Thursday, December 21, 2006
Finding Those Antarctica Moments
Tonight I had just returned home from a long day of work and play and was really looking forward to the glass of root beer I had just poured myself, when my roommate Helen burst through the door and asked if I wanted to go out to Hut Point with her and Deany (one of our upstairs neighbors). After glancing at my root beer longingly, I put it in the fridge and grabbed my coat. We walked out and sat at this little part overlooking the sea ice and two seals lounging. Our spot was far enough away from town that you couldn't hear the generator that runs 24 hours a day. It was 34 degrees F (that's 1 degree Celcius), but it's warm to us. We sat down and just watched the seals and looked out over the sea ice, listening to the groans coming from the big grayish-colored blobs and the melting snow. We watched as one of the seals poked his head in and out of the hole next to him, and then after ten minutes of that, he slinked into the water (a lot more uneventfully than I had imagined). I mentioned how nice it was to have an Antarctica moment and really, truly appreciate where you are at and what you are actually able to do and see here. Sometimes it's hard to remember how lucky we are when it's so easy to get caught up in the day-to-day drama of living at an intense 60+ hour work camp. But I am in Antarctica, and getting away from Station, no matter how far (or close) and for how long (or little) is the best way to remember what a great experience I am having.
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and then you and helen made out...