajamas. No movies over PG-13 in the public areas.
While mid-thigh length and longer is acceptable for shorts and skirts, the reality is that very few people do it (with only marginally more excepting for workouts). Off ship, it's scandalous to show your knees, so it's easier to just dress that way both on and off. When I wore my soccer shorts to ultimate frisbee, I felt nearly naked- a distinctly odd feeling given the reality that I know I'm not being anywhere near immodest back home.
Medical and dental care to crew is included in crew fees. Two dollar prescriptions and the dentist or doctor is a few yards down the hall. The entire staff is made of people you eat, work, and play with. Especially in my case last week, you really couldn't ask for better care.
Wireless internet in common areas and access via hookup in the rooms. Nothing fast and no video streaming, downloads, or gaming allowed (takes up too much bandwidth), but you can upload photos and again, it's included in crew fees. Making and receiving calls is as if you're calling to Florida. A simple phone card and you're set without breaking the bank.
Two loads of laundry permitted a week (though it's based on the honor system, like much of life around here. I'll admit I'm pleasantly surprised at the success of it all.). There are times blocked out for ship laundry, and you need to sign up for times with the various machines, but no quarters required. Get your stuff out on time, though. If you leave it in too long, you'll likely find it in the ship boutique- a sort of give some/take some shop for odds and ends and clothes that get recycled as people come and go off the ship. Quite a helpful place really... but probably not where you want your favorite shirt to end up.
"Alone time" is also a different concept. While nobody may be in sight, give it a few minutes. Putting earbuds in is an acceptable way to indicate you don't want to interact but don't want to be in your room either. Gazing out the window or staring into space isn't necessarily a deterrent (and that's usually a good thing)- welcome to the hot-climate culture.
It's not unusual for alarms in the bowels of the ship to go off at all hours of the night and day. In fact, it's unusual to go for a sleep without hearing those freaky two-tone alarms that sound like something out of a horror movie at least once.
More to come I'm sure, but there you go for the moment!
No comments:
Post a Comment