Frozen Dishes : life after the ice
Monday, June 28, 2004
Another fabulous weekend. Saturday night I played some Battleship with a pal & kicked his ass again. He only sunk two of my ships before I sent his fleet to chill with Davey Jones. His stragey needs a little fine tuning. To add an adult flavor to the match we incorporated shots of Wild Turkey into the rules. Sunday we had a tasty BBQ. It's fun to hang out around the grill with a few friends. Something of a luxury in these parts. Still no problems from the ice cream machine.
Saturday, June 26, 2004
34 years I've been on this planet and I've always been able to say I've never worn a dress. Well, that all changed this past Thursday. There was a surprise birthday party for a guy that has on a few different occasions been seen in a dress. So, his girlfriend thought it'd be fitting to have all the guys at the party wear a dress. Pretty funny seeing all these burly guys in frilly outfits. I found a snazzy little blue number that fit alright, although it didn't zip up in the back. A liquor luge was carved out of a big block of ice and that was good for some laughs. To take a shot one had to: present your lift pass, wear ski goggles, (for safety) hold onto ski poles, kneel in front of "liquor mountain" and attach your lips to the bottom of the selected run. Kamikaze was the shot of choice.
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
What a fabulous weekend I had. Jonny Vegas managed to place third in the poker tournament walking with a cool $102. Sunday was spent with friends and dinner was excellent. After dinner I headed up to the bar and stayed there for quite a while. Towards the end of the night it was me and two other guys hanging out. We were dancing to, among other songs, "here comes the sun". We must've played that Beatles song at least six different times. A bunch of drunk guys dancing around in the bar at the south pole is not an uncommon occurrence. Earlier in the evening there had been a few ladies at the bar, but they had left. Then I had a glorious Monday off. Watched the tail end of "The Shining", at the traditional midwinter / solstice veiwing. Then back to the bar for some more dancing. This time we had some girls to cut the rug with though.
Friday, June 18, 2004
Ahhh sweet Friday at last. Drank some vanilla vodka and played backgammon last night. I love that game. Tomorrow night is the big poker tournament & Jonny Vegas is ready for action. This coming Monday marks the midway point of the winter, so we are having a celebration on Sunday night. A feast and a band show. Should be a grand weekend. The best part of it all is that we get Monday off as well. A welcome rest for us all. The ice cream machine continues to run smoothly & I'm not asking any questions.
Tuesday, June 15, 2004
Started today by talking to a friend in Greenland. He is a buudy I've spent a few seasons at mcmurdo with. Good to hear his voice again. The phone call was a surprise and I actually had to crawl out of my warm bed an hour early to catch the call. But, it was worth it. This past weekend a few folks gathered in the bar and joined the century club. Fun, but nothing I need to repeat.
Thursday, June 10, 2004
Last night I stopped by the local pub aftrer work and discovered a card game just starting up. I had $10 in my pocket and figured why not. It's always fun to sit and play some cards with friends. Well, this time I actually walked away with some money in me pockets. I made a cool $25. In the overall scheme of things I'm still a bit on the minus side of things, but it felt good to finally get some good cards. Next weekend is the big poker tournament, so any practice for me is a good thing. -90 most of the day today. I was greeted by some big streaks of auroras as I walked to work and that made me happy.
Tuesday, June 08, 2004
The GAD evening was stellar. Part of the dining area was decorated to look like a fancy restaurant. Very swanky. The food was quite delicious and the wine flowed freely. The variety show after dinner proved hilarious. Haikus were read between acts and the finale was a great puppet show about life in the galley. Good stuff. Indeed a fabulous night. Yesterday it finally reached -100, but only for a few moments.
Friday, June 04, 2004
Tomorrow night we are having a GAD. GAD stands for galley appreciation dinner. The kitchen staff invited 3 people each as did the two folks in charge of the greenhouse. Cocktails at 7, dinner starts at 7:30. Each table will have its' own waiter and wine steward. Then after dinner there is a variety show. Should be entertaining. I've only heard of a few of the acts that will be strutting their stuff, but so far it sounds like a fun evening is on the horizon. Today it dipped down to -98, but still no -100. It's warmed up to -80 and I think I'll take a short hike now that I'm off work. When there is a full moon out, the way the light reflects off the snow it looks like we are on the moon surface. Plus, you can see where you are walking which is a bonus. Of course we lose some brightness of the auroras, so that is a bummer.
Thursday, June 03, 2004
Played some poker tonight. I lost $15, but had a good time. June 19th is the next big tournament. I'm hoping to not go out so quickly this time around. I won't be playing as Boozy this time, but have decided to be Jonny Vegas instead. I've got a good outfit for the role. Yesterday I saw some auroras that were red and dancing. Lovely.
