I've been anticipating this day for about a year and a half -- since I first started working for the Antarctic Program. Back then it was more of a pipe dream -- "I love the outdoors, wouldn't it be cool to go to Antarctica someday?" I never really expected to actually be deploying so soon.
I'm getting antsy, anxious, nervous, etc., and just want to get this thing underway. The longest flight I've ever taken was just under 4 hours, so this will be a new experience for me. I'm not big on sleeping on planes, but hopefully I'll be able to or I'll end up being awake for almost 48 hours. That's assuming I can stay up all day Saturday in New Zealand to try and curb jet lag. I've packed my bags and know that I'm way overpacked, but how does one prepare for a 5-week Antarctic trip? I know we get all the cold weather gear we need once we get to Christchurch, but it just seems odd to not pack fleece and other warm clothing when you're going to Antarctica.
I bought a huge bag at the Army Surplus store this weekend -- it's a 42" rolling duffel bag. The thing holds almost all the clothes I own so I felt compelled to fill it to the breaking point. I'm carrying on my laptop, iPod, a couple of books, PDA, etc., so hopefully I'll be thoroughly entertained en route :-)
Sara should be home in about an hour and shortly thereafter we'll be leaving for the airport. It will be hard to leave her, but I know she's excited for me and supports everything I'm doing. I'll miss her (and Dexter) like crazy but plan to call and email often.
I forgot to pick up a New Zealand power outlet adapter so I'm going to swing by Radio Shack and see if they can hook me up. Isn't that exciting? ;-)
Sorry for the lameness of this entry. I sent out a blast email to anyone I thought might be interested in this and over 20 people have signed up for the auto-notification feature. I'll try to make the rest of my posts a little more interesting than "I packed my bag and it's big." I'm obviously a little anxious and just ready to get moving. My next post will probably be from New Zealand, and I'm sure I'll have something interesting to say by then.
