As I get into the last third of my time on this plane of existence, I ponder back to specific moments in my life. These moments might be precipitated by a thought, a song, or a television show.
Today, I had one of those experiences. I was watching a movie shot by a fellow over ten years living and working in Antarctica. He wintered over at the McMurdo Station, by far the largest inhabited outpost on the continent, for all those years, meaning he did not leave on the last jet that left in the summer. It is a beautiful movie because it is a beautiful place. I think his movie does not adequately convey the difficulties that come with living and working in extreme cold, in cramped spaces, with the same few people, in a world without light.
Kind of like Alaska, only colder. Much colder.
I recall spending my first winter there in 1977. My job was flying around the Interior, often above the Arctic Circle, in winter. Cold temperatures, blowing wind, reduced visibility...and did I mention cold temperatures? I recall having to drain the oil from my airplane's engine into a sealed container and sleeping with it in my sleeping bag; if I didn't, the oil would coagulate in the engine and would have lost all its lubricating properties, thus killing the engine permanently.
Watching the story of wintering over in Antarctica made me recall my time in the Navy in Coronado. I was what was called a 'Radarman,' meaning my job was to operate various kinds of shipboard radars under various conditions. While I was in Vietnam, I also had to repair the boat navigation radars that were installed on the two types of boats we had, the LSSC, Light SEAL Support Craft, and the MSSC, the Medium SEAL Support Craft. Even though I was not a trained ET, Electronics Technician, I knew enough about electronics and am smart enough to have figured out most of the common failures and repairs.
So I was very excited when I read that the Navy was seeking volunteers to winter over at McMurdo Station. One of the positions the Navy had was Electronic Technician, so I got the application and looked at it. I met the time-in-grade requirements and the description of the arduous winter conditions did not scare me - remember, this was many years before my time in Alaska - and I had the experience I thought would suffice. I had also read that not many sailors applied, so there wasn't much competition, which I considered a mitigating factor to my not being an ET. I was excited, so I sent the application in.
Then I waited. A good while later, a personnel clerk from somewhere in the Pentagon called me saying he had one question.
"Have you ever been to ET 'A'-school?"
My heart sank. Why? 'A'-school is the initial training a sailor gets after boot camp; it prepares the sailor for assignments based on the battery of aptitude tests given to all recruits in boot camp. Because I chose UDT/SEAL training during boot camp and was taken out of my 'normal' boot camp training, I took no aptitude tests other than those given to me before boot camp. Since I had volunteered for UDT training - the modern process is very different - I was sent to Coronado and not to any 'A'-school.
So, my answer to his question was 'no, my knowledge came from experience.'
And that ended my progress on the path to wintering over in Antarctica. So I watch the movie with a combination of sadness, longing, and a bit of lustful wonder...
Could I qualify now, as a 70-something, for a job with one of the contract companies now?
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