Transitions

-44.6 C (-48.3 F)
wind chill: -58.4 C (-72.8 F)
Wind: 6.9 knots

I’ve said goodbye to my Jamesway and have now transitioned into the main station. Since I’m 1 of 17 people who are “soft closers,” we move into the station now that there is room until the weather determines we need to fly out. The tentative date is February 24, but the weather had rapidly turned cold so there are rumors we may be leaving earlier. We are all transitioned into the main station so they can prepare the Jamesways to go cold for the winter and so we are all in the same location in case they need to rapidly notify us if we are flying out. In the meantime, I’m really enjoying my very tiny accommodations of the station. It is such a luxury to be able to take an undisturbed quick nap at the end of the day while waiting for the internet. Also, for the first time in a long time I finally felt the privacy and the comfort of being alone. I became so relaxed that I slept harder during my 45 minutes nap than I had all season. For the first time forgot where I was and what day and time of day it was. Since I had dirt and grim older than I am in my J-way and a canvas curtain for a door, I never felt I was able to completely relax or comfortable enough to just hang out and read. I slept really well there as I’m always sleep deprived, but the commute to my room was a killer and woke me up faster than an IV of coffee. Many people told me to keep track of my dreams while on this journey as they would get pretty bizarre. I’ve been too exhausted to dream as I’ve only had one dream and it was of spiders. I know fully expect to relax enough to dream. I’m excited for my day off this week to stay in bed all day and sleep. This is easier to do in the station as the commute to get food and check email is significantly shorter and I can stay in my PJ’s all day.

With the weather rapidly turning colder at the Pole and most of my friends already off the Ice enjoying the warmth of New Zealand, I’m hearing warnings about what to be aware of while transitioning back to the real world. First, there will be over 100 degree difference to me within a relatively short period of time so be prepared to have on summer clothes under your ECW. It’s extremely strange to put on shorts and tank tops when it’s -45 F. Friends have also told me to be prepared to stare and become emotional at the first sunset and night sky I’ve seen in over 4 months. I never really got used to the 24 hours of daylight and have missed the night sky and darkness. I’ve also been told to be aware of cars. We haven’t seen any roads or anything drive faster than 10 mph in a long time. Apparently a few Polies get hit by cars every now and again after leaving the Ice. In New Zealand, they drive on the opposite side of the road than the US and everyone tends to look the wrong direction when crossing the street.

Once I leave the Pole, I plan on taking a few days in Cheech to just sleep and take long showers. Eventually I’ll make my way across NZ by woofing. This organization called WWOOF (willing workers on organic farms) supplies you with information to work with a family for 3-4 hours a day for free room and board. You can volunteer to do anything from picking grapes, mowing lawns, babysitting, and gardening. Since it is wine harvest season, I’ve seen many families needing help in the vineyards. To me this is the perfect way to see the country and get to know the locals and their cultures. Some families are Maori Indians who have a similar story to our Native Americans and I’m very interested in experiencing more of their culture. (More information on woofing is providing through the link to their website.)

I plan on meeting friends at the Wild Foods Festival in XX, NZ on March 10. They’ve already left the Ice and have reserved camping spots near the Tasman Sea. At this festival they specialize in strange foods such as grubs, venison tongue, fried grasshopper, fried cicada, fish eyes, and venison penis (someone told me it tastes like a spicy sausage --- uhm too many jokes). Then again, they also serve perogies which are common to the Midwest and of which I’m very familiar and absolutely love. (They are a warm, buttery dough filled with potatoes, onion, and cheese.) I suppose to them it’s not native and therefore wild. I’ve included the like to the festival if you would like to see what other delicacies I’ll be enjoying.

We are no longer able to receive mail at Pole and any mail already sent to us will be diverted back to our home addresses. We only have a few days left to send out any flat mail as they will be closing the post office for the winter season. Any mail we send after the 14th will remain in the post office until next Spring.

James Brown has left the building. He conducted his last cult classic “James Brown Bingo” of the season and departed last Friday. He was eager to get back to his new bride. I’ve included a picture of the last JB Bingo so I can be proud and say “yep, that’s my boss.” He's a big lover of 80's music and Michael Jordan. Every Sunday when we worked together we would spend long hours discussing da Bulls dynasty and listening to as much cheesy 80's music as possible over the galley speaker system. I could always count on JB to say "Hey Steph, I have this . . . on cassette."

Those who have spent time at Pole have warned me of its addictive qualities. There are many life luxuries that are lacking, but there is something about the peace and quiet. One aspect is the lack of advertising in our lives at Pole. You don't realize how much advertising influences your day-to-day and long term thought processes. It can't be helped. In the normal world, images and words are consistently piped into our brains unconsciously influencing our thoughts and actions on how and who we think we should be. We try to fight the conscious influences but the influx can't be helped. At Pole, a mind can relax and focus more freely in the absence of all the constant advertising. There's no urges for spontaneous shopping, gift buying, or the things "you just gotta have." I've been warned that many people become ultra sensitive, intolerant, and even more annoyed at advertising than normal once you leave the seclusion of the ice. The Super Bowl was incredibly relaxing becauce we didn't have the 2 week of continuous obvious analysis before the game, even though we watched a taped version of the game a few days after it actually happened. It has also been incredibly freeing to be able to avoid all the political jabbering of last year’s elections and now the announcing of the Presentational candidates. Any political information we receive is intentionally sought. We are able to freely choose what we want to know from the real world and what we want to avoid. We can avoid any extraneous political scandals or celebrity gossip that is droned on in ad nauseam. Again, I've noticed a freeing and focusing of the mind amidst the lack of these distractions. This isn't to say we don't pay attention to the important world events. On the contrary, we are able to focus more on what is truly important to be aware of in the US and the world and filter out the garbage. Besides the beauty of Antarctica, it will be one of the things I miss most from the Ice.

My Winterover friends that I am leaving behind will have a great season. There will be a wonderful station crew here of 57 people made up of 10 females and 47 males. Everyone has been to the Ice before either just this summer, at McMurdo, or have wintered before. The weather is extremely crisp, clear, and beautiful now which is when it begins to get really cold. I am notsalgic and a little jealous of my winter friends being able to see the most spectacular sunset, sunrise, and auroras. I wish all my winter friends a wonderful and safe season.