If you've also been keeping up with The Life Nomadic, you'll know that my post-ice travel plans have changed drastically as a result of the market crash. I no longer have the means to pursue an endless winter; skiing my way from north to south. Instead, I have decided to travel primarily in South America after a brief return to the U.S.
I'm excited to have built a new website which will be dedicated to extended travel on a fixed budget. The new site is called Vagabumming - South America Budget Travel - bookmark it, get the RSS feed - just check it out and follow along there for what's going on - and if you need a slick website built - drop me a line!
10/31/08
10/26/08
Population Explosion!
The first planeload of passengers for the 08/09 summer research season arrived yesterday...increasing our population by 14 people....16 people arrive today. It's a bit weird...seeing new faces for the first time in over eight months seems like a strange concept after you get settled into a routine here where nothing ever changes.
The arriving folks did bring fruit! I don't think an orange ever tasted so good. They also brought flu vaccine. I've never been a fan of the flu shot but I went ahead and got one yesterday. I'd really rather not spend my time in Hawaii sick.
The arriving folks did bring fruit! I don't think an orange ever tasted so good. They also brought flu vaccine. I've never been a fan of the flu shot but I went ahead and got one yesterday. I'd really rather not spend my time in Hawaii sick.
10/7/08
The Winterover experience
Now that the winter season at The South Pole is nearing its end, I figured some self-reflection was in order. In conversations amongst Antarctic workers much is always said about wintering on this continent. Some describe the experience as magical, others simply tolerate the long, dark night as an alternative to what their life might be like elsewhere. There are usually stories of shenanigans, debauchery and occasionally even a bit of the ultra-violence.
This winter has so far been one of the quiet ones. There was a fire at McMurdo, a couple of small incidents in our own power plant at Pole, a few injuries and an almost medevac but when the season ends the stories will most likely be pretty tame in comparison to other, more eventful winters.
Antarctic lore dictates that one is forever changed by enduring the perpetual night. For my part I have pretty much dismissed the widely held and often talked about belief that conversation is reduced to monosyllabic words with a grunt here and there. I have only experienced very isolated instances of being "spaced out". I would say that perhaps I have gained an ability to truly let things that don't matter slide. This comes with great effort and is definitely a conscious decision, but the fact is, is that not much really truly matters on anything other than a very small scale. Being locked in for nine months with a group of people really drives that point home. It certainly isn't advantageous to "rock the boat" and it's definitely not worth it to nitpick at somebody else's work habits or personality traits. Things that might normally upset me about how a co-worker or fellow community member conducts his or her business are easily dismissed here. I really like that about me and am curious if I can maintain the ability to let such things slide.
This winter has so far been one of the quiet ones. There was a fire at McMurdo, a couple of small incidents in our own power plant at Pole, a few injuries and an almost medevac but when the season ends the stories will most likely be pretty tame in comparison to other, more eventful winters.Antarctic lore dictates that one is forever changed by enduring the perpetual night. For my part I have pretty much dismissed the widely held and often talked about belief that conversation is reduced to monosyllabic words with a grunt here and there. I have only experienced very isolated instances of being "spaced out". I would say that perhaps I have gained an ability to truly let things that don't matter slide. This comes with great effort and is definitely a conscious decision, but the fact is, is that not much really truly matters on anything other than a very small scale. Being locked in for nine months with a group of people really drives that point home. It certainly isn't advantageous to "rock the boat" and it's definitely not worth it to nitpick at somebody else's work habits or personality traits. Things that might normally upset me about how a co-worker or fellow community member conducts his or her business are easily dismissed here. I really like that about me and am curious if I can maintain the ability to let such things slide.
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