On a boat!!

I am up early again, surprise, surprise. Seems to be a bad habit I just cannot break. I don't think my colleagues will be getting up any time soon, seeing as we did not get back from the Dublin Bar until after 2AM. However, parties here don't start until later; the disco doesn't typically open til 3AM, so we didn't do anything too wild. Don't get any crazy ideas. Just a fun last night out before a couple days of seasickness on the Drake Passage.
I can see the Polar Pioneer, our ship, in the Beagle Channel from the hotel window. From a distance, it looks small, but I am told not to worry. I am not worried. I am ecstatic! The boat is coming! And I'm getting on! And we're going to Antarctica! 4PM today we board. I will not be able to post any blogs between now and then, but you can track the ship at
I thought about my grandfather yesterday. I thought about how he cut out the first letter to the editor I had published in the newspaper. I thought about how much I miss him and how proud he would be. I'm sure he would have told all his friends, bragged that his granddaughter is doing something so incredible. I thought about how fortunate I am and how many people I have to thank for helping me get to this point. So, before I board this boat this evening, I want to say I love you and thank you. For everything.