A 3 hour cruise....

Actually, it's 11 days...and it's not so much a cruise...but whatever.

I will only agree to go if this man is the captain.

Next week I am heading to Norfolk, VA to participate in a NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) research cruise through my University. I, and several of my classmates, will be living aboard the R/V Gordon Gunter for 11 days. Each day, we will trawl for monkfish and red crabs as part of two separate research projects. The goal is for us to get some experience at sea and with various techniques, as well as to allow work on projects involving species we might not normally see in the Chesapeake Bay or Maryland and Virginia Coastal Bays, where we typically work.

SO MANY BUTTONS TO PUSH

The boat we'll be aboard is 224 feet and designed for research with lots of fancy technical equipment onboard. This means lots of buttons to push and things to break. Hooray!

Honestly, this should be a pretty cool experience.

I am stressing out though, because it's a long time to be away from home and, as with most things with my school, everything is happening at the last minute. This includes getting fingerprinted....

So, there's lots of little things that need to get done before we embark on our journey of learning, but they will all get done. In the meantime, it's Friday, so I'm going to have a beer, enjoy the sun (It is the longest day of the year today. Happy solstice!) and try to relax.

Also, enjoy this picture of a crab. Because I said so.