’Unsinkable’ Denver woman survives Antarctica disaster

Told ya. Kay, you're famous! ;-)

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2007/nov/27/unsinkable-denver-woman-survives-antarctica-disast/

'Unsinkable' Denver woman survives Antarctica disaster
By Bill Scanlon, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Originally published 06:24 p.m., November 27, 2007
Updated 07:14 p.m., November 27, 2007

Shivering in a lifeboat off the coast of Antarctica, a 63-year-old Denver woman cracked jokes, swallowed Dramamine and marveled at how well everything was going.

Kay Van Horne and the other 90 passengers, along with all 54 crew members and nine guides, survived the sinking Friday of the M/S Explorer off the South Shetland Islands in the Antarctic Ocean.

"Nobody panicked," Van Horne said Tuesday after arriving back in Denver. "Everybody got off that boat safely.

"It was just a miracle. But it says an awful lot for everybody, from the captain to the engineering crews to the Zodiac drivers. Everything was lined up in its proper way. They kept us informed every minute."

By Tuesday afternoon Van Horne was back in her element, "feeding my little grandbaby. And life can't get any better than that."

The retired middle-school teacher is an adventurer but had never taken a cruise before because she's so prone to seasickness. Still, she couldn't resist the lure of Antarctica.

GAP Adventures had put together the 19-day "Spirit of Shackleton" trip billed as retracing the harrowing journey of Ernest Shackleton, who in 1916 completed a two-year oddyssey to rescue the crew he'd been forced to leave when their ship was destroyed by ice.

M/S Explorer embarked from Argentina's southern tip on Nov. 11.

"We'd already been out for two weeks, and the company was wonderful," Van Horne said. "There were just 154 of us and we knew everybody."

Because the tour included several stops on land, the passengers were trained in getting on and off the Zodiac inflatable boats used for rescue and transport.

Van Horne was up playing cards just past midnight Friday, when she saw and heard the Explorer rumble through a swatch of ice.

"We made jokes about it, but it was the nervous type of jokes, to relieve the tension," she said. "I went up on the bridge and saw ice all around us. One of the crew had his binoculars out trying to guide us through the ice.

"When I went to my room, I joked with my niece that maybe we should put some long johns on instead of pajamas, because it was going to be a long night. That's when there was a big hit. We had hit ice before, but this was a little bit different."

Less than five minutes later the alarm sounded, and everyone was told to get to the top level of the boat.

"They had us sit in the lecture room and informed us immediately that there was a hole. They were going to try to reposition the boat so they could patch it," Van Horne said.

Soon after, "Another iceberg, about the size of the boat, hit us," she said. "That's when I felt in my heart we were going to abandon the boat."

Water started bursting through toilets.

The crew quickly brought everyone toward the lifeboats.

"They didn't candy-coat it, but they didn't exaggerate the threat, either," Van Horne said.

Van Horne's lifeboat listed and bounced as it slowly was lowered to the water. The stronger passengers fought the pull of the sinking ship, pushing the lifeboat away from the trough into the open water.

"There was still no panic," she said. "We realized it was a difficult situation, but whatever was going to be was going to be. Plus, the type of people on that boat — they were an adventurous group."

Lisa Paisola, worried about her aunt's seasickness, found a crumpled up Dramamine, found some water, and told Van Horne to lean back and sprinkled in the seasickness pill.

The captain had told them a couple hours before they abandoned ship that the cruise ship Norwegian was about six hours away, and another was 10 hours away.

Three or four hours after getting into the lifeboat, Van Horne saw in the reflection of the water a huge ship. About the same time, she saw a helicopter.

"That's when I started thinking, we can do this, we are going to be rescued," Van Horne said.

Inspectors had found about a half dozen deficiences in the Explorer earlier in the year, but Van Horne thinks it's a great boat, given its 40 years.

"One of the reasons why we survived is that two hours after the first distress call, the people at the Uruguay base on St. George's Island already were starting to cook for us," she said. "It was like clockwork, the way the whole thing was done."

When the passengers were brought to Port Arenas in Chile, they stepped off the plane, and an American consulate addressed Van Horne and her niece by name, telling them she'd be with them every step of the way until they were on an airplane home.

"I loved what our Swedish captain told us then," Van Horne said. "He said, 'If you have to be in a disaster, you want to be an American. I don't see consulates from any other countries here.'"

Back in Denver, her husband had made a huge pink sign, "Welcome Home, the Unsinkable Kay Van Horne," very appropriate for a huge Molly Brown fan.

With her grandchild, Michael Wright, safely in her arms, Van Horne reflected on her hours in the lifeboat.

She sat in the chilly choppy waters, thinking about all the things she had to go back to, including her grandson, born in June when she and her niece were on a camel-riding adventure in Morocco.

Van Horne thought of the many Filipinos on the crew who lost almost everything, because the small cabins on the ship were their most permanent homes.

She thought a lot of Ernest Shackleton whose leadership also resulted in not a single man lost.

"What really helped is that we were told what to do every step of the way," Van Horne said. "I felt like I was on a field trip — but not in charge of it, for once."

Subscribe to the Rocky Mountain News

Holiday Healing Candlelight Ceremony 12/17/07

The Empty Chair: Experiencing Loss at the Holidays

Service Offers Support and Reflection for People in Distress

Denver –November 29, 2007– Families who have experienced the death of a loved one may find that the empty chair is a painful reminder of their loss this holiday season. While the holiday season is not the time of year when suicide rates increase - the highest time is actually in the spring - it is a time when some people feel a stark contrast between their internal emotional state (depression, grief, or stress) and their surroundings. Some people find it hard to get needed support when the rest of the world appears to be celebrating. For the third year, The Carson J Spencer Foundation and Regis University will be co-sponsoring a Holiday Healing Candlelight Ceremony at Jefferson Unitarian Church (Golden, Colorado) to give people support and a time for reflection during the holiday season. The interfaith service is free and open to the public and will be held on Monday, December 17th at 7:00pm.

"The first few years after the loss of a loved one can be especially difficult during the holidays," mentions Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas, a psychologist and survivor of her brother's suicide. "Families sometimes just need to get through each day and create new traditions that honor the past and find hope for the future.

Spencer-Thomas acknowledges that for some, the "holiday spirit," support from family, and the religious community may act as protective factors during this holidays; however, she stresses, this does not mean that the issues of suicide and depression should be overlooked. For many, the holidays are a time of loneliness and anxiety about the future. Financial stresses often mount during this period of great spending, and family time can bring up as much conflict as togetherness. For families who have experienced a death, the holidays are a painful reminder of the absence of a loved one.

On Monday, December 17th at 7:00pm, people who may be having a hard time this holiday season will be gathering together for reflection and support. Jefferson Unitarian Church will join the small but growing number of religious communities providing this type of service. For more information contact, Jefferson Unitarian Church (303-279-5282 www.jeffersonunitarian.org) or Sally Spencer-Thomas (720-244-6535 Sally@CarsonJSpencer.org) .

About the Carson J Spencer Foundation - Sustaining a Passion for Life

The Carson J Spencer Foundation (www.CarsonJSpencer.org) is a Colorado nonprofit, established in 2005. We envision a world where leaders and communities are committed to sustaining a passion for life. We sustain a passion for life through:

*funding social enterprise for sustainable mental health initiatives

*delivering innovative suicide prevention programs targeting the working age population

*supporting the education of emerging entrepreneurs and leaders

Family Friend Sinks for the Holidays

No joke. Our friend Kay was on this ship. Can't wait to hear about the story first hand when she gets back. She is ok, by the way. Kay, you really know how to make life exciting!

Cruise ship goes down off Antarctica

A Canadian cruise ship struck submerged ice off Antarctica, but all 154 passengers and crew, Americans and Britons among them, took to lifeboats and were plucked to safety by a passing cruise ship before the ship sank.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21935099/from/ET/

The Flames

Flames 4, Avalanche 1

Alright, yes, I should be horribly upset that the Av's dropped yet another road game this season, and to a team that we've pummeled more than once this year. And... may the hockey gods/goddesses/powers that be forgive me for saying so, but... I'm actually pretty happy that the Flames finally scored a victory on their home ice. They've had problems winning at home lately (much like we've had problems winning on the road) yet they are one incredibly talented team with Phaneuf, former Avs Tanguay and Yelle, Iginla, Lombardi, and killer goalie Kiprusoff. This team is stacked with power players. Especially, Kiprusoff whose stats (now 8-9-3) do NOT accurately represent the level of player that he truly is. At least tonight seemed to be a good starting point for the Flames to turn their game around. Too bad it was against my Avs.

Good points for the Avs tonight though -- despite a third straight ugly beat down there was some quick movement on the ice by Sakic and Sauer. Ryan Smyth took a face full of glass in the 2nd and had to leave to the locker room for some "recoup" time. Ouch! I'm so glad Altitude replayed that injury clip over and over 82 different times (and from 13 different angles in case you missed it the first half dozen times).

And wow, how about that Cody McCormick!!!!! He was called up from Lake Erie to play tonight. Quenneville needs to keep this kid around, he was great. Fun to watch -- new blood on the ice keeping things moving. He was quite scrappy which is something we've lacked the last four or five games! McCormick made some great hits early in the first, and ramped up for an all out glove dropping fist fight before retreating to the locker room. Good times! McCormick has made my roster (if he can keep up that level of play). I hope he's made Coach Quenneville's permanent list, at least until Laperriere comes back. It was also good to see Skrastins back in the line up.

So, aside from being happy that my No. 2 team won tonight, and being disappointed that my No. 1 team flailed, I have faith that the Avs will rebound soon and finally learn how to score on a power play.

;-) The road trip continues...

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now for some off hockey-topic chit chat.

PR Disasters

Did you know… that the old slogan used by the Coors Brewing Company, "Turn It Loose," was translated into Spanish as "Suffer from Diarrhea?"

True.

Mirrors and Metaphors - Community Call for Art

Mirrors and Metaphors - Community Call for Art
DUE DATE: December 15th, 2007 - this art exhibit is for all - please participate by contributing your art.

Community Call for Art (test)

VSA arts of Colorado/ Access Gallery, The Carson J Spencer Foundation and

The Second Wind Fund



Present



Mirrors and Metaphors:

Reflections on Suicide, Mental Health and Healing through the Arts

The creation of art is often an expression of emotional states and can be an outlet for mental health struggles. In recognition Regis University, The Carson J Spencer Foundation, The Second Wind Fund, and Very Special Arts (VSA) are hosting an art show to increase awareness.

Entries are open to any artist with a mental health story to tell. Our purpose is two fold in raising awareness about suicide and mental health: 1) it affects all types of people across the lifespan – in us, in our families, and in our communities, and 2) art is an effective means to help people heal. Artwork will be selected based on artistic merit and the mental health message conveyed. All forms of artwork will be considered. Photographs, paintings, sculpture and drawings are acceptable. New art is preferred. All art must be accompanied by a 100 word narrative making the tie to the theme of the show explicit. Artwork must involve some sort of visual reflection (e.g., mirror, water) and may NOT include any overt images of sex, drugs, weapons or images of death. Artwork may not exceed 18"x24". Artwork should be durable for potential traveling show post-exhibit. Work must be ready to display, and artists must be willing to have pieces photographed for future publication.

Each artist is limited to one piece for this show, and the show will be limited to 50 pieces. A panel of artists and mental health professionals will jury the pieces for entry. Regis University, VSA arts Colorado, The Carson J Spencer Foundation, and The Second Wind Fund reserve the final right to select any artwork. Decisions are final and artists will be notified.

Please send a digital replication of your piece accompanied by a 100 word narrative to Sally Spencer-Thomas at sspencer@regis.edu by December 15, 2007. You will be notified of your piece's acceptance by January 10th. Art pieces that are selected need to be delivered suitable for display (i.e., framed) by January 25, 2007 to Regis University's Coors Life Direction Center. Selected art will be displayed at the Regis University library gallery during the month of February 2008. Any work that is donated may be part of a traveling exhibit. Art work that is not donated can be retrieved by March 15th from the Coors Life Directions Center.

Contact sspencer@regis.edu or 303-458-4323 for questions or other arrangements.

Spanked

The hated Dallas Stars made my team look like cream puffs.

Spanked. In my least favorite city, by my least favorite team. And yes, I'm qualified to make the "least favorite city" comment. I lived in that damn town for a year and hated every single agonizing slow millisecond that I was there. Though I did meet a handful of really great people (and you know who you are!) so I guess there are a couple of redeeming qualities from that experience. But overall, I hate Dallas. I love Austin (Texas isn't all bad, lol). Austin is so cool I might even have to blog about it one day, but not now -- not today. Back to the issue at hand = I really dislike Dallas on so many levels. And last night's beat down by the Stars doesn't do much to change that hate-hate relationship for me. Mike Modano, how I despise thee!!!

Oh the pain...
Stars 6, Avalanche 1


Jussi Jokinen got a hat trick plus one. Nice job (though it pains me to say it). Did anyone notice the "Hat Trick Girls" after Jokinen's third goal? Yes, leave it to Dallas to come up with the equivalent of cheerleaders for hockey. Girls in spandex and halter tops on skates that go out and gather up the hats off the ice. Wonder if they get paid for being there at every game "just in case", or is it a paid-per-hat-gathered kind of deal? Inquiring minds, and all that...

As if puck bunnies at games weren't bad enough. But I digress...

Jose Theodore was pulled early in the 2nd after the fifth Stars goal. I like Jose; I really do, but I need to see this guy do something to really wow my socks off. You know, make me feel confident in his abilities. He has promise. He has the talent. He has nights when he looks fantastic (like against Calgary). BUT he still makes me extremely nervous when he starts a game and that kills me. In the glory days of old (pre-salary cap and mega stars on every line), I remember Billington backing up Roy and it was never a "can he do it????" moment. I want to feel that kind of hockey-bliss again. Those were amazing days, were they not? C'mon Theodore, live up to your hype!

But last night's loss can't be placed solely on the shoulders of Theodore. The rest of the team looked tired, flustered and flawed too. So let's not beat a dead horse here. We sucked. We got throttled (over and over and over). Let's regroup and play some real hockey on Sunday, shall we?

Nothing. Seriously.

Hmmm...

There's something deeply personal on my mind today that I'm dying to dissect under the sharp, criticizing eye of public scrutiny. Or not. But framing it in the right words just isn't happening. Perhaps that's fate telling me not to flap my yap today.

:-)

Alright then, duly noted.

So, instead I'm off to watch "24 Hour Party People". Can't wait. Should be good. No hockey game until Friday. *sigh* Yes, it's killing me. I watched video clip highlights of previous games today, just for fun.

So lame.

On the upside, I finally figured out my javascript pop up window error in class today. Actually *I* didn't figure it out at all. It took Mary Jo and Mary all class period (better part of an hour) to crack the problem. I love it when I can stump the smart people with my coding nonsense!

Well, anyway, back to your regularly scheduled program…

Go for the green but stay for the reds!

http://www.labsintheboulder.com/

I don't usually chat up food on my blog but I decided to say a little something about a great little place my friend and I stumbled across on Friday night. It's called L'Absinthe and it's at 18th and Broadway in Boulder. Originally, we were intrigued by the place because of the name. Being a former Lit. major with a serious passion for poets like Rimbaud and Baudelaire , anything concerning that little green liqueur piques my interest! So off we went to Boulder on a quest for all things absinthe.

I should start off by saying we weren't necessarily seeking French cuisine for the evening. We pretty much just wanted to try the modern (and unfortunately, non-deadly) version of absinthe, minus the wormwood. Immediately when you walk in you are submersed into this wonderful warm atmosphere. We were escorted to our table, our chairs were held out for us, and our coats taken by the very impressive general manager, Ricardo. Very nice touch.

Even after Mike, our helpful and ever attentive waiter, informed us that they were in fact OUT of absinthe that night and were not going to get more in for a few weeks, we still decided to stay on and see what the rest of L'Absinthe was like. Though, I'm pretty sure you could hear the heartbreak and disappointment seep from me the moment Mike said the absinthe was gone (but where did all the Rum go? Hee hee. Little Capt. Jack humor there). However, like I said, the staff had made such an impression on us that we stayed on anyway, and I am so glad we did.

We had amazing dinners (the gnocchi and the truffles were amazing – I quote the waiter: "So good you could roll in it!"). But the best part of L'Absinthe is definitely the wine. Don't just go for the green stuff, definitely definitely, DEFINITELY have some of their wines. Their wine list is extensive and quite impressive. I'm a picky wine drinker and I think I had the most amazing reds I've ever had there. I can't say enough about the Regusse Pinot Noir. Ricardo was kind enough to bring us complementary Cabernet's as well which were nearly as good as the Pinot (sorry Ricardo, I am a huge fan of the pinot!). Wish I had the name of the Cab, so I could recommend it. Sadly, I don't recall it. Our other wine for the night was the Ray Merlot. Mmmmm…. Not quite the caliber of the pinot, but still a great little red.

So, yes, I'd definitely recommend anyone try out L'Absinthe. It is quaint, has incredibly good food, even better wine, fantastic service (A+++) and wonderful conversation! Seriously, you feel almost like part of the family when you go there!

Who’s On Top?

Of the NW Division, that is?!?!!

Why, the Colorado Avalanche, of course!!!! Yeah baby!

http://avalanche.nhl.tv/team/launch.htm?type=fvod&id=6843&catid=58

In my opinion there is NOTHING more exciting and rousing than the type of game the Av's had tonight. It was fast, it was tight, and the crowd was freaking nuts! It almost sounded like a crowd of enthusiastic Canadian hockey lovers! ha ha! I love it. Wish I was there in person to join in the fun. As it is I was sitting alone in my living room yelling at the television (the good kind of yelling though) and jumping all over the place. And it wasn't because I finally found that ever elusive bottle of Magellan Blue after Flash class last night :) No, the gin wasn't doing the talking - or the jumping - or the yelling. Just me being my dorky little self. It's ok, I can own it :)

So back to what was good: The pace was FAST (the faster the better, IMO). Fast makes things happen, more often than not. I don't subscribe to the faster = sloppier theory. The movers and the shakers make the plays. So fast. A good thing. Seriously, there nothing worse than a sloooow hockey game that runs at the pace of a (yawn) golf game. No offense, golfers. I'm not knocking you, but I could never get pumped over putting on the green.

The guys were definitely clicking tonight. It was exciting to watch because they were making some fantastic plays that weren't always predictable -- half the excitement comes when you can't decide whether or not the guy with the puck just made a tremendous maneuver or whether he's being a complete shithead for taking such a stupid risk. But it worked well for us tonight. If it hadn't I would have been doing more of the bad kind of yelling.

Damn, did I say the game was fun to watch????

Kudos to the crowd. They were on fire tonight (but seriously you'd have to be partially comatose to NOT get into tonight's game) so hooray for the fans -- and on a WEDNESDAY night of all things. *sigh* This girl needs to get to a game ASAP. I'm dying to go since I missed all of last year completely. I miss the loud obnoxious beer drinking fans. I miss the terrible music they play in-between plays. I miss the jumbo-tron with all the little kids dancing (aw, my son was featured on the dance screen earlier this season! He was a hit, let me tell you -- proud mama!), and I miss the awesome lemonades you get from the vendor that uses real lemons (add a shot of tequila and you have yourself a joyous little hockey beverage). Mmmmmmm. I haven't tried it with the frozen lemonades but I assume it would also be quite tasty.

Congrats to Svatos for making the winning shoot out goal. Did he make that look easy or what? Budaj was nothing less than amazing in net. And 2 high fives to Lapie (Lappie, Lappy, Lapi?) for scoring 2 goals tonight. His nose may have more twists than dead mans curve, but his shots were straight on tonight for sure!

Unfortuntely, due to the sheer excitement of tonights game, my javaScript homework did not get any closer to being done. Oh well.

Avs 4 - Oilers 3 in a shoot out!

Better!

Now THAT was a hockey game! I respectfully retract my "pansy" comments from the previous blog.

Paul Stastny ended his dry spell on Monday with two goals against Calgary. Finally! Wolski, Hejduk, and Brunette all played beautifully -- so nice to see. And Laperriere got scrappy and rounded out the "perfect game" with a good old fashioned fist fight!

Avalanche 4, Flames 1

Ouch

I've been told that it wouldn't be cool of me to post that I think the Av's played like a bunch of pansy-ass little girls last night. So I'll refrain from saying that. :-) I love my team, I'm just tired and in a bit of a grumpy mood.

And no, I have nothing against girls hockey teams or girls sports in general. I do not think girls play like pansys or pansy-asses. I'm a pro-girl kind of girl. In fact, I LIKE girls hockey clubs (and roller derby and all things un-girly-girl). But, as far as hockey goes, I think we pretty much sucked on Saturday night.

Except for Svatos!!! Svatos kicked major ass. 2 goals when everyone else was pretty much asleep at the wheel! Great job, Marek, thanks for showing up! Next time please bring the rest of the boys with you!

Wow. I'm being very cruel today. No really, I love my team. I do, I do, I do.

And I will concede that Finger's short handed goal was beautiful!

Hopefully better things are in store for us, as a whole, on Monday when we hook up with the Flames. Should be good!

Sorry for all the bad vibes. I'll go regroup and come back in a happy-bloggy-state of mind.

Sidney Crosby Comes to Town

So I was a little worried about our perfect home ice record when I saw that the Penguins were coming to town. Sidney Crosby is, after all, the biggest thing in hockey right now. He was first pick of the '05 draft, was a leading scorer for the '06 season (6th overall), he was named team Captain at the age of 19, was the Hart trophy winner last year, and is an absolutely phenomenal playmaker. Yeah, he's good.

I'm trying to imagine what my life would be like if I had myself so put together by the age of 20. Wow. We won't go there :)

So back to hockey...

After 2 goals from mighty Mr. Crosby in the first period I had to turn off the TV. I was sure this was bad news for my team (and that's big because I NEVER doubt my team!!!). Luckily, I also had the score tally going on my internet screen. Within 3 and a half minutes time span during the second period the Avs had scored three goals to take the lead, which they held onto for the rest of the game. Hot damn! And I missed it!!!! That's why I love game night replays on Altitude. You can watch the whole game over again which is good for those who missed something the first time (or for those who are hockey obsessed like me). Now, don't make fun - it's 60 minutes of happiness that comes roughly three times a week for 7-8 months of the year. It brings a smile to my face (and that doesn't happen a lot lately)! Hey, I could be doing worse things!!!

Check out these cool game facts for the evening:

Capt. Joe is on a six game point streak (1 goal and 8 assists).

Tonight was Ryan Smith's 800th NHL game. Think of getting pounded into the boards maybe 10 to 20 times a game, times 800 games... That's something to be proud of right there!

The grinders were the play makers for the Avs tonight -- very important for this season I think.

The Avs home record is now 6-0 which matched the 94-95 Nordiques franchise record for consecutive home victories to start the season.

Next game is Saturday at 8pm!

PS - Stastny, don't let Crosby get his elbow up in your face like that again! Show that talented little punk who's boss! And I mean that with the utmost admiration and respect toward Crosby. ;-)