My first job on the field

Last night it finally hit me.
I am leaving home next week.

I have left home before, for innumerable camps, treks and excursions; for holidays in short. But this, this is for work. I have to go there for a job.

For all those who don't know what I am talking about, or for all those who don't know the exact details, here is the ho-down:
I'll be working as a volunteer under the guidance of a professor at NCBS which is located in Bangalore. I will first attend a conference during my stay in Bangalore, YETI (Young Ecologists Talk & Interact) then get some hands on training in Bangalore itself for the job at hand. Later, will move on to a place called Rishi Valley School, Andra Pradesh (Chittoor District). It is a well known residential school which teaches it's students by using the philosophy of J. Krishnamurthi. Incidentally, my mother wanted to enroll me in that school but by the time she heard about it, it was too late, I had almost finished my schooling. She still spoke about it wistfully. "If I had sent my daughter there"...and so on.Guess her wish will soon come true, in a way :)

Anyway, so the campus is a large one hosting good biodiversity (they also run a bird watching course there). So the prof from NCBS has a field station established there. His students go to that place for their field work and stay at the field station. The campus hosts a population of a fairly common lizard called the Peninsular Rock Agama. Nothing much is known about the animal except it's breeding season and colouration etc. I have to go there and study it. For starters, I will be focusing on its home range. My first official field job! Wow!!

Also, when I go to Rishi Valley, no one will inhabit the field station but me. But since it's a full fledged school, stuff like food and laundry will be taken care of. But when it comes to doing the actual work, I will be all myself. Also, imagine living in a 3 room house all alone.

I shall have only solitude for company :)

A dear friend asked me the other day, if I was sad about leaving home. At that time I wasn't, not that I am now. But I'm sure I'm going to miss it. I am sure I will miss meeting my friends whenever I want to, I'll miss the evening strolls around my neighbourhood, I'll miss CCD with my best friend, will miss watching Criminal Minds on TV, my room, my bed, the local trains, the traffic, the noise. Speaking of noise, I most probably won't be around for Diwali. Somehow I won't miss Diwali in the city. Would like to celebrate it away from the noise and the vulgarity. But I will miss my family during diwali though. But that's only in case I have to stay there. Dunno how things will turn out.

Also, this first phase is not a long one, I'll be back in a month or so. Will have to go there again in some time, things will get finalized in the coming weeks.
And, the field station is euipped with a broadband connection, so I won't be all alone, strictly speaking. Only, I don't know if I'll have the time to come online and meet friends.
During that period, I may either be silent on my blog, with not a post in sight, or I may blog so much that your Reader gets flooded.

All in all, October 2009 will be month of many firsts indeed.