Posted by Civilian T’Pris (Scientist) in Department Check In:TAG CSO

Posted by Lieutenant Darklis Castle (Chief Science Officer) in Department Check In:TAG CSO

Posted by Civilian T’Pris (Scientist) in Department Check In:TAG CSO
Posted by… suppressed (5) by the Post Ghost! 👻
snip
Darklis had always been totally on the fence with regards to her family history and the mystical dabblings that that had undertaken through the years. On one side she was fascinated with it and her rational mind wanted to delve in to find the secrets of it, but, like a magic trick, knowing would just spoil it, so she had resisted peering too deeply into that caldron. On the other side she wanted to move away from that into more empirical sciences that did not have the snake oil salesman tag attached to it. That being said she found herself leaning in at what T’Pris said, a certain professional (?) fascination slipping in. “Oh? Do tell, what do they use? And what state?”
- Darklis

“Mostly natural roots that have a bit of a sedative effect, enough to relax the body and mind to allow for easier meditation.”

~Dr. T’Pris

“How are they prepared?” she asked, a touch disappointed at the vagueness of the answer. “Our family had more of a potion specialty but dabbled in smoke. Not a kind of smoking to inhale; that went out mostly with good sense.” Well, in the more urban centers. Go rural and you had a plethora of pipes sprouting up like so many personal chimneys. “I mean as a kind of burning or incense.”
- Darklis

T’Pris arched an eyebrow, “ It is still technically inhaled.” She said dryly. Was that humor? It might well be, but hard to tell with her straight face. “Cholla root was one. It has pain relieving and antibiotic properties when made into a paste but soporific properties if it is boiled, strained and ingested.”

~Dr. T’Pris

DC’s lips curled up into a smile. “Yes,” she said relating to her .. dry humor statement?

“Cholla root,” she said, mulling over what it did. It seemed a standard pharmaceutical. Honestly what more would one expect from Vulcans in practicality and functionality and certainly nothing that would let them ‘lose it’ in their emotions. “A very useful root. On Wolf there is a leaf of the Bruel bush. It is a prickly bush and bitter when boiled, but when burned and inhaled it is sweeter. Boiled down it makes a plaster to put over small wounds, drank as a soup is bitter but sooths the stomach, but inhaled is almost a psychedelic.”
- Darklis, CSO

“Fascinating, I have never understood the penchant that a number of races have to enjoy such ‘psychedelics’. Why would one wish to alter one’s mind state so much that one is unaware of the real world, so to speak?”

~Dr. T’Pris

‘Hey don’t knock it,’ Darklis thought, though she was aware, at least she supposed, of what T’Pris was getting at. “Moderation is always the key, or at least that what they say.” She shrugged. “But hey, synthehol is not much different - only in that it passed some of the health and safety standards wherein one can knock it off. I take it that you don’t do that?”
- Darklis

“Drink synthehol? On social occasions, if it is needful I will sip it.”

~Dr. T’Pris

Darklis furrowed her brow. Needful? She leaned in cupping her chin in her palm. “I grew up with wine,” she said. “It was a family staple. I think if you said that to my mother she would be utterly dumbfounded and wondering what possibly would constitute need. That simply was, like water or bread, sarmale, cheese pie .. ” She blinked, and was getting hungry all of a sudden. “What do you do when you Vulcan girls get together for a chin wag? Fun foods? Drinks? You know when you let your hair down and chat about things.”
- Darklis

T’Pris blink at Darklis’ use of idioms and took a moment to try and parse out what the other woman was trying to say. “We do have social interactions. If it is an official event there may be Vulcan brandy or spiced tea served. If it is a more personal interaction then we usually serve tea.”

~Dr. T’Pris

Darklis worked her mind around that. Brandy at something formal and tea at informal. Seemed a bit reversed to her. Vulcan brandy? Nobody had ever brought that up before. It seemed to be counter-intuitive. Brandy would bring out emotions or at least a way of letting out even a little those things that were usually inhibited. DC thought that Vulcans would want to avoid anything related to opening that Pandora’s box of emotions. Especially in an official formal event. “I have only ever seen Vulcans drink tea or juices or water. I’ve never heard of brandy. How .. ” she paused and sought a word then just barreled on .. “how does that work with your mental disciplines? Doesn’t brandy cause that to .. you know, slip?”
- Darklis

“One the contrary, alcohol has no inebriating effects on Vulcan whatsoever. Confection or anything made from sugar on the other hand can have an inebriating effect on us. Vulcans do not drink for the same reason that humans drink, when we do consume alcohol it is for a ceremonial reason only which is why you see us abstaining.”

~Dr. T’Pris

Darklis had not heard that. Note to self: no drinking games with T’Pris. So Christmas cookies were out then. She would have to strike that from her list but would still have that plate of killer shortbread that she learned to make about the lab. Comparative biology was a class that Darklis barely got through. Not so much on marks but on staying awake. Still, they didn’t go into any juicy details about effects of alcohol on others. But her statement led up to another question. “Do you have many ceremonies? Are occasions different from ceremonies? I imagine you must be amazed by all the various reasons and occasions that humans generate for reasons to celebrate.”

Darklis

“Humans do seem to have a great number of ceremonies. We have a few traditions that have survived through the centuries such as a water ceremony that is used to welcome guests to our homes, a tea ceremony that is used in marriage ceremonies, and the rather famous Koon-ut-kal-if-fee or mating ritual are a few of ours.”

~Dr. T’Pris

“Going out on a limb here but I am thinking that most of your ceremonies are pretty ancient and as progress has unfolded some have been lost to antiquity? Kinda like family recipes that don’t get passed down and become legend then myth?” That was the thing with knowledge and skill and simple horse sense. If it didn’t get passed down for whatever reason (or it did and was discarded or forgotten!) then that was that.
- Darklis

“More than likely, it is not a subject that I have studied.” T’Pris responded. “Do you and family traditions that you are fond of yourself?”
~Dr. T’Pris

OOC: Er, thinking on this one .. Gene