July 11, 2010

By Stephen Putnam

Reading through my SEA alumni magazine last fall I noticed an announcement for volunteers to go to sea aboard the Corwith Cramer and study plastics at sea. Work in civil engineering (my profession on land) had slowed greatly, and I found this a possible opportunity to reach out and delve into something I had very little knowledge about.

My previous experience at SEA back in 1984 (W-76) was the last time I had done anything within oceanography. I felt that plastics were a contaminant that needed to be researched more closely whether on land or at sea. They contaminated the soils and water that we as humans and other organisms need to subsist, but they have also become an integral part of life.

I sent in my CV and a short questionnaire/application that asked "Why do you want to do this?" My first response was that my original experience aboard the Westward had taught me many lessons that I continue to reflect upon in my daily life. It would take me to a place not many experience both in location but also – even more important – in lifestyle and learning experience. There are very few situations where what you do each day can affect each and every person around you.

Not really expecting to be selected, I went about my daily routine. I returned from a backcountry ski trip to find an email – that had been sitting in my inbox for more than a week – from Kara Lavender Law telling me I had been selected for the expedition and needed to confirm as soon as possible.

I was a little shocked. I had heard they had several hundred initial responses and had come back asking for additional information from all the applicants. I talked with my loved ones and made the final decision to go in a matter of days. I do not think that my family and others understood that I would be out of total communication for six weeks.

There is something about shipboard life that cannot be explained to someone else unless they have experienced it themselves. I knew this would not be a vacation, but anyone I told about this expedition and what I was going to be doing thought, "What a great time!" They thought that I would be able to read, relax, and enjoy. Little do they know how the watch schedule works and how life revolves and, I guess, evolves around it.

I have never been in a place before that I have had to rely on so many others at one time to make something happen, where life is so structured and sleep is at a deficit. My time has been spent relearning the ways of shipboard life. I do not seem to adapt as quickly as I did when I was 20 years old. Set in my ways and dictating my own work schedule at home, it has been hard adapting to the regimented schedule aboard the SSV Corwith Cramer and trying to fit everything in.

One of the hardest things for me to adapt to has been the lack of privacy. When I first sailed aboard the Westward, privacy and solitude were not so much a part of my life. Another challenge has been coping with the lack of daily aerobic exercise of some sort – running, biking, or hiking. Back home I have especially found biking or running a part of my daily routine that allows me my privacy and the ability to relieve the stresses of work.

Reacquainting myself with oceanography and marine biology, which were never part of my curriculum except at SEA, I have felt overwhelmed – especially mentally as I try to learn everything I need to know. That won't likely happen in the five weeks I will be here. I am still floundering through many of the tasks at hand, but I have found it a great challenge and learning experience. I am grateful to the many aboard who are great resources of information and help – especially to my "C-dawgs" watch and the professional crew of the Cramer.

One of the interesting differences from my earlier SEA experience is that there is quite a mix among us. There are those who have chosen their path in work and life, but were looking for something to mix it up – to have a look at the world and environment from a different perspective. Many of the younger volunteers, in or just out of college or graduate school, have sailed with SEA in the last five years or so and are still seeking their own path. In the end, we all look to answer our life questions in a fulfilling way. No matter what those questions or answers may be, we will all take home an experience to share with others, an experience we will not soon forget.

Undoubtedly I will have some stories from this expedition that I wish I could tell with the life and exuberance that the crew, especially chief engineer Dave Reynolds, command when they share their stories. I hope I, too, will be able to fully convey the experiences and insights I have gained.