Deanna Michelle Christie
World traveller, marine seismic observer, auntie, knitter. Born on July 21, 1969, in Vulcan, Alta.; died on Dec. 8, 2014, in Hereid, Norway, of cancer, aged 45.
Everyone who knew Deanna agreed that she was one of the most intelligent, well-rounded, and unconventional people they ever met. Her life took the road less travelled around the globe, and allowed her many friends to live vicariously through her. Her path ended too soon, but she wrote in her final e-mail that she had no big regrets and had lived the life she had wanted for herself. How many can truly say that?
Deanna was raised on a farm near Mossleigh, Alta., which gave her a wealth of hands-on, practical experience. We met as students at the University of Alberta in December, 1992, in the -30 parking lot of a residence. Her car battery was dead and she asked for a jump-start. She was wearing her mechanical engineering class jacket, the year ahead of me, so of course I said yes. When I struggled with the cable hookup, Deanna took over in a kind but matter-of-fact manner, ignoring my chagrin.
We had much in common beyond our education, including ease with languages and a love of fine food. We each married a classmate after graduation and, fortunately, we did not split up when our "starter marriages" ended. I remarried, but Deanna perhaps had decided that she was better suited to be an aunt than a parent. Some may have found that difficult to understand but, as ever, she knew what she wanted: plenty of alone time.
Deanna worked as a telecom project manager in Calgary for a few years, but her feet never stopped itching. In between jobs, she travelled. Soon, her projects were overseas in places such as Ghana and Spain.
Then she decided on a radical change. She launched a new career in marine seismic-data collection, which she learned on the job, and moved to Norway in 2008. Until her cancer diagnosis in the spring of 2013, she worked all over the world, on a rotation of five weeks on, five weeks off, often the only woman on the seismic vessel. Always irreverent, she delighted in wearing bright pink shirts, to remind all that she wasn't just one of the guys.
Deanna worked and played in more than 50 countries and had great stories to tell. One of my favourites: Anchored off Rio de Janeiro for a few days, she and a few crew mates decided to take a water taxi into town to experience the nightlife: rum-fuelled samba beats and throngs of people awaited. Deanna had suitable attire, but no purse to carry her money and her signature red lipstick. She located some silver blanket insulation, a stapler and a short chain in the supply room, et voilà: a quilted "Chanel" purse! They didn't return to their vessel until 7 a.m. As Deanna put it: "Who could leave at 11 p.m. for the last water taxi? Things were just getting started!!"
Deanna became fluent in Norwegian and a part of her community of Alesund. She was a founding member of a craft group, Strikken og Drikken, which translates as "Knitting and Drinking." The local newspaper published an article about the group and the knitted caps they made for African premature babies. Although their group's name was somehow omitted, Deanna revelled in what she deemed her allotted 15 minutes of fame. The world is a lesser place without her joie de vivre.
Andrea Coli is a long-time friend of Deanna.