A Safari and and Orphanage

I had a blog written and almost ready to post when it suddenly and mysteriously was mostly deleted, (all but the opening statements).  I have no idea what happened but it is gone and I lost all my momentum and motivation to write it over again....sad days.  So, instead I will tell you about something else, until I can conjure up all that wit and humor that I was infusing in my last post which probably would be, in any other form, boring, ha ha!

Travis and I had the opportunity to join the field-school students for a little safari last week to a game conservancy about an hour away called Ol Pejeda.  It was pretty cool there!  The land was much more open than the land around Mpala (the ranch where the research center that I am staying at is located) and so you could see the animals really well as we drove around and there weren't many trees and bushes for them to hide behind.  There were tons of animals there and it was really fun to drive around and look at them. Elephants, zebra, impala, wart hogs, grants gazelles, water bucks, bush bucks, eland, lots of birds...and more. The two animals I hadn't seen yet were cape buffalo (they are so huge and mean looking) and rhinos (which are just incredibly enormous, crazy animals). I liked seeing the rhinos the best!  

The cute family of Black Rhino's we saw.

A melting pot of East African wildlife

He seems so uncomfortable:)  Another Black Rhino.

Don't mess with this cape buffalo! These guys are some of the
more dangerous ones out here.

Ol Pejeda game preserve is home to the endangered black rhino and southern white rhino.  But it is also home to 4 of the 7 remaining northern white rhinos on the planet.  The are making efforts to save them if they can.  Unfortunately they haven't been successful at fostering any offspring yet....but they still are hoping that it will happen.  Its crazy that we saw over half of the remaining population of this particular rhino left on the earth.  Rhinos have been in such decline due mostly to poaching and probably displacement.  Their horn is highly prized in certain parts of the world (like China) and it is big money for those who can supply (poach) them.  It is crazy to take down such a huge animal just to sell its horn. Unfortunately, these few species of rhino in particular are at risk to be completely annihilated if efforts are not taken to protect them.  They had one rhino on the preserve that is blind, named Baraka, who they keep in an pen because he would otherwise die in the wild.  We were able to pet him and feed him since they keep in fenced it so that he doesn't die.  It was crazy to be that close to one and to be able to touch it!  What a crazy looking and ginormous animal!  

Meet Baraka the Black Rhino

Part of the game preserve had a rehabilitation house for chimpanzees rescued from the animal trade.  I laughed so hard, here, at these chimps; they are so funny and human like...crossing their legs, using a twig as a tooth pick, standing up and walking, shading their eyes,picking their noses, throwing things...yeah, the throwing things was the funniest part.  The group of students was watching all these chimps and all of the sudden a few of them were rushing the fence and hurling dirt or poop or whatever at all of us. Even though there was a fence separating us, it was still startling to have the chimps rush the fence which produced screams from all the girls and then we would all crack up! It was all very funny and I think the chimps found it fun and amusing themselves.

Aw...so cute:)

Pucker up!

Just Chillin'

On another day I had the opportunity to go with the field school students to an animal orphanage.

The day started out kind of rough.  I got to skip out on a day in the field collecting data in exchange for a day of fun.  I went to the gate to meet the students to go about 9am.  I waited and waited and got to chat with the gate guard (called an "Ascari").  After a long delay I found out what happened.  One of the student vans was being driven to fill up with fuel at the center coming from river camp and the driver lost control or something on the super bumpy rough road and tipped the van on it side.  So, they had to get that tipped back up, moved and taken to the shop before the school leaders could find another vehicle to use to take to the orphanage.  I was surprised they still went for it!  The van had minor mechanical damage and was mostly just banged up on one side with a broken out window.  So, at about 11am we finally loaded up in the remaining van and in "kermit" the green landrover to go.  About half way there, kermit broke down. I guess, it was being driven in 4wd on the highway and it seized up.  We waited on the side of the road for about 30 min for help to come.  When help came we discovered the 4wd problem and it was put in 2wd and was able to continue on. So again, we overcame adversity:)

Kermit, broken down on the side of the road.

Anyway, back to the orphanage part....this place is a home to baby animals that have been found orphaned and are fostered to, hopefully, be released back into the wild.  It is also home to a few species of endangered animal that they are trying to breed and boost numbers.  And to be honest, it is also basically a glorified petting zoo for rich tourists.  It was fun to have up-close and personal contact with some cute, exotic animals. The cutest one, in my opinion, was the 5 week old baby giraffe!  It was so tiny by giraffe standards, about my height:)  We were able to feed it some corn kernels and pet it as it ran around the facility.  There were also some monkeys, a giant tortoise, some pygmy hippos, bongos, cheetahs, some other cat species, wart hogs, ostrich, and a bunch of birds.  They also had a zebroid which was really cool looking.  A zebroid is a hybrid of a horse and a zebra (my niece would love one of these).  I thought it turned out to be a really cool mix! Anyway, it ended up to be a fun day even with such a rough start and I am glad I had the opportunity to join!

Bongo

Pygmy hippo

Smile!  Actually more like, "feed me!"

Got to pet "Speedy"

Aw...the cute little baby giraffe (and Kat)

Iris feeding the sweet, little guy

Hanging out the the skunk monkey....actually called a
black and white colobus 

Feeding the bongo

The cool zebroid with the bongos

How'd I get talked into this?!?!

I found this post still in my draft box from over a year ago.  It appears to be unfinished but I thought I would summarize how it ended up now and let it out there:)

What did I get talked into, you might ask?  I got talked into running a flippin' marathon!  And it was here, in Antarctica!!!  Crazy, crazy, crazy. A marathon, that's fine right?  People do those quite often.  Its kinda normal. Well, yeah, but one,I didn't train a lick for it and two, it's in Antarctica, the harshest continent!  I've barely run since being here in Antarctica, like, seriously, only about 5 times (the 5k turkey trot, the 10k race, and about 3 times on the tred mill for maybe 3-4 miles).  So, how'd I get talked into attempting 26.2 miles? My farthest run prior was 13.1 miles in last year's half marathon and before that I topped out at 6 miles-ish as my longest.  I was talked into it by some others that also had never run a marathon and who also hadn't really trained.  We could all be naive together!  If they could do it, so could I right?  Those people were: Travis (the main convincer), Bev and Abe.  I was really undecided about it even up to the morning of the race.  I was tempted to just do the half again bc I knew I could do that bc I did it last year.  But...then, how cool would it be to say the one marathon I did, to cross it off the life-bucket list, of course, was in Antarctica?  But on the flip side, it is a HARD place to run!  It takes a lot of thought and prep to do it.  Like, what the heck do you wear??  It is COLD here and you have to dress warm but you also do get hot when you are running.  Layers, its all about layers.  But the weather is also unpredictable so it is hard to dial it down to be not too much and not too little. 

Summarized ending:  I did end up running the full marathon after all....probably a somewhat stupid idea in hindsight as I basically injured myself and was hobbling around for a solid 2 weeks after the race and still feel some of the repercussions occasionally (esp in one knee)!  But I am still glad I went for it! Bev and Abe were great marathon buddies....we were all equally unprepared and slow.  I think my time was around 5 something hours, if I remember correctly.  Travis DID NOT run with me...basically because he was too busy KILLING IT, ha ha!  He finished in 4 something hours and then proceeded to practically freeze to death waiting for me to finish:)  Running that race was probably one of the harder things I have done in my life...but only after mile 17 or so because that is when the hips and knees started to complain in the form of pain.  Afterward, I had absolutely no interest in running another marathon, but now, a year of forgetfulness later, I wonder how I would fair in warmer weather with a bit of training under my belt?  ha ha.  Kudos to any marathon finisher!  I still think all you Ironmen are absolutely crazy!

10 cool things about running the McMurdo, Antarctica Marathon:

1. One of the few places that the number of miles run for a summer marathon is more than the temperature in Fahrenheit (12F, -2 Wind-chill)
2. The entire marathon is run on top of the ocean
3. Tipping a cup of gatorade towards your mouth, only to be hit in the teeth by a solid block of ice
4. Energy bars were kept on the grill at aid ...stations to keep them thawed enough to eat
5. Band aids were placed on nipples not so much to avoid chafing, but as an additional layer against frost bite
6. Aid stations were stocked with hand warmers
7. Beardcicles and Snotcicles
8. Aid vehicles were snowmobiles
9. Fresh fruits and vegetables were not available for over a month before the race, nor were they available to help cramps during or after the race
10. The post marathon waddle could easily be mistaken for an emperor penguin

Out (in) Africa

I figured it was due time for another post since I have been silent for quite some time and some may be interested in my where-abouts and goings-on! I hope this can be of some entertainment as well and informative to you.

Jambo (hello)!!You've probably guessed it!...my latest adventure has taken me to the "wilds" of AFRICA; more specifically central Kenya (Laikipia District)!!   I will be spending the next 2.5 months, here, at a place called Mpala Research Center and Wildlife Foundation.  What am I doing here?  Why....thank you for asking!  Well, I was given the opportunity to join in on a scientific research project of a current grad student, majoring in Zoology, from the University of Florida.  Who is this grad student, you ask?  Let me tell you. Travis Guy is his name....and he also happens to be my boyfriend, tee hee!  Travis invited me along to help him out and to have another adventure on my last continental frontier (Africa)!

Travis, with my expert assistance, ha ha..jk;) is conducting an experiment, here, on a nature reserve, studying pollinators (ie. bees, butterflies....all those pollinating insects) and their networks (ie. the number of pollinating species connected to floral species, like a food web).  He is looking at how the pollination networks are strengthened or weakened by the simulated extinction of large and mega herbivores as well as how the pollination networks are affected across a rainfall gradient in an attempt to predict what effect climate change (via precipitation changes) will have on pollinators  Basically, we are spending time on different plots of land (6 to be exact) across the preserve that have been fenced off (simulating extinction) to keep out all large and mega herbivores (elephants, giraffes, impala, zebra, warthog, etc) and we are collecting data on whether the lack of these herbivores actually strengthens or weakens the pollination networks.  We are also collecting data outside these exclusion plots that are open to the large herbivores and we are comparing the two; exclusion vs open (we have to keep an eye out for the wild animals in the open plots!). We are hypothesizing that large herbivore extinction would weaken the networks, or in other words that the lack of biodiversity (the diversity of plant and animal species) is very important to the health of the ecosystem.  We think that the extinction of large herbivores would in the end weaken the pollination networks; that there would be fewer species of pollinators and fewer floral species.  Why is this bad?  Well, it allows for dominance of certain species (which I think is termed a "monoculture"), in flora and fauna, that would drive out (or kill off) other species that play important roles in the balance of this ecosystem.  Without the roles of the large herbivores in the ecosystem (ex. eating down certain dominant flora, fertilization, disturbance, etc) the ecological balance would be thrown off and cause a weak network (ie. few species of pollinators and pollination recipients), which is what Travis' study is concerned with, and cause a long term, negative change in the ecosystem that would be irreversible. Is this confusing?...I'm confused...ha ha!  Let's see...an elephant or giraffe, for example, might eat a certain kind of prickly-spiny bush (like an acacia..the token tree of East Africa), and even though it is "damaging" the bush it might also be allowing for the growth of another plant species that would otherwise be choked out by this dominant prickly plant species. And this "other" plant species that is now allowed a chance to grow, because of the elephant's or giraffe's munching, plays another vital role in the health of the ecosystem. A lack of biodiversity can eventually lead to wasteland conditions unable to support diversified life and so that "monoculture" develops and allows for those few dominate species to take over and kill off everything else. Basically, all these different plant and animal species are mutualistic (ie. connected to each other and mutually beneficial for survival and abundance in some way) and without the other, would not survive in the long run.  Does this make sense?  My brain in spinning too:) Onto to other things...

It has been interesting helping Travis to launch this project and get it going...its already been a lot of work!  Of course, there have been all the kinks to work out.  A project like this is basically trial and error.  Travis came up with an idea this past year while starting his program at UF and now he is here actually trying to put that idea into reality.  That can be a hard thing to do and there is no way to be fully prepared for it because you simply don't know everything ahead of time. Already, if we could go back 3 weeks in time and know what we know now, we could be much better prepared with all the supplies we didn't know we needed and all the plant and insect books we don't have, and the methods better worked out and all those field clothes and equipment that would have been really nice.  But such is life...live and learn, right?  Travis is doing a great job and is somewhat helping to pioneer research in this realm of pollination networks.  But everyday is faced with new challenges which he is working hard to surmount.  Keep it up, Travis!  Everyone says his project is more like a PhD level project... a lot of work and not a lot of time or resources.  They also seem to think that this project has the potential to be really awesome and have a greater impact beyond a mere thesis project.  When your hard work could make a difference in the world....that's cool.

Mpala Research Center, where I am staying, hosts researchers, professors, post doctorals, graduate students, undergrads, and a few "normal" people like me;)  It is set up with living accommodations and meals plans for those staying and working here.  It is a close-knit and friendly community.  There are numerous activities that go on to be involved with like game drives (to see wildlife), sun-downers (to hangout and watch the sunset), movie nights, BBQs, shopping trips (to get supplies or hang out in nearest shopping town), and probably more I have not experienced yet. Mpala also hires local Kenyans from the surrounding communities as employees: research assistants, guards, cooks, administration, and more. Travis has three local guys and one american girl (me;) working for him as field assistants to assist in collecting data and samples.  I feel this is not a bad place to spend a few months!  It is a beautiful area and full of nice people!

Travis and I have gone on quite a few game drives already in my first week of being here.  Luckily, Travis' advisor (who also does research here) has 2 Land Rovers (Travis' dream vehicle) that we have access to and use of!  Pretty sweet.  If we go for a game drive we usually go after our day's work for the hour or so before sunset.  That seems to be the time that lots of animals are roaming around.  I've only been here a short time and already have seen SO much!  It is still so crazy to me to see things like giraffes, elephants, hippos, cheetahs, and zebras in the WILD!  I've only seen such things in zoos and I can't help but think of them as zoo escapees!  But they are natives here and the craziest looking animals with their dramatic size, colors, and patterns.  It is really awesome to get to see!  I've been keeping a list of all the wild life I've seen and it is already getting long!  Here is my list thus far:

• greater kudu
• harda beast
• impala
• thompsons gazel
• grants gazel
• spotted hyena
• jackel
• wart hog
• giraffe
• elephant
• cheetah
• bush buck
• grevy's zebra
• common zebra
• dik dik
• vervet
• baboon
• genet
• lepoard tortoise
• mongoose
• hyrax

So...yes...Elisha has become a scientist, ha ha, not really but this is definitely a new realm for me to wet my fingers in.  Sometimes I feel a little out of place with all these sciency folk doing their sciency stuff, talking their sciency talk, but then I've become one of them for a time and I am learning a lot doing it.  I don't see myself becoming a actual scientist after this but it is interesting to be a part of for a time and I'm getting an awesome opportunity to see into this crazy world of research as well as being in this beautiful, exotic,wild, and interesting place!

Mpala Research Center and Wildlife Foundation : http://www.mpala.org
Mpala Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MpalaResearchCentre

Vervet

Greater Kudu

Travis and Leopard Tortoise

Curious Calvin

Impala

The three amigos (cheetahs)

On a game drive sitting on top of the Land Rover named Kermit

See all the hanging bird nests?  

Common Zebra...though not so common to me

Hippos in the hippo pool

Pinning the daily (insect) catch

Genet

Catching some bugs

Munching Elephant

Grevy's Zebra - Highly Endangered

54 hrs/6days a week

What do I do for 54 hrs a week, you might ask?  Well...let me see if I can paint you a picture. This season I have a job within a department called Supply.  I TRIED to come back as a shuttle driver again but due to major personnel cuts this year, I was unable to secure a position for myself.  There was an opening within Supply so I took it!  Supply is a department that handles/manages all the materials that come onto the station and organizes them into warehouses.  It is also in charge of the distribution and reordering of materials.  This department also had some pretty major personnel cuts happen so I was fortunate to get a position this year.

When I arrived in Antarctica, I was put in the hub office of supply, called the MET (mapcon editing team), that deals with all the paperwork tracking all the materials coming in, being divied out, and shipped off from the station. Usually this position I was hired for is given to someone with previous experience in Supply because they are familiar with the data bases, the paperwork, and the whole process and systems in place.  I spent the first couple of weeks feeling very overwhelmed with the learning curve and slightly nervous that I was not going to be happy in this office poition with the majority of my time spent doing data entry and catching paperwork mistakes. I found myself wishing to be in another position working in a warehouse or something but I was trying to be happy with what got me here.  By some stroke of luck, my boss pulled me in her office one day and asked me if I would prefer to be put into a new position as a floater who would help out in various supply centers when and where needed the most.  I jumped on this and felt so happy that I was offered just what I would have wanted without even knowing it was an option!

I have been spending the majority of my time in Crary Lab where all the science groups base their research out of.  It has been interesting to meet the scientists and get a picture into what really this whole operation is all about...the science.  In Crary Supply we basically have a bunch of science equipment and supplies that we check out and issue out to these groups that come to study anything from volcanoes to sea life to human environmental impacts in the Antarctic.  We help get them what they need to conduct their experiments and hopefully make their time here successful, it is after all, the whole reason people are even down here!  Most of the time I have no idea what I am giving them and what this piece of equipment does, ha ha!  It is sort of interesting though!  By the end of this summer season there will have been close to 850 scientists that have come to work on various research projects. 

Though most of my time has been in Crary Lab, I have spent a few days here and there and a week here and there in other supply centers.  I spent a day in electrical supply, then a few days in utilities supply, a day in the carpentry supply, and a few weeks in the vehicle maintenance supply.  It has been interesting for me to work in and see these various areas and it is highly valuable, if I ever want to return, to have a bit of experience and worked with people in all these various areas. 

One reason I am really liking the position I am in is that it is much more diversified than the job I started out doing. Instead of being in an office 9 hrs a day, I get to do a whole variety of tasks: sometimes working with people, sometimes working alone, outside, inside, computer tasks, physical labor, operating heavy machinery, inventory, receiving cargo, delivering and retrieving supplies, and much more. No day has been the same as any other so far, which I like!

It has been a good season so far and I am enjoying my time here. I am about 3 months in and have about 2 months to go. If it is anything like last year, these last few months go by so fast and then it is travel time!

Happy New Year!!!

Part of my job is checking in science equipment and putting it back in the inventory in MapCon (our DOS data base we use here, so old school:) and back on the shelves after the science groups are done with it.  What is all this stuff?  Good question!

Moving some boxes with the loader...watch out everyone!

Me and Kathy doing our thing.

Opening cargo boxes is part of this gig.  It is like Christmas...you never know what is going to be in them It could be anything from toilet seats, to car parts, to toxic chemicals.

Most afternoons in Crary lab, Zach and I take the truck to run up to the milvan storage area to get all the material goods that the science groups need for their research. Test tubes, microscope slides, water containers, ice packs, syringes, zip lock bags, tin foil, you name it!

This is the cargo bay in crary lab where I spend most of my time.

This is one of the warehouses of the VMF (vehicle maintenance facility). Aisles and aisles of parts. Millions of dollars worth, I'm sure!

Another aisle of VMF parts.  Tiny parts in the bins on the left and larger on the right.

The VMF cargo bay.  I spent a whole week in here all alone opening boxes.  A week was fine but any more it would have been too lonely.  But for a week it was nice.  It was me and my box cutter, sharpie, and music for 54 hrs:)  We have to write numbers on everything that comes in to be able to put it in the data base and onto a shelf somewhere.

This is the parts counter in the VMF where I spent another week finding and handing out parts to the mechanics.  The mechanics were good about helping me find these parts because I had absolutely no idea what some things were!

This is one side of the VMF shop.  They can get some BIG equipment in here to work on.  Also, this is the place where they had the Christmas party.  The mechanics had to do a lot of moving and cleaning to get it ready!

There are a couple girls that work in the VMF amongst all the men.  This girl is an excellent mechanic but also a very young and pretty girl.  She isn't the the stereotypical mechanic, that's for sure!  I think she is pretty cool for it:)

This machine is called a pickle.  It's name is Elvis. It is a very rough, old school, navy, fork lift.  I was moving a bundle of flags in this pic.

Make sure you always wear your hearing protection!  These machines are loud!

Me in the pickle moving some more stuff.  I operate the pickle quite often, at least a few times a week I would say.

There are a few of these popcorn makers in the various work centers around station. It is like movie- popcorn but instead of $10 a bag, it's free!  It's one of my favorite snacks!  Sadly, crary lab does not have a popcorn machine:(  But,..maybe that is a good thing:)

Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream!

"What is liquid nitrogen ice cream," you say?  Let me explain yet another of the strange McMurdo experiences....

Since I have been working most of my time in the Crary Lab, the main hub of all things scientific here at Mcmurdo, I was invited to attend an ice cream social to intermingle with the scientists and staff of the lab.  The social event of this evening consisted of "Condition Fun," a local Antarctic band that rewrites/McMurdo-fies popular songs and ICE CREAM! This evening was by "invite only" so it was cool that I got to go, rubbing shoulders with the special, the elite,....the scientists.

Before going to this event, I really had no idea of how liquid nitrogen ice cream was made, although I had heard about the "beakers" (ie the science-folk) making it.  I thought that, probably, liquid nitrogen was used as the cooling agent, as ice would be used in making homemade ice cream.  Well, I was partially right, it was used as the cooling agent for the liquid ice cream mixture, but instead of it just chilling the outside container as the inside ingredients went through the process of freezing (as in an ice cream maker), the liquid nitrogen was poured directly into the ice cream mixture! It was so cool (literally, ha ha) to watch. Immediately vaporizing and leaving its utra-cold essence , the liquid nitrogen was poured into the ice cream mixture resulting in this cold, thick, steam-like vapor pouring up and out of the bowl and even onto the table as someone stirred with a whisk.  The nitrogen was slowly poured into the bowl until the ice cream froze and thickened into the desired consistency and then "WA-LA," ice cream is served! I even took my turn as a stirrer making sure to wear my appropriate PPE (personal protective equipment), including a face shield and glove.  I wouldn't want any of this freezing liquid nitrogen giving me a freeze-burn if splashed onto my skin.  Safety first, even in making ice cream:)

Now, it has been quite a few years since high school chemistry and I have forgotten the properties and behaviors of most of the elements and compounds, so I must admit, I was a little nervous about actually eating this stuff, like "hey lets pour this strange laboratory liquid into some milk/cream/sugar mixture and then eat it!"  But, in my trust of the science staff, their knowledge of these things, and the fact that we are connected to the National Science Foundation in what happens here, I determined that it was probably low-risk and I happily indulged.  I was told that the nitrogen basically evaportates or vaporizes on contact and you aren't really consuming it because it has released itself as a gas.  Travis, the science guy reminded me that 70% of our atmosphere is made up of nitrogen.  So, its purely organic, right?  ha ha!  Anyway, it turned out to be delicious ice cream and such a uniquly interesting process to make it, all with no ill side effects besides, of course, eating too much of it!  We made all kinds of flavors including, berry, peanut butter, coffee, baileys, kalua, and chocolate and with all the toppings you could want to add on!  I would like to make this at home with  friends, but where would one procure this liquid nitrogen?  Oh the fun time and strange goings-on here in the Antarctic! 

Dive Tending

I was recently "awarded" the opportunity to go dive tending .  Yes, diving happens here in Antarctica!  Brrr, right?!?  McMurdo, being located on the Ross Sea, brings in scientists to study the underwater world surrounding the continent.  Sometimes the diving groups offer us, the "worker bees" of McMurdo, the opportunity to come along to help them as they do their dives. This particular time, I  was selected to go which ended up being pretty fun and interesting!

Another girl, Alyssa, and I went with a research group studying the various environmental impacts of the underwater world and monitoring the recovery process over time.  Alyssa and I helped the group load up their diving gear into a Piston Bully (a tracked vehicle made for snow and ice conditions) and drove out to the dive sight.  The gear-up process is quite extensive to go for a dive.  Since the water is extremely cold they have to make sure to dress warm enough under their dry suits, basically covering all exposed skin. The water temperature is actually below freezing but the salt content of the water makes the freezing point lower at 1.9 C (28 F) instead of 0 C (32 F). We assisted them in putting on their gloves, masks, assisting in zipping up suits, helping put on their tanks, weights, etc.  Diving in frigid water, you want everything to be as water tight as possible, keeping the cold water as much off your skin as possible. The dives generally last about 45 min to an hour depending on how cold the divers get and how long they can stand it.  Luckily, where this particular hole was cut through the ice, there was a hut with a heater over the top of it, so while Alyssa waited for the divers to surface again, we were just able to hang out in the warm hut, not all the dive spots afford this luxury of warmth. We got to watch them, the 4 divers, jump in and then waited for them to surface again to help them when they were ready to get out.

Looking down into the hole in the ice was really beautiful.  Since the ice is thinner this year, the sunlight really penetrates through the ice and the hole in the ice glowed in this really beautiful blue.  I could see the divers swim by occasionally, some 40-60 feet down.  The water is so clear I could see clear to the bottom and could even see a few starfish and sponges here and there.  Apparently the marine creatures here grow larger than usual.  Some studies say it is because of the extremely cold water temperatures that slow the metabolism of the creatures causing them to grow bigger on a usual diet amount.  Also there aren't certain predators that you would find elsewhere allowing things to live longer, threatened less.

When the divers surfaced, Alyssa and I helped pull their oxygen tanks up onto the hut floor since they are so heavy, which makes it easier for the cold divers to climb out. Two of the divers who went on this particular day were first-time divers in Antarctica.  They were pretty excited about their dive!  Before we left, the dive crew wanted to let Alyssa and I know that although they couldn't really allow us to polar plunge into the ice hole, if we just "happened to fall in" they would be there to help us out (wink wink).  Alyssa went planning to "accidentally fall in" but I definitely was not planning to do that.  The thought of it actually sounded quite terrible to me initially.  For one, I am not super fond of cold water, let alone water that is below freezing and secondly, jumping into a dark hole into icy water with who-knows-what under there sounded terrifying!  So Alyssa, though very nervous, bravely jumped...ugh, I mean...fell in:)  When she climbed up the ladder out of the water, this strange inspiration and strong urge took over me that I had to do this too!  If she did it and survived, I could too, ha ha!  Here I am in Antarctica, and I have the opportunity to do something I will probably never get the chance to do again; I have to do it!  Before I could change my mind I quickly stripped down to my "swim suit" and jumped in.  The water is shockingly cold and takes your breath away but you are only in it for only a matter of seconds, instinct takes over on getting quickly getting out.  Luckily, no strange, giant, Antarctic sea monster attacked me when I jumped in. I must say that it was very exhilarating (but also produced an instant brain freeze). I warmed up the moment I got out (another reason the warm hut was a bonus).  I POLAR PLUNGED IN ANTARCTICA!!!! I'm glad that I got brave and did it:)

After we loaded the piston bully back up with all the gear and ourselves, I was able to convince the dive leader to let me drive the piston bully back to the station!!  I had never driven one before and wanted to so I somehow sweet talked my way into doing it, ha ha!  It was a bit strange to drive, steering more like a boat than a land vehicle.  I kind of got the hang of it and was able to get us all safely from the ice back to the dive hut on station:)  I didn't really know what to expect with this dive tending gig but it ended up being much more fun than expected!  It definitely was a far better alternative to working!



Getting ready to explore the underworld.



The hole. 

One of the divers just jumped in.



Time to get out!



brrr!! Cold water!



Me driving the piston bully:)

The dive hut and the piston bully.  The hole in the ice is inside the hut:)

A Second Time Around

Hello one and all!! I am past due for an update, this I do know.  So, here you go....

At the moment, I am en route, once again, down for round number two in Antarctica at McMurdo station.  Thus far I've gotten as far as Christchurch, New Zealand and am now delayed due to severe weather conditions happening in Antarctica that are not making for favorable conditions for planes to be landing there. And so...such is my lot...I am stuck in New Zealand...big bummer, huh? ha ha! Well, before you get too envious of me let me just tell you...it is cold and rainy...and I'm not really doing anything really cool besides hanging out, eating, sleeping, and waiting to leave. I am more in this sort holding pattern waiting for a word that the weather has cleared each day that this delay goes on. Could be a few days...who knows and I have to be ready to go when they say, "its time!" Now, if I had a close friend or a few close friends here with me...this would be GREAT!

Last year, if you remember, I got a job as a Vehicle Operator, duties including: giving people rides around "town," shuttling flight crews and airfield workers to and from the airfield, picking up/dropping off passengers coming and going on airplanes, vehicle maintenance, and dispatch duties. It was a fun job and I was hoping to do it again this year. I thought it would be a "shoe in" and didn't apply for any other jobs. Well, there was a change over of the contractor who hires all of the "science support" people (ie. all the non-science jobs) and with that change over and low bid came HUGE cuts to all departments. (Raytheon Polar Services used to be the contractor and now it is under Lockheed Martin). Anyway, my department got cut 60%!! And so...that left most of us in my department wanting to return to that job, without a position. So, for awhile, there, I thought it wasn't going to happen for me to go a second season and I began to think about a possible plan B but then, by some stroke of fate, this random other job in another department basically fell in my lap (I had some help on the "inside" with people putting words in for me and helping to find an open position). So, this season, my job will be in a department called Supply. I don't even know myself what it fully entails yet, till I get down there and stark working, but it deals with all the shipments of cargo coming in and going out of the station. My job, as a Data Inventory Specialist, will be to check everything in and out, entering it into the computer system, making sure departments are getting the things they ordered, inventorying everything, and so on. I was told that when I first get down there, I will be helping out in the Crary lab, basically filling in areas of highest need until the full department workforce can get down there. I am excited to be in Crary lab for awhile...that's where all the scientists are doing their thing so it should be interesting!

This year, I am being shipped down a month before I was last year and I will be shipped out a little later (at the end of February). So, I think it all adds up to about 4.5 months this season. I am interested in seeing what season #2 looks like. It is nice already knowing people down there this time and also just being familiar with how things run. And so...that is basically the news on me and Antarctica. I will try and do my best to keep you updated and entertained!