BlogTrek: The Next TRANSformation

Captain’s Log: Stardate 07102021.7

Once again, the quadrant is being affected by intense interstellar radiation (very hot temperatures). Still, my expertise was needed at the Quadrotriticale (rice) shipping facility at Wesac 8. As I arrived, I was told of a potential disaster in the making when some baby tribbles were spotted near the Quadrotriticale site

I set out to administer neoethylene to the tribbles; a compound made by Dr. McCoy that drastically slows the tribble metabolism and ability to reproduce. After completing the mission at hand, I was tempted to keep one myself as they are very pleasing to touch tacitly. I remembered how much trouble they caused on the U.S.S. Enterprise and decided against keeping.

After neutralizing the tribble threat, I undertook a brief study of the local aquatic fowl before returning to my shuttlecraft. Aboard the ship, I felt compelled by the prophets to visit Bajor (church). For context, I hadn’t been to Bajor in at least a dozen years. Additionally, I wasn’t dressed in typical Bajoran garb. (I was wearing a somewhat short skirt). Still, I wanted to have my orb experience and set out to arrive just before services began.

I felt a bit weird at first as I was dressed in my Starfleet uniform and stood out relative to the rest of the attendees. Still, I was resolved to listen to the vedek (priest) and have an interaction with the prophets. I felt the wormhole aliens wouldn’t care what I wearing. I wasn’t sure what I was looking to get out the experience, only that I felt I should be there. This was the first time I’ve visited Bajor not on a mission from my superior officer (there because of my mom) nor there with some sort of ulterior purpose (such as socializing). I filled out a card and went in.

I snuck into the back of the temple hoping to draw as little attention as possible. At first, I was a bit bored but resolved to continue. I went to the bathroom during a break. Upon returning, most of the back pews were taken and I had no choice but to be just 2 rows from the front. My name was called. I then remembered that card I filled out. Ah crap, so much for being unnoticed. The vedek calls out my name again, asking if I am there. I sheepishly raise my hand. My cheeks get flushed as I can feel all the eyes on me. The vedek briefly thanks me for attending and moves on to speaking.

The sermon itself wasn’t that great; it felt like an intro psychology class. The fundamentals were sound but I felt the thrust of the sermon was a bit oversimplified. Nonetheless, I did feel something. I still have a bit of a hard time knowing what to believe, but it was a positive experience and that is what I will take away from this.

My training as a Starfleet officer tells me that Truth is something that must hold up under the scrutiny of scientific rigor. Yet, I am unsure what to make of the anecdotal experiences that have got me to this point. By definition, I am in a state of cognitive dissonance. These 2 philosophies seem to contradict each other. The “logical” solution would be that both have elements of Truth and work in harmony with each other. Just…this cognitive dissonance has caused me so much anxiety.

I felt much more comfortable when I thought I knew what was and wasn’t true. It doesn’t help that I continue to feel toyed with in a number of ways. I can’t be sure if the correlations I’m making are correct or not. There is definitely reason to believe that perhaps I altered my neuropathic connections due to artificially introducing dopamine into the synapses. Its bad enough that I don’t have an extensive social network, I’d rather not feel at odds with myself as well. For now, I still trust my judgement though I am always open to being wrong. I don’t want to become some delusional old lady insisting on something that has little or no basis in reality. I just wish, if anything, I had certainty again.

Rereading this I am reminded of the Data quote when Picard asks what the scanners show and Data says, “I don’t know”? And Picard replys, “what do you mean you don’t know?!”

Data responds, “The most elementary and valuable statement in science, the beginning of wisdom is ‘I do not know’. I do not know what that is.”

That’s how I feel about existence.

Here’s the clip: https://youtu.be/8eDYVtPwWiM

Captain’s Log, Supplemental

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I decided to visit Starfleet Academy (my old uni) on a whim. A lot of memories come to mind when I’m here, mostly good. Being accepted into Starfleet was always a hope of mine growing up. Having the love of my life with me was a dream come true. When I look back on those memories, I think about the times we would go study in the library together, how we would bring lunch for each other, and how we got to cross the stage holding hands. We were so optimistic for the future back then. Had we known at the time that she’d be dead 8 years later and that none of our dreams came true, I wonder what we would have done differently

One thing I always try to be mindful of when thinking about how changing the timeline would impact the future is the unintended negative impacts such a thing would cause. If Q could teleport me back in time, what happens to my kids as they are? Do they cease to exist or would they carry on in this timeline just without me. Either result would be incredibly selfish. Not to mention all the people I’ve helped from then on to now; I probably wouldn’t have encountered most of the people I’ve helped change for the better. And to go back to the question, what do I do differently assuming I could freeze this timeline to take an alternate course of action

I guess in an ideal universe, I would be able to bring that Michelle to this future so she could at least watch her kids grow up. Aside from trying to bring her to the future, I wouldn’t change much just to not ruin how the kids came out. She didn’t accept me being trans. I don’t think that I would’ve stayed with her. We were very good friends however and I probably would try to have her as a roommate because if there was one person I could trust in this world,it was her.

I spent so much time with Michelle I’m not used to socializing with other people. Took for granted how easy it was for me to talk with her. She was an intellectual peer, had a lot of the same interests and I knew I could count on her when things were serious. She wasn’t without her faults but I do wish I could walk with her out here and have a long conversation about everything that has happened and then have her spend time with the family.

Captain’s Log, Stardate 07052021.6:

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Our ship rendezvoused with the USS Playworld near the Yol expanse (county) for an urgent meeting with Vice Admiral Robertson. From there, I was briefed about the need to retrieve an experimental nucleogenic weapon being developed by the Cardassians that could change the balance of power in the region.

My crew and I were given the coordinates to a location believed to house the weapon. As we took our shuttlecraft down to the nearby planet of Bryce 2 (park), the shuttlecraft came under heavy weapons fire and we had to evacuate via the escapes pods

Upon landing on the surface, the crew of the ship that fired upon us captured my first officer and imprisoned her. I set out to free her, get the weapon and leave the planet.

A local inhabitant helped me disable the holding cell officer Bella was in. The three of us went to the coordinates provided by the vice admiral via a speeder bike. We managed to take the device and began to flee the scene when the local fell behind. Bella and I had to circle back around for the girl.

We managed to escape from the Cardassians and returned to our ship. The balance of power in the quadrant remains firmly tilted towards the Federation, for now.

Back on the ship (at home), I ended up matching with someone on the intergalactic dating exchange and ended up having a bit of a negative interaction. I matched up with some guy that had scant profile information but seemed cute enough. He sent me his phone number and he called me up. After talking less than 5 minutes, he was pushing to meet. He asked what outpost (store) I was near and I was vague. He got frustrated with me for being vague and lashed out, saying that my paranoia wasn’t attractive.

For a moment, I began to second guess myself. I asked the opinion of other captains on Starfleet media (twitter) and the resounding consensus was that I was right in being cautious and dodged a bullet. Although I was reassured by the responses, I couldn’t help but question my own judgement. His scant profile information should’ve been a red flag in of itself. The fact that he pressed me to be more specific when I wasn’t ready should’ve caused my instincts to be kick in and be more assertive. I think lately I’ve been a bit too liberal in terms of who I’ve swiped towards just so I could meet someone in person. I’ve grown weary of long distance attempts I’ve tried with Eric, Greg and a couple others on and off. Plus, a crew compliment of 4 AND being Trill (trans), my dating options are limited.

Us swinging back around for the local inhabitant. This ride was fun as heck!!

Too often, it seems that us Trill are treated like we’re some sort of sexual frontier; a means to satisfy a curiosity or fetish. Even here in the 24th century, we’re usually portrayed as some sort of deviants living on the edges of society or too often, as a deranged villian. If there is a mainstream movie that portrays the Trill as the main hero, I sure as heck haven’t seen it. I guess what bothers me too is that to some extent, some of the Trill I have encountered do in fact relish their role as objects of desire. They even emphasize their hypersexuality. Yet, I don’t judge them. Early on, I was a lot more sexually provocative just so I could feel validated by others. It’s nice to feel wanted.

Most of my life, I’ve felt invisible and unable to fully express myself. Still, I am a full-fleshed out person that craves intellectual stimulation, emotional intimacy, a spiritual connection in addition to sex. Moreover, I have 3 subordinates under my charge. I would love to have someone I trust being around them. I so very much long for the full family experience. I suppose that is what I thought it could be with General Brandi. I even put up with Captain Eric’s lies and shenanigans for much longer than I should’ve. I feel destined to be alone and it saddens me. I’m trying to remain optimistic and count my blessings. This crew needs me to lead them confidently into the future and that I shall.

Captain’s Log, Stardate 07032021:

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After picking up some supplies from the Raley outpost (store) in the Wesac (city) solar system, we discovered another class M planet (a park) in the adjoining Solpor (city) star system. We then decided to orbit the planet after our initial probe sent back this lovely image.

My first officer took an away team to get a closer look at the unique geographic features.

My badly photoshopped pic of Bella on a “shuttlecraft”

The planet has several unusually small caverns as well an unorthodox labyrinthlike arrangement of iron ingots. The crew proceeded to take some soil samples before concluding their work.

The crew and I rested on the dock for a bit before returning to our shuttlecraft (the car). On our way back to the ship (home), I was asked the uncomfortable question of when or if we were gonna one day gonna have a nice Galaxy class ship (house). I attempted to redirect the question by indicating that our Miranda class ship (apartment) had all the necessary amenities that a crew needed. Then of course, the question shifted to what if. As captain, I don’t like engaging in what if scenarios. The future is unpredictable. I’m typically pessimistic mostly as a defense mechanism about getting my hopes up but I don’t like to share that with the crew. Instead, I indicated to the crew that a galaxy class ship would be nice but emphasized that my priorities are more focused on how well we work as a crew and completing any missions (responsibilities) assigned to us by Starfleet.

Back aboard the ship (at home), I was contacted by General Brandi of the Klingons and later, Captain Eric of the Whiskians. Brandi and I are barely on speaking terms but I have tried to go out my way to be forgiving and friendly. Supposedly, her shipless “friend” took some items of worth from Brandi’s ship while she was in the Alpha Quadrant (at my place) and took off. Additionally, we once again went back and forth as to why we don’t get along. I don’t want to be closely aligned (get back together) with the Klingons. I can forgive the past, but it does not mean I don’t learn lessons from the past and keep my distance from hostile civilizations (people).

Speaking with Captain Eric is always a bit of a surreal experience. Just the way he carries himself over subspace (the phone) , it’s very different than the dynamic I have with anyone else. Chancellor Greg refers to him as Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde and it serves as shorthand for what I should expect from the captain. Today I mostly got to speak with Dr. Jekyll. Eric was lucid, funny, poignant and sweet. Just describing the dynamic between Brandi and I to him, I couldn’t help but realize how unhealthy it is. Like I told Eric, I was just having a case of pon farr (horniness). Still, I can’t help but think I opened a door to something I shouldn’t have. Brandi has strong feelings for me but they are unrequited….As for Eric, I’m at an emotional stalemate with him as far as I’m concerned until I meet him in person. He’s a good, if at times volatile, friend and that’s what we’ll continue to be until further notice.

Aside from them, I did have a bit of a skirmish with Ambassador Ray. For the sake of our uneasy alliance (friendship), I will be opaque about the specifics of the disagreement. Getting into a skirmish with the ambassador is very different than with others as he doesn’t come in with weapons armed and shields raised (isn’t outright hostile). Instead, it’s like having a disagreement with Garak; there’s a lot of subtext ,implications and plausible deniability. For a moment early on, he tried to turn the disagreement into a wider conflict that would’ve dragged others into the dispute but wisely unsent some of his subspace transmissions (texts). He never did officially concede the point but did back down. I was quite tempted to post the log of our conversation as it would shine a very different light on him. Posting the logs would’ve nuked our alliance though and end of the day I still am optimistic that our alliance is a slight net positive. Plus, I rather not bring negativity to others if I can help it.

Lastly, I need to remember to stick to the main mission objectives as outlined by Starfleet. I’ve let myself get sidetracked by others and need to stay focused. I have a major presentation before the Daystrom Institute (the IDIC podcast) on the 17th and other responsibilities I am tasked with completing. Time to raise shields, get to work and only respond to priority one transmissions.

Captain’s Log Stardate 06302021.6

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I was in my quarters when I was hailed (called) by General Brandi of the Klingon Empire. The general (my ex) requested permission to pass through Federation space (she wanted to come over). Given our past skirmishes, I was leery but was open to trying to reestablish diplomatic relations (be friends) especially due the fact that the sibling of the Klingon, Admiral Steve, was hospitalized due to a heart condition at a nearby Federation medical facility.

The crew was briefed on the arrival of General Brandi and had mixed reactions. As the IKS St’wer (her car) docked, I began to second guess myself. As much as both of us have tried to get along, we mostly have ended up exchanging weapons fire (arguing) after too long. Things started out rough. First officer Bella was not pleased seeing Brandi on our ship (in my room); she immediately pulled out a phaser and opened fire on the Klingon. The general took out her bat’leth to deflect the blast and seemed poised to engage in battle but withdrew to her vessel before things could escalate. (They began to argue) I wasn’t too pleased because I wanted to formalize a peace treaty. Though my first officer did initiate the skirmish, I felt a bit upset at Brandi for not having a bit more composure and adeptness at dealing with my officer. The general later voiced the opinion that I should’ve reprimanded my officer more harshly in order to discourage insubordination. I took their advice under consideration but ultimately didn’t want to come down hard as it would look like I was taking sides instead of mediating.

As we sat down for negotiations (to talk), Brandi shared with me that she was once again on the ketrical white (meth). I wasn’t thrilled about it but I appreciated her honesty. The thought of using ketrical white has crossed my mind but thus far I have remained strong. Later, our conversation shifted to clothes. The general is very much into fashion and always has an abundance of new outfits. As more time passed, well….a touch of pon farr (horniness) afflicted both of us! At first I just wanted to cuddle…but decided to just go for it.

The morning after, Brandi and I did our own chores seperately. I thought Brandi would go visit her brother but couldn’t. When the general did return, she got into it again with Bella. I talked with Bella in order to reassure her and then decided to go to Yamca 4 (has a pool). I was a bit surprised that Brandi wanted to go. Nonetheless, we go in separate vessels to the planet to swim. Bella and Brandi seemed to get along well. After the swim, dinner was made and Brandi and I decided to go out to the Badlands for drinks.

Being in the Klingon ship (her car), I felt like I had entered a temporal anomaly. It felt like old times, both good and bad. I put on my music and began to sing. Like old times, she began to try to redirect my attention by asking me irrelevant questions to engage me. Usually, when flying through interstellar space (on the freeway), I prefer to sing. The General prefers conversation. I know she isn’t a fan of me singing over the music but well..whatever. Aside from that, we had a good time…or maybe it was the fact that I was rather drunk after having several servings of Klingon ale! Whatever the case, things were jovial by the time we left Quarks bar.

The general stayed for another stardate then woke up early to do some more errands. Brandi still hasn’t been able to see her brother. Brandi and I still have some old disagreements that came up this afternoon about what led us to breaking up. She still wishes to join the Federation (get back together) though thus far I have rebuffed the Klingons. I think an uneasy alliance with an ahem, trade agreement (fwb), is probably the best course of action for now at least until I find a more suitable partner to admit into the Federation.

Aside from that, nothing much else to note. I haven’t heard from Captain Eric since our skirmish. I did tell the Whiskian that I just couldn’t endure anymore volatility from him and that I didn’t trust him. A face-to-face meeting could resolve things but for the time being, I’m not going to spend credits on flying halfway across the galaxy (the country) to see him. I’m still trying to find the credits to show up to the Star Trek Las Vegas festival taking place in August. At this point, I think I can possibly go; assuming nothing drastic happens financially.

Captain’s Log Supplemental:

General Brandi read my log and became upset. I moved to reassure Brandi but she wasn’t comforted. Brandi wasn’t pleased by the fact that I didn’t write more fondly of our time together and was upset that I said that I wanted to find a more suitable partner. The general left Federation space (my area) and then called later. Old arguments resumed and after the Klingon kept cutting off communications (kept hanging up on me) I blocked their subspace transmissions (their phone calls) from reaching my ship.

I sometimes question whether I should be sharing my logs with individuals that know me in real life as it has caused issues before. On one hand, I want people to know me on a deeper level and I try to be honest about my feelings here. On the other hand, my honesty has costed me at times. For the time being, I will still continue to share my logs but I’m definitely going to be a bit more cautious with whom I share the entries with.

Completely irrelevant to anything but I found this dress and I don’t have anyone to gush about it with irl so yeah. It’s too small, I need a seamstress to fix it but my god I just love it. Idk where I would wear this to but imma find an excuse now that I got it,.and it only costed $10

Captain’s Log Stardate 06272021.9

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First officer Bella has temporarily been reassigned to the USS Martinez. That ship, commanded by Captain Vanessa, is undertaking an archeological study of the Mugato at SanFrans4. The crew has already published some preliminary findings which are challenging the Daystrom Institution’s previous assessment that the Mugato are always hostile to humanoids.

Given that my first officer isn’t here, I’ve had more time to reflect back on the past. During my time as a cadet in Starfleet Academy (school), I had a lot of difficulty connecting with other cadets. I used to look jealously at various groups and long for the sort of joviality and closeness that seemed to come so naturally for them yet eluded me. I use to hold out hope that one day, once I graduated from academy, that I’d somehow find a group that I belonged to. At the very least, I hoped to command my own ship and have my own crew to do things with. Sure enough, I was granted command of the USS Zamora over 13 years ago with the birth of Commander Tino and it’s turned out better than expected. Still, my issues connecting with peers have persisted.

I’ve had a number of run-ins recently with several other captains. My renewed vigor to take on forces hostile to Federation values has resulted in some strained relations even with allies. Additionally, Captain Eric and I haven’t been on good terms. The Whiskian opened fired on my ship without provocation and I fired back; temporarily disabling his disruptors and communication array (blocked his calls). Eric is under a high degree of stress but that still didn’t justify his attacks. He subsequently apologized but next time he is in communication range, I will approach his ship under yellow alert. If I see him diverting power to his disruptors again, I will bring the bare the full force of the USS Zamora down on his ship. Thus far, I haven’t allocated weapons to max. Time will tell.

When I see this, I can’t help but think about a UFO launching site or UFO ship-building facility

One surprising development that happened recently was that I was re-invited to the United Commerce Coalition (a star trek chat room). Last time, I left the UCC in protest because I disagreed with the admittance of a specific civilization into the coalition. Also, I had some private disagreements with Ambassador Ray which, haven’t really been resolved per se but his pleasant disposition makes it easy to ignore. Aside from that, I do enjoy the group dynamics in general. We had some fruitful and entertaining conversations over voice chat. That, and my growing connection with Captain Scrappy and more broadly with Trek Twitter, has made me feel heartened and hopeful for the future.

Captain’s Personal Log

Religion, like any large assemblage of people, usually just ends up being used by those in leadership positions to pursue their own agenda under the guise of doing it on behalf of everyone else. Typically, only narcissist and thier sycophants/enablers are even able to get into those positions. Of course, there has to be token gestures of good/charity to maintain the support of the masses and to deflect criticism.

Additionally, in a number of countries, religion is monitored and even influenced by state actors to maintain their own power and prevent an insurrection. China is especially well-known for this. Modi in India also used religion to establish his influence. Thus, just based on those 2 counties, more than half of all humans have thier beliefs being influenced by secular forces. The right wing party here in the US also typically appeals to religion in order to maintain their career as politicians.

Now that in of itself is concerning. And then there’s science. Science has narrowed the scope of what could be caused by divine forces. From quantum mechanics to chemistry to geology, to biology, to astrophysics and the development of the universe.

Additionally, the way religion works is they start out by appealing to ur basic needs and by mostly saying true statements and interweaving those with dogma. Soon, many have trouble disentangling Truth from religion. And that for the most part lead me to being atheist, for 15+ years. I was quite sure this was a logical manner in which to analyze it all

I will say that I am no longer an atheist. I have at the very least experienced some form of advanced technology that is capable of things that are the stuff of science fiction. Now, one explanation could be that I have some sort of damage or misfiring in my neurotransmitters that has cause me to perceive something that isn’t happening in objective reality but nonetheless feels real because all we know is that which we perceive in the brain and if it brain is damaged, then ergo, u can’t trust it. And one can’t necessarily objectively evaluate their own mind. Thus I have to be open to that possiblity.

However, I do believe I am objective and lucid…and if it isn’t some advanced tech then it’s something happening on a spiritual level. In fact, I find it easier to talk about such things in that manner as it requires less objective proof when discussing it with others and given that many others have also had anecdotal experiences that parrelelled my own, I can’t easily dismiss the experiences of others that believe what they do

Captain’s Log Stardate 06202021

I set out for an early rendezvous with Trill (trans male) Counselor Godwin at Riverton 3. I wasn’t sure what to expect from the counselor as I had limited communication with the Trill before meeting (as friends). Usually, I do a lot more vetting of individuals I meet from the intergalactic dating exchange especially given that we didn’t meet in public location per se. Still, I’ve grown to trust my ability to assess others and felt safe meeting at Riverton 3. As we began our walk, we came across this memorial.

Directly opposite of the memorial was some baptism taking place in the distance. I was unable to discern what the letters spelled out but it appeared to be a proper name. The baptism seemed to foreshadow the spiritual conversation Godwin and I would have just shortly thereafter.

I’m always somewhat vague about the specifics when it comes to talking about my transition from atheist to a spiritual person. Its been a deeply personal journey that I always feel a bit uncomfortable talking about because I can’t objectively prove the various experiences that got me to this point. In fact, I still have a tad bit of skepticism about the very nature of the experiences I’ve had. I hope to one day be able to fully elaborate on them in the book that I look to finish writing. Once everything is meticulously detailed, my vagueness will make a lot more sense. After talking at length about his beliefs and mines, we also talked about being trans, raising children and what we’re looking for in a partner.

Godwin is probably the closest I’ve found to a peer in a long while. The counselor is quite emotionally mature and spiritually attuned. I think he’d make a great addition to any crew. That being said, we met under the condition of friendship because he is still technically married and is looking for a polyamorous relationship. I’m only looking to have one commanding officer and I’d rather not compete for the captain’s attention. I could see in his eyes during a moment of vulnerability that there’s still some emotional attachment to his wife; if only an attachment to what could’ve been as opposed to what is. With him going through a divorce, trying to get a doctorate degree and his other responsibilities, a friendship is probably the only dynamic he’d have for someone such as myself. I actually was a bit surprised that our interaction stayed entirely platonic; at some point I expected a subtle pass or compliment but our time came to a close without any flirtation occurring. Going forward, I do look forward to following Godwin’s journey and building our friendship.

The rest of the stardate was delightfully uneventful. I watched some Star Trek on the holodeck and rested. The crew was peaceful the entire day! I almost forgot I was a captain except for the bit of time I devoted to making dinner.

Captain’s Log Stardate 06182021

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Its been several days since I wrote a log entry. Once again, the quadrant has been affected by intense interstellar radiation (triple digit weather). With the conditions limiting my crew’s ability to explore the galaxy, we’ve spent a lot of time at Yamca 4 since they reopened their aquatic training program.

While on the planet, I can’t help but think of my late wife Michelle. We spent a lot of time together at Yamca 4. We discovered the planet almost 10 years ago. My entire crew learned to swim here and the inability to visit the planet during the pandemic was perhaps the biggest setback I dealt with because of covid. I’ve found myself having to redirect some of my thoughts while swimming in order to not get sad about the fact that she isn’t around to watch the kids grow up. I sometimes look at Bella and think about how Michelle would sometimes say, “I wish my brain was erased and I could have a new happy childhood” and I can’t help but to think about Michelle. First officer Bella looks remarkably similar to her (biological) mom and very much has a lot of her mannerisms and disposition. I sometimes can’t help but think that Bella is Michelle 2.0.

Aside from my time on Yamca 4, I’ve spent less time on the intergalactic dating exchange. As much as I’d like a partner to do activities with, I’ve mostly de-prioritized dating. I’m content just socializing with my crew. Nowadays, the rest of my socializing takes place online.

I continuously find myself drawn to wanting to be in a position to help someone. Given my aptitude for counseling, I usually end up trying to be a friendly ear and providing advice. There are times I’ve engaged adversaries, but as much as I enjoy educating and debating, I’ve learned that it can be fruitless sparing with individuals that aren’t arguing in good faith. Plus, as time has gone on, the fight in me has dissipated. A softness has pervaded my way of thinking. As a great many others have shown me love and support, I can’t help but want to emulate it. More and more I’ve come to understand that some may try to project negative judgements onto me, but ultimately I don’t have to let how their feeling affect how I view and feel about myself.

Captain’s Log Stardate 06122021

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My crew and I were set to rendezvous with other Starfleet Academy cadets (other students) at Ragwat 6 to attend a birthday party. My anxiety was quite high because I hadn’t presented as female to my oldest son’s middle school friends. I wasn’t worried as much about what they’d think of me; I was more concerned with the ramifications it could have for my crewman as he returned to Starfleet academy. I scheduled a meeting in the observation lounge in order to brief my crew and to assess their thoughts and feelings with me presenting as a Trill (trans). The crew was supportive and prepared for any negative repercussions. I was quite nervous as we touched down on Ragwat 6.

As we arrived to our coordinates, I sent out a subspace transmission to other captains on the Starfleet forums (Twitter) for a bit of support. I really wanted to hail someone directly but didn’t have the time. Nonetheless I was heartened by the rather large response I got from other captains. After some bureaucratic formalities, we were set to meet up with the other cadets.

The formal meeting itself went by much sooner than I anticipated. Almost immediately, everyone set off to go engage in the various aquatic activities available at Ragwat. The cadets were being supervised by another captain and I decided to squeeze in an assessment with a prospective crewman (a date in this instance). It was a decision I later regretted.

My son actually dated the girl on the bottom right last year, though it just sorta fell away

I set course for the McKines system and met with Chief Engineer Kevin. The engineer seems like a friendly enough individual though several of the things he said concerned me. For example, Kevin hadn’t registered his vessel (car) in the sector despite being here for 2 years. There was also a mention about a drinking habit that he believes he needs to get under better control. I was a bit displeased about these things but aside from that he seems earnest. It doesn’t hurt that he is handsome. I agreed to a second assessment (date) with him because he seems easy going and is a good listener. During our walk I snapped a few pictures of the sights we seen.

Once the assessment concluded, I set course back to Ragwat 6. I found that the main supervising officer wasn’t really keeping track of the cadets. Though I trust the judgement of my officers, I was a bit displeased that I had to retrieve the crew on my own. I wasn’t really in the mood to interact extensively with the other cadets or other senior officers. I gathered my crew and had them brief me on their experience.

I guess there were a few a whispers about me being “the dad” but nothing negative. Also, one of the girls said to my daughter, “Why is your dad dressed like a mom”? My son said he is undaunted by their opinions and if they are his friend that they won’t care about me. I was heartened to hear that he seemed emotionally hearty. We all beamed back to the ship as the day came to a close.