Washing my Hands

So everyday we have to checkout the apparatus and today it is my turn to check our primary fire rig but not just the normal daily check the much coveted weekly check. Not a huge deal I have done 1 a week since I have been here in McMurdo. Not that I could do them in my sleep but they are pretty mundane and considering there are only 4 firefighters per shift I am doing 1 of the 2 fire rigs every week, or at least it seems that way. So there I am checking the airbrake system under the rig and I say to myself “self what does this remind you of?”

Well it reminds me of when I was younger (15 years ago pfft!) I used to help my dad work on cars, van, trucks or whatever he was getting paid to “wrench” on. I am sitting on a red creeper, with similarly placed duct tape patches, under a vehicle on a concrete floor looking up at the rear axles when I slid my head into something. Dang drive shaft! You would thing that I already know that the drive shaft would win in a battle with my flamboyantly styled hair and my hard as brink head but I forgot and the drive shaft let me know it again. As I sit there draining the air from the airbrake tanks, to get the moisture out, I think of how many afternoons I have spend under, in or working on cars with my dad. After I get done under the rig I get up to wash my hands and as I reach for the soap one of the guys asks why I do not use water to help the soap? Well I explain to them that the “Gojo” soap that we are using is pumice based and it is designed to help get the grease out of your pours and from under your finger nails and what not. And by using water it dilutes the soap and it will not work as well. He proceeded to thank me for my explanation. So this goes out to you Dad. Thanks for taking the time to explain how the soap work to me, among other things.
About this picture:

This picture is half of our winter fire department staff. We had just got done with a confined space practical exercise a couple hundred feet from the sign and the wind died down. So in the pictures are (left to right) Scott “Scotty Beu-Beu-Beu” Beu, Corey “Yup the writer of this Blog” Walsh, Peter “Prusik Pete” McHargue, Lt. Shayne “D-Ski” Dombrowski, Station Captain John “Oh Captain My Captain” Cassidy, and Virginia “I’m going to rule the world… someday” Price. With the exception of Capt. Cassidy that is the A-shift that is protecting McMurdo Station Antarctica on the Ross Ice Shelf in the Ross Sea with in the confines of the continent of Antarctica for the winter of 2010, or until Winfly at least. Behind up is McMurdo Sound which 2 months ago had open water and seals everywhere. But now the temperatures are colder and the wind windier so it is only the few 200+ crazy people from the USA, New Zealand and everywhere else. I was going to “photoshop” out the power lines but than I realized that it is how it is down here so why should I try to hide anything.

Stay Frost
-C

The Darkness

So I am sitting at the firehouse standing in the dark of the room and staring out the window into the darkness of the night. Off to my right is a reflection, from one of the 4 windows in the room, of a blue light. The blue is familiar and so I turn to look and see what it is from. Ding ding the blue color is from the fresh paint, well fresh down here, of the mail dormitory building that also houses the galley, offices and businesses, all 2 of them. The building, number 155, was painted this summer as one of the summer projects. Most people I talked to during the summer really had distain for the blue. I admit I did as well at the time but now as I see it in the light of the night with the light from the outside stairwell shinning onto it I actually like it. It is calming and that is what I need right now. I transition back to my original window to continuing to enjoy the night for a few minutes before I head to bed. Thirty minutes later I finally make my way to my bunk and as I enter my room I see that I have been missing some of the most beautiful horizon that I have seen in year. I look out my bunk room window to see the Royal Society Mountain Range backlit with a layering of colors. Yellow at the bottom followed with a surprising green twice as high as the yellow and topped off with a wonderful and picturesque blue right at the top of the mountain range.

The last time I saw a sunset or sunrise for that matter was many years ago when I was hiking in New Mexico. I know that is something that some people may find hard to believe since I have lived at the foot of one of the best beaches in the world on Cape Cod. But I can honestly tell you that you don’t get the colors over the ocean that you do down here. You still get the layering but it just isn’t the 3 hours that you get down here. Back home you get 20 minutes at best. Now when I was in New Mexico I was hiking and I do have to say that when I was there I saw the most beautiful sunrise and sunset that I could have possibly imagined but down here with the clean air and the 3 hour sunsets it is completely different. The sunsets, and sunrises I would imagine it I was up early enough, start earlier everyday but seem to last all night. Last night’s started at 20h12 (8:12 pm) and it was 23h30 (11:30 pm) when I made it up stairs to my bunk.

I think, besides the length of the sunset, the mountains have a major part in the sunsets. They help to reflect the light in different angles and thus creating different, strike that, more vibrant, long lasting colors that you typically do not see. I have not seen a sunrise down here that could compare to a sunrise over 9,000’+ mountains and over mesa and plateaus. I do look forward to seeing what Mother Nature has in store for us come August after the months of darkness that I have before me.

Stay Frosty
-C
About this posting’s picture,

Well I would think that it is pretty self explanatory but since most people as me about it I will tell you. After Hurricane Katrina I worked down in New Orleans for 9 months. While working there I was assigned many tasks but this one involved checking to make sure that the temporary housing that was being installed was being set up properly. So while working I came up to an intersection and since there was water in the street we were instructed to get out and check to make sure that there was still a road below the water. So I get out and look at the puddle. It was ankle deep and I was able to walk and see thru the whole puddle, so I just back in my car to drive thru it. Well that is when the road gave out. I made it halfway thru the puddle when the road gave out, twice. So I called my buddy who was a few blocks away to come help me. As I am on the phone with him the water starts coming into the car, time to get out! So 5 hours later and 8 feet below the road they finally figure out that at some point the fire hydrant got hit and it was undermining the whole intersection. I made it out by jumping out the window onto the grass which was coincidently when the New Orleans Police rolled up.

Walking to school

So there I am getting ready for work and looking at the gorgeous sunrise shining through my 24” by 48” window, happening before my eyes. The light is coming up over the Royal Society Mountain Range directly outside my window. Through the window I can see the dreadful wind. Normally, the wind is an invisible creature that you have to be involved in to experience but down here and right now it is the mixture of snow, volcanic dust, and rock that show direction as well as speed. However whispery it may be for the time being, it can change to horrifyingly violent with enough force to pick up dumpsters and move them multiple feet. The wind, today, is ever so slow; that is, just enough to put a chill in your bones. Just enough to cause the hair on the back of your neck to stand, but when it blows it likes to wrap around whatever it catches almost like it is creating a whirlpool -- a vortex around its prey. Then, just as fast as it caught you, it is gone. All the snow and dust is lying flat on the ground motionless: waiting, stalking, and thinking of who or what it is going for next.

As I make the outer door to my building I pause for a moment to do a mental check of stuff for work. Work sweatshirt? Check. Ball cap? Check. Sunglasses? Check. Writing instrument --pen? Check. Now I am ready to leave. So I reach for the outer door and slowly peer outside to see how hard the wind is blowing. To my surprise it is docile, for the moment. As I am walking down the metal staircase I say, “Self, I hope it doesn’t pick up once I leave the security of the landing.” I am lucky today as the wind is not lurking behind the building waiting or watching me. I am completely free to continue on my long, arduous journey to work.

The morning, this morning, is different from the last few. It reminds me of when I used to walk to the school bus stop, way back when. I always remember walking up the hill by my house, when we lived 4 blocks from the beach, and seeing the sunrise coming up over the marsh on my left where the mix of warm water and cool air created a fog that slowly rolled up the landscape trying to catch me before I made the top of the hill to see the gorgeous ocean on my right. Back in McMurdo I don’t have the luxury of a marsh but I have a snow-covered volcanic rock parking lot affectionately named “Derelict Junction.” I see to my left the wind has indeed picked up a bit. I see a newly created whirlwind coming from the alley between a few of the buildings. The snow and dust create a fog so that I cannot see the person’s face just 50 feet to my left but only the silhouette of their “Big Red” jacket. It is trying to chase me, just like the fog used to on those cool spring and summer mornings back on Cape Cod. It does end up catching me, so to speak. It seems to have lost its momentum right at my feet. The tenaciousness of the wind to find me, get to me, and hold me is futile since I take that fateful step up the stair, effectively putting myself out of its reach. I make a quick left at Gallagher’s and then a quick right behind Medical and I have only 50 feet to go up a snowdrift-covered volcanic rock hill, over some power cords that are keeping our fire apparatus warm and tidy, past four vehicles that I will surely be out to check on in less than an hour, and then to the man door at the fire station.

As I step inside the fire station, I take a minute to think and catch my breath, being as it is -15 degrees out. In the three minutes it took me to get to work this morning, it brought back so many memories of being a kid again: walking around in shorts on a brisk and balmy 40-degree day before school, riding my bicycle in the rain just because the rain was warm, seeing the waves crash on the flooded beach parking lot while there is a hurricane coming up the East Coast.

Who knew that the wind could bring back so many memories?

Stay Frosty
-C

P.S. The picture is a "Sun Dog." It is a rainbow that forms around the sun when there are a lot of ice crystals in the air. They are better seen through polarized lenses, either sunglasses or camera, but with the naked eye you can still see the truly beautiful ones. You just have to work a little hard at it. <(")

I am from the future! (Said with weird computer voice)

Do you know that I like about being down here? That I am from the future! No not like I know the lottery numbers future or Quantum Leap future but from 18 hours ahead of US Eastern Standard Time. I have the ability to be the first to comment on people’s birthdays or to be late on anything with the excuse of “sorry you were not open when I was trying to call…. from Antarctica.” What I do also like is the fact that the communications equipment can, and in fact did last week, become disabled and give us that isolated feeling. The drawback to this is that I missed my dad’s birthday. I did not actually miss it to be technical, I Facebooked him saying Happy Birthday since I was working, but on his actual birthday the communications equipment decided to take a “union break” and there were no communications, for the laymen town folk anyways.

I called him once the antenna array got fixed but it still wasn’t the same. I know that I have excuses and valid ones at that but I still feel like crap since I missed it and I am the one son that never, usually, misses his birthday. So when I finally did get to call, he completely understood. He completely understands since he spent time in the Air Force in Alaska over the winter, while Mom was in Iceland with the Air Force. But still that was 30 years ago almost and you would think that with all the technology it just wouldn’t happen. His response was something to the effect of “at least it was only down for 18 hours instead of days.” I guess that is the upside to being experienced and being able to look outside the box at stuff.

Ok so about the picture. It was taken while the C-17 is taxying in after landing. It is currently blowing 8-10 knots and -8 degrees not including wind chill. It is the wonderful Natasha, my personnel photographer (one of anyways), right before she is going to board that plane to leave the ice for traveling fun in New Zealand. It is funny sitting on the runway while we are standing by for aircraft fire protection and watching everyone take pictures of the plane and then hearing them say “I wish there was a sign here to make this picture better.” When there is and all they have to do is look for the 2 4x4 beams sticking out of the snow with the sign attached. But they don’t and very few people ask us to takes pictures of them while we are on standby. So they don’t get this wonderful shot that Rob got of us two.

Well anyways, I am supposed to be doing something besides typing right now so I have to jam out of here.

Stay Frosty
-C

Shenanigans! In Phil McCully Speak "Wa Waa WAAAAA!"

So the winter season is unofficially officially here. Now if I were to rewind to August 2009 I would think that that statement make absolutely no sense. But after being here on ice for the last 191 days it makes complete sense. What I mean is that officially the winter season starts after the last flight leaves. But this year we have an extended season. So instead of the last flight being on the 20th of Feb 2010 it is on the 5th of March 2010. Not a huge deal but with all the winter-over personnel being on station they keep acting like winter is here. And so I digress back to the topic of shenanigans and thus the topic of this post. While at the wonderfully beautiful and desolate South Pole there were many interesting people that I met and interacted with. On of them is a Ms. Shelby Handlin. She was, not necessarily the head of but a good portion of, the activities committee. So they would plan things like bingo, and trivia and what not. So since the fire department couldn’t necessarily play completely, due to flight coming day and night, the games we would attend and play but usually not finish. Now working at the South Pole there are some very smart people. It ranges from astrophysicist to rocket scientist to PhD students to engineers to well everything you would find to make a town run. The trivia was very popular since beer was given out as prizes for each round. But since 60% of the station has 1 bachelor degree at least it was difficult for some to have fun at trivia. Well one night the star finally aligned and we were able to do trivia. But not just as participants, we were the ones that made the questions. It was so fun that night at trivia and towards the end Ms. Shelby Handlin shows up which is an absolute surprise to the regulars at trivia since it was always “past her bedtime.” Now at this point everyone that is playing trivia is laughing and dancing and having a grand old time, so much different then the usual trivia night. You see when we put of the fliers to announce that the fire department was running trivia we put “make sure you brush up on” US international policy, foreign made cars, US history prior to 1844 and Costa Rica. Those are the real topics that we put but they will suffice for the point of this blog. We had about 15 people come up to us and say “you really want those topics for trivia?” and our response was “do you really think that we know that shit either. Make sure you bring plenty of beer it is going to be fun.” Well the word got around to the 40% of the station with 1 bachelor degree or less so when everyone got to trivia they were prepared for a good time, well a good time commenced. We had 140 possible points and out of the 8 teams the ones that were doing the best were the 40 %ers by a landslide, like 120ish points to 50ish. So I was the 3 of 4 to give my questions.

Sorry I got off topic, so Shelby walks in and everyone cheers. With a little banter back and forth, between all 6 of the firefighters and her, the topic comes up that I, actually Danielle and I, will be leaving in 5 days and that “our time is limited now so we should make the most out of it.” Now you throw in my "glorious smile" my stunning physique and a joking wink and Blam-O! Right there in the middle of the galley in front of 40ish people that are on there way to being “3 sheets to the wind” Shelby, not to be out done, drops to her knee and proposes to me. Then of course Megan, who could possibly be the female version of me and who was coincdently on the microphone, announces it to everyone and the cheers begin.... again. Now I know you all are thinking “that is a funny story but unless the galley is outside what is the point of the story?” Well this picture is of her “actually breaking my heart and ‘demanding’ a divorce” on the day that I was leaving, well supposed to leave. I was lucky to get a 3 day furlough extending my time at the South Pole to the 30th of December 2009. The picture was thought to be lost but it mysteriously appeared on my Facebook and I just couldn’t let the story go untold.

So now that it is out there, everyone can enjoy it. I do enjoy it immensely when I remember the shenanigans of the night. It really is a highlight of my wonderful time at the South Pole.

Stay Frosty
-C

Anticipation

So here I sit at “The Deuce” and it is snowing and blowing out where the airplanes cannot take off or land. The wind is howling around town creating snow drifts 8 to 12 inches high and I am just looking out the window admiring the scenery and how beautifully innocent and yet so desolate it is at the same time. The people in town are itching to leave and the new ones that came in are itching to settle down. Town is a cornucopia of people wanting something better but selfishly it is for them alone and not for the betterment of the town or the population. Most want to leave the wonderful landscape of the “mining town” they have so much animosity for due to the lousy food or the lack of night or the lack of smell or the lack of dreams. I on the other hand am content with the “mining town” right now. I know that in 10 days the population will go down 825 people to about 200 and then in a little over 3 weeks the population will be down to 170 or so. I look forward to my fellow firefighters leaving to go on their vacations or to go back home to see family or fix their flooded basement. But for some they are looking forward to going home so that they can start their life into a new track. One firefighter is already on his way home to propose to his girlfriend and hopefully she says yes. I truly am looking forward to them all leaving so that I can work 7 days straight covering the airfield for their departure. To seeing the South Pole firefighters coming back into town and to see “Cap’t Howie” for what will be the last time in months. I look forward to getting settled into a routine, and to becoming bored, and to learning my Italian language, to getting my beach body back, to…. Well I look forward to it all. I did not take a vacation that was offered to me so that I could have the whole experience of being on the ice for 14.5 months, from August 24th 2009 to October 15th 2010. I will keep in touch with some, some others that I want to keep in touch with will undoubtly become causilities and finally some I will just plan old not talk to at all.

I am sad that my friends are leaving, some a few more then others.

Take care,
Stay Frosty
-C

Radio call sign "Pegasus Fire Station"

Well the weather outside is frightful,
And the season is so delightful,
I have no other place to go,
So let it snow
Let it snow
Let it snow.

I hope you all enjoyed that little poem that I just completely made up. Ok, I borrowed some from a Christmas song but I made it my own and that is what counts.
-Firefighter Corey Walsh with axe in hand talking to "Fuelie Eddie"

-Firefighters Cory Casarez on left, Corey Walsh and Rob Weidman (inside van)

So last Monday, the 8th of February 2010, I'm working out at Pegasus Runway at station 2, commonly called “The Deuce,” when a radio call comes in for “Pegasus Fire Station” and I immediately jump up and start getting my gear on. So, I am in my turnout boots and pants and have picked up my coat before anyone else in the station is even up to answer the radio. Then over the radio I hear, “Go ahead for the fire station” and the reply is, “We have a van on fire at pit 2! Can you come help? Please?” So Rob Weidman, one of my personal photographers, and I jump into our vehicle and speed down there. We arrive on scene as the 2nd vehicle, due to over-exuberance on my behalf, and begin doing what we have been trained for. For those of you who don’t know, I mean putting out fires not lounging on a beach. Rob takes the attack line from the 1st arrival vehicle and makes initial knock-down of the interior in an attempt to locate the hood latch for what looks like an engine fire. After opening up the engine compartment he realizes that the vehicle, a 2006-ish Ford E-350 van 4x4, is still running. So he proceeds to turn the vehicle’s ignition off. All the while I begin gearing up and begin ventilation of the rear and passenger side of the van via the main doors, after feeding more attack line to Rob. -Firefighters Corey Walsh & Jeff Kennett (well his right sleeve, anyway)

-Firefighter Corey Walsh picking up after everything is all done

Now after I ventilate we -- Rob and I -- notice that the fire is indeed inside the vehicle and looks to be coming from the vent system, as evidenced by the fire coming directly from a vent. So Rob, having the nozzle still, “put some wet stuff on the red stuff” attempting to extinguish it while I go to the driver's side to see if there's anything I could do about horizontal ventilation. Horizontal ventilation is a perpendicular wind source that helps with lateral movement of smoke or fire in an attempt to better locate or extinguish the source. So since the wind was coming directly perpendicular to the passenger side I figure it will greatly help with ventilation. This, however, does not work as planned. The smoke is still getting bottle necked at the windshield. Light bulb! Take out the windshield! So Rob and I decide to extricate the windshield from the van’s A pillars. Voila! The fire is vented and the smoke is 85% gone. Dang, we are good. So, after some extricating of the dashboard and a little more foam on the fire, the fire is out and we saved a two million dollar LC-130 that was 200 feet away.

-Firefighters Walsh, Weidman and Robert "Jason" Royer investigating

So to the moral of the story: If you need a firefighter, just be polite on the radio when calling and we will get there and do what it is you want us to do.

Take Care All

Stay Frosty

-C

Castle Rock

Castle Rock is a nice little 2- hour hike from town. While only 2.7 miles, once you get to the trail head it is 2 miles up a gently sloping, snow-covered hill on Ross Island. I have had the pleasure of hiking the trail twice. The first time was at the end of September when it was -40ish outside with 5-10 knot winds bringing the temp down to -50ish. We (team Rob, Jeremy, Shayne Dombrowski, Scott Hiser, Gina Carina and myself) all thought that we could handle the weather. In retrospect we all did handle the weather extremely well. We all had our ECW (extreme cold weather) gear on and had plenty of water and food.

The trail is broken up at the 1 and 2 mile markers by these "apples" which are red emergency shelters that have sleeping bags, a stove and food in them just for use in emergencies. Then you have to hike to the base which is another .5 miles and then ascend the rock for .2 miles of trail. When we did the first hike, Castle Rock wasn't roped, meaning the vertical elevation wasn't stable enough for hikers. So at Apple 2 we turned around and made our way back up the saddle to the 1st apple. The first picture is just leaving the 1st apple walking back toward the trail head so we can make dinner. It was a real nice hike because we still had sun sets and we caught one right as we made it back into town from the trail head (the 2nd picture).

The next pictures are from my last and most current hike up to Castle Rock. On this hike I actually made it all the way to the top. The views are absolutely magnificent. The 3rd picture is of my hiking partner and also one of my personal photographers, Natasha, standing halfway up the actual rock. The picture is real nice since I actually took it with the help of her 30-second camera timer, but it has Mt. Erebus in the background. Mt. Erebus is one of the few open-top volcanos in the world. The 4th picture is of Mt. Erebus again, just unobstructed. The next picture, the 5th, is of the climbing rope that marks the trail going up. The next is me at the bottom of Castle Rock at the trail sign showing the route up. Then there is a picture of the "apple" at mile 2 and then just another picture of the gorgeous background. Then, of course, what can a blog be without a second picture of its host. So, we have a picture of me with Castle Rock in the background about 0.5 miles away.

Well, anyway, time to go. Stay tuned for pictures from The Ross Dependency Beach Party.

Stay Frosty!
-C

Personal Photographers

OK, so I wanted to give a shout out to every one of my "personal photographers." These people have unknowingly given or taken photos for me. I have then, coincidentally, after publishing them, asked if I could use them and of course they have said, "Yes." I know that some people have taken more then others and some probably will not see this blog but I did want to at least make an attempt to give them credit. If I am in the picture then you can credit one of these fine people for taking it: well, except for one which was on a timer that I took and will be posted soon. Also, I have purposely not used a picture from Antarctica so that I can show them in their true element: well, except for Royer. There they are: Rob Weidman, Robert "Jason" Royer, Natasha Shields, Phil "my brotha from anotha motha" McCully, Jeremy Hirschhorn, Rob "Robbie" Gancarz, and Megan Branson. So, anyhow, enough with the sweet talk.

-C

Well, here are the pictures from hiking Ob Hill Loop and Ob Hill that I promised. The second picture is of 5 seals, 4 adults and 1 baby. In the background is an ice breaker that is contracted by the National Science Foundation to clear the channel for the fuel tanker that is now in port, and the cargo ship that is coming at the end of the month. Normally, the U.S. Coast Guard would break the channel but since their ice breaker is in dry dock, the NSF had to contract out for it this and last year.

Okay, so Ob Hill is 900 feet of volcanic rock that is on Ross Island. It is located adjacent to the Ross Ice Shelf and approximately 5 miles from White and Black Islands and 10 miles from Mount Discovery, all of which are on the continent of Antarctica. The first picture is me on the edge of the Ob Hill Loop and has Black Island on the left and Mount Discovery on the right. White Island is out of view but would be on the left of Black Island. Ob Hill is a 1.5-mile hike rising from sea level to 900 feet at the top. On the way up, there is a visitor register for people to sign. The register that is currently there is brand spanking new, placed 18 Jan 2010, due to the other one being obliterated during a storm in 2001. The cross on the top of Ob Hill is in remembrance of Scott’s expedition since they did not make it off the continent. Ob Hill Loop is 2.7 miles of easy trail hiking. You can see that the snow is almost gone from the loop as opposed to the picture from October where there was still ice and snow on the trail.

Well, stay tuned for my pictures from “Happy Camper.” It is winter survival training where we have the choice of sleeping in snow caves or survival tents.

Stay Frosty
-C