greetings!
this past summer was incredibly busy and between our unreliable satellite connection and my work schedule i've had no time for blogging. it is now autumn at the South Pole, the sun is falling quickly in the sky and we have just a few weeks of sun remaining. we still have much to do to complete the station closing activities, but we seem to be doing well with all of our tasks. there are 49 of us here for the winter, the last plane left on my birthday and we don't expect a plane in until the end of oct. at the earliest. we have a great crew of people and it seems that we have a wonderful sense of community that is developing. i am working with 3 great folks in materials and am still the head of the emergency response team 3, which is the logistics branch and i am also the recreation coordinator for the winter. i know that when the sun sets things will drastically slow down, but for now it still feels like the craziness of summer with less people! i moved into the station after i returned from r&r in christchurch.
it has been difficult to hear about all of the destruction of the last earthquake, we have felt so helpless here. there were 592 people who are involved in the antarctic program that were in christchurch when the quake hit. amazingly, no one in the program was injured, but many of the folks who live there were not so lucky, we are still receiving reports of the terrible reality that has befallen many of the kiwi's who support us while we are in n.z. there was noticeable damage when i came through at the end of sept from the quake that they had earlier in the month, this was the beginning of their nightmare. when i was there for r&r in jan. the damage from the large quake they had in dec. illustrated another layer of destruction, but this last shake was by far the worst yet. there are still missing people and the aftershocks are still happening. we have started a relief fund from the station but we wish we could do more. i am hoping to write more as the winter sets in and i find time to relax, i bought lots of yarn and art supplies on r&r and i'm looking forward to learning how to knit! i will write another entry soon... until then, i hope this finds you all healthy and happy and enjoying the prospect of a splendid spring!
take care, karengrace
this past summer was incredibly busy and between our unreliable satellite connection and my work schedule i've had no time for blogging. it is now autumn at the South Pole, the sun is falling quickly in the sky and we have just a few weeks of sun remaining. we still have much to do to complete the station closing activities, but we seem to be doing well with all of our tasks. there are 49 of us here for the winter, the last plane left on my birthday and we don't expect a plane in until the end of oct. at the earliest. we have a great crew of people and it seems that we have a wonderful sense of community that is developing. i am working with 3 great folks in materials and am still the head of the emergency response team 3, which is the logistics branch and i am also the recreation coordinator for the winter. i know that when the sun sets things will drastically slow down, but for now it still feels like the craziness of summer with less people! i moved into the station after i returned from r&r in christchurch.
it has been difficult to hear about all of the destruction of the last earthquake, we have felt so helpless here. there were 592 people who are involved in the antarctic program that were in christchurch when the quake hit. amazingly, no one in the program was injured, but many of the folks who live there were not so lucky, we are still receiving reports of the terrible reality that has befallen many of the kiwi's who support us while we are in n.z. there was noticeable damage when i came through at the end of sept from the quake that they had earlier in the month, this was the beginning of their nightmare. when i was there for r&r in jan. the damage from the large quake they had in dec. illustrated another layer of destruction, but this last shake was by far the worst yet. there are still missing people and the aftershocks are still happening. we have started a relief fund from the station but we wish we could do more. i am hoping to write more as the winter sets in and i find time to relax, i bought lots of yarn and art supplies on r&r and i'm looking forward to learning how to knit! i will write another entry soon... until then, i hope this finds you all healthy and happy and enjoying the prospect of a splendid spring!
this is in a courtyard where i have spent lots of time in christchurch,
next to a brewery called 'the twisted hop'
this is another part of the same courtyard, i fear it is all gone now
this is a beautiful corner near the city center
this is an example of what christchurch looked like in january, now the destruction is much worse
this is me with a sweet puppy at 'dogwatch' which is a dog adoption agency. they let me come and help
with the dogs, i knew that being away from animals would be one of the most difficult aspects of the winter here... it was a perfect way to spend a day!
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