Sometimes when people are in unfamiliar situations and feeling just a little homesick, they imagine places, situations, and conditions that have good memories. They describe feeling better when they recollect these times. I know that when I am in Antarctica, there will be times when I'm cold. I'm hoping that I'll be able to better deal with the cold weather by imagining that I'm in a warmer place. I've just returned from a raft trip on the San Juan River in southeastern Utah that I'll remember when the weather gets really cold.
Lesley floating the San Juan in her inyak
My husband and I are avid whitewater rafters. The majority of rivers that we run are in the American desert southwest. On these trips, we expect hot weather. During the day temperatures were in the low 100's and at night it only cooled down to the low 80's. We had very little shade on the trip; during time on the river, we were in the open sun, and in camp we often hunkered down under the short desert plants. There was very little breeze during the 9 days we were on the river, so the wind offered little relief. While the temperatures may be extreme, we always have the option of cooling off in the river. On this trip, we had minimal relief; even the water was warm - around 80F. To stay wet and cool while floating, we had frequent water fights - splashing each other with oars, paddles, and super soaker squirt guns. A few times, we even resorted to 5 gallon buckets! In the afternoon and evenings while in camp, we simply sat in the river, usually up to our shoulders in the water. With such warm weather, I found myself imagining what it will be like in the cold of Antarctica.
Our group floating the San Juan River through the San Juan Goosenecks
Probably the most exciting part of a raft trip is running rapids. This was my first trip in my new inflatable kayak (commonly called duckies or inyaks). I was a little apprehensive about running Government Rapid (class III) since the water was so low and I knew there would be several exposed rocks. Taking an extra precaution, I wore my helmet since it would be horrible to injure myself with such an exciting opportunity as Antarctica coming up. 
Lesley running Government Rapid (class III).
On the trip, we saw very nice examples of archeological remains of ancient Native Americans. We saw several petroglyph and pictograph panels, a ruin (River House), and moki steps. Moki steps are small hollows in cliffs that these desert dwellers carved to ascend the canyon walls. 
River House Ruin left behind by Ancestral Pueblo peoples
We also were fortunate to see lots of desert big horn sheep. If we floated along quietly, we could often get quite close to them before they realized we were there, enabling us to get some great pictures!
Desert Big Horn Sheep family
It was a great trip and a completely opposite experience from what I'll have in Antarctica. I dealt with the very hot temperatures by imagining Antarctica. I'm sure that when the going gets rough and the cold weather in Antarctica gets me down, I'll think back to my trip this summer.