I didn't think we'd ever get her out of there!
Because I've had SOOOOOO many questions about Thanksgiving, I'm going to jump ahead to this rather than finish journaling about our time in the field....for now anyways. (As an aside, if you haven't signed up for next Tuesday's webinar, it's not too late. It's scheduled for 2 pm EST and a large part will be devoted to our time out at Becker Point.)We were actually working on the McMurdo Ice Shelf on Thanksgiving Day, but it was our last day of work in the field before our Friday morning helo pick up. So, while Stacy prepared a kickin' salmon meal that night, we celebrated Thanksgiving in traditional style on Saturday with all of McMurdo. Isabelle and Francois decided to go for a pre-meal dive, so I headed out to the Jetty with them to dive tend. (I've gotten MUCH better at it!)
Fransois and Isabelle decide to go for a dive before our feast.
Before coming here, I had read much about this celebration and had spoken to many about it, but what the galley staff did that day far exceeded my expectations in every way!!
In anticipation of a feast fit for a king!
No.....these were not made by school children.
Well...most of it anyway...of course I had more! I just came back from the field!
My mind was spinning over the vast assortment of food!! Where to start!! For those of you with food touching issues, you probably had a hard time looking at that last picture. Not only was the food touching, but it was layered-sorry. I had roasted vegetables, turkey, stuffing (apple/pork/sausage), mashed potatoes, gravy, king crab legs, roasted red peppers, a variety of cheeses, sun dried tomatoes, succulent strawberries, homemade pumpkin rolls, cranberry sauce, corn bread pudding, truffles and my favorite-pumpkin pie!! And yes...I went back for more truffles...they had about 9 different kinds...and I went back for a second piece of pumpkin pie....grapes, blueberries and whipped cream!! Phew!! I'm tired just relating all that!
I like this kind of skua!
Captain Jean Luc Picard celebrates Thanksgiving...and graciously pauses for the photo.
This man is Raytheon's Dive Guru...scarey, huh?
Needless to say, I was stuffed to the gills!! Almost too much so! OK...definitely too much...no "almost" about it! After going into the food serving area to give our galley staff a rowdy and rousing standing ovation, I headed back to my room to call it an early night. (Ever the party pooper...some things never change.)
Not even five hours into my sleep, I thought I heard a constant din in the hallway, and when I woke up enough, I realized that it was an alarm of sorts. After seeing two guys dressed and leaving, I realized that it was the fire alarm, so I went back in my room and woke my two roommates. Thinking back, it was a little frightening that the sound of the alarm never woke them up, even with the door open. But, we quickly threw on our ECW, and headed for the nearest exit.
Our dorm had to evacuate on Sunday at 2:20 am...fire alarm.
Thankkfully it was a false alarm.
I'll admit that I was a bit rattled, but that's because my husband and I went through a fire in 1998. And, while you can replace "things", you cannot replace people, and you realize that in the scheme of things, "things" aren't that important as compared to human life. That's why the slow evacuation upset me. Besides, fire is a HUGE danger down here. (Anyone want to venture a guess as to why? Post your responses to the Ask The Team section.)
Needless to say, it was a false alarm and we were allowed back in within 10 minutes, and I'm happy to report that I was able to get back to sleep...very unusual for me...but much needed!!!
I'll let you in on a little secret...I still prefer sleeping outside in a tent! Go figure!