Yay!!I'm on the Internet!!!

 

10-23-22


Well, I’m back but still having trouble with my internet connection. I made it to The Ice October 20th, and it was a beautiful day. The temperature was 18 (above zero), sunny with no wind. 

That is way better than any other first day I’ve ever experienced. The airport is 10 miles away from McMurdo. The vehicle we were traveling into town has a top speed of 10 mph. Yes, it took an hour to travel 10 miles to the base. 

Upon arrival we were ushered into the library for a welcome aboard briefing. After the briefing I headed over to my dorm room then over to the dining facility for dinner. I share my room with a weather observer named Mark. He’s a little younger than me (most everybody is) but very nice. Our room is about half the size of a hotel room with a twin bed in each back corner. The beds are separated by a wardrobe with hanging space and 3 drawers for cloths. Just inside the door is a common area with a small TV, small refrigerator and a microwave oven. We also have an old-fashioned dial phone. It’s a lot like college dorms I’ve seen just a little more dated and worn.

I’m in the process of reorienting myself to McMurdo and getting used to being back in my work area again after 14 years away. The food, at the dining hall, as I remembered, is excellent. There’s just too much of it with oven fresh bread and several types of desserts at every meal.

I haven’t been to the gerbil gym yet, but I found a restorative yoga class that I’m looking forward to joining.

The most overwhelming feeling I’ve experienced is a feeling of mental claustrophobia because I’ve been disconnected from the outside world with no immediate remedy for the problem. Yesterday I was reconnected to the world wide web and talked to Deni (my wife) for the first time in almost a week.

Yesterday we had enough snow to leave some snow drifts. There was also a bitterly cold wind, low visibility and low clouds. McMurdo was showing her true colors!

Today, Sunday, is a day of rest for most of us on base then it’s back to work for everyone tomorrow.

 

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