wondering wandering

a week or a year

kansas — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 01:35:00 GMT

wells, this last week has been quite full and full on feels like much longer than a week. the big things have been starting work in the shop which rocks actually. peoples there are really great and fun and the work is much more manageable than i was imagining. at this point i am only working on light vehicles (trucks and vans) that get folks around town and the area. i have my own toolbox full of tools with many more to access in the tool room. all the other mechanics are super friendly, funny and helpful, which makes it an awesome place to work. and the boss is a total crack up and a little crazy (in the good ways).

actually, at this point i've only worked 2 full days because of all the trainings. the most amazing so far was the snow school training! it was a 2-day course, where we camped out in an area away from town, to help adapt to antarctic weather and get a sense of what we need to do if we were to get stuck out somewhere. it rocked! i'm gonna give the details in the next entry though because it is actually the middle of the nite here and i can't sleep but i need to.

so, i will add some other details...the food isn't too bad actually and there's a greenhouse so we are getting some "freshies" off and on. i'm on the VMF (vehicle maintenance facilities-where i work) volleyball and soccer teams and it's a riot, mostly because mechanics aren't always athletes. i'm meeting tons of people and it's disorienting to meet someone and realize that when i say "see you later" i will actually see them later, in moments probably, at breakfast, lunch, dinner or some event that nite. the weather is already getting nicer, in other words, i can go outside without "big red", the giant, warm and cozy parka we're issued. it's only when the wind picks up that the chill hits in some, but the views of mountains around here are spectacular! also, after the snow skool training, i tried out for the SAR team (ps there are so many TLA's (three letter acronyms) down here it's absurd) any the Search And Rescue team, which the try-outs were esssentially the next level in the snow skool trainings. it was totally fun and involved practicing rescuing someone from a crevasse (a pseudo-crevasse, they made it by digging into an area they know is solid and safe), so working with climbing equipment and such. we also did some glissading (sliding down a steep snowy incline on your butt) and self-arresting (using your ice-axe to stop your slide or fall down the incline. ANYHOW, i made the team! i'm really excited about it and somewhat surprised but not entirely. mostly the surprise comes from the fact that there were many applicants, many folks who tried out and only a few who were chosen...so what it means is i'll be continuing the trainings once a week (oh, we're the secondary team, so will fill and support the already established primary team) and i'll really get to know the area and outdoor environment here. i'll obviously be learning search and rescue techniques and skills for extreme cold weather which will be applicable to any mountain adventures i have back home or out in the rest of the world for that matter...it rocks!

oh goodness, i do need to go back to sleep, my new schedule starts tomorrow. oh, i'm working dayshifts instead of nights, and i'm working 5 days of 12 hrs a day (1hr for lunch), this way i get 2 days off instead of one, which is superb.

more soon and lots of love, shawntel

spectacular spectacular

kansas — Sat, 3 Nov 2007 20:03:00 GMT

well, my word, it is cold here! flying in was absolutely fabuloso. i ended up sitting in one of the co-pilot chairs in the cockpit and getting supreme views of the megamountains below. no human has laid foot on the majority of antarctica including the mountains and valleys we passed over. we rode in a C-17, a big ole military cargo plane...way cool.

where we landed is right ontop of 6ft thick sea ice (pretty thin for a huge plane in my opinion). they'll be changing the runway location soon because where we landed will be melting and broken up in not too long. scary...or really damn cool...

sooooo, i'm totally pooped and having a blast so far. i'm livin' dorm style with shared bathrooms, straight up cafeteria food and all. we're in current run of "freshies". the time when we have a fair amount of fresh veggies available. it goes in waves, so over time we'll have less and less, and then boom a new batch arrives. mmmmm.

in my whole 2 days here i haven't quite adjusted to the 24 hour sunlight thing. right when i'm feeling tired and like it has to be way dark, i step down the hall and shabam, bright bright sunshiney light. (my room has no windows...hmmmm...this may drive me crazy. i'll keep you posted, or perhaps you will just know by my words...heehee)

so, i'm working in the heavy shop aka vmf aka vehicle maintenance facilities aka building 143, as a preventative maintenance mechanic. so far i've mostly been doing trainings and meeting peeps. it's been fun and silly and chaotic.

i completely dig my roommate. her name is clair and she's an avid hiker, a whitewater rafting guide, a traveler and so easy going and fun.

it is megacold especially when the winds are kickin'. i was given tons (almost literally) of cold weather clothes, so when i have the right combo i keep completely warm and cozy. the thing is, when i want to just hop over to the next building or so, gearing up seems such an ordeal, sooo with cold nose and cheeks and foggy glasses i find i end up walking backwards (away from the wind) to work. not too bad. and i hear the weather is only on it's way to warmer...

well, this was a mostly basics update. my tired self isn't letting out any creative flowage. tomorrow (sundays) is my day off, so i'm off to boogie down at my first antarctica dance party, 70s vs. 80s...

with love and exhileration...shawntel

Gallery: antarctica

kansas — Sat, 3 Nov 2007 19:38:00 GMT

from mcmurdo area

heading south

kansas — Thu, 1 Nov 2007 14:27:00 GMT

wells, i'm finally working my ways down to the ice. lots of logistics, flying time and orienting only to become more disoriented. left oly on the 26th of oct. and have been working my way to antarctica since. i'm currently in new zealand for a couple days and we leave from here on a military plane to mcmurdo station (mac town, where i'll be working my butt off for the next 4ish months)

some cool things so far are the amazing view of the stars and moon from above the clouds high in the sky, which also was my first sighting of the southern hemisphere star patterns including the southern cross!

i've been having major appreciation for the nighttime, as once i'm in antarctica i will have none of it.

and then there was the amazing dream i had last nite involving a group of kangaroos jaunting across a beautiful landscape...haven't seen any roos in my waking moments, yet, though.

beyond those, let's see, i've been meeting interesting people who are going too, to differing locales, i had a "kiwi" breakfast of french toast with bacon, bananas and maple syrup on top, i forgot everyone drives on the "other" side of the road and the car, the feijoa fruit is dee-lish, oh and the time diff is 20 hours later than olympia time (or 4 hours earlier, but the next day!) wonderfully confusing.

alright, more to come soon. i actually leave for the ice tomorrow in the am (2nd of nov.) and have hardly any idea of what to expect, so, i'll keep you posted on any of the interesting bits that come my way...

lots of love to all