Today was day one of point framing. Point framing is more or less the reason I’m here, since “my” site (Atqasuk wet) and Jeremy’s site (Atqasuk dry) could easily be done by only one person. Since Jeremy is doing point framing, however, his schedule becomes more full. Plus, point framing is a pain in the everything to have to do by yourself. It involves a 70 cm x 70cm grid being carefully (and levelly) set up over all 96 plots in Barrow. At each of the 100 intersections in the grid, a ruler is dropped through. Everything it touches is identified and recorded. Usually, for each of the 100 points, there are two data entries and then the ground height. It’s much easier if one person (me) is just sitting and listening and writing everything down.

This morning we got two point frames done. The first took ninety minutes; the second, fifty. Not bad. We had to get used to the rhythm of the thing and the codes that make yelling the names and writing the names and analyzing the data so much easier. Like this:

Jeremy: Cas tet, dead, 24.5

Me: (scribble scribble)

Jeremy: Dac arc, 25.1

Me: (scrib-) Alive or dead??

Jeremy: Oh. Alive. Dactylinia arctica is always alive.

Me: Okay then! (-ble scribble)

Jeremy: Ground. 25.4. Next!

It is EVER so much fun. But really, it kind of is. For me, anyway. I kind of like writing things down. And I don’t really scribble. I actually spent most of the morning admiring our four completed data pages. I was having a good handwriting day. Especially the 4s. I got to write so many 4s.

My mechanical pencils decided to be faulty, however. Stupid things. Our sub-standard office supplies situation is going to have to be remedied in the near future. Perhaps tomorrow when we go to town to get Job from the airport at seven p.m.!