From Afar

From Afar, a podcast about long distance love, from tropical Australia to icy Antarctica.“How do we tackle the challenges that creep into our lives when we’re away from the person or people we love the most? How do we deal with isolation, loneliness, anxiety, unexpected danger and longing? And what happens when things go wrong” These are the questions that host, Lori Uden, asks herself when her husband Shaun gets a driving boats job in Antarctica, leaving her and their two kids Matilda 10 and Saxon 9, home in Darwin.“As we prepare for Shaun to depart, I realise I need to look beyond myself for the answers. So, I pack an audio recorder in with Shaun’s beanies and thermals, buy myself a fancy new mic, and we press record as we ask the ‘experts’ around us - our friends, neighbours and ship mates - how they do it.” Told through a mix of memoirs, audio diaries, interviews and soundscapes, From Afar submerges the listener in a story of love, adventure, fear and resilience spanning from Australia’s steamy tropical north to the freezing, dangerous waters of Antarctica.https://www.fromafarpodcast.net/Host and creator: Lori UdenCo-producers: Cinnamon Nippard & Lori UdenInterviews & sound recordings: Shaun Uden & Lori UdenThe kids! 10-year old Matilda Uden & 9-year old Saxon UdenEditor: Cinnamon NippardMixer: Hamish RobertsonMusic producer: Serina PechOnline producer: Lori UdenGraphic designer: Kelly WalshPhotographers: Helen Orr, Adam Leatherbarrow, Shaun Uden & Lori UdenMentor: Johanna BellCritical listeners: Johanna Bell & Jess Ong

“I feel really, really quite scared, at the same time as happy, at the same time as anxious, at the same time as, well, excited, at the same time as sad”, whispers 9 year-old Saxon as he prepares for his Dad to be away for the next few months. Against a backdrop of cicadas, tropical bird song and monsoon downpours, the Uden family navigate the uncertainty and excitement of Shaun’s impending departure, and Lori asks the hard questions about long-distance love. With thought-provoking insights from Tamara and Rhiannon, a Territory couple who leave each other and their kids to work remote, and Miriam Charlie, a Yanyuwa/Garrwa woman living in Darwin on dialysis. Join Shaun as he chats to two of his Antarctic workmates, Nadia and Jono, on board the ship bound for the coldest, driest, highest continent on Earth.https://www.fromafarpodcast.net/Contributors to Ep1: Tamara Travers, Rhiannon Townsend, Miriam Charlie, Nadia Bush and Jono TobeyHost and creator: Lori UdenCo-producers: Cinnamon Nippard and Lori UdenInterviews and sound recordings: Shaun and Lori UdenThe kids!  10-year old Matilda Uden and 9-year old Saxon UdenEditor: Cinnamon NippardMixer: Hamish RobertsonMusic producer: Serina PechOnline producer: Lori UdenGraphic designer: Kelly WalshPhotographers: Helen Orr, Adam Leatherbarrow, Shaun Uden & Lori UdenMentor: Johanna BellCritical listeners: Johanna Bell and Jess OngFrom Afar was created on beautiful Larrakia land and was produced with funding support from the Northern Territory Government through Arts NTThanks also goes to the Australian Antarctic Division and Maritime Construction Services for their support.

“I'm out on deck, the sun's just going down and it really feels good to actually throw the ropes off the ship and head to sea,” Shaun shouts above the sound of the wind.Meanwhile, back in Darwin, it’s day one and the shit hits the fan... literally! From blocked toilets and monsoonal mould, to gigantic sparkling icebergs and elephant seal wallows, this episode explores why people choose to live and work in remote places, facing danger and hardship.Lori searches for answers with mates Tamara and Rhiannon.  “You know, when you see people in their own environment and on their own country, it's just totally different to what you get when you work with people in a hospital”, explains Rhiannon, a remote area nurse.On the ship, Shaun seeks out Dr John Cherry, who will be wintering at Davis Station.“This is my first winter, which is a very different beast to coming down for a round trip for a couple of weeks or a couple of months”.Join Lori and Shaun as they figure out why people put themselves in situations that most of us wouldn’t dream of - isolation, separation, adversity and danger.  Contributors to Ep1: Tamara Travers, Rhiannon Townsend and Dr John CherryHost and executive producer: Lori UdenCo-producers: Cinnamon Nippard and Lori UdenInterviews and sound recordings: Shaun and Lori UdenThe kids!  10-year old Matilda Uden and 9-year old Saxon UdenEditor: Cinnamon NippardMixer: Hamish RobertsonMusic producer: Serina PechOnline producer: Lori udenGraphic designer: Kelly WalshPhotographer: Helen Orr, Adam Leatherbarrow & Shaun UdenMentor: Johanna BellCritical listeners: Johanna Bell and Jess OngFrom Afar was created on beautiful Larrakia land and was produced with funding support from the Northern Territory Government through Arts NTThanks also goes to the Australian Antarctic Division and Maritime Construction Services for their support.

Shaun’s due home in a few weeks, but each time Lori hears from him, through scratchy WhatsApp calls, it seems like there’s another hold up…in fact the ship can’t actually reach Mawson Station due to a thick band of sea ice…Lori pushes down feelings of resentment and bitterness, and at the same time longs to see and touch her husband. She looks around for people who might be in the same boat. She runs into Nitesh and Silpi who long to visit family in Nepal, and Geo who was separated from his new husband for the first 14 months of marriage!Meanwhile on the ship, Shaun chats to Peter, an electrician on his way to winter in Antarctica and Dr Jaimie, a fellow watercraft operator and an albatross expert!Together, from a million miles away, Lori and Shaun navigate feelings of longing and loneliness as they ask the people around them how they manage intimacy from afar. Contributors to Ep1: Nitesh Raj Pant, Silpi Dhungana Pant, Geo Hulme, Tamara Travers, Rhiannon Townsend, Jaimie Cleeland and Peter Boyle.Host and executive producer: Lori UdenCo-producers: Cinnamon Nippard and Lori UdenInterviews and sound recordings: Shaun and Lori UdenThe kids!  10-year old Matilda Uden and 9-year old Saxon UdenEditor: Cinnamon NippardMixer: Hamish RobertsonMusic producer: Serina PechOnline producer: Lori udenGraphic designer: Kelly WalshPhotographer: Helen Orr, Adam Leatherbarrow & Shaun UdenMentor: Johanna BellCritical listeners: Johanna Bell and Jess OngFrom Afar was created on beautiful Larrakia land and was produced with funding support from the Northern Territory Government through Arts NTThanks also goes to the Australian Antarctic Division and Maritime Construction Services for their support.

Things are looking up, it’s not long until the Uden family will be reunited … and then…there’s a serious engine room fire.“The audio recorder is burning a hole in my pocket, and I feel like I need to do a debrief about what's taken place, but I'm sort of not sure where to start. I don't really know what to convey...” Shaun’s voice is stilted and unsure, against the backdrop of the ship creaking and rolling in the swell.Shaun and his closest friends on the ship, Jaimie and Adam, share their recollections about what was one of the most frightening days of their lives and confide in each other their fears for the days ahead.“You have lots of things running through your mind, but immediately I was going through my little evacuation plan and what I needed to get”, says Shaun.Back home, Lori’s mind whirls with fear. She’s not sure what to do or who to talk to when neighbours, Vicki who was a military spouse and Rhonda who survived Cyclone Tracy, call by for a cup of tea.In the end it’s the comfort of these older women along with advice from Nepalese friends Nitesh and Silpi whose wisdom, care and experience give her strength and resilience when all she can do is wait.https://www.fromafarpodcast.net/Contributors to Ep1: Jaimie Cleeland, Adam Leatherbarrow, Nitesh Raj Pant, Silpi Dhungana Pant, Vicki Allen and Rhonda JonesHost and executive producer: Lori UdenCo-producers: Cinnamon Nippard and Lori UdenInterviews and sound recordings: Shaun and Lori UdenThe kids!  10-year old Matilda Uden and 9-year old Saxon UdenEditor: Cinnamon NippardMixer: Hamish RobertsonMusic producer: Serina PechOnline producer: Lori udenGraphic designer: Kelly WalshPhotographer: Helen Orr, Adam Leatherbarrow & Shaun UdenMentor: Johanna BellCritical listeners: Johanna Bell and Jess OngFrom Afar was created on beautiful Larrakia land and was produced with funding support from the Northern Territory Government through Arts NTThanks also goes to the Australian Antarctic Division and Maritime Construction Services for their support.