Name that book

[flick]

Failing generation star ship that actually turns out to be a prison ship in orbit around Earth, which kinda explains why the society is so seriously unpleasant and criminal. Weird religious women live in the upper levels, possibly in the dark, and they have a Token Male who must Suffer on behalf of all men (eg, leather collar with broken glass on the inside). Particularly nasty criminal gangs live at the bottom. Everyone else huddles in between and, eg, trades for old pairs of shoes. Some of them use the guards' shuttle to go back to Earth, where they're arrested (? taken away, anyway) even though they were born on the ship. Ring any bells? Edit: James P Smythe: Way Down Dark, thank you groliffe!

This morning, we had a riding lesson. It was a bit damp, but we went ahead with it anyway for about five minutes. Then it started hailing, the mares over the road went nuts, Benny froze and looked terrified, and we gave up. (On the plus side, that was the absolute worst behaviour I've ever seen from him, and he was perfectly safe and didn't do anything except panic quietly.)

Benny also had a visit from the dentist today, which he did not like at all, although he again wasn't in any way dangerous. Dentist has done enough to sort him out but would like him to be sedated for next year's visit so that he can get it really perfect and just needing a bit of maintenance subsequently.

Mike says that I am weird because my stomach hurts when I'm hungry.

Poll #19267

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 20

View Respondents

Does your stomach hurt when you get hungry?

View Answers

Yes
7 (35.0%)

No
13 (65.0%)

Comments

[birguslatro]

Great scenario for a book Flick, so yes, write it!

[vicarage]

Mike's robot programming has a flaw then...

[damerell]

... no. This seemed familiar, but I was thinking of Non-Stop, where it does turn out they're at Earth, but the rest is different.

Sounds like

[groliffe]

James P Smythe: Way Down Dark

Re: Sounds like

[flick]

That's the one! Thank you!

Ooh, and there are two more in the series, as well: to the Kindle Store!

[clothsprogs]

I don't often get hungry - I've been known to go three days or more without noticing I havent' eaten if I get caught up in a project... by the same token, however, I can easily over-eat because I don't have much of the mechanism that tells me I'm full.

Teddy

[anef]

I wouldn't say my stomach hurts, exactly, when I get hungry, but there's a definite feeling of discomfort which reminds me every so often, and with increasing urgency.

[momentsmusicaux]

My stomach doesn't hurt immediately, but after half an hour to an hour, it'll start to get painful and that'll increase.

There are people who don't feel hunger as pain no matter how long they don't eat for???

[flick]

So my husband claims!

[momentsmusicaux]

So... is it that he just takes much longer to feel discomfort from hunger, and has never reached that point, or his stomach just doesn't work the same way, and he could starve himself to death and not feel it?

What's the longest he's gone without eating?

[drplokta]

I never said I don't feel discomfort when hungry. Hunger is a form of discomfort, but it's a different kind of discomfort from pain, and easily distinguishable from it.

[momentsmusicaux]

But if you increased the level of it, wouldn't it eventually be considered pain?

If I walk with a stone in my shoe, it's discomfort at first, and if I keep going, it turns to pain.