Workin' in the wind chill.

Whew! Well, after trying to get onto my blogsite for the last two days I finally was able to get it going. This is just one of the many things around here that require one HUGE thing...patience. I'm trying to be super patient with things, but it gets very frustrating at times. --big deep breath--

So...after my last post so much has been going on. I've settled into my room (still no roommate), met some more people, firefighters and others, toured around the station a little more, done some cardio in one of the three buildings with workout facilities, dabbled in the touch tank at the Crary Science Lab aquarium with some of the critters that live in the Antarctica 28F sea water, fought with the super slow connections of the computer lines here,


went over the hill to Scott Base, the Kiwi (New Zealander) station, to their store and bar, and am now at work on my first shift here with Antarctica Fire Department.



It's been a busy day so far even though we've had no calls. The B-shift crews yesterday had four calls, one of which was a 3+hour HazMat at Crary lab. It was unheard of as typically that's as many calls as they'd had in the several weeks prior. We've been busy with gear issue, morning stretches (everyone on the station does them), training, meetings, building inspections, hydrant testing, meals, station chores, and more training. Now we are just hanging out doing our own thing. SOme of the guys are watching tv, some have gone to bed, the officers are doing officer-ish things in their office, and a couple of us are on the computers. We work 24 on-24 off shifts from 8am-8pm with a Kelly day every two weeks. Starting Oct. 20 Station Two out at the runway will start operating. That is about a 12 mile drive out there so the days I'm scheduled there could be a little longer. Each shift we rotate which apparatus we are on, Engine, Tender, Ambulance, or Station Two. Today I was on the engine. In the morning I'll know about he day after tomorrow.

It's very strange as it's now 9pm and brighter than the middle of the day on a Colorado summertime. It's been a funny weather day today with many changes. it was windy and a bit overcast this morning and -13F, then it went to super windy with a low cloud ceiling and -67F. It was more than bitterly cold. There was a flight in from CHCH that was turned around about 150 miles out of McMurdo. They already were one day delayed, now one more. The plane is scheduled to fly in tomorrow again. We were out doing inspections and hydrant checks when it was at it's nastiest and my sunglasses were so frozen in the bitter wind that I had to take them off to see what I was doing reattaching the hydrant insulation box. It's not your typical hydrant, it's actually a gated wye attached to a big insulated box. Obviously all of the water hydrants and sprinkler systems are dry systems. Anyhow, I truly thought my eyeballs were going to freeze permanently in the super cold wind. Then later on during dinner it cleared up with blue skies. Another little wind storm blew through and now it's clear again with sunny blue sky. Fickel indeed.

The delay in flights and due to it being early in the main body season there hasn't really been any personal mail thus far. The priority is personnel and scientific equipment with mail and freshies being the last priority. Huge bummer for me as I sent the majority of my things down ahead in boxes, none of which are yet here. It's leaving me very limited on clothing, uniforms, toiletries and books for entertainment's sake. Hopefully they'll start to get some of that stuff in soon. On the bright side, when it arrives it'll feel like Christmas to me! What I'm learning is that supposedly flat mail arrives much quicker than boxes. Humph...

Well, I'm getting tired from sitting here at the computer for now. I wonder what's going on elsewhere in the fire house...