the catastrophe of after: a short-stay diary is a chapbook written in response to the (unpublished) full manuscript, Catastrophic States of Water. The latter investigates the collapse of identity and memory in geographical and temporal distance. the author pulls largely from her experience working on expedition ships as a marine biologist, wilderness guide and glorified boat mechanic mostly in the polar regions, the South Pacific and British Isles.MacGriff focuses on understanding life as a woman, artist and mother in the United States.