A quick reminder: if you are just joining us, be sure to start with the archives and work your way back to this.

Wow, what a crazy day. If you’re attentive, you’ve already seen the photo down below of me holding a certain Ms. Estrella in my arms, an adult ocelot. Not too long after my morning post, word came down that Roland had yet again captured an ocelot up in the woods somewhere. “Who wants to cover this?” was shouted. I was sitting about, configuring digital cameras conveniently enough. So without further ado, I duct-taped my socks, DEET’d my feet, grabbed a good digicam, unpacked and set up the Canon XL1 video camera, and dashed off with a couple other “pro” camera guys to find the ocelot.

We quickly walked up Fausto trail and then took Fairchild trail to the site of a cage covered in palm fronds. Estrella had been caught there and wasn’t too happy. We snook around the corner while Roland prepared a syringe of ketamine for her. He estimated her weight at 7 kilos and set up the appropriate dosage. After a couple bent needles, he stuck her with one and she fell asleep within minutes, content in her own little raver k-hole. After getting her out of the cage, Roland and his assistant weighed her. “Wow, WOW! She’s 11 kilos!” Roland exclaimed excitedly. Of course my first thought is, “Ok, so your ketamine dose was for 7 kilos, which means...”

She lay there asleep while he ran some tests on her, drew blood, attached a radio color, and let us all pet her. Eventually we dosed her up with more K, and each got to cradle her for a picture (hence the one below). Now they will be able to track her and watch her feeding habits for many months to come. Regardless of the sweating I endured, it was quite a blast.

Upon triumphant return, I got to meet some of the argonauts. They seem like swell kids. Probably a little shell shocked from their long journey and instant immersion into jungle action, but all around a nice bunch. Most of the rest of the day was taken up with preparing for broadcast, that’s boring to you so I won’t regale you with details.

Luckily the non-stop animal action (that is not a porn magazine) continues. While on the phone at my station, I looked out the window and saw movement, within minutes there were about 6 or 7 red spider monkeys on the roof of the building below mine. They were carrying on, flying from trees, falling down, whacking each other, kissing, eating things and looking like they knew how much cooler monkeys are than people. Apparently one of them darted into a lab, grabbed a bag of chips, and darted out. He was later seen eating them and thinking the fat went right to his thighs.

How am I? Thanks for asking. I am well. I didn’t overheat too much today, although it was pretty oppressive. Yet another crew member went down from heat exhaustion, and he was my age, so it can happen to anyone! Just not the guy in the A/C writing this journal. Meals kick so much ass. The researchers here are brilliant and engaging. Plus we brought some of our own. Randy Morgan is a bug guru who knows everything about every bug. And Dr. Meg Lowman practically invented the field of high-wire canopy research. We sent her home down the canal on a Boston Whaler tonight. I hope she makes it. It is rainy and dark.

I’m definitely glad that I’ve finally gotten down with some of the local creatures. I’d been hearing about this so-called “rainforest” thing they have here on BCI, and being the skeptical, lazy sort, never ventured out to see it. I have now, and I will continue to do so.

Other random thoughts:
[li]I saw a massive old Soviet destroyer getting towed through the canal. It’s good to know that the order I placed has been shipped.
[li]David Foster Wallace is a pompous ass of a writer and I love him for it.
[li]Showering with the sound of howler monkeys is somewhat surreal.
[li]Watching the animatronic cat in Sabrina the Teenage Witch speak in Spanish makes you go insane.
[li]The beer in the grad-student fridge is 75 cents. I haven’t had any yet.
[li]Video production people are the coolest, most hardcore people ever.
[li]There are fruits you’ve never heard of and they make really good juice, but you still won’t know what the fruit was.
[li]Waiting 24 hours to find out if you were bit by tiggers and chicks isn’t exactly fun, but who cares.

That is all, I may or may not post tomorrow. We shall see.