Our home for the next two weeks
Sherrie, the expedition leader, is the kind of person that really makes you want to work hard to make sure that everything runs smoothly. We had a huge amount of work to do today, and everyone approached it with the kind of enthusiasm that a kid might put into helping his older cousin do some really mystical task, like working on a motorcycle. The boat is equipped with pens to hold all of the fish and invertebrates that we'll collect, and the 12 hours of cleaning and hauling equipment and fixing plumbing that we did today didn't really feel like work at all. Even yesterday at the airport, although it was discouraging and a little stressful when our flight to Miami was delayed for 2 and then 4 and then 6 hours, it was fun just to be able to pass the time together. Sherrie has done a number of these trips, and she mentioned that one great thing about them is getting to spend time with people with whom you may have worked for years, but haven't had a lot of opportunities to actually get to know. I think we've all enjoyed that so far.
Expedition leader Sherrie practices decision-making skills during an airport delay
John and Caitlin listen attentively as Sherrie lays down the law
John emerges from checking equipment in the lazaret
- Tim
Everyone is tired, but looking forward to tomorrow when the participants will arrive and we'll start preparing for the collecting to begin. On such a unique and exciting trip, it's easy to get caught up in one's own experiences and momentarily lose track of the fact that we have a long list of animals to collect--and catching fish with hand nets can be very difficult (learn about fish collecting by reading this conversation between Aquarium president Bud Ris and diver Sarah Taylor during a previous collecting trip). There is a definite art to the practice, and I'm excited to watch some of the more experienced fish-catchers really get into their elements. The boat is so quiet right now that it's hard to imagine its eventually being full of people and animals, but soon that'll be the case. More to come tomorrow--for now, I need to investigate the chatter and pizza smells coming from the kitchen.
- Tim
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