2011

I have been randomly reading blogs only to realize how self-indulgent they can be. Oh well, I suppose I knew that, it just has become so apparent on Jan. 1st. 

So I may just play along, and write my accomplishments from 2010 and how I am going to top them in 2011.  Or I may just write a short list of things I am hoping to get done for 2011. In all actuality I was never a fan of making resolutions, not because I don't think I have things I need to improve about myself just a new calendar year never seemed like to time to think about these things-- the spring equinox seemed a more appropriate time for contemplation and rebirth.  Believe me I have tons of things I need to resolve.

List of 2011 resolutions
1. Make a resolution-- not sure why, but maybe I will shake my sarcasm, dry humor, and overall under-achievement to rise to higher and higher levels of betterment. Maybe I can fill out this form that evaluates my year and then set goals for the next year (ok- I am obviously not gonna succeed in this bullshit resolution........my cynicism gets the better of me).

2. Visit Meredith and Julie. It has been way too long since I have seen these two lovely ladies and we need some quality time with each other.

3. Get a paper submitted. I have several potential papers from my dissertation or work-related research. I need to get something out there.

4. Practice my harp 30-45 minutes a day. Matt and I have discussed the possibility of a performance sometime this year.  That would be super fun.

5. Get back into a good cooking schedule. I was quite lazy this year.

6.  Continue sewing and knitting-- I have no specific goals except to enjoy myself.

7. Give back to the community more- be it through handouts on the streets, volunteering at food banks, plant some trees, knitting hats, supporting the arts, etc.

Ok-- well I guess I am done. Off to making some black eyed peas and cabbage.

more sewing practice

I also whipped together a couple of wine bags. This was fun because I had to make a lining. It took me about 45 minutes to understand what the instructions were telling me to do. I only hope that the bags get reused over and over. This makes me what to sew some produce bags for the grocery store. I just need to find the right kind of fabric.

Ruffles and more ruffles

For my next sewing goal I wanted to learn how to make ruffles. This goal tied in well with the fact that I also wanted to give me sister something to wear while she bakes. (Note: She has recently started baking and decorating some awesome cakes..mmmmm.)

So I signed up for an ruffled apron class at Sew Crafty. And this is the final project (not ironed I know).  It was fun and I had a good time making it. Plus, it looked cute on my sister.

Next task- baby quilts!  I have three friends expecting this spring......whew.

Time to finally relax

I had meant to post this a month ago-- but never finished my revisions.  Now I have been on yet another trip-- a return to the California wine country. Except this time matt and I travelled for a day excursion to Mendocino valley-- the land of wonderful Pino grapes. We drank some great wine, saw lots of beautiful moss, and managed to bring back 12 bottles of varied and delicious California wines....mmmmm

This is the original post I had intended to write:
'After I returned from the Ryan Chouest I had a week and a half before I had to get myself ready to go out into the field for a BP subsurface and wells course in the Bookcliffs and Moab, Utah. This was a great 2 weeks, but it completely wore me out. Not to mention that I immediately traveled to Austin, TX for the Austin City Limits festival the day after I returned home. Suffice to say I am glad to be home and am looking forward to a little r&r and enjoyment of the Houston fall.

Here are some pics of the my SS&W class and the lovely rocks we visited in Utah and Colorado. It was great to finally get into the field again and see some rocks and think depositional environments and paleogeography. That is definitely my favorite part about geology, the fact that the rocks exposed tell a story about the way the world looked millions and millions of years ago.'

Now maybe I can finally relax and enjoy the fall in Houston.

Ode to the chefs

Today is my last day onboard the Ryan Chouest. It has been a great trip and I have really learned a lot of interesting life skills that I never thought I would be any good at. So after 2 weeks of being a communicator, organizer, decision-maker, I am happy to say that I am looking forward to returning to my quiet house and my quiet desk where I spend time on my microscope. I really loved this experience and have learned a lot about work at sea and the research that is currently going on the gulf. I have found great respect for these types of jobs. The jobs last from 2-6 weeks of being at sea. Once at sea the work is hard- shifts last for 12-18 hours. Sleep is a precious things. The other amazing thing is that everyday everyone intereacts with on another-- crews are often thrown together and immediately they must learn the ropes and get the job done without any conflict. It is truly team work.

Ole cook, Steve and I in the kitchen.

Today I want to spend a little time thanking the cooks (even though they may have caused me to gain 5 -10 pounds). These two guys worked in the kitchen non-stop, made 4 full meals a day, kept the kitchen in tiptop shape and since there was no dishwasher always cleaned the dishes. I will show an array of meal pictures and you will see how hearty the meals were.

Fried chicken, fried okra, and mashed potatoes

Crawfish etoufee, mashed sweet potatoes, and beans

Chicken fried steak, mac n' cheese, and peas

Boiled shrimp and peeled shrimp in butter

A well fed crew makes a happy ship!

Battle at sea

Last night was the ultimate battle at sea. The were thrusters engaged, instrumentation pushed to the limits, and all hands on deck. Well, ok, so it was not quite that exciting. I was quietly sitting in my office pod when I got a radio call from the bridge from Cpt. Bill, "Rebecca, um..you are needed in the bridge."  Uh oh. I thought maybe he had some concern about the remaining route, but it really had to do with the circumstances surrounding the ascent on the site locality we were targeting. At the same time that we arrived at this previously identified seep site we were racing a smaller research vessell to the same locality.

WHOI research vessell in same area when we returned in the morning.

So we did some investigation into the ship name and determined it was the Oceanas and realize that they were after the same seep. One of the C and C technology survey guys found a link on the internet that explained that the Oceanas was commissioned by NOAA and NSF and that the onboard scientists were from WHOI. So I started joking with our scientists onboard that it was the battle of the research institutes: WHOI vs. CSIRO. The Captain established contact with the boat after about 15 minutes discussion and we relayed information. They had just recently deployed a buoy with a sensor array into the water (move #1) and then they informed us that they were going to be in the area for 36 hours (move #2). So we told them we would get back to them about our plan-- commando mission- don't relay your plans! In the end we decided to do several 'clover leaf' patterns around the suspected seep (~2.5 hours) and then head south returning to the area we left about 5 hours ago to try once again to relocate potential seeps. So through the night we left the site, cruised south, and then right at dawn slowly returned to the original site and quickly slipped into position while the Oceanas was distracted. Check mate! Then we sat there for about 6 hours and dropped two CTD casts. All and all it was a pretty funny event. You sure do have to be cut throat in the science and ship biz.

CTD retrieval with WHOI ship awaiting locality

Coffee breaks

I think I have found my favorite thing on the boat. I only wish the previous days would have had weather like today's. Even though the seas are still pretty active (4-6 foot swells) the sun is shining brightly. I finally got to bed last night at 3:00 AM. Part of our goals yesterday was to relocate a previously documented 'seep' and do a clover leaf pattern around the seep to pinpoint the direction the plume was flowing. So at 12:00 we located the anomaly on the echo sounder and we proceeded to do this pattern across the seep until daylight. All these sweeps across the area provide us with an image at different angles which ultimately can be used to put together a 3-d idea of the plumes shape and location on the seafloor.

Morning coffee and morning view

When I woke up at around 8:30 AM this morning they had complted their cast over the seep and were heading to the next locality. The CTD and fluorometers did not read any PAH (polyaromatic hydrocarbons) at the seafloor and currently the methane sensor is not attached so we have not details on methane. We can try to deduce that the seep may be primarilty emitting methane gas by the readings from teh echo sounder, but there is no absolute certainty. Even the water samples collected will not be able to confirm this. So the 'seep' is still a little bit of a mystery.  After I did my morning rounds and e-mail check I brewed a cup of coffee. I then headed to the bow with a cup of coffee and sat there for about 30 minutes just looking out into the distance.  Hence, my new favorite thing to do on the boat. The ship noise is pretty much alleviated and all I hear is the wind and the waves crashing against the boat as we move forward.

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