Isolated Duty and Fresh Bread

  Well it has been a week up here.  I was mess cooking so I have long days of constant work, not hard, just constant.  I have started going to the gym regularly, I benched 180 pounds for a lifetime max.  I was pleasantly surprised.  Sorry for the delay in an update, but the storm that just came through blocked our internet connection.  

  The sun is rising around 1200 now and it is still strange to see that.  I am at around five in the morning and the sun does not come up for half my day.  The Eskimos came by and I got some gifts for Mom and Kensey, there was not anything dad would have liked, so I held off on getting him something.  You should receive those in the mail soon.  It is still beautiful up here, even though it is oftentimes socked in.  When the sky opens it is amazing.  When you can see the sun rise or set over the frozen bay and the arctic landscape, it is something of indescribable beauty.  I do miss seeing trees though.  I suppose that is what I miss most in landscape.  It is hard to believe that I have been up here for two months now and have not left the base to go anywhere else.  It does not feel like that long, but it does wear on you.  Strange to never go to another town or even group of buildings.  It is still an experience worth doing, more challenging in the isolation part, but what things in life are as you expected them to be.  I enjoy talking to anyone at home because I Get called Cj and not just Watt.  It is the way you are addressed and just feels impersonal at times.  It really makes me appreciate the times you have with family.  The Coast Guard is definitely like a family in some respects, but could never be like family that has been there for me me entire life, always supporting and doing there best to help me out.  

  I suppose I just miss being able to go and visit or even see the people I care about.  The isolation makes most things a little more difficult.  The TV and Internet are satellite, so if the weather goes bad, we may lost internet first, but maybe even TV.  In  Addition when the weather gets bad, you can't really go outside because there is no where to go and you can't really see.  I find things to keep me from getting bored.   I can always go the the gym and lift weights,  although the treadmill is hard for me.  I generally put it to the fastest setting and see how long I can go.  My goal is to be able to do a mile at the fastest setting.  I can meditate, and do a lot of reading.  I just ordered some books on Shamanism and Wicca just for kicks to find out what they really are.  An informal research project to kill time.  We have the movie theatre with new movies every month so that is always a good bet.  But most important of all, and probably the most moral boosting thing we have at the station is the food at any time and fresh bread made daily. 

  I have started to work on my far fetched goal of Bear Fist Fighting  a Polar Bear.  So as you can see I worked on my battle roar.  Unfortunately it made HS1 laugh more than anything.  I definitely have to work on it.  If anyone has any idea let me know!  we also had an intense game of pictionary.  My team won, but is was a close game.  Pojar and Chapman were the MVPs for our team.  Pojar successfully drew 4 out of 5 of his cards and Chapman guessed more of them than anyone, even when stealing from the other team.  It was a fun game.  Dad I know that it drives you nuts when there is no one in the pictures so I got HS1 to take a picture of me.  I have to really compress all these pictures, so they are not the best quality, but they are still worth more words than I feel like writing. 

  I will talk to the family on Christmas and hopefully everyone is having a wondering holiday a season.  It is different up here, but it is an experience.  Have a wonderful day and enjoy a glass of wine or a shot of tequilla for me on Christmas.

P.S.  For the family ..... you better think of something better than Best Christmas EVER!!!