Based on responses I received when posting the link on Facebook, I probably should have given some background for those folks that I haven't talked to in awhile.
In late August I discovered that the "Antarctica job" (my term for the collection of Network Engineer positions in Antarctica) was once again available. Unlike when I applied in college, I was actually qualified this time, so I decided to apply and see what happened. I first accepted an offer for an Alternate position (I woud go if somebody backed out or didn't physically qualify (PQ), and I PQ'd) and began the PQ process. In early September, the offer was bumped to a Primary position and I was PQ'd in late September. I leave MSP on October 8th and expect to be on the ice on or around October 14th. I will be working at McMurdo Station until approximately mid February.
Now to address the common questions people have after finding out:
Are you crazy? Unknown at this point. Passing a psych eval is only required for people that winter over (there's no leaving once winter starts).
Why the hell are you going to Antarctica? There are a few reasons. Why not for one. The adventure is another. But the big one is while I was in the Army, I realized that because of the deployment to Iraq I had been to 3 continents already, and getting to the remaining 4 should be possible in my lifetime. Obviously, Antarctica is the hardest one to get to, so this is a great, unique opportunity for me. Upon returning in February, I will have visited 5 continents, worked on 4, and lived on 3. I'm going to try and return through Sydney, Australia, leaving Africa as the only continent left for me to visit.
You know it's cold there, right? Yes, but during the summer, not as cold as people think.
In late August I discovered that the "Antarctica job" (my term for the collection of Network Engineer positions in Antarctica) was once again available. Unlike when I applied in college, I was actually qualified this time, so I decided to apply and see what happened. I first accepted an offer for an Alternate position (I woud go if somebody backed out or didn't physically qualify (PQ), and I PQ'd) and began the PQ process. In early September, the offer was bumped to a Primary position and I was PQ'd in late September. I leave MSP on October 8th and expect to be on the ice on or around October 14th. I will be working at McMurdo Station until approximately mid February.
Now to address the common questions people have after finding out:
Are you crazy? Unknown at this point. Passing a psych eval is only required for people that winter over (there's no leaving once winter starts).
Why the hell are you going to Antarctica? There are a few reasons. Why not for one. The adventure is another. But the big one is while I was in the Army, I realized that because of the deployment to Iraq I had been to 3 continents already, and getting to the remaining 4 should be possible in my lifetime. Obviously, Antarctica is the hardest one to get to, so this is a great, unique opportunity for me. Upon returning in February, I will have visited 5 continents, worked on 4, and lived on 3. I'm going to try and return through Sydney, Australia, leaving Africa as the only continent left for me to visit.
You know it's cold there, right? Yes, but during the summer, not as cold as people think.
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