28 August 2026
Friday. Lab number four, if you count the one under Perth’s city centre that we packed up in 2024. Three, if you count the ones still standing. I count everything. It is a scientific habit.
Melbourne. Collins Street, a short stroll from Flinders Street Station. The space is snugger than the others, which I am choosing to call efficient. Gerald’s chamber fits. Gerald’s attitude barely does.
The Melbourne staff price their sessions as peak or off-peak, and the booking calendar shows which is which beside every time. I asked why. They said a Friday evening is more popular than a Tuesday morning. I said that is not science. They showed me a graph. It was science.
The first Melbourne team came out blinking, said it was the most frightening hour of their lives, and asked where to get dinner. Survivors are remarkably resilient about dinner.
I have written to Melbourne to ask whether they need a storeroom with biscuits in it. No reply. I assume the line is busy.
— Dr Morrow, Storeroom B
