{"id":2067,"date":"2015-11-27T12:58:19","date_gmt":"2015-11-27T17:58:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/?p=2067"},"modified":"2015-11-30T09:28:12","modified_gmt":"2015-11-30T14:28:12","slug":"a-love-letter-to-the-2015-2016-field-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/2015\/11\/27\/a-love-letter-to-the-2015-2016-field-team\/","title":{"rendered":"A love letter to the 2015-2016 field team"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"Field<\/a><\/dt>\n
Field team fun in the Miller Range circa 2009<\/span><\/em><\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n

Dear Jim, Morgan, John, Nina, Brian, Morgan, Ellen and Con,<\/p>\n

I’m not going to lie to you- \u00a0it’s a little bit heartbreaking to see you all leave for Antarctica without me. \u00a0Staying home was my choice, of course, and\u00a0after 30 years of involvement in ANSMET the breaks are healthy for both me and my family. \u00a0 But this time of year things I miss about Antarctica and the ANSMET experience come unbidden\u00a0to mind, things like……….<\/p>\n

….. \u00a0Meeting up with individual field party members in airports in Dallas, Los Angeles, Sydney and others, \u00a0seeing some for the first time and seeing others after long separations. Usually we’re all half-asleep and half-way around the world from home, \u00a0and it’s like a friendly\u00a0bolt of static electricity, anticipation turning into reality.<\/p>\n

……. Those few days in Christchurch as the questions fly, the vets smile at their celebrity status, and we start to become a team.<\/p>\n

…….The excitement shared by 20, 40, sometimes 100 of us as we board a giant military plane to fly 3000 miles across dangerous seas dotted with 60 ft waves\u00a0and\u00a0icebergs. Newbies hardly able to stay in their seats, crowding around the few windows and taking pictures of smears on the horizon, \u00a0while vets quietly smile, tell satirical stories of cannibalism and start withdrawal from the internet.<\/p>\n

…… \u00a0That first breath of Antarctic air as you step out of the plane onto the Ross Sea. \u00a0Jet fuel, exhaust, unwashed fellow passengers, \u00a0the air still tastes clear, \u00a0and the view of Erebus is magnificent.<\/p>\n

…. McMurdo, \u00a0where everyone is helping someone, \u00a0the omelettes are the size of hubcabs, \u00a0the dorms are a repeat\u00a0from 1981, the trucks have treads, mustaches are poor indicators of gender, the meetings have meetings, \u00a0and you’re torn between getting the hell out and signing up for life.<\/p>\n

…. Trusting John’s knots, \u00a0and clamping that right thumb down on the throttle up the\u00a0steep, icy hill to Castle Rock during survival school.<\/p>\n

….. Those days after it’s all\u00a0packed up and you’re ready to go, watching the transportation scroll waiting for your flight to be called, \u00a0and then PANIC AS HOLY CRAP I’M LEAVING IN 20\u00a0MINUTES I’M NOT READY AM I !?!<\/p>\n

…..That LC-130 flight out into the field, so different than\u00a0the flight from Christchurch, the flight crew so\u00a0relaxed and yet the trip fraught with commitment. \u00a0Your first view of the Transantarctics from the inside, \u00a0the call to buckle up, \u00a0and 40 seconds of terror as you skid along the snow.<\/p>\n

….That feeling as the LC-130 disappears over the horizon, heading back to McMurdo. \u00a0A moment ago you were cheering as the plane muscles its way into the sky, roaring and buzzing and turning toward home. \u00a0Now silence, and a “what next” feeling that’s both\u00a0numbing and energizing.<\/p>\n

……The arrival of the Twin Otters destined to ferry us up to the Miller Range; \u00a0So exciting to have visitors from the civilized world, \u00a0you feel proud to be\u00a0a local\u00a0and wishing they’d either go away or take you aboard.<\/p>\n

…… Dropped onto a campsite in the middle of nowhere, \u00a0a satellite phone in your hand, \u00a0a pile of gear at your feet, \u00a0and the Twin Otter gone for good. That’s it; \u00a0you are on your own. \u00a0The best feeling in the world and\u00a0the most daunting,\u00a0survival is entirely up to you now. \u00a0And if you’re a vet, \u00a0knowing you’ll not only survive, you’ll have the abso-tootely most gobsmacking wonderful time in your life.<\/p>\n

……. Getting to know your tentmate, your team-mates, \u00a0the fearless leaders John and Jim and Brian. \u00a0That first gut-busting, tear-streaming can’t-control-myself fit of laughter over a card game, or a meal, or just hanging out. \u00a0Not just new friends, \u00a0but friends forged in a cauldron of small tents and howling winds, people you trust with everything you are.<\/p>\n

\"Szabo_Bluff_ANSMET_find_2012\"<\/a><\/p>\n

…… Finding that first meteorite. \u00a0 Not gonna try and explain THAT feeling for you. \u00a0Even the long-term vets still get that feeling. \u00a0You’ll get it too.<\/p>\n

…… \u00a0The first big storm. \u00a0You’ll survive, \u00a0but there are surprisingly few athiests in Scott tents.<\/p>\n

…… \u00a0That first “clean hair” day once you decide to go for it. \u00a0You’ll feel very, very hollywood, definitely the most attractive\u00a0person within 600 miles for sure.<\/p>\n

…….. \u00a0Recognizing your individual team-mates from a distance even though they all look like big red marshmallows with white feet.<\/p>\n

…… The bittersweet realization that you’ll be going home in a week, \u00a0and the decision to absorb every detail of every day until then.<\/p>\n

……. The flight back to McMurdo. \u00a0 For some the quietest flight of the trip; \u00a0for others a rebirth.<\/p>\n

…… The first puppy \/ flower \/ dress \/ night sky you see in Christchurch. Staring and smiling and realizing now everything will be different, \u00a0forever. \u00a0Trying to hold on to that feeling.<\/p>\n

That’s enough for now. \u00a0 \u00a0I hope that gives you a little taste of\u00a0what’s in store. \u00a0I am so, so jealous, \u00a0and so, so happy for you all! \u00a0 Safe travels, \u00a0and remember to shower your fellow travellers with random acts of patience.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

XOXOXOX, \u00a0from\u00a0Ralph (in Novelty, OH)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

<\/a>Field team fun in the Miller Range circa 2009<\/em>Dear Jim, Morgan, John, Nina, Brian, Morgan, Ellen and Con,<\/p>\n

I’m not going to lie to you- \u00a0it’s a little bit heartbreaking to see you all leave for Antarctica without me. \u00a0Staying home was my choice, of course, and\u00a0after 30 years of involvement in ANSMET the breaks are healthy for both me and my family. \u00a0 But this time of year things I miss about Antarctica and the ANSMET experience come unbidden\u00a0to mind, things like……….<\/p>\n

….. \u00a0Meeting up with individual field party members in airports in Dallas,<\/p>\n

Continue reading… A love letter to the 2015-2016 field team<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":144,"featured_media":2069,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/artscimedia.case.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/111\/2015\/11\/14203709\/christmas2.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2067"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/144"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2067"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2067\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2075,"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2067\/revisions\/2075"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2069"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/caslabs.case.edu\/ansmet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}