These are things I miss: cats and dogs, beds, and hot showers.

They've sent dogs to space before, but it's not really a good place for them. It's hard to run without gravity and there is not enough to smell in a spaceship.

Cats would put up with none of the hassles of space travel. They've conquered one planet and that is enough.

Gravity is what is missing from sleep and bathing here - real gravity, not ship's weak gravity. Here I do not feel a mattress pushing against me, or the soothing weight of blankets. Sleeping while floating is restful and pleasant, but it's not the same.

Likewise the ship's bathing facilities clean, but lack the invigorating qualities of hot showers. I miss the impact of droplets, the punctuating massage, the steam, the contrast between the hot water and the cool bathroom air, the sound of falling water.

I also miss the rain.