Why is boredom the enemy of everything

Posted on Mon Jul 13th, 2026 @ 8:11am by Lieutenant JG Dan Murphy

349 words; about a 2 minute read

The hum of Starbase 84 is a monotonous, grating vibration that sits somewhere between a low-frequency hum and a death rattle. I’ve spent the better part of three weeks staring at the *USS Liberty’s* primary conduits while the dry-dock crews bumble about with plasma welders like they’re trying to perform open-heart surgery with a sledgehammer. It’s an exercise in monumental tedium. I’ve read the base’s entire technical database on warp core stabilization, memorized the tactical deployment schematics of four defunct Romulan cruiser classes, and successfully taught myself to play a passable game of Regency-era whist against a solitary, unresponsive computer terminal. If I have to explain the nuances of the Treaty of Alpha Centauri to one more junior ensign who thinks he’s a tactical genius, I might just jettison the base’s warp core myself, if only to introduce some much-needed excitement into this vacuum of a sector.

My career has been a tapestry of catastrophic successes and calculated risks, yet here I am, relegated to watching rust accumulate on a hull that’s seen better days. It’s enough to make a man—or a Lanthanite, for those keeping count—want to tear the bulkhead off with his bare hands just to feel the snap of cartilage. I’ve broken every bone in my body at least twice in the pursuit of results, yet the inactivity of a docking bay is far more lethal to my sanity than any skirmish at the border. "Patience is a virtue," the recruiters said. Absolute garbage. Patience is just a fancy word for waiting for the universe to stop being interesting. I’m currently contemplating whether it would be a violation of Starfleet protocol to 'accidentally' overclock the station's holodeck emitters to construct a scale model of an *Intrepid*-class engine assembly. Anything to keep the mind from rotting. If the *Liberty* isn't out of this glorified shipyard by the next cycle, I swear I’m going to start teaching the engineering crews real, hard-learned history—starting with the strategic blunders of the mid-22nd century.

 

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