Check out my gallery. I have added pictures I am taking. Each picture has a caption that explains it. Check in often, I will keep adding to the gallery now that I have learned how. Enjoy!!!

I thought you might like to see the weekly menu. They really feed us pretty good. I especially like the part where they cook it, I eat it, they clean the dishes. There is always a dessert at every meal. That’s my real downfall. Also we have a soft serve ice cream machine with cones. All kinds of fruit juices, milk, fresh fruit and a sandwich bar. Breakfast is usually the same scrambled eggs, potatoes, meat of some kind, cereals, fresh fruit, pastries. Well they must have some faith in me because I’m signed on alone here at the approach control until 7:00 am tomorrow.

Home :: McMurdo Station Dining Menu
Wednesday - October 18 | Thursday - October 19 | Friday - October 20 | Saturday - October 21 | Sunday - October 22 | Monday - October 23 | Tuesday - October 24 | Wednesday - October 25
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Today's date is Saturday - October 21, 2006
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MENU
Wednesday - October 18 | Top
LUNCH 11am-1pm
Pork Green Chili
Turkey Enchilada Casserole
Black Bean Quesadillas

DINNER 5pm - 7:30pm
Beef Stew
Roasted Halibut Caponata
Baked Vegetable Gratinee

Thursday - October 19 | Top
LUNCH 11am-1pm
Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich
Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta
Eggplant & Mushroom Lentil Dahl

DINNER 5pm - 7:30pm
Spanish Salmon Cake
Grilled Sirloin Steak
Vegetarian Casserole

Friday - October 20 | Top
Happy Birthday to Jennifer Mercer!

LUNCH 11am-1pm
Pizza!

DINNER 5pm - 7:30pm
Grilled Flank Steak
Tandoori Chicken & Basmati Rice Casserole
Indian Vegetable Curry w/Lentils

Saturday - October 21 | Top
LUNCH 11am-1pm
Tuna and Pea Wiggle
Chicken Fried Steak w/Beef Gravy
Open Faced Roasted Veggie & Gouda Melt

DINNER 5pm - 7:30pm
Spaghetti with Meat Sauce
Chicken Alfredo
Tofu Marsala

Sunday - October 22 | Top
CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST 6:30am-8:00am

BRUNCH 10am-1pm

DINNER 5pm - 7:00
Braised Beef Short Ribs
Roast Turkey
Vegetarian Chili

Monday - October 23 | Top
LUNCH 11am-1pm
Smokey Mountain Chicken Sandwiches
Beef Pot Pie w/Biscuit Topping
Tapenade and Tofu Baguette w/Cheese

DINNER 5pm - 7:30pm
Pork w/Peppered Apple and Onion
Oven Roasted Chicken Quarters
Rosemary and Orange Tofu

Tuesday - October 24 | Top
LUNCH 11am-1pm
Beef Fajitas
Chicken Quesadillas
Spicy Vegetable Pepper Fajitas

DINNER 5pm - 7:30pm
Roasted Game Hens
Hawaiian Cod
Tempeh w/Garlic and Black Bean Sauce

Wednesday - October 25 | Top
LUNCH 11am-1pm
Cajun Honey Roast Pork Loin
Smoked Turkey Sandwich
Potato Mushroom Strudel

DINNER 5pm - 7:30pm
Beef Tuscany
Firenze Chicken & Rice
Savory Vegetarian Risotto w/Mushrooms & Soy

Please call x2212 after 5:30pm if you have any menu or meal questions-Thanks!

Want to wish your friends a happy birthday on the menu scroll? Send me an email at michelle.ott@usap.gov Thanks!
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Here’s an interesting note. There is no fresh water here. All of our water is produced using salt water and reverse osmosis. There is a very good supply of water although they do ask that you conserve water. Also everything we use is recycled. When our trash can is full in our room we go to a recycling area in the building to sort it all out. It is then collected and packed and sent back to the states for recycling there.

An update on the seal. Apparently he likes it here. He has taken up residence 200 feet from the runway and seems quit happy to stay there. The Antarctic treaty forbids any contact with animals unless safety of personnel would be compromised. So as long as he stays off of the runway he stays where he is.

I’m working my first mid shift tonight. I left the dorm at 8:45 and it was still broad daylight outside. At about 11:30 the sun dipped behind Mt. Discovery. It stayed twilight for about 30 minutes and then reappeared around midnight. It’s 1:00 am and it looks like dawn outside. My co-worker tells me that in a month it will be all daylight 24 hours a day with the sun high in the sky the entire time.

Kim Idso, send me Strait’s school address or I can use your home address. I’ll send the class some postcards.

Remember the conditions I posted a couple of blogs ago. Tomorrow midday the airport will be condition 1 and the base will be condition 2. This should be interesting. I’m breaking out the cold weather gear already.

For you airplane people, we had a DC-3 arrive today. It will be doing the mid-range missions on the continent. However nobody will be flying tomorrow (unless they let go of the rope between the mess hall and the dorm).

Last item. I volumtered for the Mass Casuality Incident Team (MCI) today. I will be the triage communications guy. My job is to relay information on patients coming into the medical treatment area. At some point in the future we will have a simulated drill to test the system. Hopefully it will never need to be implimented for an actual emergency. It's nice to know they plan for these things though.

Sandy Nelson, the helo nurse works on the medivac helicopters at North Memorial Hospital. Her name is Cary (sp). She seems about your age and was born and raised in Minneapolis. Next time I see her I'll ask if she's ever crossed paths with you.

Charlie Ed and Bill I think we may have a higher traffic count than you looks like we will have 8 C-130's, 2 Twin Otters, 1 DC-3 and 4-6 helicopters doing daily sorties in continent in addition to the C-17's shutteling back and forth to Christchurch.

Slow Day

Today was a slow day. It was my first day off but I went into work anyway. I find I learn more watching someone else. It gives me the freedom to consider other options and the way that I might have done things the same or differently. I start on shift tomorrow night. I will be working the midnight shift for the first two weeks. It’s not my favorite shift but it will give me some good study time.

We did have something fun happen today. We had an Air Force plane on final to the runway when the tower closed the runway. It seems a seal had chewed his way through the eight foot ice adjacent to the runway and had crawled out onto the runway to sun itself. (now that’s something you won’t see at the Atlanta Airport) It was very large and not inclined to want to leave it’s sunning spot. If you know what a manatee is it was about that size and shape. The guys were finally able to encourage him off the runway and the airplane finally landed.

As a side note while on the subject of seals. There was a scientist at the presentation last night who is here studying seals. He said that in addition to being able to chew through the ice they can also dive to depths as much as 600 meters. That is truly amazing. I’m also told that in December when the ice runway closes ice breaker ships clear a channel for supply ships to come in. At that same time the seals and penguins begin to appear. I can’t wait. I’m looking forward to seeing them up close and personal. I have taken some pictures already and will take more and eventually put them on the blog site.

We had some Italian military guys come for a visit today. They will be handling the Italian aircraft at a site about 20 miles from us. Not that I noticed but the looked very “Italian” and were quite handsome. In addition I met a guy from Reno who just arrived. He just graduated from college and is waiting to hear from graduate schools so he came here for the summer as a “GA” which means general assistant further translated to “gofer”. He was very interesting to talk to. Everyone has a story.

The Crash Area

Here’s something you might find interesting. Today we flight checked a designated crash area for the fixed wing airplanes. WOOOW I hear you saying. Here’s why they do it. When the large fixed wing (as opposed to helicopters rotary wing) fly here they pass a point of no return. Since there are no alternate airports they can land at they must commit to fly all the way here or to turn around and go back to Christchurch. They base that decision on the reported and forecast weather conditions. Once the decision is made to fly into McMurdo they have no choice but to put the airplane down on the continent, preferably on a runway. If bad weather moves in they only have enough jet fuel to make a limited number of approaches to the airport. If they are unable to land they then make an approach to what is called “the whiteout area”. Essentially it is a huge snow desert without terrain obstructions. They fly an approach just like they would to an airport but when they get to the final approach fix (about 4 miles from the whiteout area) they begin a 300 foot per minute descent until they make a controlled crash into the snow. Hopefully at that point the weather is not too bad for the search and rescue helicopters to get to them. The good news is we know exactly where the crash site will be. Doesn’t that make you want to get on a plane to come here for a visit. Thankfully the procedure has never been used but as a last resort it’s as good as it gets.

Strait here is your thought for the day. If you look in the toilet when you flush it you will notice that the water circles in a clockwise direction. Here it circles in a counterclockwise direction. Okay, okay, I know you always put the top down and never watch the toilet flush.
Take care for now.