More rooms on demand
The final box of “stuff” from the big box store has been carried in from the van, and you come to the realization that your “digs” are just too small for your consuming. The floor space has been reduced due to the furniture store visit, and the refrigerator is now difficult to explore. Oh for the good old days when the ‘fridge was a window toward the football field, and the only new stuff in view was a library book on short term loan. At times like this, wouldn’t it be nice if somebody would show up and attach some additional rooms?
In the case of the ISS, that’s exactly how it works. Sometime during the night/day/night a big white transporter arrives, opens its storage area and out pops a new room or two. Some fiddling with fancy wrenches, a few pokes and pops; bingo, more space (if you’ll excuse the pun). No need to paint, because some dedicated techs took care of that detail at the other end. Sounds like the answer to the problem of too much stuff. In fact, that’s happening right now. I’d go outside and have a look, but the binoculars are missing among all the other belongings.
The devil is in the details. Apparently the cost is, well, out of this world. So far, no accurate pricing has been possible, due to currencies in free fall and jurisdictional difference (does it cost less for a hammer in Moscow than in Dallas?). One number floated on Wikipedia was $130 billion, and the “apartment” might lose its tenants in 2010. I wonder if the public transit situation will improve between now and then? It could be an interesting “fixer-upper”, and from all reports, the view is awesome.
