I'm at the center in Chiang Rai, and really really loving it. The kids aren't quite as cuddly as the Pokot children, but that's okay. I think they'll warm up in time as we learn their names and such.
I've got a few pictures up and posted:
http://picasaweb.google.com/passionflower24/Thailand
When I arrived in Chiang Rai I was picked up by Juan at the bus station. It was great to see him again, and a little strange...a year later, a different continent...a lot to catch up on. I went with the director of the center, Amanda to pick up some of the children from school but many had the day off for a National Holiday (they have a National Holiday for Children. Children's Day!). Back at the center, I was shown around and met the other volunteers. There's so many of us here right now...besides Amanda and the co-director Caty, theres Juan from the UK, Eleanor from France, Adam from Australia, Dennis-Michael from the US, and Laura & Phil from Australia. The center itself is beautiful and quite modern. There's several working toilets and showers (one is even western and there's even hot water). It's very comfortable. We're located in a quiet sorta bucolic setting on the outskirts of town, there's a lot of countryside and stray dogs and such. I was stoked that it was safe enough to go on a run, and I got to see a lot of the city which is MUCH larger than I had expected-62,000 people according to Wiki!
http://wikitravel.org/en/Chiang_Rai
My first night in I was super excited to try the Thai cuisine but for dinner, Caty treated 4 of the birthday kids to KFC (as in Kentucky Fried Chicken) and a toy at the supermarket. Surprisingly, even KFC inThailand was pretty good...I got tuna salad. Still not impressed enough to purchase a KFC handbag or anything (I saw one for sale at the market-unbeleivable!).
Saturday was actually Children's Day, and tons of festivities were taking place. We took the children down to Chiang Rai beach where there was a celebration complete with games, food, and music. The kids made out like bandits with tons of free food and I tried my favorite dish thus far-papaya salad. It's made with unripe papaya strips, chilis, dried shrimp, roasted peanuts, and lime juice & vinegar. It's sublime.
Sunday was super-relaxed. There were a few house meetings where we were introduced to the kids via a translator. The children are all from the hilltribes of Northern Thailand, mostly Lahu and Akha. They speak their tribal language mostly, and Amanda and Caty have just gotten a teacher to give them Thai lessons daily after they come home from school. These groups endure a lot of prejeduce and discrimination from Thai's, and aren't even treated as full citizens. They aren't even given passports, so they can never leave their tribal province. Carol (founder of International Humanity Foundation) established this center as a preventative measure against human trafficking and sexual slavery; the fate of many unwanted hilltribe children. Once again, I feel quite affirmed that IHF is truly doing work with the most marginalized and poverty-stricken populations. Here's links to more info:
http://www.thaifreedomhouse.org/hill_tribes.php
http://www.hrsolidarity.net/mainfile.php/2004vol14no06/2384/
The task I've been given is comprehensive review and edit of the website text. Not very romantic, I know, but I'm actually very happy that I can be doing something useful that utilizes my skills. Other projects are ongoing painting and cleaning at the center, and various miscellaneous administrative tasks involving sponsorship and fundraising. I know it sounds weird to travel halfway around the world just to sit at a computer much of the day, but it's some of the most important and neccesary work to be done.
As for me, I'm doing great despite being covered in mosquito bites (well not covered but they're especially itchy. Especially the ones on the bottom of my feet and forehead.) The food is awesome and cheap and plentiful, I'm in good company, and it's not humid. I have absolutely no complaints...life is extremely extremely good :)
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Far East and Loving It
Here I am in Chiang Mai, Thailand...pecking away at an internet cafe halfway around the world. I wish I had pics to upload for y'all but I am still in wary-tourist mode and self-concious about it. They'll come, I promise.
My trip to Bangkok was smooth and uneventful, aside from some jet-lagged-induced resentment at the DAMN RUSSIANS that were drunk and loud and pushy in Seoul. Room for spiritual growth on my part I suppose : ). I got to my hotel around 2 am, and was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the room for how cheap it was:
http://www.thongtaresort.com/
The next morning, I took a cab into central Bangkok and dropped my stuff off at the main train station. The information desk lady TOTALLY tourist-trapped me into buying a ticket for the overnight bus to Chiang Mai, versus the train. And she was soooooo polite when she explained that I would be more comfortable since I wasn't Asian (pantomiming big thighs at the same time). Anyways, I decided not to fret since she guaranteed me I'd have a great night's rest. I rationalized that the cost was worth it (about 30$ US) and it wasn't going to be the "QueasyCoach" experience I had from Nakuru to Bungoma in Kenya. NO bus ride on the planet could equal that one.
I took the Bangkok metro subway to a neighborhood called Sukumvit and attended a great meeting there. Everything is so clean and orderly and easy here! I met some great people (fellow travellers mostly), had a good lunch and did some shopping before I headed to another meeting in another area.
I spoke at length with a journalist about the political situation, and surprise surprise we weren't getting the whole picture from MSM. The group that caused all the problems at the airport and such weren't rallying for the little guys at all (even though they claimed to be a people's party); there's all sorts of complicated political alliances class elitism going on. But the bottom line is that everyone has been sated for the moment and the country is safe for the time being.
SOOO the bus. The first sign that my serenity was compromised: 1) Not a window seat but a MIRROR seat. Who wants to spend 9 hours looking at oneself while you're passing through an exotic and interesting countryside?? But it gets better...
2) The bus was full of.....RUSSIANS
3) Cockroaches were swarming in the tray table
4) My OCD plans to change into my pj's in the "toilet" and brush my teeth were foiled AND THIS WAS THE LAST STRAW-
5) Apparently there was not enough room for luggage underneath so it was all piled in the isle. My brain was swirling with fiery death scenes and being trapped in a bus dying. With Russians.
Okay enough negative Nancying...they pulled into another bus station and re-arranged the luggage. I got out and brushed my teeth and changed in the worlds funkiest outhouse, so I was a bit more calm. I decided I needed a real attitude change and got one when I pulled my meditation card for the night out...and the character defect of the day is: "I COME FIRST". Oh shit.
I actually calmed down and got a good nights' rest after all. About 6 this morning we pulled into Chiang Mai and I went on a pretty long walk that was really uninteresting (cuz I mostly stuck to highways and main roads not to get lost). Now I'm onto another bus for 3 hours to Chiang Rai and I'm VERY VERY excited to reunite with Juan who has been at the center for a few weeks now.
Ciao!
My trip to Bangkok was smooth and uneventful, aside from some jet-lagged-induced resentment at the DAMN RUSSIANS that were drunk and loud and pushy in Seoul. Room for spiritual growth on my part I suppose : ). I got to my hotel around 2 am, and was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the room for how cheap it was:
http://www.thongtaresort.com/
The next morning, I took a cab into central Bangkok and dropped my stuff off at the main train station. The information desk lady TOTALLY tourist-trapped me into buying a ticket for the overnight bus to Chiang Mai, versus the train. And she was soooooo polite when she explained that I would be more comfortable since I wasn't Asian (pantomiming big thighs at the same time). Anyways, I decided not to fret since she guaranteed me I'd have a great night's rest. I rationalized that the cost was worth it (about 30$ US) and it wasn't going to be the "QueasyCoach" experience I had from Nakuru to Bungoma in Kenya. NO bus ride on the planet could equal that one.
I took the Bangkok metro subway to a neighborhood called Sukumvit and attended a great meeting there. Everything is so clean and orderly and easy here! I met some great people (fellow travellers mostly), had a good lunch and did some shopping before I headed to another meeting in another area.
I spoke at length with a journalist about the political situation, and surprise surprise we weren't getting the whole picture from MSM. The group that caused all the problems at the airport and such weren't rallying for the little guys at all (even though they claimed to be a people's party); there's all sorts of complicated political alliances class elitism going on. But the bottom line is that everyone has been sated for the moment and the country is safe for the time being.
SOOO the bus. The first sign that my serenity was compromised: 1) Not a window seat but a MIRROR seat. Who wants to spend 9 hours looking at oneself while you're passing through an exotic and interesting countryside?? But it gets better...
2) The bus was full of.....RUSSIANS
3) Cockroaches were swarming in the tray table
4) My OCD plans to change into my pj's in the "toilet" and brush my teeth were foiled AND THIS WAS THE LAST STRAW-
5) Apparently there was not enough room for luggage underneath so it was all piled in the isle. My brain was swirling with fiery death scenes and being trapped in a bus dying. With Russians.
Okay enough negative Nancying...they pulled into another bus station and re-arranged the luggage. I got out and brushed my teeth and changed in the worlds funkiest outhouse, so I was a bit more calm. I decided I needed a real attitude change and got one when I pulled my meditation card for the night out...and the character defect of the day is: "I COME FIRST". Oh shit.
I actually calmed down and got a good nights' rest after all. About 6 this morning we pulled into Chiang Mai and I went on a pretty long walk that was really uninteresting (cuz I mostly stuck to highways and main roads not to get lost). Now I'm onto another bus for 3 hours to Chiang Rai and I'm VERY VERY excited to reunite with Juan who has been at the center for a few weeks now.
Ciao!
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Back on land and Eastward ho
Alas, the drift gillnet season has come to an end for me this year. Some boats may still fish after the holiday, but the market price is terrible. Luckily for me, I wrapped up on a wonderful boat with a great captain (who rescued birds and blow-dried them so they could safely fly away) and crew (who I played Scrabble with ad naseum). To celebrate, I made swordfish cheesecake (sans fish extract of any type):
FYI, this isn't the final version...a major edit was required prior to me bringing it out. I didn't feel like a successful "observer" when I realized I had put 2 dorsal fins on a fish that only has one. There's an astute biologist for ya. Anyhow, I corrected it in time and saved face with the guys. Oh and I also must qualify, this cheesecake came out of the box and no baking was required...I don't do Betty Crocker on the high seas : )
The last week on the boat was amazing. The weather was great, and it was such a blessing to admire the historically full (http://living.oneindia.in/insync/2008/brightest-full-moon-2008-121208.html) moon out on the quiet and serene waters. I didn't know it at the time but I couldn't help but think I was witnessing something spectacular and awesome and beautiful. I just thought I hadn't been taking the time to notice before.
Along with the beautiful silver light, the full moon brings all sorts of interesting beasties up and out in the ocean. During our last haul, I saw worms and some other sort of "thingy" swarming in the water that was clear and leaf-shaped with a big pink dot at one end. By the time I had a bucket together to try and capture some, the sun had started to rise : ( This brought me back to my research days at the Salton Sea, when I would drive out on full moon nights to capture swarming nerieid worms to take back to the lab at school. Good times.
Yah, I DO think they're kinda cute
Thanksgiving came and went and I had a lovely time connecting with my extended family in Claremont, CA. Almost everyone flew out from Texas which was pretty neat. Hopefully the family doesn't mind being blogged on:
I especially had a good time connecting with my grandparents. And look how cute we all are:
Travel plans to Thailand are still on. I leave January 6th after a whirlwind tour of the parent's homes in AZ and TX (this is a surprise for my grandma so anyone reading...hush hush!). Juan, who I met in Kenya last year has already arrived and says the political situation is totally calmed down. I'll reunite with him and Laura at the IHF center in Chiang Rai, Thailand:
http://www.ihfonline.org/locations/thailand.php
It sounds like I'll have fairly regular internet access, so I'll try to keep the blog updated as much as I can. Love to all!
Thursday, November 6, 2008
"Swordfish like Obama"
I'm back observing...this time it's in sunny Southern California, which is a real perk. The down side is that this fishery is a lot smaller and confidentiality is an issue so I had to sign a waiver stating I wouldn't bring a personal camera on-board with me. I may be able to finagle (?) this a little later on, but so far I don't have recent pictures. Hopefully my illustrious narratives will suffice : )
I have been on 2 boats so far, each of which were quite nice. I'm working on drift gillnetters targeting swordfish. Each evening, they put a huge vertical mesh net in the water thats over a mile long. Early in the morning, the net is retrieved and
the fish are pulled on board. In addition to swordfish, we catch blue, mako, and thresher sharks, ocean sunfish, albacore, and occasionally (and definately not intentionally) marine mammals. My last trip consisted of 9 fishing days and there was one dolphin in the net. My duties required me to dissect it and collect certain specimens for the scientists at the National Marine Fisheries Service Science Center in La Jolla-goodies like the adrenal glands, gonads, the stomach, a biopsy/blubber sample, and the entire head. It wasn't as difficult as I feared it might be; we had good weather that day which really helped of course. Although it is rather strange to root around in the guts of an animal that's still warm (you don't get this experience with fish)...
Speaking of being elbow-deep in blood and guts, I've decided that I'm ready to tack
le the idea of learning to hunt and fish (this is coming from a gal that a year ago was vegan). The deckhand of the last boat and I fished for squid at night which was a lot of fun and gave me a real sense of sufficency in a weird way. I wonder if this is what outdoorsman get so worked up about. It felt good to know I could accquire my own food, and take responsibility for purposefully ending another creature's life. Now the calamari steaks are in the freezer, and I'm just waiting for my roomie Laurie to whip up a fabulous dish with it!
As I just alluded to, I have yet again moved out of my ex-boyfriend/business partner/co-dependant lifemate/best buddy Johnnie's house in Huntington Beach. I'm living with my good friend Laurie at her home in Long Beach, along with a gal named Nuala (a standard poodle). I love Long Beach, which is far more cosmopolitan and sophisticated than Orange County, and Laurie has a wonderful beautiful home that is full of love and peace. So far, SO good!
My next big plans are for a trip to the Thailand IHF center in January. I've already got the ticket, but haven't firmed up the itenerary. I'll definately keep you all posted.
Much love, and hopefully more soon!
I have been on 2 boats so far, each of which were quite nice. I'm working on drift gillnetters targeting swordfish. Each evening, they put a huge vertical mesh net in the water thats over a mile long. Early in the morning, the net is retrieved and
the fish are pulled on board. In addition to swordfish, we catch blue, mako, and thresher sharks, ocean sunfish, albacore, and occasionally (and definately not intentionally) marine mammals. My last trip consisted of 9 fishing days and there was one dolphin in the net. My duties required me to dissect it and collect certain specimens for the scientists at the National Marine Fisheries Service Science Center in La Jolla-goodies like the adrenal glands, gonads, the stomach, a biopsy/blubber sample, and the entire head. It wasn't as difficult as I feared it might be; we had good weather that day which really helped of course. Although it is rather strange to root around in the guts of an animal that's still warm (you don't get this experience with fish)...Speaking of being elbow-deep in blood and guts, I've decided that I'm ready to tack
le the idea of learning to hunt and fish (this is coming from a gal that a year ago was vegan). The deckhand of the last boat and I fished for squid at night which was a lot of fun and gave me a real sense of sufficency in a weird way. I wonder if this is what outdoorsman get so worked up about. It felt good to know I could accquire my own food, and take responsibility for purposefully ending another creature's life. Now the calamari steaks are in the freezer, and I'm just waiting for my roomie Laurie to whip up a fabulous dish with it!As I just alluded to, I have yet again moved out of my ex-boyfriend/business partner/co-dependant lifemate/best buddy Johnnie's house in Huntington Beach. I'm living with my good friend Laurie at her home in Long Beach, along with a gal named Nuala (a standard poodle). I love Long Beach, which is far more cosmopolitan and sophisticated than Orange County, and Laurie has a wonderful beautiful home that is full of love and peace. So far, SO good!
My next big plans are for a trip to the Thailand IHF center in January. I've already got the ticket, but haven't firmed up the itenerary. I'll definately keep you all posted.
Much love, and hopefully more soon!
Saturday, August 30, 2008
"Home" safe & sound
I'm wrapping up my requisite "acclimation" week on the couch in my pj's as I adjust to my terribly hard Southern California lifestyle. I arrived home Monday evening, and have watched more television since then that I have in the entire year.
I have a lot to ponder as I resume my normal routines. At Costco yesterday I wandered by the fresh (?) seafood display...halibut at $7.99/lb! Unreal! Cheaper than right off the boat! Who are these people??? The scallops looked sad and slimy and discolored. I couldn't help but wonder where they came from and how long they traveled to get to our tables.
Today I finally succumbed to a semi-normal level of self-grooming and got my first manicure and pedicure in 3 months. Heavenly. It's nice to be rough and ready and tough and all, but what girl doesn't like pretty hands and feet? Besides, I've got a busy couple weeks of pool parties and beach time.
I have a lot to ponder as I resume my normal routines. At Costco yesterday I wandered by the fresh (?) seafood display...halibut at $7.99/lb! Unreal! Cheaper than right off the boat! Who are these people??? The scallops looked sad and slimy and discolored. I couldn't help but wonder where they came from and how long they traveled to get to our tables.
Today I finally succumbed to a semi-normal level of self-grooming and got my first manicure and pedicure in 3 months. Heavenly. It's nice to be rough and ready and tough and all, but what girl doesn't like pretty hands and feet? Besides, I've got a busy couple weeks of pool parties and beach time.
Me, hard at work
My last week on the boat was excellent, although unfortunately for the guys, a big storm came up and the fishing got pretty bad. We anchored up in a bay, where I took this adorable picture of them all working on the dredge:
We stayed there overnight because the weather forcast predicted winds of 70 mph. Not so nice. It was pretty nasty, but more than anything just sorta boring. We did a lot of sleeping, and I eventually got a game of Scrabble out of Malcolm and Jeff (I lost miserably). It was a full moon, and I remembered the last harvest moon that Tom pointed out on the boat exactly a month before. As we pulled out of the bay 24 hours later, there was some brief discussion over the radio as to whether we should trade some scallops for salmon with a small seiner boat a few hundred yards away. I thought that was pretty cool; trading on the high seas just like the old days.
Jeff sorts the world's crappiest haul
I put a few more pictures up on the website, and also some short videos. They're pretty basic, just me saying the same thing over and over ("It's my last day on the Kilkenny. *sigh*") and showing you my little reading nook in the fos'c'le as well as my knee, boot, book, etc. I admit, I'm not the most exciting filmmaker.
I've been accepted as an observer for the California/Oregon drift gillnet fishery targeting swordfish. The training starts on the 22nd, and I'll be based out of Long Beach. There's more shoreside work required of me, but I will be on boats out of local ports ranging from San Diego to Northern Cal. I think it will be cool to live close to home where I can hopefully pick up some contract work so that I can start saving up for Thailand! God willing, I want to try and spend Christmas there with the kids and have a reunion with my good friends Juan and Laura that I met in Kenya. We'll see...
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Gonna be famous!
Malcolm took this picture of Jim holding an absolutely humongous scallop:
I thought it was a great shot, so I sent it off to National Fishermen (http://www.nationalfisherman.com/index.asp) and asked them if they would use it for their monthly "Crew Shot" feature. I also asked if they'd be interested in a short article about Alaskan scallopers and they said yes! Anyone out there who would be willing to help me edit a preliminary draft is my hero-email me!!!! I'm freakin out man!
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Running out of titles but still loving life on the Kilkenny
I'm staying on the boat this time instead of schlepping all my stuff back and forth to the hostel...I'm really missing the highspeed right about now...Check out the usual link for even more fantastic pictures, it takes TOO DAMN LONG to upload them here but scroll down and check out the ones I was able to put in. They're pretty cute.
Contrary to my entry below (I didn't want to change content to protect my journalistic integrity ha), it looks like I get one more trip on the Kilkenny. Fishing this last trip was good enough to do it all over again; hopefully we'll get the same lovely weather but the forecast looks more like typical Gulf of Alaska winds and seas. Oh well. I'm just glad I get some more time in with this crew, all of whom I'm really growing to like. And just really enjoying my time reading, curled up on the bow of the boat in the sunshine. I finished the Kite Runner this week, BLECH not what I expected but still an ok read I guess (I'm right at the beginning here which is wht I look happy).
Random notes I made:
-I don't really like to eat scallops, which is ironic cuz they look exactly like my favorite food of all time, giagantic marshmallows.
-There was the most aesthetically pleasing balance of cotton-candy colors during the sunset the other night. The blue and pink/purple crests on the waves matched in perfect proportion the colors in the sky. Of course, I SHOULD have taken a picture to show you what I'm talking about...
-Caught the CUTEST durn snailfish in a tow. Should have taken a picture.
-I went to a really cool little film festival in Homer right before I left last trip. A short (or series of them, rather) definately worth checking out:
http://thepatternstrilogy.com/
8/6/08
As we near the end of what may be our final trip, I feel like I haven't documented all the extraordinary experiences I've had here on the Kilkenny. Nearly every tow has brought up an new and wonderful creature for me to ooh and ahh over...
Contrary to my entry below (I didn't want to change content to protect my journalistic integrity ha), it looks like I get one more trip on the Kilkenny. Fishing this last trip was good enough to do it all over again; hopefully we'll get the same lovely weather but the forecast looks more like typical Gulf of Alaska winds and seas. Oh well. I'm just glad I get some more time in with this crew, all of whom I'm really growing to like. And just really enjoying my time reading, curled up on the bow of the boat in the sunshine. I finished the Kite Runner this week, BLECH not what I expected but still an ok read I guess (I'm right at the beginning here which is wht I look happy).
Random notes I made:
-I don't really like to eat scallops, which is ironic cuz they look exactly like my favorite food of all time, giagantic marshmallows.
-There was the most aesthetically pleasing balance of cotton-candy colors during the sunset the other night. The blue and pink/purple crests on the waves matched in perfect proportion the colors in the sky. Of course, I SHOULD have taken a picture to show you what I'm talking about...
-Caught the CUTEST durn snailfish in a tow. Should have taken a picture.
-I went to a really cool little film festival in Homer right before I left last trip. A short (or series of them, rather) definately worth checking out:
http://thepatternstrilogy.com/
8/6/08
As we near the end of what may be our final trip, I feel like I haven't documented all the extraordinary experiences I've had here on the Kilkenny. Nearly every tow has brought up an new and wonderful creature for me to ooh and ahh over...
"OOOH" 
"AHHH"Today we got a very large octopus on deck...I poked at him for a bit before tossing him back in the sea. It was cool to hear his suckers attach and reattach to the deck as he squirmed his way around.
The sheer magnitude of our catch overwhelms me when I stop to think about it...the amount of biomass out there in the ocean continually reminds me of what a big big world this is, and that I am only a small part. It helps me to alleviate fear I have about issues of LACK, that there won't be ENOUGH...enough gas, enough food, enough time...God's world is huge and there is plenty for all. The ocean is a constant reminder of abundance.
Today started off rather gloomy, and I didn't want much to do with observing at all. It was super hard for me to drag myself away from the bench in the galley where I had glued my feet to the stove (our only source of heat). After being on deck for a few minutes however, the SUN came out and life was good again. I really took for granted all the nice weather on our first few trips. All day yesterday was dreary and cold with a slight drizzle. Today was a definate improvement, but still damp as we were encased in fog all day. It was an interesting sensation, to have the sun shining on my face but besurrounded in mist...very ethereal. There was hardly any visibility because of the fog, so it felt like we were on a ghost ship, with nothing but the searoiling around us, the only thing in the universe. So romantic!
I'm reading an EXCELLENT book about fishing in Alaska, highly recommended for anyone who wants a taste of what it's like. It's a novel, but the fictionalchapters are interspersed with factual essays about various aspects of Alaskan history and fishing information. It's really well written. It's called "Highliners" and it's by William B. McCloskey, Jr:
http://www.amazon.com/Highliners-Classic-Commercial-Fishermen-Alaska/dp/1585740284/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1218421033&sr=1-1
I hear there's a sequel which I'm very excited to find. I also read a book on the boat called "Trawler" by a Scottish dude named Redmond O'Hanlon which was a funny if not somewhat exaggerated (and very British) read about life on a commmercial fishing vessel: http://www.amazon.com/Trawler-Redmond-OHanlon/dp/1400042755
This wholeworld is just so fascinating. I also got a book at the Homer bookstore about women who commercially fish in Alaska. Unbelievable! I am just so curiousand awestruck by people who live this lifestyle. It truly has to be the most difficult, exciting, dangerous, thrilling, satisfying, dirty, uncomfortable,amazing way to make a living. I am absolutely in love with life and feel so so blessed to be experiencing this with my eyes open.
My typical day is to wake up about 7 or 8 (I get to set my own schedule with this sampling protocol-NICE) and eat some oatmeal while I finish up mypaperwork from the day before. The crew bounds out of bed around 4 or 5 to start working-on empty stomachs. They are so tough. Not I. I sample my first haul around 9, and then come in and have a hot breakfast with everyone at 10. I have to sample a total of 5 hauls per day, and the boat does on average about 10; one every 1.5 hours or so. Now that I have the routine down, it seems extremely easy and I often have a lot of time in between sets toread or stare at the sea. I love all the solitude and time I have to just think and talk to myself; I've yet to had a day where I've been truly lonely.The district we're fishing in now has a sandy bottom, so there's no mud to deal with which is a really nice improvement and makes for a lot less clean-uptime. As far as the actual sampling, it's really basic. I wait until the crew has sorted through the pile of scallops that the dredge has brought up,and then collect the leftover scallops. Here's some shots Malcolm took of me hard at work:
These are then sorted into broken and unbroken baskets, weighed, counted, and measured. I also collect any crab bycatch and measure, sex, and age them as well. Once per day I do a haul composition where I weigh everything that comes up on deck. I talked to Fish & Game about counting starfish though since there can be up to 600 lbs/haul and I was breaking my ass trying to weigh them all. Yikes. This haul compis a lot of work, but also really neat, almost every one has been different. The diversity of animals here is just staggering. And hardly any dead fish,yay! I take a lunch break around 3, and try to get a jump on paperwork. We eat dinner around 9, and I clean up the dishes and the galley before my showerless cleanup routine (which involves baby wipes and cornstarch in my hair). I usually go to bed at 10 or 11. I'm so spoiled; the crew doesn't make it in until at least midnight, a lot of times later. They try and get 4 hours of sleep at night, and then go down for 2 hour naps during the day. These guys really are heads and tails above the rest, really truly genuinely nice men. All of them are married and totally respectful and cool and interesting.There are only 3 deckhands, the captain, and myself this trip, so it's a nice tight little team. I'm off to finish up my book and hit the hay.
The sheer magnitude of our catch overwhelms me when I stop to think about it...the amount of biomass out there in the ocean continually reminds me of what a big big world this is, and that I am only a small part. It helps me to alleviate fear I have about issues of LACK, that there won't be ENOUGH...enough gas, enough food, enough time...God's world is huge and there is plenty for all. The ocean is a constant reminder of abundance.
Today started off rather gloomy, and I didn't want much to do with observing at all. It was super hard for me to drag myself away from the bench in the galley where I had glued my feet to the stove (our only source of heat). After being on deck for a few minutes however, the SUN came out and life was good again. I really took for granted all the nice weather on our first few trips. All day yesterday was dreary and cold with a slight drizzle. Today was a definate improvement, but still damp as we were encased in fog all day. It was an interesting sensation, to have the sun shining on my face but besurrounded in mist...very ethereal. There was hardly any visibility because of the fog, so it felt like we were on a ghost ship, with nothing but the searoiling around us, the only thing in the universe. So romantic!
I'm reading an EXCELLENT book about fishing in Alaska, highly recommended for anyone who wants a taste of what it's like. It's a novel, but the fictionalchapters are interspersed with factual essays about various aspects of Alaskan history and fishing information. It's really well written. It's called "Highliners" and it's by William B. McCloskey, Jr:
http://www.amazon.com/Highliners-Classic-Commercial-Fishermen-Alaska/dp/1585740284/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1218421033&sr=1-1
I hear there's a sequel which I'm very excited to find. I also read a book on the boat called "Trawler" by a Scottish dude named Redmond O'Hanlon which was a funny if not somewhat exaggerated (and very British) read about life on a commmercial fishing vessel: http://www.amazon.com/Trawler-Redmond-OHanlon/dp/1400042755
This wholeworld is just so fascinating. I also got a book at the Homer bookstore about women who commercially fish in Alaska. Unbelievable! I am just so curiousand awestruck by people who live this lifestyle. It truly has to be the most difficult, exciting, dangerous, thrilling, satisfying, dirty, uncomfortable,amazing way to make a living. I am absolutely in love with life and feel so so blessed to be experiencing this with my eyes open.
My typical day is to wake up about 7 or 8 (I get to set my own schedule with this sampling protocol-NICE) and eat some oatmeal while I finish up mypaperwork from the day before. The crew bounds out of bed around 4 or 5 to start working-on empty stomachs. They are so tough. Not I. I sample my first haul around 9, and then come in and have a hot breakfast with everyone at 10. I have to sample a total of 5 hauls per day, and the boat does on average about 10; one every 1.5 hours or so. Now that I have the routine down, it seems extremely easy and I often have a lot of time in between sets toread or stare at the sea. I love all the solitude and time I have to just think and talk to myself; I've yet to had a day where I've been truly lonely.The district we're fishing in now has a sandy bottom, so there's no mud to deal with which is a really nice improvement and makes for a lot less clean-uptime. As far as the actual sampling, it's really basic. I wait until the crew has sorted through the pile of scallops that the dredge has brought up,and then collect the leftover scallops. Here's some shots Malcolm took of me hard at work:
These are then sorted into broken and unbroken baskets, weighed, counted, and measured. I also collect any crab bycatch and measure, sex, and age them as well. Once per day I do a haul composition where I weigh everything that comes up on deck. I talked to Fish & Game about counting starfish though since there can be up to 600 lbs/haul and I was breaking my ass trying to weigh them all. Yikes. This haul compis a lot of work, but also really neat, almost every one has been different. The diversity of animals here is just staggering. And hardly any dead fish,yay! I take a lunch break around 3, and try to get a jump on paperwork. We eat dinner around 9, and I clean up the dishes and the galley before my showerless cleanup routine (which involves baby wipes and cornstarch in my hair). I usually go to bed at 10 or 11. I'm so spoiled; the crew doesn't make it in until at least midnight, a lot of times later. They try and get 4 hours of sleep at night, and then go down for 2 hour naps during the day. These guys really are heads and tails above the rest, really truly genuinely nice men. All of them are married and totally respectful and cool and interesting.There are only 3 deckhands, the captain, and myself this trip, so it's a nice tight little team. I'm off to finish up my book and hit the hay.
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