Space is for the Birds

Day 2: Target Acquired
Excerpt from the Personal Journal of Rio J. Park

Well, day two in our new little solar system has at least been eventful: one of my algae tanks is behaving strangely, and I managed to lose my chickens.

I can’t take full credit. It was a joint project. Mars and I talked about it all during training but of course we didn’t think Mission Command would go for it – they barely let me bring chickens at all. It was better, we thought, to try it later than to ask and be told no.

70 is perhaps not so far from 30 as I might wish.

Anyway, yesterday – when we were twiddling our thumbs, waiting for the sensors to calibrate – we made them: little badges for the chickens that trigger the ship’s automatic doors. I had just clipped the prototypes on to my two brightest birds when the morning meeting was called.

All I can say is the project was a giant success from a technological standpoint, but I’m afraid our little crew’s morale might not be able to take anymore breakthroughs of this nature.

Nor can my knees. Chickens are rather messy creatures.

Everything is calm now. Lights out was five minutes ago and the only sound is of the Bon Ki herself, humming gently. I think tomorrow I’ll prep a mini-tank and mix some of strand A with the strange algae, to see if it reverts to normal.

I bet Fatimah is in the obv-pod again. I wonder if I have a poem that would suit it – or would it be just as unwelcome as a feathered friend?

What about a human friend?