Sunday, November 20th, 2011
Approximately 0130
Greetings and salutations to you all!
Yes I know it’s been 20 long days since I last blogged and informed you all of what has been going on. For that, I apologize. It has just been crazy busy down here on the Ice.
Our Chief arrived in the beginning of the month, which meant everyone was rushing to memorize the points of the Leadership Star. The points of the star are as follows: Create the Future, Lead with Character, Build Through Teamwork, Inspire Commitment, and Deliver Results. Sure, it doesn’t sound like an awful lot of information to memorize, but we have to be able to name a point on the star and why it is important to us if we are asked. There are also times when we have DVs (Distinguished Visitors)*more on this later* and we must be able to recite a point on the star for them. No pressure right? Yeah, I turn into a jittery, stuttering fool when put on the spot. I could write a five paragraph paper on each topic, but to be expected to give an oral response… forget about it. I get nervous speaking in front of people. Unless they’re kids. So this was just a bit of pressure for me.
Along with the Chief, we have also gotten (and unfortunately lost) several members of our staff. We’ve had a few people resign and move on to different opportunities and we’ve lost another member due to his own actions. I’m really not sure what happened to him exactly, but c’est la vie.
Right now, we’re working on converting the “Dispatch Bible” to an electronic form instead of the huge bulky book that we rely on for about 80% of our activities in dispatch. The book holds all of the information regarding In Flight Emergencies, Key Contact Phone Numbers, Power Outage Procedures… A bit of everything really. The project is going to be a huge undertaking, but split between five of us, it shouldn’t be too bad.
We here at the Firehouse (along with everyone else in McMurdo) has also been gearing up from the MCI drill. MCI meaning Mass Casualty Incident. Yes, this means I get to play on the radio during chaos. For those of you know me from dispatching, you know that this thrills me like nothing else. I love a bit of chaos every now and again. I’m also the one that gets to work the primary radio during the event. All of the dispatchers will have to be present for the drill but… Yeah, I get the radio. The event will be on Thanksgiving! I am sure I will be thankful when it is over.
Basically a wrap up on what has been going on at work, things have been hectic. We’ve got people coming and going. I work with a really great group of people and I enjoy the conversations I have with each and every one of them.
In other news…
The weather is warming up. We’ve recently had several days where the tempature has reached freezing. Yes, it has already reached 32 degrees (F) here and the snow/ice on the ground is starting to melt. The past several mornings when leaving work, I’ve had to use extreme caution when walking home due to the treacherous path. Ok, it’s not really that bad, but when ice melts and then re-freezes and THEN gets covered with a light dusting of snow (because it gets warm enough to snow) it can be kind of tricky walking home. This morning I was chatting with one of the Beakers (scientists – hey we like nicknames!) and I was warning him to be careful when he was walking home. Our conversation went somewhat like this:
Me: “Good Morning! Be careful walking over to Crary, it’s kinda slickery out there.”
Beaker: “But aren’t we on a southern island?”
Me: “Yes”
Beaker: “And isn’t Tahiti a southern island?”
Me: *thinking ‘I don’t do geography early in the morning and where is he going with this’* “yeah…”
Beaker: “Well, I don’t see how it can be that bad, we’re even further south! Haha!”
Silly Beakers…
Me: “True, well try not to get a sunburn and enjoy the balmy weather today!”
Beaker: “Ok, sleep well!”
Beaker walks down the stairs, takes four steps and I see the left foot slide forward a bit, the right foot slide out to the right hand side (I wish I had my camera at the ready), and his arms flapped up and down like an Adelie penguin briefly, AND THEN…. he regained his footing. (Sigh) Not that I want to see anyone get hurt, but it just seems I haven’t actually seen anyone fall! Other than myself. And I’m sure it was more amusing to the onlookers than it was to myself.
So the Beaker was halfway to Crary before he realized he forgot his key card. Everyone that works in crary has an electronically read card to access the building. He then turned around and headed back to our building and THAT is when he noticed I saw his almost-fall. I was nice and didn’t make any comments to him about trying to warn him or the fact that I-told-him-so. He could tell. I said it with my eyes.
Those were the events of this morning before I had almost 4 hours of training after a 12 hours shift.
Sorry, lack of sleeping is making me a bit scatterbrained today. On to other informative and exciting news! “oohhhh, ahhhh!”
Now, you all know that I have seen the Weddell Seals at Hut Point, and I haven’t posted any pictures or postings of penguins (HAH! Say that five times fast), but the other wild creature of Antarctica has arrived. Yes, the dreaded Stercorarius antarcticus or Brown Skua (a.k.a. dirty seagull, Antarctic Skua, Southern Great Skua, or Hākoakoa (Maori)) has arrived. This is the heaviest species of skua and rivals the largest gulls as the heaviest species in the shorebird order although not in length or wingspan. It is 52–64 cm (20–25 in) in length, 126–160 cm (50–63 in) in wingspan and has a body mass of 1.2–2.13 kg (2.6–4.7 lb). They have longish bills with a hooked tip, and webbed feet with sharp claws. They look like large dark gulls, but have a fleshy cere above the upper mandible. The skuas are strong, acrobatic fliers. They are generally aggressive in disposition. Potential predators who go near their nest will be quickly dived at by the parent bird, which usually targets the head of the intruder. – *Wikipedia
The first morning that I encountered a Skua, I thought I was hallucinating. I was walking home after a long, uneventful shift, minding my own business. I looked off in the distance and thought “hrm. It’s a bird flying between Gallaghers and Southern”… My second thought was “penguins don’t fly”… My third thought was “Oh crap, it’s a Skua and it’s flying AT ME”.
Not my photo but, imagine my fear:
***Fun fact about Tori – She’s not scared of birds (or, wasn’t until the close call with the dirty seagull) but she is TERRIFIED of alligators and crocodiles. Ask my family why. I get goosebumps just thinking about it.***
For some bizarre reason (I think it’s because I’ve watched Jurassic Park far too many times), but I immediately thought, bird = dinosaur, dinosaur = alligator, alligator = run in a zig zag pattern to avoid being eaten. Yes, I am sure I looked a bit foolish zig-zagging back and forth looking for an unlocked door to open and dive into the entrance of any building. I managed to escape the bird at the last minute. Okay, it might not have been the last minute, but it sounds more exciting to put it that way. At work that evening, I made this:
Yes, I find myself highly amusing at times. But you CANNOT tell me that there isn’t a resemblance! …. *silence* I rest my case.
Whew. Okay, sorry I had a bit of a flashback there.
Thus far, my total Skua sitings have been seven. Yes and since the first encounter, each time I see one of the dreaded birds, the theme for Jaws runs through my head. They like to fly in circular patterns around me. “You know what that sound is your highness?…They always grow louder when they’re about to feed on human flesh”. Actually, I couldn’t tell you what kind of noise skuas make. I normally hear the “UM, ER, UH, GAH, BIRD!” coming from people around me if one is approaching me from behind. Skuas are feared like no other animal in Antarctica. Except for that one lady who’s leg got caught beneath a seal earlier this year. I’m sure she doesn’t think the weddells are cute and cuddle-y any more.
No I don’t know what she was doing that close to a seal. Yes, it is against the Antarctic Treaty.
Hope you all are well and to those of you have been wondering where I am, I thank you for your concern!
Victoria In Victorialand 
I noticed that its snowing again. Do you like that its warm enough to snow?
I love the snow. Therefore I love any tempature that is conducive to its appearance.
Okay, so, you say get nervous speaking in front of people unless they are kids? This is a simple solution. All you have to do is realized that deep down, we’re all really kids. Even the ones who would like to pretend otherwise.
Hah! Easier said than done. We’ll see how I do with the cruise ship passengers when I am a town tour guide…
How did it go with cruise people?