JoeSpinsTheGlobe

This year has been super quiet actually, partially due to luck, partially due to the strict quarantining requirements from COVID. We've practically eliminated all infectious diseases on station.

Mostly we see minor traumas; broken toes, bumped heads, that kind of thing. Occasionally mental health and psych support, due to the isolation and darkness taking its toll on people.

But overall, this has been an exceptionally healthy group.

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No Things spotted but I thought I saw a dog running in the distance once....

People have different approaches to it. Some people who have flexible schedules just start going with whatever their body tells them, as far as sleep; i.e., they sleep when they're tired, stay awake while they're not. Some others, who have more (or want more) rigid schedules use some mild sleep aids to maintain a somewhat normal schedule.

Generally what I've noticed is that people (myself included) tend to be more tired and require more sleep as the dark months wear on. Some of that is due to symptoms of Seasonal Affective Disorder, which can be severe, but I think it's just a general trend in the human body being without sunlight.

Finally, there's the group of people who just follow the (fast-ish) satellite internet schedule, which is about 5 hours a day, and just sleep whenever is convenient outside those hours.

Sanity is kept the same way as anywhere; embrace your hobbies, keep in contact with those you care about, try to engage in the community, and try not to be a total hermit.

A lot! We do get fresh greens from our greenhouse, but many times it's a lot of stems and tough greens... so yeah I'd hold a penguin for ransom at this point for some fresh romaine or an apple.

It is so incredibly dry, generally hovering around 0% absolute humidity. In fact, I've opened a bag of chips, come back later and I could swear that they were crisper than when I opened them.

I had a tiny moment of stress as I saw the last plane leave for the season in February, but it was mostly drowned out by excitement. You just get used to it and don't think about it much anymore. Plus, the power plant has multiple backups and contingencies, so really the station systems are the least of my concerns.

I think it attracts people with a sense of adventure, people that want to experience the exotic or the extreme. I definitely fit into that category. There's also those people that just see it as a job.