Christmas 2004

I begin writing this from my dorm room, not too far from the North Pole, listening to some Christmas music playing on TV.  As you know, I've been up here in Greenland this past year, after leaving Italy near Christmas last year.  I'm not sure how else to explain what living up here is like, except to suggest watching Star Wars--Episode V (Empire Strikes Back) at the first scene on the planet Hoth.  <grin>

Just a quick recap of this past year:  Arrived here in January as the sun started coming back; got settled into the dorms and the new job.  February brought more daylight and the start of Thule Trips; March began a greater interest in the taking of photographs and even more explorations; in April, a fantastic, wondrous trip to the northern towns of Qaanaaq and Siorapaluk opened my eyes to the beauty and quiet of the tundradic world.  Took a brief sabbatical from the island to catch up on the real world and got back to Greenland just in time for the summer exploration season.  Every weekend, my friends Lee, Sudha and I went trailblazing across the landscape looking for something new to see.  Soon though, both Sudha and Lee left the island for good, and the cold season was creeping in.  So I took another break in September and October, partly for work in Colorado, but mainly to visit with some relations.  I saw my Greats Uncle Don and Aunt Susan the first time in 17 years!  Now back for the final few weeks, here's the low-down since the last "Times":

The end of October brought my favorite holiday: HALLOWEEN!  Even if we couldn't decorate up that much, the club threw a great party with a live band and a costume contest.  I wore the devil horns I got in Virginia and entered the competition.  They didn't end up really wanting to see the costumes, but instead wanted to see how we could strut to some Halloween music.  So I got up when they were playing "Thriller", put on a few moves from the video and took the gold!!  Well, not gold, but a $50 club certificate, which bought enough beer for a few hours of enjoyment.  <grin>

In November, while we still had some sunlight, the base lit the annual Christmas tree, which stays lit from November until the sun comes back up the next February.  The lighting ceremony was followed by cookies and hot chocolate at the Community Center.  As the days got darker and darker, we had a couple 4-day weekends (which really amount to nothing more than lots of extra sleep) over the Veteran's Day weekend, and of course, Thanksgiving.  The Chow Hall put on a good spread for Turkey Day, with some bird, stuffing and the rest of the trimmings.

Now in December, it's now completely night, all the time.  And it's gotten to be quite cold.  Earlier this week, the temps with wind chill were down to 60° below zero (F)!  So far the only off-base fun we've had was going out and makin' snow cave homes.  In sub-freezing weather, we dug out living rooms and some raised sleeping quarters, which actually kept the place cozy.  This of course was followed by a pizza and wine party at the Pavilion.  On-base, though, we've had game nights on Friday, movies at the theater on Thursdays and Sundays, and sittin' in a the radio station whenever the urge comes along (and someone's there).  One night, we had a debate over the air between Brother Love (the DJ, Jerry) and Dr. Evil (me).  It was 4 AM, so not many people heard, but it was still a blast.

Now we're just waiting for Christmas and New Years.  Following that, I'll have just 27 days left before going back to the States, then on to my next assignment in Iceland!  That's about it from the Top of the World.

Here's wishing you the best of Christmases and a great New Year!