the catastrophe of after: a short-stay diary by Emily Kay MacGriff, is a chapbook written in response to the (unpublished) full manuscript, Catastrophic States of Water.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 catastrophe of after furthers this investigation as it interacts with the eccentricities, loss and wildness of pregnancy and new life. 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 (Antarctica and the High Arctic), the South Pacific and British Isles. Following a series of medical diagnoses, MacGriff largely retired from shipboard work and focused on understanding life as a woman, artist and mother in the United States.