Today started out much later than expected. The night before I had set two alarms to wake up at 5:45am to join Casey on a run. It turns out that the time difference woke me up an hour later than expected. So, while I did have a late start to my day, it was nice to sleep in a little. I finally got up around 7:15 took a shower and then got ready for the day. At 7:45 am we headed down to the cattle guard to start out our day. Instead of having a breakfast similar to last year, Glenn took us to a restaurant in the middle of the shops by the marina. I ordered an oatmeal with fruit which was delicious. Talatala and I got a coffee that was not the most tasty, but it got the day going for us. After talking to my friends our group headed over to the Dive BVI shop where the famous camera awaited us. It was very rewarding to get to see the camera that we had been talking about during classroom instruction. We walked into the shop, took our seats, and Casey gave us a brief overview/background on the camera. Now it was time for setting up the camera to make sure that everything was working well. At first things seemed to be going smoothly but then as soon as the camera was unpacked we ran into a minor road bump. Exactly as to what the problem was we are still unsure, however we believe the source of the problem came from the connection of the Ethernet cable and the computer. We struggled with this problem for about 2 hours and we restored to calling the man who invented this camera, Trevor. After several Skype calls to Trevor we ended up solving the problem on our own (while he was an incredibly nice man, his intelligence was beyond comprehendible). I may not have been able to provide much assistance given the complexity of the camera, but I was able to offer emotional support by sharing several riddles with the group (such as the “Green Glass Door”). This game made several people very frustrated because they could not solve the riddle. Eventually we went to lunch on the marina and I got a chicken caesar salad wrap. Chandler, David Davis, Garrett, and I talked for about an hour after going to buy some gifts at the Dive BVI shop. We then proceeded to head to the boat and get ready for our installation dive. Then it came time to bring the camera to the boat, yet again I was kindly volunteered by my friends to bring the $20,000 camera to the boat without damaging it. After safely bringing the camera to the boat we waited for about an hour with Jeff, learning priceless life lessons and telling jokes. We then left the marina and went to the dive sight. As soon as we arrived, Casey gave us instructions for each group and what their responsibility was. Some of the guys were in charge of the wiring and others the LDR. Andrew (my dive partner) and I were responsible for bringing the camera down to the bottom and securing it onto the platform where it rests now. Right before I jumped in, Casey gave me a headband which I described yesterday too keep my hair out of my goggles (while it may have been a Texans headband it did the job and it was very kind of her to think of me! I am keeping it safe until the end of the trip, Jeff warned me about not loosing it). We promptly dived in and secured the camera to the bottom of the platform. This task actually turned out to be much more difficult that I had expected. After everyone had completed their tasks, the wires were attached and then then hiding process began. We had to hide a bright neon green wire using rocks and other things. Casey then plugged in the power, the camera turned on, and then we wrapped up our dive and headed off to the boat. Once we got on the boat we showered and then headed back to the dock. After a nice ride on the boat we got off and headed to our cabins. We showered and then got ready for another fantastic dinner. For dinner we had rice, chicken, plantains, and vegetables (all were very good, especially the plantains). We talked for an hour and started to work on our blogs a little early. We were planning on looking at the camera that we installed but it didn’t work so we finished up our blogs instead. We are off to Guavaberry and then to bed. Goodnight to whomever is reading this and I will write to you again tomorrow.
Highlights of my day:
Breakfast
Camera installation
Life lessons with Jeff (even though we don’t know number 1)
Getting a “texans” head band
Dinner
Jack Kelley
