So, yea, it’s been a long time.  So let’s start off with the reason for my silence—the job.  I was doing it the whole time I was here but it got exponentially busy after my supervisor from Arizona arrived after Christmas.  But I get ahead of myself.  I still have never actually shared in detail what I’ve been doing here!

I came down for the summer season to be the South Pole Food Growth Chamber Technician.  Say that ten times fast!  Really, I and most everyone else on station call it the greenhouse, but since it’s a closed-system space with no light coming from outside, it’s more of a chamber than greenhouse, but that sounds too sterile.  Anyway, I also called myself a farmer/caretaker rather than a technician, for the same reason.  It wasn’t just about tweaking computer readings and writing down numbers, though that did happen.  But it was also about cleaning house, starting seeds, pruning, and keeping things going to set up the winter operator with a stable foundation to take the station successfully through the winter with lots of good veggies.

So, what does this place look like, you might ask?  Well, here are some photos from full jungle like I found it when I arrived, to empty after I and some wonderful volunteers pulled out all the growth and gave the whole thing a sterilizing once-over with bleach solution (to start fresh, and kill off fungal spores that can become a problem), to freshly planted with seedlings, to full harvest growth—at least the greens.  I planted all sorts of things, from herbs to lettuce and other greens to tomatoes, eggplants, and cucumbers.  Oh, and strawberries!  And flowers… all edible of course.  According to the Antarctic Treaty, no plants can be introduced to the continent except edible things.  And boy are there some pretty edible flowers!

The chamber when I arrived-- jungle-like.  November 8.

the hobby system in the front "happy room"-- it's open to the station as a nice place to hang out and read or make phone calls, and for folks to try their hand at hydroponic growing-- it's not automated like the interior food production room so folks using it have to hand balance the nutrient levels and take a little more care... but here it's at the end of last winter/beginning of summer and the caretakers have left... now it's my turn!

Volunteers that showed up to help me for a "Death and Destruction" party-- taking out all the plants so I can give the chamber a deep clean...

plants gone, final cleaning of water and roots out of the middle bins in process... much more cleaning to come... scrubbing the floor,wiping down all surfaces with bleach solution...

empty and clean chamber!  December 6.

Jan 5, all the sprouts planted on 18 and 24 December are ready to go in the system... so why not have a party?!



We had a couple of parties to get the community involved with their local source for organic veggies: a seed starting party to get a bunch of seeds started, then a planting party to help get all the wee sprouts in their places.  This is the planting party on January 5, and the picture is taken showing the Happy Room in front, looking through the doors into the production chamber.  Thanks Rickey Gates for such a great shot!



Jan 10, all the little sweeties are in their holes, roots sucking up the nutrients, ready to go gangbusters!

Jan 17

Jan 22

Feb 7, ready for harvest!  I cut a few things about 10 days earlier (radishes, Bekana, Pac Choi), but this was the first major harvest of the crops I started in December.  Exciting!!

Some of the Pac Choi leaves were so big, we were able to use them to help cool down one of our volunteers after she worked so hard!



The fruits of our labors... about 50 pounds of greens and herbs.  Amazing!  You can see through the glass chamber doors that the cucumbers have reached the ceiling and are filling up the windows with greenness... pretty incredible how fast the stuff in there grows.

 It might look like it was magic... seeds get wet, they sprout, and grow till they can be harvested... bam!  Easy peasy.  But there was a little work that went into it.. the system is automated but needs a lot of TLC and maintenence, including working with the computer-controlled automation system, troubleshooting pumps, fixing leaks... oh all sorts of things.  The respirator picture is when I was using a strong bleach solution for cleaning, and here's a few shots of the behind-the-scenes life of the chamber operator:

going into the subfloor to look for leaks below the chamber-- the chamber module isn't water tight, surprisingly, and we seal the seams in the floor with silicone, but they're not always perfect...

this is the mind-mapping organization that Lane my supervisor laid out when he arrived to keep track of what we needed to do... are you suprised you haven't heard from me in a couple of months?

Lane.    :)

calibrating the pH and EC sensors...



OK, that' really it.  Stay tuned, I'll be back with more, I promise.  Got to tell you about my three jobs in one week adventure!  But I've settled down to just one, and I'm happy with it.  A garbage professional, otherwise known as a 'wastie' in the program.  Love to all!

trying to add in a quick pic before the satellite goes away...

Hello All!

Yes, an egregiously long time since my last post... no great excuses except for that work here has been amazingly busy, and the internet is only available during work hours.  So not much time for dinking around... but life is slowing down... not because I'm not working any more, but because I'm still here at the South Pole.

Big news... I'm staying here for the winter season! The last plane left about two weeks ago... so no chance to back out now.  The next plane we'll see will be at the end of October, bringing in the first of the summer crew to ramp things back up again.

I'm really excited to be staying, for many reasons.  Right now the main one is because I'll finally have a chance to rest!  Sounds counterintuitive, but life has been pretty crazy since after Christmas... but I'm finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

Internet is about to run out, and I have to go and catch brunch... a special production now that we're in winter mode.  This is our first two day weekend and everyone has off-- so no cooks cooking for us, officially.  It's rummaging thru the leftover fridge, unless you want to make a meal of your own.  But one of the kitchen staff volunteered to make a brunch today... and I don't want to let him think his efforts are all for naught!

So I'll be back soon with more... details of my greenhouse job (finally!) and of the crazy path it's been till now, working as a 'wastie'.  Stay tuned for details and translations!

Truly, I'm thinking of all of you, I know I have many emails that have gone un-answered... just know I'm still here and excited about sharing what I've been up to.

love jos :)

Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas from the South Pole! Life continues to fly by down here, having great times and starting to grow things as well! Exciting times. So a few snippets of life over the past week or two. There was the second big bingo event of the season, and it was followed by a showing of the Rocky Horror Picture Show in the gym. So many folks took the opportunity to dress up... and then decided later to document the event properly with a photo at the Pole. I'll leave it to you to guess if there's anyone you know in the photo.

 This weekend was Christmas, and I started off the day opening presents with a good friend of mine on station Rachel Javorsek.  It was a cozy scene in our corner of the galley and it was a lovely way to begin such a great day. 

After checking out our goodies, we quickly donned our outside gear to join in the annual "Race Around the World" event, constituting a 2 mile path around "the world" of the Station and, well, the world, since we crossed all longitudes of the globe. This is a creative event as well-- some get serious about running (the fastest person completed the course in 13:32, about a minute and a half ahead of the next runner...) others walk, jog, ski, drive, sit... costumes optional. 

Here's folks milling around at the start, with our Christmas Tree at the marker:

Here's all the runners all strung out along the course to the right

And examples of the various methods of propulsion...

  

It was a great walk and really got some excellent views of "the world" from atop one of the snowpiles that dot the station "grounds"-- there's lots of snowmoving that happens, either uncovering drifted in storage, or leveling/grooming areas of high traffic... and one might ski/sled/slide down said snow piles if one was feeling a bit frisky...

We got a bit frosty after walking around-- Raja seems to always win the frost flower contest. 

Brunch and awards ceremony followed, then set up for the big dinner.

I was a wine steward for the first seating, which was really fun to help others enjoy their meal.

The three seatings were done by about 8:30 and there was a "cultural" interlude before the disco dance party started-- a bunch of folks who attend the swing and salsa dance classes had a chance to show off their stuff. It was great fun and I think we recruited a few new folks since we were having so much fun on the dance floor!


Next post, I promise, will show what my work is all about here... my boss from the University of Arizona is here and digging into the chambers electronic controls, troubleshooting and doing the groundwork for firing up the system. We've got wee seedlings growing for many plants that will be in in the hobby system, our production crops will start germinating this week.

Wishing everyone the warmest hugs and coziest holiday season--
love jos :)

Happy Birthday to me!

It was a lovely day, started with a gift in my office topped by a battery-powered candle flickering a warm glow in the darkness.  Then by lunch the word had gotten out to a friend in the IT department, who promptly put a happy birthday wish up on the station scroll, which is broadcast to the entire station via monitors in the galley... so that resulted in plenty more well-wishers through the afternoon.  Then yesterday evening, the carpenter shop had already planned a big party so I had a built-in celebration to go to.  Excellent meat, with some sort of jalapeno rub which reminded me of home, grilled up outside with salty chips and plenty of cold beer on hand... good times were had for sure. 

I do want to add in pictures of what I'm actually doing here instead of just all the fun I'm having after hours... we're here to work, but the human connnections make it all come together.  That'll be in the next post.

Before that, I do have more fun stuff to share... there was an open mic event last weekend, and I actually performed with some folks, singing of all things.  And played the egg, but that's another story.  Tried to upload a clip but I think the movie is too big.  Anyhoo, here's a photo:

Before this internet pass ends, I'll include a couple of links to posts of friends of mine-- one here at the Pole, one from Palmer Station, over on the Antarctic Peninsula below South America.  Check out their photos, they do a great job describing and documenting what goes on down here.

http://marcopolie.blogspot.com/  (South Pole)

http://briantarctica.blogspot.com/ (Palmer Station)

Love to all, more to come--
:) jos

Thanksgiving at the bottom of the world

Happy Thanksgiving from the South Pole!  We had a really lovely holiday dinner yesterday... linens and table runners, candlelight, and wine served by good friends.  On the menu:  turkey, gravy, real mashed potatoes (we usually only have instant), roasted root vegetables, sweet potato and green bean casseroles, two kinds of stuffing, rolls, baby greens salad with cucumbers and cherry tomatoes (!), and three kinds of pie: apple, pumpkin, and pecan, topped of with fresh whipped cream.  No, we don't go hungry down here!  And that whole dinner was preceeded by a lovely appetizer session in the hallway outside of the galley, with baked brie, celery and carrot sticks with dip, shrimp and coctail sauce, artichoke tarts, a cheese plate, and sangria to wash it all down.  There were three dinner seating to accommodate the station population (at 232 or so right now) and I was a the third.  It was a stretch to get up and participate in the dance party that started up shortly after we were finished...

The tables were really nicely set, all with volunteer labor to polish glasses, fold napkins, lay out the settings, etc.  It's all about everyone helping out to get things done here. 

There was some dressing up that happened, a nice time to get out of Carhartts and into something from life back in the states... or just something fun like Ashley... 

Here's the dish pit, where the magic happens after every meal... again with volunteer labor during the holiday and usually you can find a volunteer helping out in there during regular days too... it's one of the toughest jobs on station.
Today, just rest and relaxation, reveling in the luxury of two days off.  Now that I've got this thing created, I hope to leave you all a more regular insight into life and times down here.  It's flat and white, but that doesn't mean boring.

ttfn and just know that even though I'm WAY behind in responding to emails, I'm thinking of all of the dear people in my life and very thankful for you and all of the experiences we've shared together.  I really am such a lucky person, not a day goes by that I'm not smiling about one thing or another in my memories.

Love and hugs,
:) jos