VIMS

Bottoms Up

A week has already gone by since we left port in New Zealand.

What do I have to say about the cruise so far? I'm OVER the ship rocking! It's getting old and I'm quite tired of it. It's not because I'm seasick or anything—more like I have about 15 bruises on my body as a result of colliding with the ship.

My most interesting bruise occurred in the galley three days ago. I went in there to get a banana and the ship must have hit a wave the wrong way, which sent me flying a good ten feet into a wall. Of course there were three other people there to witness the collision. In fact, one of the crew tried to catch me before I hit but it was too late. The cook now refers to me as "bottoms up."

While on the subject of nicknames, Walker has been calling me "Queenie" ever since we left port. Julio, the "other" Italian guy with our group, misunderstood my name when I introduced myself to him. Instead of Quinn he called me Queen. Who was I to correct him? Walker thought this was especially funny.

I don't have much science to talk about since we haven't started sampling yet, so the only thing I have to report are my daily activities. I wake up when I feel like it—usually around 9:00 or 10:00 (not too early because I'm not a morning person). Since I miss breakfast I scrounge around for some fruit and yogurt. After I eat and check my e-mail I usually take a mid-morning nap because when the ship is rocking gently, I become narcoleptic. I wake up for lunch and then either read a book and listen to music or watch movies until dinner. Occasionally I will take a mid-afternoon nap. After dinner I watch another movie. Up until today I would go outside to watch the water crash against the ship and take in some of the fresh air but now the air is way too cold to be enjoyable.

Around 20:00 is gym time, which can be both interesting and entertaining. I've given up on the treadmill—that?s just and accident waiting to happen. I generally stick to the Stairmaster or the bike, which are much more difficult to fall off. I've also been trying to keep up with my "boot camp" routine, which is challenging enough when the ground isn't moving. My knees are banged up from doing lunges when the ship takes an inopportune roll and my side crunches have turned into barrel rolls across the floor. After working out I take a shower and catch one more movie before I call it a night. Lately I haven't been sleeping too well for fear of being hurled out of my tiny bunk with every wave we hit.

That is all I have to report for now—I will leave you with a haiku:

The ship never stops.
I am thrown from side to side.
Sigh. Are we there yet?