Kelly and Ships and Sealing Wax

I love ice breakers....and I am not referring stupid conversation topics. I am referring to ships that break through layers of thick polar ice with the intensity of a bat out of hell. During the month of January we received three visits from three ships: The U.S. Coast Guard's ice breaker, our supply vessel, and our fuel tanker.....And I snooped around all of those ships.

Captain Kelly aboard her floating kingdom

Ah yes....the Polar Star. Crashing through the ice like a mighty sloth

The Polar Star docked up at our ice pier.

Taking a crack at navigation in the bridge

Keeping a watchful eye out for pirates

"I do believe there is a smallish iceberg ahead."

I would make an awesome "Coastie"

Unloading the containers from that massive vessel took over a week. Thank goodness I was wearing my muscle leggings.

Navigating with an old fashioned sextant

Crushed it!

Another vintage navigational device...A Constellation Globe

Stop complaining, Boys. Navigating a vessel is easy!

The world's smallest ship helm.....Not kidding....This is how they steer that huge tanker

It still takes intense muscle to turn that tiny helm

This little guy is about to single-handedly hijack the ship.

This is our oil tanker. It unloaded several millions of gallons of fuel for the upcoming winter season.

I did nothing to contribute to the unloading of fuel. (I just pose for pictures). All the fuel runs through those pipes and into our fuel lines that snake around McMurdo Station.

...And we bid a fond farewell to our empty fuel tanker....riding oh so high in the water

'Merica!

Where Science Ends and Theology Begins

"So why are we all here??"

Every Sunday evening McMurdo hosts a science lecture. These lectures are open to anyone on station. They are usually led by scientists doing cutting-edge research in Antarctica that particular week.

These lectures cover a variety of topics such as the birth cycle of female Weddell seals, 3-D photography of icebergs, long-duration weather balloons, LIDAR, the effects of global warming or global cooling on ice. Bla bla bla.

 Some lectures are fascinating and phrased in layman's term for unscientific morons like myself. Others are detailed, esoteric lectures geared toward Einstein-esque colleagues....complete snooze fests.

But I attend EVERY lecture.

One Sunday evening at the end of a particularly boring science lecture about phytoplankton (Antarctic algae), a meek young woman raises her hand and asks a question. (I promise it wasn't me).

"So what you are saying is there is nothing we can do to prevent phytoplankton from disappearing in Antarctica???"

She continues hesitantly, "After the phytoplankton disappears, the Antarctic Krill will die off, and all Antarctic ocean life will disappear? And after all Antarctic ocean life disappears the migratory patterns of all other ocean life will be affected? Then the Antarctic ice shelf will no longer be insulated by microorganisms, and ice-melting will increase exponentially?"

"Yes." replies the scientist dryly and dispassionately. "No amount of human intervention can stop this."

"Then why are you here, and what is the point of this study if it is not reversible?" The young woman asks with concern.

"Why are any of us here?" The scientist retorts, "if not to objectively observe nature without interfering with it? This chain reaction is already happening, and there is nothing we can do about it."

At this point I woke up....What the...? Did this famous scientist just admit that the earth is going to crap whether or not humanity changes its ways? Sounds like someone isn't going to get funding from NSF next year to continue his research in Antarctica.

Unfortunately this was one of those science lectures I was day-dreaming of sandy beaches and puppies so I didn't catch the details of his convoluted graphs and thesis. But I was shocked by his candidness. Most members of the scientific community claim that the human race is progressively getting better, and we can control the destiny of our own earth if we behave ourselves.

I left the lecture feeling slightly amused by the dead-pan despair of this scientist. But I was also filled with sadness over the future of our earth. (This is an ongoing ambivalent reaction of mine after every McMurdo science lecture).

But that evening after cracking open my Bible, I serendipitously read Romans 8:21-22:

"...creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time."

I was reminded that the "winding down" of our natural world is all part of God's master plan. Not only does He have a plan of redemption for His children, but He has a redemption plan for nature.

The ice groans when it shifts and melts from excessive global warming. The phytoplankton is decaying. The sea life is in bondage. Antarctica is in pain.

But the Lord LOVES this earth and all the penguins and icebergs and phytoplankton in it!

He will rescue and restore this earth to its former glory when He returns.
_____________________________________________________________________

Living in Antarctica made me realize that scientists and theologians are actually more aligned than we think.

(One puts a period at the end of this statement):

"The earth is going to crap."

(The other puts an ellipsis after this statement):

"The earth is going to crap....but Someone will come save it."

Golfing Partners

My golf game has improved tremendously since these guys invited me to be a part of their foursome at the Antarctic Country Club. 

 

Excellent dressers, but they play a terrible short game....and they tend to talk excessively during my backswing.

Sad or Lazy Penguins?

This penguin made the mistake of betting on the Carolina Panthers in the 2016 Superbowl. It is understandable that he decided to lie down in the middle of the road.

This penguin likes to repose 

On rocks instead of roads. 

And he thinks he knows

How to frighten off his foes.

This penguin is rarely opposed 

To staring at his toes.

McMurdo Station Webcams!

McMurdo Station is monitored by three different webcams 24 hours a day all season long. You can view the station in real-time by clicking the below link. 

http://www.usap.gov/videoclipsandmaps/mcmwebcam.cfm

I can just picture my poor old father now: Scowling in front of his computer in Dallas, Tx....Staring at these cameras for hours trying to get a glimpse of his flamboyant daughter....Worrying that she fell through the sea ice.

Today I felt the need to search for the web cams and pose directly in front of each one for the whole world to see. I spent my entire day hiking and roaming around three different hills in search of these little cameras. 

I was later chastised that this is typical behavior for exhibitionists and narcissistic hams...(of which I am the latter)....I just love to pose for pictures!

Hi Mom! Hi Dad!

I just posed for over 1,000,000 viewers :-)

Dry-Erase Board Madness

These are the flight boards that control my life at work. This was a particularly "busy" day of flight movement planning. When the weather gets bad or an air-craft breaks down, we immediately start shuffling cargo and passengers around, changing routes, activating back-up missions, and running around like chickens with our heads cut off. It's like juggling a glass of wine, a chainsaw, and a blow torch with one hand. (Usually at the end of the day, I leave work craving a glass of wine. a chainsaw, and a blow torch).

This is an example of a "foul weather" day so the board looks like a plate of spaghetti.

I like writing poetry about my colleagues to ease the tension in the office.

Limericks are my specialty!

We had to put this limerick to an office vote.

Hahaha...they wrote this limerick about me on my day off.

There once was a gal named McCord
Whose coif was as stiff as a board
She stitches her own garments
And wears hats made of varmints
And did you know she's from Texas? Good Lord!

'Tis A Lonely Life!

This has been my home for the last 5 months.

Living in isolation for so long can make a girl go bonkers

This is my best angle

I'm just kidding. This is not my home. This is actually our "pee tent" located at the base of Mount Erebus volcano. The only place for miles around where I can get some "me time." This tent is an exact reproduction of  Sir Robert Falcon Scott's tent from 1906. This tent design retails for $1,500. It is made of a thick rubber material. It is uncomfortably warm, and it smells like a swimming pool inside. I would not want to live in it.