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near to where Juan left his bike after it ran out of fuel. He had written
his contact details on the windshield, along with an SOS.
The woman had found the bike and wanted to check that Juan
was okay. We told her the bike was hers, and we hope she can make
good use of it. It's no good to us anymore.
Brooke and Dillon will be here in 10 days. I miss them. I need my
kids like I need oxygen. When they come we'll all feel better. They bring
with them news of home and school and the world outside. Here on
the run it's easy to think that we are the universe—we have to keep
it going—and it's good when Brooke and Dillon remind us that we're
not. I sometimes allow myself to think that in a little more than two
months, God willing, I'll be home. The thought overwhelms me.
I learned today that the Atacama desert, which almost took my
life, has soil similar to that found on Mars and in fact has been the
setting for some science fiction movies about the Red Planet. NASA
also uses it to simulate Mars missions. It was certainly almost my inal
frontier.
december 3
Katie put up Christmas decorations in the van today. She is a wonder-
ful crew member: she brings some sanity to my insane world. There's
a Santa Claus hanging from the rear-vision mirror, stockings for each
of us, a Frosty the Snowman, and some red and gold baubles. Very fes-
tive. She bought them in the little coastal town of Chañaral. We are a
happy team. The desert experience has brought us all closer together.
I am pleased that the cameraman accompanying me to the Ant-
arctic is Ming. He is also a runner, and he understands me better than
most. Although he has not been to the Antarctic before, mentally he
is the best person to handle the conditions. He is great to have on the
team: nothing is ever too much trouble for him. He runs with me,
cooks, cleans up and has done some terrific filming. He is also genu-
inely interested in the places we pass through and spends time on the
internet gathering information and passing it on to us.
We are low on funds. We are waiting for the final cheque from
Channel Nine to pay the salaries of the crew. On December 28, we'll
sell or ditch the vans. We may get rid of one even sooner, to save
money on fuel and maintenance. When I fly to Antarctica, the group
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