Image Courtesy of Mert Kahveci on Unsplash
I had been wanting to immigrate forever, but I have few saleable skills and even less money. While every planet needs workers – secretaries, assemblers, warehouse, retail – the chance to jump to the New Edens (as the advertising says) is limited by those that own the transportation and the land at the end of the trip. Most planets are bought by corporations or by corporations which masquerade as a rich family lines, and these businesses usually have things all sewn up. They have the special worker they want, the technician or scientist, and the related family needed to keep him or her happy fills all the other slots in the worker class.
Long Loop is an exception. Though having twelve hard-to-find mineral, as well as an amazing crop of flora and fauna for medical experiments, it has two major disadvantages. A long loop, creating long seasons, and a planet tilt that makes Earth’s tilt seem cute. This put the planet in the “discount bin”; too many other better, safer options were being found by exploration teams for the rich corporations to care even a little about Long Loop.
A coalition of small-time investors took advantage low cost; the exploration team just wanted to make back enough money so they could afford to go out again. And I took advantage of Long Loop Incorporated need for basic workers.
I am a stupid ass human being.
Today is day thirteen of the sun not rising at my latitude, on a planet for thirty-four hour days.
So flipping tired.
(words 262, first published 1/2/2022)