Voted Off the Island

Well, maybe not really voted off, but whichever way you look at it, I am outta here!

My flight was supposed to leave today but was canceled due to weather. I am in a state of limbo right now because we had "bag drag" yesterday, meaning all of our checked luggage was taken out to the arifield already. So I have about two more pairs of underwear and zero clean shirts. But I am expected to work if my flight does not go (I worked today). So basically it's up in the morning, check the flight, check the flight, check the flight, and the final answer could mean "get out of here!" or it could mean "get to work!" It's an odd situation, but I am dealing with it just fine.

So now it's on to new adventures. Working in a ceramics studio in New Zealand? Bungee jumping? Scuba diving the Great Barrier Reef? Black water rafting? (the same as white water except it's on underground rivers...too cool). Summer job in Alaska? All of these things are possibilities on the horizon. And of course, I will keep you all updated as much as I can :)

I summed up what I did down here in my head the other day and was surprised that I could have possibily done it all on the harshest, least inhabitable piece of land in the world. Here it is, maybe you will be surprised, too, and maybe you will join me next time!

I...
played in an indoor soccer league
played on a dodgeball team
took belly dancing lessons
did zumba
guested dj-ed on the radio
took boxing lessons
took a photography class
read my poetry at an open mic night
saw penguins (Emperor and Adeli)
saw so many seals (including a pup with it's mother!)
saw the inside of ice caves in a glacier that haven't formed in the last several years
saw pressure ridges where two ice shelves collide
lived in close proximity to Mt. Erebus, an active volcano (one of three in the world with an open caldera. That means that the top of the volcano isn't crusted over, but is a bubbly pit of lava. It's the kind of volcano that was common in prehistoric times, and featured in such dinosaur movies at The Land Before Time. It is good because without a hard shell formed over it, a massive and violent explosion ala Mt. St. Helen's is impossible).
saw 24 hours of daylight every single day
shaved my head
wore flip flops outside almost every single day
dressed up like an anime character for Freezing Man
saw so much live music
danced my face off 5 nights a week (hyperbole...but still!)
washed the pots and dishes it took to feed roughly 1000 people twice a day
saw an impromptu haka at 2 am (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haka)
ate food made with ingredients almost universally expired...but still tasty!
took a sauna and cooled off in the Antarctic wind in just shorts and a tank top
had my first facial
jumped for joy at the sight of the moon
met some of the most interesting, creative and eccentric people I have ever met

So that's it. And it's pretty good.

The Moon!

Just went outside and I saw the MOON! It's still daylight out 24 hours a day, but the quality of light is changing, and nighttime feels like nighttime. And the moon is finally out!

I don't know if I am conveying the right feeling about this...but it's so exciting! 3 days!