Nicholas van Rijn appreciates his:
"'...first beer of the day...'" (p. 559)
Jeri Kofoed points out that he drank one:
"'Two hours ago -'" (ibid.)
Van Rijn replies that two hours ago was before midnight if not by Greenwich time, then on some other planet. He has a point. Time of the day is on planets and they are not on a planet. There are also factors like the relativity of simultaneity and the non-relativistic quantum hyperdrive. Interstellar travelers do not transcend time as such but they can regard themselves as always starting "'...a new day.'" (p. 560)
There is something else about drinking in space and this belongs in the Never Waste A Good Idea Department:
"Van Rijn swore as the visual showed him Dorcas, out of her harness and raving around his cabin in utter hysterics. Why, she might spill all his remaining liquor, and Antares still eleven days off!"
-Poul Anderson, "Margin of Profit," p. 163.
"'Wha-a-a-t?' Echoes flew around van Rijn's scream. 'You mean...you mean...a month in space...and nothing for drinking except - Not even any beer?'
"The next half-hour was indescribable."
-Poul Anderson, Satan's World IN Anderson, David Falkayn: Star Trader (Riverdale, NY, 2010), pp. 329-598 AT XXV, p. 595.
"This happened shortly after the Satan episode, when the owner of Solar Spice & Liquors had found it needful once more to leave the comforts of the Commonwealth, risk his thick neck on a cheerless world, and finally make a month-long voyage in a ship which had run out of beer. Returned home, he swore by all that was holy and much that was not: Never again!"
-Poul Anderson, "Lodestar" IN David Falkayn: Star Trader, pp. 631-682 AT 639.
5 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
But the thing to keep in mind is that human crewed space ships would almost certainly use a system of "ship time" based on the 24 hours of an Earth day. Probably using military time; meaning that "noon" on a ship would be 1200 hours. And I'm sure other star faring races like the Merseians did the same, using the standard days of their planets.
Old Nick's exaggerated and sometimes partly faked histrionics always makes me smile or laugh. And that scene near the end of SATAN'S WORLD when he found out there would be no booze for a month has made me think, if I had been there with a couple of bottles of beer, I would sell them to him for 100,000 credits! (Smiles)
More wails and lamentations from Old Nick! (Laughs)
Ad astra! Sean
Sean,
Of course the ship would have a day cycle but van Rijn is a law unto himself. Now that I am retired, I can look at my watch, see that it is 2.00 pm and say, "Oh, it's getting late in the day!"
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
Even with the fewer daylight hours of winter, 2 PM does not seem very late to me! (Smiles)
Yes, Old Nick is a law unto himself!
Ad astra! Sean
BTW, just as an aside, I'd expect metabolic control to be good enough by then that nobody would be fat unless they wanted to be.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
Good point! I remember seeing something like that in your book DRAKON.
Ad astra! Sean
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