Yeah, I can imagine how embarrassing it must be for an Antarctic researcher to walk into the CVS pharmacy near the south pole and have to buy condoms:One of the last shipments to a U.S. research base in Antarctica before the onset of winter darkness was a year's supply of condoms, a New Zealand newspaper reported Monday.
Bill Henriksen, the manager of the McMurdo base station, said nearly 16,500 condoms were delivered last month and would be made available, free of charge, to staff throughout the year to avoid the potential embarrassment of having to buy them.
"Hey, Janet, this guy wants to buy a package of Trojan XTra Loob Ribbed condoms, but the register isn't scanning it. What do I do?"
"What? I'm sorry, Harry, I can't hear you over there; could you talk louder? What'd you say?"
"I said, this guy wants to buy a package of Trojan XTra Loob Ribbed condoms, but the register isn't scanning it. What do I do?"
"Hang on, I'll page the store manager."
"Sandra, please report to register three for price check on Trojan XTra Loob Ribbed condoms; customer is getting impatient..."
If nobody can see you buying the condoms, why should you be embarrassed?The base only has a skeleton staff through the long winter.
"Since everybody knows everyone, it becomes a little bit uncomfortable," Henriksen told the Southland Times newspaper.
About 125 scientists and staff are stationed at McMurdo base, the largest community in Antarctica, during the winter months when there is constant darkness.
And once perpetual darkness ends, condom-using activity will presumably drop off...The first sunrise will occur on August 20 and McMurdo's population will start to increase again in September when supply flights resume, peaking at more than 1,000 during the summer period.