Not really sure where we are at the moment but somewhere further north. I’ve noticed that the nights are getting darker. We had a gorgeous sunny day (VERY RARE) a while ago and I was hoping for starscape that would be different and brighter than the one I see at home. It never got quite dark enough though and I’ll have to cross my fingers for starry nights once we head south in October.

I’m not so good at keeping up with the cruise plan and the scientific schedule around here. Once the engines stop I know that something is cooking and I assume that they’re sampling the water or mud. Muddy mud mud! I was surprised to hear a disappointed voice longing to find methane the other night. It didn't make sense to me. Seems that it’d be much better to find as little as possible of that stuff but I guess new findings and scientific papers were of bigger interest. It made me curious to ask people more about their expectations for the future and the climate. Taking advantage of being around people who know the data. I heard a lot of conversations on specific subjects and related tasks but I have yet to hear thoughts on the bigger picture. Maybe that’s what the findings of this expedition will lead to though.

My personal findings are coming along but at a slightly slower pace than that at the start. Everything being new and exciting made work come easier but I now find myself making comfortable and expected decisions.  I’ll have to find ways to fuck things up and that’s a lot harder than the other way around.

A few nights ago I made my first crucial contribution! I spotted a big emergency sign flapping in the wind after breaking loose from its attachment points on the wall. I called the bridge and they assured me that Kenneth would be on his way to fix it before sailing off. I had been on my way to the ping pong hangar and was not dressed appropriately for holding down signs in the Arctic breeze but eventually managed to pin onto the wall with the help of Adam (a serious ping pong cup contender). Kenneth showed up some time later and we took it down together. It felt nice to save a sign from a life in the ocean and the ocean from a large piece of plastic. The emergency instructions make a lot more sense on Oden, even though I’m sure they could have offered some kind of comfort to an explorer lost on the ice.

I have recently become aware of the substantial comfort that this inhospitable place has to offer. The complete lack of bugs! No mosquitos, not a single spider web and no cockroaches chewing away on cardboard. It’s a pleasure. There are other things I do miss though. Like my wife and burritos.