ANTARCTICA!!!!!

I, Corn, am in Antarctica! The ICE! The bottom of the Earth! It was a nice sunny day (-20F) when we landed on the frozen sea ice at the airstrip in front of McMurdo Station. When the C-17 jets doors had closed in NZ, I took deep visual breaths of green trees and flowers.....when they opened up here, a blast of cold air filled the plane and I stepped into white light! Like a small town of ants in a construction zone, McMurdo sat tucked into the hills just off the sea ice. After many briefings and safety lectures, I dropped my bag in my cramped and dank dorm room. "What the hell am I doing?" Cramped as it may be, walking around outside seems to be the best medicine, for even 3 feet outside of Town Proper, and you are in Antarctica! Distant peaks lit with sunlight that doesn't let up, surrounded by sea ice and glaciers. Looking out across the Ross Ice sheet, a mirage of columns of buildings or people or whatever jumps up from the flats and then dissappears just as fast....the Fata Morgana as they call it is totaly cool! I went to Sea Ice Traing yesterday where we drilled many holes in a section of ice to determine the thick or thin layers that may be hazardous to a crossing vehicle. It's all about the science! Tomorrow, I go to Happy Campers School to learn more cold weather survival skills and sleep out in a snow cave! Life so far (2 days) on the ICE is very busy and completly amazing. Hope all are well, I'll try to get some pics on here soon.
CornDawg