Thoughts from the Sea

Oceanus A-frame Sunset
Originally uploaded by brownhousechris.

I've just returned after a 13-day sampling trip aboard the RV (Research Vessel) Oceanus. We started from Woods Hole MA, and steamed back and forth across the continental shelf, all the way up to the Bay of Fundy in Canadian waters. My job was to run a flow-through system, which takes continuous measurements of different seawater properties. I also took some regular water samples as well.

I'd always just done day trips at sea, so this was a big change for me. The thought has a lot of adventure and excitement to it, doesn't it? Out on the ocean, away from the regular world, surrounded by a natural setting...these feeling go away after about a day. What it starts to feel like is waking up in your office, eating in your office, working in your office, then going to back to sleep in your office. Tedium is a good word. By the time we docked again it was a very sweet sensation to feel the land under my feet again.