Chain gang

Yesterday a good portion of the station population turned out to help move beverages into the station from the DNF facility. We worked in a chain gang/bucket brigade sort of set-up with the individual packages being handed person-to-person up the stairs at two different entrances to the elevated station. Despite having and electric hoist and elevator, they just don't compete with the speed with which this manual method can load stuff (everything from mail to booze) into the station. Plus, people keep working after -60F when the elevator stops being reliable. I'm not sure if the hoist works in temperatures colder than that.

Our small group of guys did the 300 workout last night. We split it in half to ease into it, but I felt pretty good after the first half and did it again. I got in my reps on everything except pull-ups, but did manage to get in 10 the first time. I figure as I drop weight and build muscle that will come along. Somebody asked if there was a diet you're supposed to follow while doing this program, and one guy said that you're only supposed to eat enough to recover from workout. I guess I'm going to cut down and go for that lean and hungry look from now on.

We're supposed to have our monthly drill for emergency response, and with only today and tomorrow left in February that narrows it down a bit. Hopefully my firefighters will remember at least their basic training, and it would be nice if we don't have any major equipment malfunctions in the cold. As I write it is -57.3F with 14.8 kt winds making for a wind chill of -95.7F outside. That's plenty chilly to really mess up some of our SCBA gear should we let it be exposed to that depth of cold for too long.

So, weeks back I mentioned that they'd been doing all sorts of construction (including in very close proximity to my instruments in the science lab) to install a wind deflector between the two modules of the station. Well, this is what the view out of the (generally) upwind side of the tunnel between A and B pod looks like now that that deflector is in place.



Very picturesque. I'm sure Winslow Homer would have been all over painting that landscape. It used to be a nice view, but now...oh well.