Observation Notebook, Expedition Day 1

Snuck away while everyone was getting settled and did some exploring today on my own. Probably shouldn't have... ran across this large volcano caldera rising out of the jungle. I wonder if it's active.

My First Day on Safari.

I've made it to the island. It's certainly in the middle of nowhere. Nice beach, though. Wish I'd brought my swimsuit. The expedition manager is a fellow member of the female persuasion... maybe I can get one from her.

But she's got her hands full right now. She's responsible for the equipment and supplies, and they've brought a lot of gear for this expedition. It almost unbelievable how much one person can keep on them... it almost defies physics.

I can't make head or tails of half this stuff. Its all rivets and wires, pipes and valves. It looks like a garage sale at Dr. Who's house. Once I get settled and dig-up my sketchbook, I'll sketch some of the stuff. One of the team members is a pretty great sketch artist. Maybe he'll show me some contour techniques to improve my own modest drawings.

Maybe I can even post one... one of these weirdo contraptions has got to be a scanner.

Anyway, a bit of reportage: The team is setting up camp and getting ready to run some experiments. They're pretty focused on a device with some big lens on it and an articulating arm. And having some trouble with it. While they get it up and running, yours truly might do the Nancy Drew thing and explore the island. I am, after all, a bona-fide certified journalista. I don't know if this story is going to add up to anything. All of its still seems like hocus-pocus to me.

Any of you guys hear about Twitter? Its this system where you can send out these short blog posts to a network of your friends. I've got my handy blackberry, so maybe I'll post observations on it as I'm out in the bush exploring. That is, if I can get a signal out here of the boonies...

Tomorrow out!

An Expedition Into the Unknown Awaits!

Ok, so I've met up with this outfit -- Involvium Energy Ventures. Their get-up-and-go attitudes, and that almost-mad sparkle in their eyes, remind me of Don Quixote. Or at least how I'd imagine him. A whole group of Don Quixotes yelling out "here we come, world!"

And what is the cause of this enthusiasm, you might ask? Well, they think they may have detected a huge concentration of this energy they call "The Involvium Effect" in the far corners of the Metaverse. They say this indicates the possible presence of some mineral called "Involvium". No, I never heard of it before, either.

Although it does explain the company's name. I originally thought they were trying to do one of those weird corporate names made up of nonsense words like "Alcenture" or "Innovent".

Anyway, its got them all worked-up because this Involvium stuff has some effect on this energy and its really rare. Not quite clear on what exactly the effect is. (Note to self: I should probably get that cleared up before deadline).

These guys, I admit are pretty cool. Their energy is contagious. And without a ready supply of grande half-caff nearby, I'll need it!

Tomorrow out!