Sol Summary – November 5th

Sol# 43

Person filling out report: Annalea Beattie

Summary Title: A day off here

Mission Status: resting

Sol Activity Summary:

Slept in today, just woke in my loft late to hear the Canadian Space Agency camp crackling away quietly on the shortwave.

Coffee, pancakes and here we are, yes, it’s our day off.

A day off means different things to different people.

On Earth and on Mars, it’s two quite unrelated worlds. Does recreation means something different when you are isolated and confined inside in a small container with six others in a huge extreme desert? What do you actually do when you can’t go outside because the toxic air will kill you?

Much the same really, but you don’t go outside. Alex skipped for the first hour of his day in the greenhouse and cooked lunch. Most of us had a sleep. Jon did his washing and Anastasiya read. Claude-Michel played computer games, Anu wrote to her family and I wrote poetry. Yusuke made a photo book. We watched the weather and cooked pin wheel scones for afternoon tea. Now we have begun the next cooking phase for tea – butter chicken, fenugreek rice and pooris. Early night, perhaps a movie.

A lovely tranquil day of rest here at MDRS.

MDRS lessons:

Just relax on your day off.  Cook something, have a nap, chill out.

Plans: EVA tomorrow – weather permitting, the third of our sim/non sim science operations trial/

Crew Physical Status: Healthy and relaxed.

Weather: Rain overnight.

Anomalies: Nope.