the good news about antarctica
my last post was definitely the bad news. this is the good news.
my life in antarctica has been amazing: i’ve met amazing people that i hope will continue to be in my life for years to come; i’ve seen and done amazing things that i will never forget; and i know that next season will be even better (if i get that carp shop job). i consider myself lucky in that regard; others certainly have not had it as good as i have.
it’s been almost 4 months, and i’ve only got 3 weeks left.
one of my friends down here (shuttle joe) is the oldest person on the continent, and he’s 78 years old. he and i got to talking one night at gallagher’s (the non-smoking bar) about how fast the time flies around here, and that was only after 3 weeks. i told him that the first 3 months would fly by just as the first 3 weeks, and sure enough, they did. when i told him that we’d hit the 3 month mark he said, “and do you wanna know the craziest part? before you know it, 60 years’ll’ve gone by.” nice, joe. real nice.
but the next 3 weeks are gonna be jam-packed craziness. Oden, the swedish ice breaker, is here. it’s job is to break a channel in the sea ice from the open ocean to the McMurdo loading dock. it arrived about 2 weeks ago and it’s been chugging back and forth clearing out the sea ice. the oil tanker and the supply vessel will follow, bringing with them a years worth of fuel and supplies; once it’s been unloaded (know as “off-load” around here) it will be re-loaded with a years worth of trash. during this entire process (about 2 weeks) the town goes a little crazy because no alcohol can be sold and the bars are closed. i guess there were too many fights in years passed.
my tentative re-deployment date is feb 11th 13th 17th, the second third fifth flight out at the end of summer. i absolutely love this place, but the thought of leaving excites me. the thought of NOT washing dishes 6 days a week excites me. the thought of lying down in a field of green grass and feeling the warmth of the sun all over my body almost brings me to tears. i know i’ll be crying when i get on that plane.
but those will be tears of sadness and joy, for it will be the beginning of the next stage. it will be the beginning of my summer travels, which are going to jam-f-ing-packed! here’s the super-duper-simple break down (obviously, subject to change):
- mid february to mid march – south island, new zealand
- 3rd week of march – eastern australia
- end of march to mid april – thailand
- end of april – seattle / portland
- most of may – recording in denver
- first half of june – indiana
- 2nd half of june – hitchhiking from indy to seattle
all of that makes all of this worth it.
