Remedies for Cabin Fever...

So, when you read the blogs this week, you will probably notice one common element:

Exhaustion.

Normally on the dig, the first week is full of wonder and the second sated with familiarity, but the third week is brutal.  Muscles ache, clothes are irreparably soiled, the heat is annoying, the work is tedious....you get the picture. 

This week of dig doldrums was not an issue my first year, as we students were evacuated immediately following the second week.  However, last year was a full season for me and I remember the frustrations of this time (and so do the poor souls who worked on the road with me).  Indeed, diggers should prepare themselves for a week of "Cabin Fever," which, according to the dictionary, is defined as "boredom, restlessness, or irritability that results from a lack of environmental stimulation, as from a prolonged stay in a remote, sparsely populated region or a confined indoor area."

Sure, the diggers are in one of the world's most fascinating places, taking part in an adventure most only dream about, but their time is spent in a dusty hole, with little activity beyond dirt, pottery sherds and the random bug.  Cabin Fever indeed. 

As such, here are a few suggestions to my fellow diggers of ways to relieve the monotony:

1. Buy a container of Israeli peanut butter and feed it to a random kibbutz dog - you will provide amusement for yourself while giving the dog the thrill of its lifetime.
2. If and when a bug manifests itself (centipede, spider, scorpion or otherwise), vent your frustration by smashing it into an infinite number of pieces with your turreah.  You will thereby earn the appreciation of at least this entomophobiac, while creating the right conditions for the game "Find the Body Part."   
3. Line up six empty buckets on the Roman road going past the excavation site and take turns rolling rocks into them.  First person to knock down all the buckets wins.
4. Practice doing headstands on the columns.  You will not only create a picture-worthy opportunity, but the rush of blood to your head will result in a feeling of euphoria.   
5. For the veteran diggers, hide random pieces of "junk" in the dirt and watch as the newbies go wild over their find.
6. Newbies, upon any find, construct evermore elaborate hypotheses of how said object arrived in the dirt.  The best storyteller receives a beer courtesy of the square, but whoever incorporates Bigfoot or a Canadian into the story gets a beer AND a milkshake.
7. In the morning, once up the hill, walk backwards to the dig site.  This little challenge will puzzle the other excavators (while reinforcing opinions of those crazy Americans) and provide you with a change in routine. 
8. Collect all the sand that now covers your bedroom, and with an ingenious application of flour and water, create a sand-art picture to hang up in the lab (or even better, give it to Dr. Schuler saying you spent all your free time trying to create something extra special for him - 10 points if you can do this without laughing). 
9. Speaking of sand, build a sandcastle using all the excavation tools from your pack (see number seven on "crazy Americans").
10. Finally, keep on reminding yourself that you are in the midst of a great adventure, one which will forever be imprinted on your life. 

Enjoy!