I think I may have lost a few entries somewhere in the shuffle... Anyway, here is what I do have from my first year going to Antarctica. Read all about my first impressions of the Ice!

Finally got everything packed up (I think), and finished all unfinished business (I think), and headed out. Mom took me to the Bozeman Airport. First stop, Salt Lake City. I didn't get a window seat, but was still able to see all my favorite mountains, and fresh smoke from the current Brundage Creek Fire (yes, that's STILL burning). It's fun to be able to see and recognize the mountains I just spent a couple weeks walking accross. Next stop, Los Angelas. Not a whole lot of people on the Salt Lake to LA flight, had my own 3 seats and I sprawled out and slept. Yet again, had not been assigned a window seat, oh-well. Lots and lots of smog coming into LA. And I thought Montana was smokey! The guy I was talking to as I left the plane said he didn't trust air he couldn't breath. Not for me, no way. I'm so happy to be heading to such a clean pristine place....

Though it took me forever to find it, I was still the first Antarctican to arrive at our gate in LA... The next to arrive was Jason.... we could recognize eachother because of our matching luggage tags, and we both looked like Antarcticans. He's from Crested Butte, Co (where my parents met) and has the job I originally wanted in the Rec. Dept. Next I met Nick , a Plumbers Helper, who informed me that I have the absolute BEST first year job. He was a GA (General Assistant) last year, but not for the same department I'm a GA for. He said Operations (where I'm hired at) is the absolute best place to be a GA... I then met Debra, who is also a GA in Operations. Her carreer/life path in the past couple of years is very similar to mine..... Then we met Jonathan, Nick & John. Jonathan & John are also both GAs for Operations. Nick is a first year DA (Dining Attendant)... Soon we met Doug, a long time South Pole person.... Then there were lots of us around, socializing. Everyone is very interesting & very nice. Just talking to all these new people, I could tell that I have made the right decision in my life. I am so happy, and we're all very excited to be heading to the Ice.

The flight to New Zealand was long, but a lot of fun. Everytime I got up to walk around the plane, I met more people heading to the Ice. There were supposed to be about 30 of us on the flight. I met Jen, who is on her way back for her 3rd year. I also met Kristen, also a GA in our labor pool. A bunch of us hung out in a flight attendent supply room & had a party... we were all just as wired and totally psyched to be on this awesome adventure. Some people were too wound up to sleep, and so of course that was contagious and I couldn't really sleep either. I tried, but the seats were small, and I didn't have a window seat (YET AGAIN!!). It was a 12 hour flight, and then we landed in Aukland New Zealand. We claimed our baggage and went through customs. Then we barely had time to get to from the International Terminal to the Domestic Terminal... Met even more people along the way, but we were all so tired by then, that it's hard to remember names. Chad missed the next flight, but the rest of us made it. I finally got a window seat!!!! I sat next to Jason & Nick (plumber Nick) and boy was it an awesome view!! Jason and I watched the mountains and tried to figure out which ones would be the best to ski. The most spectacular mountains ever, and they go right up to the beach... it's so lush and green, too (except for the fresh snow on the mountains).... Seems most of the people here are Telemark skiers & cross country skiers - just a wonderful sign that I'm with the right people....

Things only got better when we landed in Christchurch. We turned in our return flight tickets, so that they (Raytheon - our employer) could safekeep them while we were on the ice... and then they gave us $450 (NZ$) to cover costs. We were all pretty fried and tired by then. Shuttles were arranged to our hotels that we had reservations at. I had gotten an inside tip when it was time to request hotel reservations, and had heard that the YMCA was the place to stay. 5 of us ended up there at one time: Deborah, Jen, Jonathan, Kristen & Myself. We split into two rooms, & I was roomed with Kristen. After a quick power nap, we all headed out on the town. Christchurch is so awesome!

Everything in Christchurch is the oposite of home, but yet it's all the same at the same time. First of all, they drive on the left side of the road, and that's really hard to get used to. Second of all, it's spring here, instead of fall. The leaves are just budding, instead of just turning colors. BUT, we're at the same lattitude (just south instead of north) AND, it's the very close to the Equinox, so everything is very similar. The temperature during the day is about the same as what I left at home, and it get's cold at night, just like in Montana. This really is a great place. The town reminds me of a cross between Seattle, London & Boulder, CO.... Very fun!

We met up with John, who was staying nearby. Now our whole crew was together. 5 of the 10 of the GAs in our pool were on this shipment: John, Jonathan, Deborah, Kristen & Myself. We all get along great, and I realy enjoy hanging out with everyone. We all work for Barb Propst, though none of us have met her exept for over the phone. We all really like her and have equally bizzar interview stories.

The 5 of us, and Jen (a returnie) spent the rest of the afternoon shopping. We all had been a hectic mess before leaving the states, and had been wishy washy on certain items. Now was the time to figure all that out. We all had the same job, were first year people (FNGs), and all the same questions. So we spent the day shopping for things like underwear, coffee mugs, stickers to individulize our mugs. It was a great time. We ate lunch at a Greek resturaunt (the best Greek food I've ever had). Dinner was a Dux de Lux, a nice place for food and drinks and fun (they brew their own beer there).

NZ is so much fun!! We've all been hoping our flight gets delayed so that we can go skiing, or to the hotsprings, or to the beach or something... Several of the flights in front of us have been boomeranged (turn around in mid flight and come back to Christchurch because of the weather on the Ice). We're hoping that this puts a delay to our flight so that we can go play.... Tomorow we're busy with stuff all day, and fly out the next day

October 7, 2003

Started out at orientation for our Raytheon job. I'd say that the nature of us Antarctic folk is we're not corperate America sort of people, especially a corperation known for their defence system contract. We got to learn all about the company, do paperwork, learn about our benefits and stuff like that. Returnies got to go to CDC after lunch (Clothing Distrabution Center), but us FNGs had to stay for more info.... I knew a lot of it already, but none the less it was interesting. They ended orientation with the "FISH" video. (all about how to have a good workplace). I thought I'd scene enough of that video at my last job, where we tried to create "Fish Camp".... I wonder if they ever did create "Fish Camp"... Anyway, made me think about my last job in Ohio, and how I was so super glad to be in Antarctica (or at least on the way) instead. Not that the job in Ohio was bad, this one just suites me better. I connect with the Antarctica people much better than the Ohio people. Ohio was a foreign country to me, whereas Antarctica is like going to the next town over from Gardiner, Mt.....

After Orientation we went to the CDC to get our ECW (Extreme Cold Weather Gear). They give us a lot and we're supposed to try it on (in a non airconditioned room) to make sure it all fits and works right. It was hours worth of trying stuff on, trading them in, trying on something else, pretending to shovel snow in it.... trading in this for that.... It was like X-mass!!! This was also the time we repacked the bags. You should have scene the floor of the Girls dressing room!!! There was no where to walk. They have a scale in the corner, so you can make sure you don't pack your stuff over the 75lb weight limit. Stuff in your pockets & size restricted cary-on don't count towards the 75lbs. So, light things go on the checked bags, while heavy things go in the cary-on.... I took my time making sure I had everything packed right. The last of my friends left on a shuttle at 4:00, but I chose to stay. I'm glad I did.... Kristen hecticly threw things in bags to try to leave at 4:00, and later that was a problem. I stayed 'till closing at 5:00, and then went next door to the computer lab to try to update this blasted webpage. Problem is, all the fancy webpage software is on my laptop, and all that was on the USAP (United States Antarctic Program) computers to update was Notepad, and being able to know html code (YUCK!!).... Well, I didn't have a power adapter on my computer, so I wrote until my batteries went dead, and then uploaded. That's why I've been behind in updating ya'll with what's going on....

Then I went to the International Antarctic Center and went to the museum... I guess I walked in there just in time for a tour, so they threw me in real quick. I got put in this big refrigerator thing with all sorts of Japanese Tourists (a lot of them in NZ) wearing cold weather gear from the museum, and I was wearing a t-shirt. They did this storm thing that was suposed to simulate an Antarctic storm.... If that's all Antarctica is, then it's nothing... Of course this was just the tourist exhibit, and not the real thing. I felt so real being there.... The museum was fun. By the time I was done there, I had missed the bus, but the lady at the museum was the one who had told me the wrong time, and so she drove me home when she got off work. It was so cool to sit in a passenger seat on the left side of the car!!

When I got to the hotel, there was a note left for where everyone was... They were going to a foreign film after sushi... I didn't feel like either, so I just walked around downtown Christchurch on my own. It was a lot of fun. I stopped by Balies (the Pub all the Ice people go to), but really wasn't in the mood for a night out, especially since I had to wake up at 5:30am the next day to catch my flight to the Ice....

Got up early, went to the CDC to put on our ECW (required for flight)..... We all thought we had more time to rearange our stuff, but they were rushing us pretty fast.... Good thing I'd stayed late the night before!! Went through our check in, my bags weighed 76lbs... and they were gonna pack my bass on top so that it would be safer. Ate breakfast and then went out to board our military cargo plane. I was giddy as could be. Most people complain about the plane, but I didn't mind it. We sat in red net seats (check later for pictures here), across from other people. Not a whole lot of room, but we just put our feet up on the seats acrosss from us, on people's laps, and wedged in there somewhere. I took my bunny boots off right away (big, white, and good for -80 F) and wore just socks. It was not too bad. We played cards and had a great time... After a few hours I climbed over bodies and stuff and went to the front of the plane.... THEN, I got to go into the cockpit for about an hour!! It was awesome!! I got to look at the charts, learn about the two different navagational systems - the regular grid that converges at the south pole, which gets to hard to read when you get too far south - and the grid that is just over the polar part of the world. The navagational systems were switching between them while I was up there.... After I left, Kristen was next in the cockpit. She was up there when the fog weather report came in..... Fog in McMurdo. The plane was nearing the point of no return, and a decision needed to be made soon.... There wasn't enough fuel to get all the way there and all the way back, and if the weather was bad in Antarctica, the plane couldn't land.... The point of no return is where that decision needed to be made. This plane had a fairly early point of no return.... a plane the other day made it all the way to McMurdo, circled for a little bit and then headed back to Christchurch.... About 4 hours into our flight and the call was made - we were heading back to Christchurch..... Poor Deborah was sick as can be and throwing up all over the place. It was a long flight. We flew for 8 hours and ended up back at the SAME airport we flew out of!!!! It was deja-vu all over again... It was the infamous BOOMARANG!!!!

That night Jen & I ate the best Pizza in the whole world (McKenzie River style, but better).... We were going to go swingdancing, but I ended up playing pool with everyone at Bailies. We were all taking bets as to whether we'd be flying out the next day or not. The flight crew was there, too.... We were all hoping that we don't fly out at all tomorow so that we can go skiing, or something fun like that. Nobody really knew.... The cool thing about boomeranging is that when we got back to Christchurch, they gave us another $150 NZ..... I'm paying $22 a night for lodging, maybe $10 on food, and the rest is just piling up... I guess I'll have to spend some of it at Scott Base down on the Ice (the NZ base about 2 miles from McMurdo), or when I get off the ice. I haven't even touched any of my own $ yet... PLUS, we're all already on the payroll and getting regular salary.... Boomeranging sucks, but we get extra $ for doing it.... It's easy to spend money out on the town when it's not yours, and it's not in a currency you're even familier with.... It's like having monopoly money. We had a good time at Bailies

Same as yesterday.... Got to CDC, got changed, went to the airport.... Were about to get on the plane, and they decided to delay it.... Not aloud to go anywhere (except around the Antarctic Ctr), and gotta check back in at 9:45.... It's 9:35 right now, and I'd better get this thing uploaded.... Maybe we'll fly, maybe we'll be canceled for the day, maybe we'll boomerang again, maybe we'll actually go to Antarctica!! We've got lots of bets going.... My $ is on getting to the point of no return again, and spending 8hrs in the plane.... Maybe we'll get to see Christchurch again tonight. There is a Salsa dance tonight, it'd be fun to go to, especially since I missed the swing dancing last night.... But wouldn't it be nice to go to Antarctica?

After several delays, we finally got on the plane, and then - BOOMERANG!!!! Ever see that movie Groundhog Day? We're living it here in Cristchurch. Bobby got me a poweradapter for my computer and I'm able to plug it directly in at the USAP office.... hopefully I'll get ya'll some pictures to look at....

Salsa dancing was a blast!!! We all had some pent up energy after two days of sitting on a noisy cargo plane and never getting anywhere other than Christchurch. We danced our butts off until the wee hours of the morning. We were tired of trying to save our enrgy for the flight to Antarctica...

Same routine as the last couple of days... go to CDC, get into ECW, pass through security, get on bus, go to noisy uncomfortable cargo plane... same ole same ole.... We all had plans in Christchurch (it was Friday, a great day to be out on the town)... So, it was weird when we passed the point of no return and they announced that the weather in McMurdo was nice and that we were on our way there. What, not another boomerang?!! We were quite excited.

Now, an interesting thing about the C-141 that we were flying on. There really aren't windows, it's a cargo plane, and cargo doesn't need to see out. But, on the hatches of the emergency exits under the wings, there are tiny windows, hidden behind our net seats. That was usually the male seating section of our plane, cause it was near the silver bullet (urinal), and it was too far for females to make it all the way to the front of the airplane where the regular bathroom was (which by the way makes commercial airline bathrooms seem like major major luxury.... well, everything on a military cargo plane makes a commercial flight look like the major luxury).... Well, anyway, on this particular day, I was actually at one of the two window seats on the plane - back in the guys section.... I wanted a window seat, and didn't care that it was in the guys section of the plane... Well, it paid off 'cause this was the one day when the view was spectacular. Bobby gave me his camera (a digital Cannon EOS - - much nicer than my digital camera) and asked me to take pictures for me. I was excited to have a nice camera in my hands, so it worked out well... Then he asked me if I would carry it once we landed, and continue taking pictures, and he offered to carry my bags in return. What a deal. I was so excited, I was jumping up and down as we approached McMurdo. We flew over some very very spectacular mountains, like nothing I've ever scene. It was so amazing!!! We were all pretty wired.

When the plane finally touched down on the Ice Runway (out on the sea) we all cheered and clapped. It was unreal when we stepped off of the plane - so beautiful, cold and fresh. The folks at the runway were in a hurry, they had to refuel, unload the plane, reload it with more cargo and winter-over-ers leaving... and then take off within 3 hours. So, we were hurried onto Ivan the Terra Bus, and traveled the 4 miles into McMurdo. We could see McMurdo from the Ice Runway and it was very hard to believe that it was 4 miles away, it looked like it was 100 yards away. On the other shore there were the Trans Antarctic mountains - and boy are they spectacular!!!

We went into the Chalet (NSF headquarters) and got another briefing & our room assignments... And I finally got to meet my boss, Barb. She gave the 5 of us our own tour of town and helped us find where we lived, and where we go to get our checked baggage. It was a nice welcome. All my stuff made it down just fine. My bass got a small scratch on it, but I guess that happens when you ship it halfway accross the world.

Everything has been a zoo since we arrived on the Ice, with not enough time to do everything there is to do. I am sittying here on Wednesday the 15th, finally doing my first writing since Christchurch. I knew ya'll wanted to know what was going on in Antarctica, so I'm skipping out on Yoga tonight to fill you in.... The next couple of sections are just a general blend of parts of my life here, in catagory instead of all cronilogical...

My Job as a General Assistant (GA) for Operations

GA's Rule!!

The best job in existance in Antarctica

Can't go wrong when you're a GA!!!!

Jon, Jonathan, Kristen, Deborah & I had lots of time to get to know eachother and bond, starting from the time we met in the LA airport. We all looked foward to meeting Barb, our boss.... From day one we could tell that this was going to be an awesome job. We all had heard the same thing about the job description: shovel snow, and do other miscelaneous things.... we never were clear as to what those misc things were... Well, that was a perfect job description!

Deborah has decided that being a GA is like working for a temp agency. Pretty much different departments get ahold of Barb and she schedules us out to go work for those departments, and they give us some miscelaneous job there. In between that we shovel snow. There is snow to be shoveled every day. Then the Antarctic winds come in and cover up everything we just shoveled, so we shovel it again the next day. It's spring, and a lot of stuff didn't get shoveled all winter, so we need to dig stuff out for the summer, like second entrances to certain buildings, decks, etc.

Being a GA is the best job in McMurdo. And the operations labor pool is the best pool of GAs. Before I came here I had heard that we would work the hardest, get the least amount of pay, but have the most amount of fun... They were right, but it's even better than that. Someone said to us, "You have the best job in town because next year you'll be able to get a better job." And that is such a true statement. Many of our friends got jobs as DAs (Dining Attendants) or Janitors, and they don't get to get out at all. As GAs, we get to see the town, and not just from the outside. All the buildings are pretty ugly from the outside, but inside each work group makes their place cozy. We're getting to know people on the inside.... network network network!! This is a town that's all about who you know, not what you know. Anyone who knows anything says that being a GA (especially for ops) is absolutly the best first year job you can get. Every assignment we have, we get a new boss. The next day I'll be working for a different boss, but see yesterday's boss, and he'll help me out with something (even if it's as simple as giving me a ride home from the other side of town). I've met more people while out working than I have while participating in after hours recreation activities (more about that later). People always stop to thank me for shoveling their path, and then we talk a bit.

Another great thing about this job is the trainings we get to go to. Since we'll be working in a lot of different places and going to different things, we get to get all the schooling that's involved with that. So far there have been a lot of classes. Barb got us into what I call walking school first thing on our first morning. If you want to leave McMurdo for recreation purposes, you need to have taken this class so that you know all the safety percausions. (We do happen to be in the Antarctic Wilderness, afterall). It's neat 'cause other people have to take this class on their free time, if they can find a time that it's offered when they're not working.... but Barb knew we would want to go hiking & skiing, so she made sure we took it right away..... Some other classes:

Driver's training: for if you want to drive any of the vehicles. I haven't been to the indoor part yet, but have been getting outdoor training. I learned how to drive a Piston Bully - a cute little thing kinda like a mini snowcoach. The steering is real sensitive, but they're fun (and have heated seats and a heated cab)... We got to go out on the sea ice and drive around, practice turns (kinda like doing donuts, but more fun).... the whole time during that training we were all grinning from ear to ear....

Sea Ice training: This is for if you are going to be on the sea ice at all, and if you're driving a vehical. The classroom part was AWESOME!!! If I'd have paid big bucks to take this class in college, it would have been the best class I could have ever taken. Got to learn all about all the factors that go into cracks in the Ice. A bunch of years back, a crack opened up and swallowed a Cat & driver (not just your regular ole Catapillar, either - one of those extra big Antarctic ones).... so, the training now is very extensive. We got to learn about all of the factors that go into ice behavior. I'm finally understanding sea currants for the first time in my life. There are so many factors that go into how the ice behaves.... like wind, snow, icebergs, glacier tongues (glaciers running into the sea), rocks, weather patterns, currents, human vehicals (like airplanes...... the list goes on and on. Learning about this was one of the most interesting things I've ever done. Then we left the classroom to go out onto the ice for some hands on training... WOW!!! It was condition 2 (a bit more about weather conditions later), boderline condition 1 (cond. 1 being the most extreme weather) - we couldn't see anything, just white all around. My camera didn't like the cold, but I did get a picture or two snapped off after sticking it in my armpit for a while.... I'll try to get some pictures up soon. At the time I'm writing this, I'm not done with Sea Ice Training yet, but will be by the time I'm able to get this posted. More hands on learning.... I've learned so much!! Did you know that an airplane can land on only 6 feet of ice? I've been learning about tire tread size verses the size crack you can drive over, and stuff like that..... This class rocks!!

Happy Camper School: Even better than Sea Ice Training. I'm scheduled to go to Happy Camper School next Wednesday and Thursday. I've been geting some pre training, and am super stoked!!! We get to learn how to live out of the survival bags & camp out in the Antarctic Wilderness. The instructor drops us off and we're out on our own for the night. (have I mentioned how cold it is here, yet?). A lot of people dread Happy Camper School, by my crew and I are looking foward to it. Jonathan & Kristen already went 'cause Jonathan is going to Lake Bonney in the dry valleys next week... I'm so jealous, I hope I get to do something like that. The Dry Valleys are supposed to be one of the most spectacular places on the whole continant.... Jon, Deborah & I get to go to Happy Camper School next week.... You need to go to Happy Camper School before you go anywhere where you might get stranded. If you're out in the field & condition 1 hits (which can happen suddenly), there's no going anywhere or getting anything done, & you're stranded. Crazy me is actually hoping that we get condition 1 while were at Happy Camper School. I was caught outside during a condition 1 storm the other day, and it was brutal!! If you're near a building, you're supposed to go inside right away if it's cond. 1.... It's all part of the Antarctic thing.... Have I mentioned how much I love it here?

So, what have I actually done, besides shovel snow? Lots of random stuff.... Inspect first aid kits for remote field camps, move cargo, turn spools of rope into useable climbing gear, tear down walls, pack food for remote field camps, inventory & prepare Search & Rescue deep field survival kits (enough for 28 people for a week), fix Coleman stoves, and much more that I can't even remember. And shovel lots of snow in between all that.... A high up somebody emailed my boss and comended me on my awesome job at shoveling steps. We shovel steps on hillsides where there are only walking trails, and no roads... They blow over and fill with snow daily.... People appreciate us keeping them clear. We get more compliments on our shoveling than you can imagine. People are so nice here. We all love being snow shovelers... Well, Jonathan isn't a snow shoveler, he's an artist, carving the snow....

On Saturday as I write this, (and hopefully upload it before the end of the weekend) the rest of our crew has arrived. They had a week in Christchurch, and I don't think they boomeranged once. They just kept getting cancled flights and they got to go play: rent cars, go skiing, go to the hot springs, beach, and all that fun stuff.... I haven't met them yet.

We start every day off in the Chapel streaching out for 1/2 an hour. It's a great way to start the day. Barb has even brought in the station Physical Therapist to help us learn the best streachs.... Barb is super nice that way... she really takes care of us.

My social life here in McMurdo...

All about McMurdo & Antarctica in general

The social life in McMurdo is amazing. The people are some of the best people I've ever met. They're the sort of people with whom I can really identify with. Everyone is pretty possitive, and generally happy to be here. It takes a lot of work and effort to get down here, and so we all really appreciate being here. Most of my closest friends are from the boomerang crew - the folks on our plane that kept boomeranging and ending up back in Christchurch again. The nice thing about that boomerang crew is that there are connections to nearly every department (recreation, computer support, food, cargo, science, and more). Around here it's a lot more of who you know rather that what you know.

The Recreation Department may be one of the busiest departments here. They've got a lot of things going on. On any given night of the week, there's not only some sort of event going on, but usually multiple confliting events. It's impossible to do everything there is to do here. Even if I didn't have a job at all, it'd be impossible to get around to do all the different fun events. I've been taking Belly Dancing classes, and going to Yoga, and attending all the science lectures. Those are just the weekly things that I do... Lots of sports leagues: bowling, volleyball, basketball, and I can't even remember what else. There are also random other things that pop up all the time, like karaoke, dancing, live music, and all sorts of stuff. One week there was a musicians meeting, followed a few days later by open mic... That was a good oportunity to get to know other musicians. Bands form, and there's always live music around. I bought an electric upright bass before I came here, and I'm really glad that I did - it's been fun playing it. It is tough sharing all the rec instruments, and so it's a nice advantage to having your own instrument here.

As for recreation facilities, there's a coffee house/ wine bar... A non smoking bar, a smoking bar (only poked my head in there once), 3 gyms, a climbing wall, bouldering cave, bowling ally, ceramics room, crafts room, band room, movie theatre (well, really large screen TV w/ couches ... all connected to the coffee house), a greenhouse, hiking & skiing trails.... every dorm has lounges, and they're really nice. I don't think I've ever been in my dorm lounge when there weren't people in there (even at ramdom weird times like 3am)

There is so much to do, that even if I didn't have a job, there wouldn't be enough time to do all the fun things there are to do. But I work 54 hours a week, which is the least amount anyone works here. 60 hrs is a common work week here. With the sun always shining, even after a long work day, there's still a lot of the day left. Sleep is something that is hard to find. If you noticed, I don't update this webpage very often. Between work and play, there's not much time left for even the basic necessities like showering and doing laundry. And then to sit down at computers that are slower than dirt (imagine a whole town of 1200 people all trying to use the same small bandwith, and small satelite connection... it just doesn't work) - there's just not time. I'm really glad I brought my laptop, but it took 3 weeks before I could get it on the internet.... I had to meet the right people who could help me with that. A lot of things in this town are funky, old and weird, and you need to know someone who knows how to deal with it.

Social life and work life and all a blur together. Everyone is on an equal playing field. I've met some of the most interesting people at work, and they've turned into wonderful friends. Everyone respects everyone else. As a peon, on the bottom of the food chain, it's amazing how much I've found that people respect my work.... A lot of high up people started out as GAs... And people realize the importance of their path being cleared. I've met all sorts of scientists (the reason we're all here - the very top of the food chain), and they're just regular people like you and me. The only difference is that when you ask them what they do, you get a big long confusing answer....

It's fun finding out what people do around here... usually once I meet someone, I'll bump into them during my work day, and then I can get an idea as to how things work around here. And the interesting question to ask people is where they're from. The typical answer is something like, "Well... my storage unit is in Colorado, I was most recently living in Oregon, my car is in Montana and I grew up in New Jersey." I fit in here well, 'cause I'm just sorta a gypsy myself... but my answer to the question is pretty straight. I'm from Montana. If it comes up, yes I did live in Ohio for a couple of years. Usually when I tell someone I'm from Montana, they want to know which town, and most of the time they've heard of it. There are a lot of people from Montana here. Many of the people I know here, I have non-Ice connections with. A lot of times we have mutual friends back home, we went to the same college, or something like that. I ate lunch the other day with a guy whose physical (to get here) was done by my mom. Then there's the girl I went to ballet dance class with when I was a kid, people from the same town where my parents met, a girl who went to high school with my cousin, my mom's hippy friend from the 60s - just to name a few connections.... and then people I met over the internet before coming here......

Written on Thanksgiving Weekend, 2003

Life in Antarctica is fantastic!!!

If you check this sight often, you will notice that I rarely update it.... There are several reasons for that..... Frst of all, life in McMurdo is quite busy, just finding time for sleep sometimes seems impossible. There wouldn't be enough time to do all the fun things there are to do around here, even if we didn't work at all, but we work a minimum of 54 hours a week. When work ends for the day, there's barely time to eat dinner, then rush off to either belly dancing class, tango class, swing class, a music practice or jam, yoga, a science lectore, an Antarctic history lectore, a bowling game, or some other crazy thing going on. Every evening poses many choices, and if you know me, you know that I like to do everything..... Just getting home by bedtime is a difficult feat. Then there's work. I have an awesome job, but it includes a lot of physical labor, so that wears one out even more. The adventures at work are never ending.... I may have more fun at work than I do after work. As a GA, I get to be where the action is, and that's wonderful. I've met some of the neatest people while out doing what the boss sent me to do. Going anywhere in this town is like going to grocery store in a small town. I've been learning to budget my time. We only get one day a week off: Sunday. It's nice to just rest on Sundays, but then again, that's the only time to go to Castle Rock, or one of the other nice ski trails here. This weekend is extra special, we get Saturday off as well. And a big delicious Thanksgiving dinner on Saturday.... It's so wonderful to have 2 days off.... it actually gives me time to work on my webpage, so all you folks back home can learn about what I've been up to. Another thing, computer connections here are SLOW!! There's just not enough bandwidth available in proportion to the number of people trying to use the internet. Luckily I have my own computer and can plug it in at the Coffee House. The Coffee House is on my favorite places here, and diffinetly my favorite bar. They serve good wine, and the interior is all wood and very cozy. The music is nice, and and the atmosphere mellow. There is often live music performed here (and I'm often the one playing it), and always good people. As soon as I get this typed, I know it'll take a long time to upload (and all my photos and whatnot), so I'm planning a nice game of Scrabble - gotta multi task if you want to get anything done online. I pitty the people who shop online. I have everything I need, or make do with what I don't have. I wouldn't even try to shop online around here... all I do is check my email.

I'm sure you want a description of what it's like here, but I wouldn't even know where to begin. There's not enough time to even put the tip of the iceberg on this site for you.... Maybe I'll have a slide show / story telling party when I return to Montana. I probably won't do too much more writing here, but I will try to keep posting pictures - I communicate through photos better anyway.... So, just keep checking on the photos, and the captions will be my way of telling about my life here. I'll also try to include links. I've very much enjoyed learning so much about science - I'll try to include links to websites for the science projects I've been learning about..... I can't possibly include all my photos, but I try to carefully select the ones that will give you the best all around picture of what it's like here.... enjoy!!

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OK, long time since my last update... and probably another long while until the next one. I figured you'd be interested in what has happened in the time since I left the Ice. Well, I'll try to catch you up the best I can:

Flew out on Feb 12th, and found myself in Christchurch New Zealand, with no scheduled plane ticket home. (I had one reserved, I just had to go into the travel agent's office sometime to tell them when I wanted to go home). The first words out of my mouth when I stepped off the airplane were, "It's so warm here!"

I found my friend's dispersing quickly in New Zealand, and in some cases, I didn't have a chance to say goodbye. I quickly was hit by the reality of the real world: $$$ MONEY $$$ - - Things cost money. That was weird. And, if you know me, you know that I don't like to spend money. A place to stay cost money, tranportatioin cost money, food cost money - etc... I found that the best solution to those problems was to get a car. And so, I got "Sunny", she was a White '88 Nissan Datsun Sunny Station Wagon. My first travel partner was Jasmine... though we were only traveling together for a few days, they were an eventful few days. Two girls, set free from Antarctica, driving the country side of New Zealand. She ended up buying a car and traveling with Chris, and I traveled with Mark, who were both still on the Ice when Jasmine and I traveled together. Driving in New Zealand was so much fun! It was an adventure learning to drive on the left side of the road, but that's part of the fun. "Sunny" came with a real nice stove, so we did pretty much all of our own cooking... and you could sleep two people nice and comfortably in the back - It was an ideal situation. Mark was a great travel partner, skilled in many ways, good to have along. We just sorta bummed around for a few weeks and did things like search for hotsprings, go on hikes, camp on the beach, explore caves, and pretty much just relax. Went to a fun music festival in the mountains, called "Destination Music Festival", and that was awesome. By then we had the car all decked out. There were a bunch of Ice people there, and they all seemed to congregate around my car - and that was SO MUCH FUN! We cooked really awesome meals together, played music, and just had an all around good time. The music at the festival was much like that of a rave, and I hardly spent any time at the main stages. It was in an excellent location, and we spent lots of time just hiking around, exploring the area. It was nice to see Ice people off the Ice, and I made some new friends that way. Traveling in New Zealand was fun, 'cause around every corner you were bumpnig into someone from Antarctica - and in the most random obscure places.... I guess we're all attracted to the same types of places. I have great memories of hanging out on the beach with friends, sea kayaking, hiking, and just goofing off. Didn't do a lot of tourist type stuff, so it's hard to tell people where I really went - I just kinda went all around the South Island of New Zealand.

Then, one day, my relaxing life turned hectic... for the next month, I wasn't in one single place for more than 3 days at a time. (all that I'm about to explain was preplanned) Mark dropped me off on the side of the road, with my backpack, and he took Sunny (the car) up to the North Island. The next day, I tracked down some friends of a friend, John & Lizzie, and their daughter Briar... Luckily, Mark dropped me very close to where they live. They were wonderful hosts, and it was nice to be at a real house, after living out of a car for 5 weeks. I had a couple of days to figure out how I was going to get to the trailhead, for a hike planned since last July. I ended up with a combination of hitch hiking (very safe & easy in NZ), taking a boat, and shuttle. And then I met up with Doug & JoJo from home in Gardiner, MT. We spent 3 days hiking the Routeburn Track, one of the great walks of NZ. It was beautiful! Reminded me of the beaten path of the Bearthooths, from East Rosebud to Cooke City, the hike I had done just before deploying to Antarctica, last summer... Only, New Zealand is much better known for it's hikes, especially around Queenstown (where the Routeburn was near), and so there were people from all around the world there. There are like 10 great walks in NZ, and they are so super crowded, unlike some of the hikes I'd already been doing around New Zealand. We stayed in shelters that slept 48 people per night, and there were nearby shelters that held 24 per night, campsites for 24, and the huts for the guided walkers, for 24. The guided walkers paid like $1000 to hike this, and get everything carried and catered for them... AND, this walk is already prebooked, with a waiting list. We made our reservations back in July, and it was now March.... SO, it was quite busy, almost like a single file line walking down the trail. A different hiking culture than I'm used to. It was fun, though... I saw Ice people, NZ friends I'd met elseware, and met more friends. It was a social hike. At the end, I was glad I had Doug pre-arrange a shuttle back to Queenstown... the hitch-hikers were having a hard time getting a ride, and it was pouring rain (still)... Anyway, it was $45 for the ride back to Queenstown - ouch!!! I spent more money in my week away from the car, than I did in the other 5 weeks combined - it was rediculous!!! It was a quick night, with barely enought time to get my stuff out for a few minutes to attemp to dry my gear, pack up my stuff I'd left in Queenstown, and get ready to catch a super early bus the next morning (the first day of my bizzar sleep schedule about to begin)... Took the direct (expensive) bus to Cristchurch, which took me straight to the airport (where the Antarctic Center is, and hence my storage unit, computer to download photos, etc....) Did a bit of re-aranging, and off to the YMCA, where I always stay in Christchurch. The next morning I got up at 3:45 am to catch a 4:00 shuttle to a hot air balloon ride. The balloon co. donates 1 free balloon ride per year to the Antarctic Program, and Mark won it through the Recreation Department at Casino Night (which I missed 'cause I was on my birthday cruise). We tried a couple times to go together (we'd split the difference of one person to go), but balloons are picky about weather, and cancel quite often... He never had the chance to use the coupon, and gave to it me, in case I had a chance... well, this one morning was my one chance to go, and if it was cancled, there was not another oportunity. LUCKILY, on this, my last attempt to fly, the weather was beautiful, and I was able to go on a wonderful hot air balloon ride... It was a beautiful morning... That afternoon, I did some last minute shopping, and took a nap. The next morning, I was up early (by now my body was getting used to it), and headed up the the CDC (Antarctic Center by the Airport)... I did my final re-aranging. I had my stuff all spread out, figuring out what to leave there until next year (heavy things that are hard to fly with, that I owned duplicates of back home, but were hard to get ahold of at first in NZ), what to send directly home, and what to travel with for the next couple of weeks (which had to all fit into a hand carry bag)... I was a little stressed, 'cause I couldn't just send my stuff directly home, 'cause our APO privilages had expired (that gives us use of a US Post Office), and I had to figure out how to send it home from LA once I got there. And technically, we're not supposed to leave anything at the CDC once we leave New Zealand, BUT, everyone does it anyways, so I'd planned for it... Well, guess who gets caught trying to do that? ME! and then being stressed out about what to do with my other stuff once I got to LA - I was a stress case... So I went next door to email a bunch of potential employers, so that I could ensure a job on the Ice again next year. While in the computer room working on that, I get an email from Mark, he's in Aukland trying to sell the car, but is having a heck of a time - the market just wasn't what we'd heard it to be. He didn't know when he could get out of there and catch a flight to LA, and it wasn't sold before he had to be back to California to teach, he'd have to ditch it, and we'd take a loss.... Well, I'd been the one who shelled out the $$$ for the car, and I was not happy about taking a loss... Anyway, these couple of hours in the CDC were quite stressful... Well, then I found someone else who would check in the rest of my stuff to store there, so I got that taken care of, and I took my two remaining bags (the one to send home once I got to LA, and my hand carry for the next couple of weeks), and dashed over to the airport to catch my flight to Aukland. In Aukland, I walked from the domestic terminal to the international terminal, went through security a couple more times (including the more strict US security gates), and found my gate for my flight to LA. Well, guess who happened to be sitting there waiting for me? MARK!!! Turns out that since he'd emailed me that morning, some buyers came into the car market to look at cars (the only buyers in days)... They had notebooks, and were skilled car shoppers... they looked at all 30 cars at the market, and decide on Sunny. Their selling points were the same ones that sold me on the car, and now I'm glad I had paid a little more to get Sunny. The paperwork was taken care of quickly, and they asked Mark where he wanted to be dropped off, and he said he'd like to go to the airport... Once he was there he was able to get on my flight, standby, and then an actual seat, and there he was.... It sure did suprise me, but I was happy we'd gotten Sunny sold, without much of a loss... cost us NZ$450, which was NZ$225 each or roughly US$150 - not bad for 6 weeks of free transportation, and housing. So, we were on our way to LA... I didn't sit with Mark, and then we went seperate ways once we got to LA. I had a shuttle arranged to take me to the post office nearest the ferry terminal I had to be at. I was the last person on the shuttle, and the driver said he'd wait for me, and then take me all the way to the ferry terminal. Score!! so, I mailed my large bag home, for $30, and was left with just my hand carry (oh, and laptop)... The ferry only usually has one ferry a day to the harbor I was trying to get to, the smallest harbor on Catalina Island: Two Harbors... I was 4 hours early for that fairy, but I checked in anyways.... well, turns out there was a special group being picked up there, so they had a special ferry, leaving right when I checked in... I got on that, and as the only passenger out there, I slept the whole way.... Now, Doug, my friend on Catalina Island, was supposed to meet me there 4 hours later, once he go off work... This had all been set up over email, and I didn't have his phone number or address.... SO, I started asking around, it's a small neighborhood (actually reminded me of a lot of the towns I'd been hanging out in in New Zealand).... I got pointed in the right direction, and then hitched a ride, and they dropped me off at the camp enterance (Doug works at an Outdoor Ed Center similar to the one we'd both worked at in Ohio)... I asked around the camp, not even sure if thats the one he worked at, but got pointed in his direction... I walked into the kitchen, just as Doug was serving dinner, and blew his socks off, I was 3 hours early, and he knew I didn't know where he lived. It was nice to catch up with an old friend! After a day and a half of beach volleybal, BBQing, snorkeling & chit-chatting, I cought the ferry back to the mainland, where Mark picked me up.... The next day I went to Magic Mountain (a big roller coaster park) with Mark's family... Then Mark and I had to sit down and figure out financed (I'd bought the car, he'd sold it.... it had been in NZ$$, but now we were working in US$$... we'd shared other stuff while traveling together, and now was the math day)... Then I had 24 hours with my California Relatives, Clarke & Estelle, their kids, and grandkids... Then to the airport again to catch a flight to Chicago. I got to my gate just as they were doing the final boarding call for another flight to Chicago, and I asked if I could get on that one instead, and they let me, so I got to Chicago early... It was April 1st now.... I landed at 2:00, and cought a 2:15 bus (which only leaves once an hour), and took that to my dad's cousins' house: Dolly & Jerome.... (dad has lots of cousins... I spent a day and a half there, emailing with potential employers, shopping for little things and getting ready for the big party... Then they took me to my Great Uncle Nick's, the only surviving brother out of 10 kids in my Grandpa's family.... Rose, my Grandpa's & Nick's sister had just died while I was in New Zealand.... It was real nice to catch up with Uncle Nick, and I got another tour of his recording studio, and got to listen to his latest recording.... Then he and his son, Ron (another one of my Dad's many cousins) took me to my Grandma's 90th birthday party. Now, the only people attending the party who knew in advance that I was going to be there, were Nick and Ron... I don't think they realized the severty of the conspiracy they were helping with.... Anyway, I blew everyone's socks off when I walked into that party.... I hadn't been emailing my parents much, and as far as they knew, I owned a car in New Zealand and wasn't going to be home for quite a while... The first person I saw was my Grandma Sylvon, and she screamed so loud that people thought she was hurt... Then my mom saw me, and I think she had the biggest suprise in her entire life, EVER, and will never have one again to compare to this. She screamed for 10 minutes straight, and doesn't even remember that. I didn't recognize my dad right away, he was clean shaven, nice haircut, and was wearing a TUXEDO!!! Dad in a TUX, can you believe it? Until I had arrived, Dad in a TUX had been the suprise of the day.... I actually didn't outdo him in the shock factor very much... For the next couple of days, his mom talked more about how suprised she was to see him in a TUX than how suprised she was to see me.... Anyway, the party was at this amazing place, and it reminded me of a fancy wedding, it was so nice. There was a standup bass in the corner, and the first thing Dad and I did was grab my cousin Peter (guitar player), dad grabbed his fiddle, I picked up the bass and we started playing it.... That was the one thing I'd missed a lot in Antarctica: playing a real bass, and not my standup stick, electric thing.... We played a couple songs, and then food was served - wonderful food!! There was a full bar (at 90 my Grandma can still outdrink & outdance everyone)... And the band was AWESOME!! it was a wonderful night. My mom and her mom, my Grandma Francis, tried to take me to the East Coast for Passover with the family there, but I was still on a tight travel agenda (that nice little hand carry, stowed under a table at the party)... So, I spent a couple of days with my Dad's family, before catching my next flight. I was unable to re-route my Antarctic ticket through Chicago, since Chicago was PAST Montana... So, what had ended up being the cheapest, was to purchase a round trip ticket out of LA while I was on my LA leg of my layover.... So, I had my return ticket to LA, then I got on the plane and flew from LA to Salt Lake (where cooincedently my dad had purchased his TUX, can you believe my dad owns a TUX?!), and then from Salt Lake to Bozeman. I had left myself some extra time for the whole security mess in LA, since I was switching airline carriers and stuff, but I got through all that quicker than expected, so I was able to catch earlier flights the whole way.... So, I called my ride, which was a good thing, 'cause she was off a day in picking me up, and was going to be 24 hrs late... Anyway, I got to Bozeman and Erin picked me up, with a McKenzie River Pizza in hand, and drove me straight to my parents house.... I spend a day there, re-aranging, and then picking up my car, my bass, my skis and my climbing equipment... Then 1/2 a day in town getting my car re-registered, re-insured, new oil, and the works.... Then I drove straight to Boulder Colorado, so that I could be there in time to Easter with my best friend, Sara, and her Dad, Whitey.... Went telemark skiing on Easter, closing day at Eldora ski area.... I hadn't been to an area in a long time, and I think I forgot how to ski... My muscles were quite confused.... So, that was my busy hectic month.... from the Southern Part of the South Island of New Zealand, to Boulder Colorado...

I spent about a month in Colorado, doing a lot of relaxing, but t was more like worrying, as I didn't yet have a job on the Ice for next Austral Summer. I spent the first week in Boulder getting my resume ready for the job fair, and get mentally prepared. Then I went to the annual Antarctic Job Fair in Denver. It was a nice reunion to see Ice people, but it was also nerve-wracking to be there trying to get a job, competing with all the newbees who'd never been to the Ice. Although I had been down there before, and had that advantage, I found it to be more difficult to get a job than I had expected. I feel that I was the second or third runner in several jobs, but not the first runner up in any one particular job. That first week after the job fair was crazy. I tried relaxing after all my travels, but I only had one thing on my mind, "I HAVE TO GO BACK TO ANTARCTICA," and the only way to do that was to get a job. I paced back and forth across Sara's apt., sometimes too nervous to call any hiring managers. I tried going out to play music and to dance, but I had this fear in the pit of my stomache that if I wasn't sitting by the phone, I would miss that one important phone call that would be a job offer. It was hard to write professional emails to perspective employers, when I knew them on a personal basis, and had probably done something to totally embarrass myself at some party down on the Ice.... but at the same time, it was hard to be casual, when I wanted to be professional and perfect. I was a mess. Anyway, on the second week, as I heard word of many jobs filling up, and of Ice people telling me that this was one of the most difficult and competative years, I finally got some good news. I was able to get myself a couple of job interviews. I think it helped that I was in the Denver area and could come in in person. I ended up being offered, and took a job in the Supply department. I will be working at the VMF (Vehical Maintainance Facility), aka: The Heavy Shop, or building 143. I was very excited... I still am very excited. Of the different jobs I looked at, I feel this is the one that fits my skills the best... It's not a field job, and it's not at the BFC (a town job I would totally love - but I've known all along is very competative) - but it's the next best thing. There are doors to good future opportunities, that are now open. No job will be as good as being a GA, my job from last year, but I had realized that after about one week of being a GA. In one sence, I'm going to miss all the fun and glamour, but in another sence, I am so happy to be reporting to the SAME workspace everyday. Being a GA was nice for the variety, but I hated the fact that everyday was the first day on the job. I never felt like I did anything very well, 'cause I was just getting the hang of it when it was time to move onto something else. I know I will a better job, since it will be an actual job, and not a "temp agency" job. I'm hoping to get a higher level of evaluation, and hence a higher bonus, for next year. I wouldn't give up my GA year for anything, but it was the "Freshman in College" sorta job... Now it's time to pick a major and start growing up. Anyway, I'm very relieved to have a job, and happy to have a good one... I'm just gonna miss things like all the interaction with scientists, driving around on the sea ice in a Piston Bully, and getting to go on cool trips. BUT, I get to go home to Antarctica, and that's all that matters.... OK, so I'd verbally agreed to the job, but there was still so much to do, and it was a good thing I was at the Denver Headquarters. I had to sign my offer letter, and this went quicker than last year, 'cause I just went in and signed it in person, and then filled out my HR paperwork on the spot. The paperwork ways about 10 lbs, and has a ga-gillion things to fill out. Just as last year, I'd signed on the wrong line of some form deap in the pile, but since I was sitting in the HR dept, they were able to catch it on the spot and I could fix it right then & there. Then I had my physical (PQ, as we call it... a verb meaning "Physically Qualify"). They took 1/2 the blood out of my body for blood tests, and I had to go to the Dentist, too. Last year, when I went to the Dentist, I had to have him fill out all this paperwork, and then send my exam results & x-rays to the Denver office, where they passed them onto the PQing Dentist, who looked them over and decided which teeth needed fixing.... the message got back to me, and I had to schedule more dental appointments, and send the stuff back... it went on and on and on last year, and I finally was PQ'd in August. WELL, this year, I went straight to the PQing Dentist in Denver, and she told me right on the spot which teeth needed fixing, and as it turned out, she had cancellations that day, and was able to do all my dental work right at that instant. I didn't have to worry about reciepts and re-embursment forms... they just billed my employer directly (though I had to pay for the dental repare work - YUCK). Anyway, it took me a week in Denver to get my PQ stuff all taken care of. Much better than having to stay close to home (where they send all that stuff) all summer, like I did last year. NOW, I'm all done. And then I had one week in Boulder, where I was done with everything, and could FINALLY relax. I played music, I danced, I went out, I climbed a 1600 ft. wall - and I didn't sit by the phone anymore. On the day I got home to Montana, after all that, I got the official, "You're PQ'd" email - and I was so excited. Now all I have to do is wait for my airline tickets. I'm scheduled to leave on October 1st (give or take a little).

SO, that was the headache of getting back to my home in the South.... Now I've got the northern hemisphere's summer to PLAY. I'm at home in Jardine right now, and then I will be heading to the Folklife Festival in Seattle - one of very most favorite festivals in the world. After that I think I'm going to go to California and visit some friends.... Then on to Weiser, ID, for the National Oldtime Fiddler's Contest - another one of my favorite festivals, and then back to MT for the 4th of July, and my familie's annual party. The rest of the summer isn't all that planned yet - but I know it'll be busy.

Sorry it's taken me so long to update this - I've just been so busy, and all over the place, w/o a steady internet connection. Hopefully I'll get this uploaded not too long after I'm writing...