Celebrating America Day

Independence Day is one of my favorite holidays although more for the activities accompanied with it than for the meaning. I usually celebrate the fourth by enjoying Food, Fireworks and time with Friends. On the Oscar Dyson some of those “F”s were substituted and as the festivities were around Fish, Food, and Flares. After what felt like forever, we finally trawled for fish today. It had clearly been too long for most members of the ship as we were surrounded by the paparazzi as we pulled the fish out onto the table and sorted through the mass of jellyfish. It was great to be actually sorting fish and I became an expert otolith-remover.

After our shift finished, we were able to enjoy the holiday properly. Our steward department prepared an excellent Fourth of July BBQ complete with Flag Cake. I was a little surprised that the Oscar Dyson has a grill on board but it made dinner feel more like an occasion. We held the BBQ on the boat deck and the lack of tables provided an opportunity to talk with new and different parties. I was glad that I was able to enjoy the BBQ (as some members of the staff were sleeping or on watch, they weren’t able to relax).

Also, it couldn’t be Fourth of July without a few colored smoke displays. Luckily, the Oscar Dyson had some expired flares and I was able to convince Operations Officer Sarah Duncan to show me how they worked. Different chemical reactions produce rapid heat and brightly colored smoke. If our boat were in distress, these flares would be used to alert other boats of our location. I was excited to see these flares up close (but not too close – Safety First!) and got some great footage to use when we discuss flame tests and emission spectra.

Although our Fourth of July was more low key than in years past -- the flare demonstration could not compare to the fireworks display on the Mall and I was in bed by 9 pm – it was a great way to celebrate the holiday.

Animals Seen
brown jellies or northern sea nettle- Chrysaora melanaster
pollock- many 1-3 years
smooth lumpsucker
rock sole
fulmars

Word of the day
Propiate: appease