Carpe Diem

Kolmanskop Ghost Town

In 2012 when I thought I would OBVIOUSLY be finished my thesis soon, an opportunity arose to do some volunteer work in Namibia. I applied, I met the awesome people I would be working with and they said yes. Simple as that - of course it wasn't because I didn't finish the thesis in time. There was some or other reason, or maybe there wasn't, but the thesis wasn't done and it was a big decision as to whether or not to still go to Namibia. 

Although, in a way, it wasn't. I had said I was going to go and had committed to two months up there and this was a chance to volunteer, in a place I have never been to before, on dolphins. (It also meant escaping Cape Town Winter for a bit) Rad! I love going to new places and doing new things so, of course I went. 

Namtib - our weekend camping spot

This wasn't a completely smooth process, it involved a very early flight on a very wet and cold morning and a forgotten-at-home passport and bad packing but once I got there it was obviously awesome (especially after I bought sunglasses). I loved Luderitz, the people I met and the work that the Namibian Dolphin Project was doing there. We had loads of fun at Barrels, on the boat and in the office (which used to be a mortuary - before it became part of the Namibian Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources). 

It truly was two months that I will never forget and never regret. I wrote a blog about it even... (this was obviously before I had this blog) and my friends and family had to endure long gushing emails. I had a week off and got to explore parts of Namibia I had barely heard of thanks to a dear friend living up there. I was treated to a night in Etosha with all the magic that brings including a lion kill that I didn't quite capture on camera (I can be such a wolly, I only pressed the record button after it was finished - so I didn't record it and I spent the whole time diligently watching it through my lens because I thought I was recording).

Kolmanskop

Driving through the desert

Namibia is a country like no other (with the disclaimer that I haven't been to any other desert countries - unless you count the airports in Dubai and Doha which I suspect I am not allowed to). There is so much space. Luderitz is like an island of civilisation in the middle of the desert. I was thrilled to meet the northern contingent of the African Penguin population and the awesome lady that looks after them. I have never seen so many dolphins, or large seabirds for that matter. I had certainly never followed a whale at speed through thick offshore mist before. Visiting a ghost town with sand flooded rooms but perfectly-preserved wall paper (of questionable taste) and being dwarfed at sea by dunes of golden sand will change your perspective on the world.

Between Swakop and Walvis

Then... in 2013 I had the opportunity to go again for a month. Of course, this time I had finished the thesis (for the moment). In fact, I handed in the day before I was due to drive to Luderitz. (This meant I had a very subdued celebration of the handing in - which is probably a good thing, considering that I would have another chance to celebrate handing in in 2014). 

Adorable Lucas - the new
dolphinologist

That month was awesome too. It was great to see the Luderitz locals again and its seasonal visitors of course. The team was a little different and we had an adorable new member, although he wasn't much help with the data entry and a crazy manic new member that was very good at finding interesting bone samples. It was a great way to pretend to be human after finishing off the thesis. This is definitely something I would recommend - do something completely different after you finish your thesis so that you can get out of the thesis funk and realise the world is bigger than your PhD. I also recommend taking nice long drives through a desert with cool music (which in my case is music you can sing along to - even if very badly).

Near the border

Near the border

Last time I was in Walvis Bay -
a misty day trip from
Swakopmund in May 2009. 

When I was offered the opportunity to help out with dolphin field work this April, I had to say yes. This is not only because the dolphin work and the dolphinologists are so awesome, but also because I am trying very hard to get funding to do some dolphin population genetics research of my own and it will be great to see the northern half of the Namibian Dolphin Project. This time I will be based in Walvis Bay, and while I will miss the Luderitz-ites, Barrels and the mortuary I am excited about visiting a new place. I have, technically, been to Walvis Bay before, but only on a day trip when I was in Swakopmund for some PhD work. It was quite misty and cold on that day, but I am hoping for some more sunshine and happiness that I associate with Namibia. I think that I would call being able to take up this opportunity another perk of unemployment (although the job/funding hunt continues). I will, of course, keep you updated.

Perks of unemployment

a book about how difficult
it is to find your dream job
 - well, sort of... 

Being unemployed sucks (I know that's not the title of the blog - I will get there). It is scary, demoralizing and frustrating. (I definitely thought I would be saving the world by now.) You have no idea when it will end, your bank account misses the days when money went in and not just out out out (and this is with very limited spending thanks to awesome family). You don't have medical aid (eek, although I feel almost rebellious without it, and I have very few moments of rebellion). You can't make future plans because you don't know where you will be in 6 months time (I am looking for work ANYWHERE in the world).

So good, but so sad

It is also frustrating that your poor CV has to carry the burden of introducing you to complete strangers and convincing them that you really are awesome (because of course I am). It is shyly being sent to the far flung places in the world, and more often than not you don't even get told if it got there. Personally, I am also not sure what level to pitch my CV at, is it really true that you don't have to tick ALL the requirements, or am I wasting their time if I haven't explicitly worked on Zebrafish? 

Totally oversold -
this is not a romantic
story. 

There are also the hermit-inspiring questions: "What are you doing now?" and "What are you going to do next?" (Not to mention the stories about the awesome jobs OTHER people have found - although I promise I really am happy for them!) All of this makes life vaguely terrifying. 

BUT, I am a silver lining, bubbles and whimsy kind of girl - at least on Fridays. There are good things about being unemployed.*

LOVELY. Emilio was
my first crush (in
Young Guns II)

I was genuinely exhausted and run down when I finished my PhD , so a bit  of a break is a gift from the universe (do you hear that universe? Only a BIT) and so are the vitamin B injections. I have time to do yoga and not spend Savasana thinking about how I should be writing my thesis (that doesn't mean I am actually able to think about nothing yet). I have time to play with the dogs and play dress up with my wonderful nieces. 

I have also had time to indulge in my all-time-favourite thing - reading. At times during my PhD I had to ban  my self from reading because I get very resentful of having to do anything else when I am in the middle of a good book. Now I have been able to gleefully indulge in book after book. (The book I have just finished was of course a Terry Pratchett - "Snuff" - because it was the best way to cope with the very sad news of him passing away last week, I am not ashamed to say there were tears). 

Just coincidence I also
read this TP this month

I have also (and I say this with some trepidation) had time to try writing a little children's story of my own. It of course includes limpets and sardines because there really should be more books that do. This is a real luxury because it a completely self indulgent thing to do and when does one have time to just write for the whole day? (Unfortunately not in my pajamas drinking champagne**).  I am struggling a little with what should happen next, unfortunately, so maybe champagne would help. I have even spent some time trying to figure out how to draw cartoon faces - for illustrating the book - although I suspect these will only ever see the inside of my notebook. 

Life is better now!

Of course, the reality is, most of my time is spent trawling the internet for possible job openings. This and applying for the tiny proportion that is appropriate takes up an extraordinary amount of time. This is particularly true when you have to fill in the applications online. (And I still have papers that need to be published looming over my shoulder). But one of the good things about searching for jobs in conservation and fisheries is that the internet searches bring you to amazing organisations that are doing really cool things. There are organisations that I have never heard of that are doing exactly what I think needs to be done in the world. There are people that are truly inspiring that I hope to be like one day. (For example: Check out "The Center for Biological Diversity" and the amazing things "Zoological Society of London" are doing and many other cool things that are happening including the discovery of lots of new species by WoRMs). 

This made me Fernweh

Read it! 

While I was chatting to one inspirational person doing cool work I noticed on her wall a sign that said:

"I just want to save animals, drink wine and take naps"

My sign would read:

"I just want to save animals, drink wine and read books - but - could someone please pay me to do so"^

*I suspect this is only true if you have an amazingly generous family, that are willing to feed you, like I do. 

** This is a Terry Pratchett reference, from Snuff #

# I guess including footnotes is also a Terry Pratchett inspired thing, especially when you have footnotes that have footnotes. 

^My sister rightly suggested that reading is way better than napping - napping tends to make me grumpy.