Good Day Sunshine

This was how the sun and sky and sea looked at around 1400 this afternoon. Something about the quality of the light just captured my eye, especially after we've had numerous overcast/ windy/snowy days here lately. Arthur Harbor is full of pancake ice, which is kind of a precursor for building up a sturdy sea ice layer which you could actually walk on if it got thick enough. I'd like to hold your hand and walk on ice over to Torgerson Island one of these days, but I'm not holding my breath as the ice hasn't built up that deep for quite awhile, and I'm not a fan of extreme cold water immersion.

A synopsis of current events:

• All of the octopi in the garden except one ( who I will from now on refer to as "Lovely Rita") have succumbed to whatever it is (anemone, disease, hunger, water temperature?) that suddenly started claiming them a few weeks back. I tried feeding them and rescued the biggest one from an anemone, but the attrition rate has been cruel.
• Lovely Rita hasn't taken food in five days...
• My hair is growing back pretty fast. But I might just shave it all off again. It's an easy thing to wake up, get out of bed just wash my face/bare scalp, brush my toofs, and walk out the door.
  
• I wake up at around 0330 most hard days/nights lately, then try to fall back to sleep. I'm only sleeping, or trying to sleep. Usually I succeed in falling back to sleep, but last night I didn't and all I wanted was a nap today.
  
• All day.
• TRAUMA TEAM: ANTARCTICA ~~~~Yesterday our excellent physician, Dr. Shawn Vainio, MD, demonstrated proper techniques for stitching wounds, and then we got to practice sewing up wounds inflicted upon a nice piece of mahi mahi. It was fascinating, and another thing that will help out for nursing school.
• LOST is still one of the best shows EVER, at least here at Palmer Station.
• I have been asked and have agreed to stay here until October. I thought that I would be leaving on the first boat, which arrives approximately 17 September, but I was asked to stay on to help. My contract runs through October anyway.
  
• So. I'll be here, (there,) and (everywhere) until I re-deploy.
  

Pictured below is the boat that will be carrying all of us back to Puenta Arenas, the Laurence M. Gould., sitting at dry dock in Pt. Fourchon, LA. Basically, they pimped our boat for the ride home.