Me? Oh, I'm Tim...

"No, no... not Jim... sorry, I mumble... it's Tim, with a T. I'm from Seattle..."

"Oh, well I think I'm working in the Galley. What? Oh, in the real world? I was an engineer for a medical device company. Yourself?"

. . .

As we file off the plane in Christchurch, we're greeted by a myriad of Polar Services representatives. We fill forms, receive handouts, and surprisingly... $450NZ! The money more than pays for our food, accommodation and transport, so the remainder is ours to spend as we please. Beer, please. We spend the afternoon at the Antarctic Center trying on our ECW (Extreme Cold Weather) gear and packing our flight bags. Giant red parka, moon boots, Gortex overalls, gloves and hats galore...

I find that pretty much any person I strike up a conversation with has an interesting story to tell. They're all such nice, open minded, adventurous folk...

Delaney - Born and raised in Nebraska. Did his first Ironman Triathlon last summer (which is insane!). He's got his bachelors in construction management and aspires to land a job in Europe.

Erica - Hails from Boulder, she left a massage therapy practice to hit the ICE. A couple of years back she spent 3 months touring New Zealand on her bicycle. In the spring she wants to explore Thailand, Cambodia, India and Nepal. She also has a laugh that's utterly infectious.

Charlie - Also of Nebraska. He's 18! 18-years-old!!! Just finished high school and wanted to come down and join his brother on the ICE. At 18 I was cowering in a dorm room with my nose buried in a Calculus book!

Keith - A former Army brat now calling Virginia home. He's been doing this since 1999, and built both the climbing wall and bouldering cave at McMurdo station. A drafter by trade, he's also one of the captains for the Rugby team at the station.

Ruth - Another Seattlite! A sweet little waif... she styles hair, teaches yoga, lived in a commune, and enjoys belly dancing. Yeah... we take all kinds on the ICE.

Andre - A fire fighter from Chicago. He's also writing 2 novels and does editing and graphics work for movies in his spare time.

Amanda - An environmental conservationist from Northern California who'll be driving shuttles in Antarctica. As free a spirit as I've met...

Sandwich - Hailing from God knows where. She's got streaks of green hair and tattoo's of dancing cartoon sandwiches around her calf. Sandwich has been down here for a few seasons, and in between she lives out of a backpack in the remote regions of this world.

. . .

I can't get over the group of people I'm surrounded by. Really... this is the most fascinating social environment I've ever experienced. I know that they didn't do personality screening or anything... it must be the nature of the experience that naturally selects this eclectic group of free spirits. I feel at home.

Oh... so at long last, here's a link to some Christchurch pics:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26649384@N00/sets/1111783/