I slept really well last night, just not enough.
We took down the kitchen tent right after breakfast, and when we returned it learned our sling load was already on the way. So, we headed down to the helo pad to help unload onto a truck for delivery back to a few buildings:
It contained our Scott tents, a couple more sleep kits, the human feces buckets, the grey water barrel, generator, gas, propane, all the hazardous stuff they don't want to load inside the helo. Also inside were the rest of our left over food supplies, boxes of rock samples, empty water jugs, and just all the leftover miscellaneous stuff. We got everything washed up and returned at the BFC by lunch. All that was left was to return some electronics and a few other items to other buildings.
On the way to lunch I grabbed a shot of the Hospital:
Here are Pat, Ryan, and Ziggy heading into the Galley:
Lunch today was hamburgers. Not very good as hamburgers go, but I started thinking that I hadn't had a hamburger in at least 4 weeks.........I also noticed that there is never any deep fried food. The Chicken dinner last night was roasted/broiled, not fried.
While catching up on my blog this afternoon, I noticed the ice-cutter is making a sweep through the bay to keep the ice loose. Probably easier than waiting for it to freeze over hard again. It probably does this every few days while waiting until it can leave.
It's after 5 and I'm heading for dinner. The activity tonight will be the waste barn party. The waste barn is the largest building they can clear out. All the local bands come and perform. It is the last big bash of the season. People start leaving at end of Jan., for example us on Monday. Everyone is gone by the second week of Feb. except those that are wintering over. Tomorrow at 3 in the galley is the annual film festival. Anyone who has put a movie together can show it, it is supposed to be hilarious, poking fun at life and people at McMurdo.
All of our group, however, wimped out on the Antarctic Plunge. They put a hole in the ice at Scott Base, the New Zealand base, and anyone who wants to jump in, can. The water is 29 degrees Fahrenheit. Women at 2:30, men at 3:00, co-ed at 3:30. The government (NSF) and the contractor which employs all the support people here (Raytheon) discourage this. That is why is is no longer done here, only at Scott. Actually we were busy up until that time, and even if one of us was brave/crazy enough, we might not have made it over there. And, I didn't bring a swim suit, so I would have had to go "au nateural".
I'll try to make a post tomorrow to confirm we're flying out the next morning. If so, I'll be out of contact all day Mon. during the 11 hour flight. I won't be able to post until Tues. morning my time, Mon. afternoon CST. However, Ziggy and I might take a train trip early in the morning, so it might be later.
Scheduled to fly from NZ to LA on Wed., but by crossing the international date line, it will only take a few hours, and I'll be back in the US Wed. afternoon, and spend the rest of the day flying back to SD. I think I have the last NW flight of the night from Minneapolis to Sioux Falls.
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