I apologize that I have been absent from the blog scene for some time. I have been enjoying my past life with family and friends. There really is no more purpose for a blog on Afghanistan (unless of course the military invites me back). I have really enjoyed writing a blog while away. It was somewhat therapuetic and at times enlightening. If I get an itch and feel like I really have something valuable to say on a somewhat routine basis (that is a lot to hope for) then maybe I will start another blog for that purpose. For now I am going to go on blog hiatus and prefer to instead talk to you in person.
Mark
Monday, March 22, 2010
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
hurry up and wait
All you previous military will appreciate this titled blog. I am finished with leg three of my journey back home. I had to show up at customs more than 24 hours ago to start my second leg yesterday. From there we are marched into a room (with chairs this time) to wait for four hours which of course becomes more like eight with the obligatory delays. We finally took off after standing in the rain wiating to board and landed in Germany 8 hours later. Another three hours of waiting. Though this time we were allowed to partake in a German beer if deisred. I desired. I also wolfed down a couple of their bratwurst. Next we flew 7 more hours to Bangor, Maine where I am currently. We were supposed to have a 2 hour layover which is now announced to be 4-7 hours. It is 3 AM local time, however, there were still some retirees here to shake our hand when we stepped off the plan and they opened the coffee shop for some warm drink and food. God bless them!
Okay, next time I blog (if ever again) it will be from my home turf in San Diego. Thanks again for all the support these past few months.
Mark
Okay, next time I blog (if ever again) it will be from my home turf in San Diego. Thanks again for all the support these past few months.
Mark
Monday, March 8, 2010
pete's place
Here in Manas we are allowed to have 2 beers in a 24 hour period if our command is game. Well everyone is interested in having that cold one after 6 months in the desert. Problem is, how do you assure that everyone is safe and behaving. Well, you have the officers and staff NCOs do shifts in the pub to make sure everyone is good. So that is where I am this minute. The pictures I just published are already obsolete as about 30 military members just walked through the door. The music is blaring, the smoke arising and the beer is flowing. I can't wait until my 2 hour shift is done so I can partake.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
pedicure
Many of you would say that getting a pedicure is not manly, and you're right. That being the case, I got a pedicure yesterday. There are few reasons why:
1) I have never had a pedicure before
2) There is very limited activities to do while in Manas, Kyrgystan
3) It was a bargain at $10
Let me take you through my experience. First I got my pleasant foot bath. After the clipping and trimming of my nails and cuticles she broke out this razor blade contraption. She grabs my foot and tells me to be steady. I give a quizical look? She explains that she is not intending to shave my toe hair (yeah I got some, so what?), but instead is planning on paring down the skin on the bottom of my foot. I asked if it was ticklish and is that why she wants me to be still so as to not cut me. She replies, yes it is ticklish and that she is not worried for my foot, but for cutting her hand if I were to withdraw my foot. Now that we scrapped away all the old tissue she takes out a paddle, she says emory, and proceeds to scrap away on the sole of my foot. At last she was done and the best part came. I got a foot rubdown with moisterizer. Now that made the whole experience right there.
I know you are all asking yourselves this question now. The answer is no. I did not get them painted.
1) I have never had a pedicure before
2) There is very limited activities to do while in Manas, Kyrgystan
3) It was a bargain at $10
Let me take you through my experience. First I got my pleasant foot bath. After the clipping and trimming of my nails and cuticles she broke out this razor blade contraption. She grabs my foot and tells me to be steady. I give a quizical look? She explains that she is not intending to shave my toe hair (yeah I got some, so what?), but instead is planning on paring down the skin on the bottom of my foot. I asked if it was ticklish and is that why she wants me to be still so as to not cut me. She replies, yes it is ticklish and that she is not worried for my foot, but for cutting her hand if I were to withdraw my foot. Now that we scrapped away all the old tissue she takes out a paddle, she says emory, and proceeds to scrap away on the sole of my foot. At last she was done and the best part came. I got a foot rubdown with moisterizer. Now that made the whole experience right there.
I know you are all asking yourselves this question now. The answer is no. I did not get them painted.
You could start an IV on that foot!
Saturday, March 6, 2010
first leg home
So, yesterday was a looonnggg day. We loaded up ourselves on a bus at 2200 (10 PM) to go to the terminal for a flight out of Afghanistan at 0200. Things did not look good from the beginning as we encountered the worst sand storm of our deployment that evening. It was a complete brownout. However, it rained soon therafter which abated the dust.
At around 0100 in the morning we were told that our flight was delayed an hour which became 2 hours which became 13 hours. All the while we had to stay pretty much in this huge hanger. None of us planned for this and thus none of us had our warmest clothes on, sleeping bags or pillows. We had to make due sleeping on the plywood floor.
The good news is that we finally hoped on board a C-130 and took the 2.5 hour journey to Manas air field in Kyrgystan. It is in Bishkek, here is a link .... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bishtek. By the time we did all the formations, gear checks, weapons check, briefs....it was near midnight local time. However, I was still on an adrenaline high so I went to the only place on base that serves alcohol to get me a little sedation in a bottle. We are limited to 2 beers in a 24 hour period for safety reasons. I have not had a beer in 6 months and for 2 bucks I got this 16 ounce beer called 9. Why is it called 9 you ask, because it is 8.6% alcohol and they round up. So I drank maybe 40% of the beer to be on the safe side and it did the trick. I woke up feeling almost like a minor hangover between the lack of sleep over past 2 days and my out of shape liver being exposed to alcohol again.
So anyhow, things are better here in Manas. I got a big gym, a big chow hall with midrats (that's midnight rations for all you non-military folk) and my room has wireless internet. I will be back in the States next week. See you all very soon.
Air traffic control.
Trying to get comfy.
Staging area for flight.
Marines can sleep anywhere.
At around 0100 in the morning we were told that our flight was delayed an hour which became 2 hours which became 13 hours. All the while we had to stay pretty much in this huge hanger. None of us planned for this and thus none of us had our warmest clothes on, sleeping bags or pillows. We had to make due sleeping on the plywood floor.
The good news is that we finally hoped on board a C-130 and took the 2.5 hour journey to Manas air field in Kyrgystan. It is in Bishkek, here is a link .... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bishtek. By the time we did all the formations, gear checks, weapons check, briefs....it was near midnight local time. However, I was still on an adrenaline high so I went to the only place on base that serves alcohol to get me a little sedation in a bottle. We are limited to 2 beers in a 24 hour period for safety reasons. I have not had a beer in 6 months and for 2 bucks I got this 16 ounce beer called 9. Why is it called 9 you ask, because it is 8.6% alcohol and they round up. So I drank maybe 40% of the beer to be on the safe side and it did the trick. I woke up feeling almost like a minor hangover between the lack of sleep over past 2 days and my out of shape liver being exposed to alcohol again.
So anyhow, things are better here in Manas. I got a big gym, a big chow hall with midrats (that's midnight rations for all you non-military folk) and my room has wireless internet. I will be back in the States next week. See you all very soon.
Air traffic control.
Trying to get comfy.
Staging area for flight.
Marines can sleep anywhere.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
hectic days
These have been hectic days indeed. We are in our last weeks here in Afghanistan which means that we have to turnover with the new crew, pack our bags and get last minute missions done. For medical it means having to do a final screen of all 470 Marines in our squadron. We also have to go through all their records to make dure complete. This has occupied most of my last week.
I also finally got to pin on my FMF last week. We were waiting until both medical officers and the chaplain had a chance to finish up so we could all pin on together. I have included pictures below. I am hoping ot blog more soon.
Mark
CO doing the pinning
I also finally got to pin on my FMF last week. We were waiting until both medical officers and the chaplain had a chance to finish up so we could all pin on together. I have included pictures below. I am hoping ot blog more soon.
Mark
CO doing the pinning
The three of us post pinning.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
my health care manifesto
So, I posted a story about a Canadian Premiere coming to the U.S. for his health care the other day. When talking to a colleague about health care reform he asked me ‘well, what would you do to fix it?’ I thought that was a fair question. So here are my thoughts about what is broke and some ideas on how to fix it.
The first question to ask is whether health care is a right? I do not think so. However, when you are in a country with the means to do so, I think that you need to be able to delivery some form of basic health care. Now you have to define who you want to cover when you talk about ‘universal health care’. I think that if you are a citizen, that you should qualify for basic health care. Next, you have to decide what type of health care coverage. I think that everyone should have a base level of health care that covers you for emergencies and for preventative medicine. After that, I think that you should have options, either through work plans or personally financed, to increase your coverage.
It is easy enough to say ‘everyone should have health care’. However, how will one pay for it? Another thing to contemplate is, just who is going to see the patients? We are in a time when we are short primary care providers in this country. If we increase the patient pool without increasing the number of primary care providers (which takes years to accomplish) then we overwhelm the system. I have some ideas of how we can address these issues.
The very first thing that must be done is medical tort reform. You need to limit how much in damages one can get through legit or perceived medical malpractice. Medicine is not an exact science and there will always be the chance of adverse outcomes and there will always be mistakes. However, people like John Edwards have made far too much money through ambulance chasing. The days of channeling dead babies in the courtroom should end. This is a tough one since most congressmen are lawyers, but it is a must, because once you cap medical malpractice payments it has more positive impacts.
If malpractice is limited, then malpractice insurance goes down as well which means that physicians do not have to charge as much (kind of a reverse trickle down effect). Some medical specialties have obscene monthly medical malpractice insurance rates.
Also, when there is a fear of malpractice suits then a primary care provider will quickly refer patients to a subspecialist to make sure they are not missing anything. Let me give you an example. A family practice doctor hears a murmur which he thinks is benign (okay). However, he does not want to miss something and get sued so he refers the patient to a cardiologist. The cardiologist says ‘well if he sends this patient to me, then I should do a full workup’. So the cardiologist gets a chest x-ray, EKG, echocardiogram for a full cardiologist evaluation. Most likely, the patient is told that their murmur is benign. So the cost for this patient just went up exponentially. This patient could have been followed by the family physician to see if any changes or symptoms developed prior to sending to a specialist. However, they did not because of the fear of being sued.
Let me now talk about health care insurance. We need to open up competition between insurance companies. In many states there are near monopolies for health insurance. There may only be two companies to choose from. If you allow competition of insurance companies between state lines then you have more companies competing for your business. It is a basic principle of supply and demand that if more companies are allowed to do business then the price of insurance will go down.
We also need programs like Medicare to pay out better. They basically dictate how much they will pay for a procedure or a doctor visit. Many times the doctor gets 70% what he or she bills. So what happens next? The doctor will have to see more patients and do more procedures to try and get enough compensation to account for what he or she is not reimbursed by Medicare. This leads to unnecessary procedures. It also means less time per patient by the doctor.
When a primary provider is getting slammed seeing more patients (to make enough money) they get frustrated that a) they are working overly hard b) they are not practicing the medicine they envisioned. Most primary care providers went into that area of medicine to spend time with their patients and do preventative and anticipatory care. That is one of the reasons I got out of pediatrics. I wanted to spend time with the family to develop a bond. I wanted to help with preventative counseling. It is impossible to do in a 10-15 minute appointment. So, what happens? They become a sub-specialist like I did. Why do you think we have a lack of primary care providers in this country?
So we have established that doctors get driven out of primary specialties due to fear of malpractice, dissatisfaction with compensation and frustration about type of medicine they are doing. I think that there is another reason as well. Most civilian doctors have a huge debt after medical school. You are talking hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. They become doctors when they are about 26. Then they do internship for a year where they make probably 35 thousand. Then they go into residency for 2-4 years where they make maybe 40 thousand a year. So they are now in their 30’s, have a doctorate degree, have a huge debt still and have not yet made any money. So they go into fellowship to become a specialist because they know they will get paid better. Besides they have talked to enough primary care providers to know they do not want to go that route. Maybe we should subsidize some of medical school costs and pay residents a bit more money so they do not have such financial pressures. They work 80-100 hours a week when a resident, I think they deserve it.
Well, there you have it, my thoughts, whether you wanted them or not. I am happy as a military physician. I had a good time being a pediatrician and I am glad that I did an allergy/immunology fellowship. If I were to do it all again (and that is a huge if) then the only way I would do it would to go through the military again. I am really struggling with whether I would want to practice medicine as a civilian post my military career.
The first question to ask is whether health care is a right? I do not think so. However, when you are in a country with the means to do so, I think that you need to be able to delivery some form of basic health care. Now you have to define who you want to cover when you talk about ‘universal health care’. I think that if you are a citizen, that you should qualify for basic health care. Next, you have to decide what type of health care coverage. I think that everyone should have a base level of health care that covers you for emergencies and for preventative medicine. After that, I think that you should have options, either through work plans or personally financed, to increase your coverage.
It is easy enough to say ‘everyone should have health care’. However, how will one pay for it? Another thing to contemplate is, just who is going to see the patients? We are in a time when we are short primary care providers in this country. If we increase the patient pool without increasing the number of primary care providers (which takes years to accomplish) then we overwhelm the system. I have some ideas of how we can address these issues.
The very first thing that must be done is medical tort reform. You need to limit how much in damages one can get through legit or perceived medical malpractice. Medicine is not an exact science and there will always be the chance of adverse outcomes and there will always be mistakes. However, people like John Edwards have made far too much money through ambulance chasing. The days of channeling dead babies in the courtroom should end. This is a tough one since most congressmen are lawyers, but it is a must, because once you cap medical malpractice payments it has more positive impacts.
If malpractice is limited, then malpractice insurance goes down as well which means that physicians do not have to charge as much (kind of a reverse trickle down effect). Some medical specialties have obscene monthly medical malpractice insurance rates.
Also, when there is a fear of malpractice suits then a primary care provider will quickly refer patients to a subspecialist to make sure they are not missing anything. Let me give you an example. A family practice doctor hears a murmur which he thinks is benign (okay). However, he does not want to miss something and get sued so he refers the patient to a cardiologist. The cardiologist says ‘well if he sends this patient to me, then I should do a full workup’. So the cardiologist gets a chest x-ray, EKG, echocardiogram for a full cardiologist evaluation. Most likely, the patient is told that their murmur is benign. So the cost for this patient just went up exponentially. This patient could have been followed by the family physician to see if any changes or symptoms developed prior to sending to a specialist. However, they did not because of the fear of being sued.
Let me now talk about health care insurance. We need to open up competition between insurance companies. In many states there are near monopolies for health insurance. There may only be two companies to choose from. If you allow competition of insurance companies between state lines then you have more companies competing for your business. It is a basic principle of supply and demand that if more companies are allowed to do business then the price of insurance will go down.
We also need programs like Medicare to pay out better. They basically dictate how much they will pay for a procedure or a doctor visit. Many times the doctor gets 70% what he or she bills. So what happens next? The doctor will have to see more patients and do more procedures to try and get enough compensation to account for what he or she is not reimbursed by Medicare. This leads to unnecessary procedures. It also means less time per patient by the doctor.
When a primary provider is getting slammed seeing more patients (to make enough money) they get frustrated that a) they are working overly hard b) they are not practicing the medicine they envisioned. Most primary care providers went into that area of medicine to spend time with their patients and do preventative and anticipatory care. That is one of the reasons I got out of pediatrics. I wanted to spend time with the family to develop a bond. I wanted to help with preventative counseling. It is impossible to do in a 10-15 minute appointment. So, what happens? They become a sub-specialist like I did. Why do you think we have a lack of primary care providers in this country?
So we have established that doctors get driven out of primary specialties due to fear of malpractice, dissatisfaction with compensation and frustration about type of medicine they are doing. I think that there is another reason as well. Most civilian doctors have a huge debt after medical school. You are talking hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. They become doctors when they are about 26. Then they do internship for a year where they make probably 35 thousand. Then they go into residency for 2-4 years where they make maybe 40 thousand a year. So they are now in their 30’s, have a doctorate degree, have a huge debt still and have not yet made any money. So they go into fellowship to become a specialist because they know they will get paid better. Besides they have talked to enough primary care providers to know they do not want to go that route. Maybe we should subsidize some of medical school costs and pay residents a bit more money so they do not have such financial pressures. They work 80-100 hours a week when a resident, I think they deserve it.
Well, there you have it, my thoughts, whether you wanted them or not. I am happy as a military physician. I had a good time being a pediatrician and I am glad that I did an allergy/immunology fellowship. If I were to do it all again (and that is a huge if) then the only way I would do it would to go through the military again. I am really struggling with whether I would want to practice medicine as a civilian post my military career.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
health care
So we are heading to socialized medicine (actually socialized everything) in this country. We all know that Canada is one of those nations who already have socialized medicine. One of the key arguments against a system like theirs is the discontent among their citizens of their medical system. Many will cross the border to come in the U.S. to get key procedures done and pay out of pocket.
Well it gets better as a Canadian Premier went to Mt Sinai (in the U.S.) to get his heart procedure instead of utilizing his 'free' health care up north. Why? Because he values his health! Here is the link ... http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5h0QC7bditrEb3wYz_6_b-gsGGDxA
Well it gets better as a Canadian Premier went to Mt Sinai (in the U.S.) to get his heart procedure instead of utilizing his 'free' health care up north. Why? Because he values his health! Here is the link ... http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5h0QC7bditrEb3wYz_6_b-gsGGDxA
Monday, February 22, 2010
reflection
So it is getting close to the end of my deployment and I thought that I would give some reflection. I could complain about being in the middle of a third (is there a forth) world country being underutilized as I am separated from family and friends. I asseverate that there has more good than bad and that there is a proverbial ‘silver lining’ to my six months in the desert.
For one thing, I am in the best shape of my life. I have done my best to give Liz that prison body that she deserves. I have actually shed a few pounds despite engaging in gluttony. All the while I have increased the amount of weight I can lift. I have been pounding out sit-ups, pull-ups, dips and push-ups daily. I run most days of the week. This coming from someone who is accustomed to running 30 miles a year, not 30 miles a week. As an apogee of my running I have entered into the Rock ‘n’ Roll marathon in San Diego this June.
Even though I have not been challenged professionally, I have had time to read. I have read three textbooks and numerous articles to keep up with my specialty. Usually, these reading assignments sit on my desk for months. Despite the medicine here in my BAS being rather remedial, it is appreciated by the Marines.
I have been fortunate to have the chapel be next door to our BAS. I have been further blessed to have had our chaplain be a Catholic priest. It is uncanny that my faith has been able to grow in a country that is intolerant to other religions.
I was ecstatic when I found that the chaplain brought a couple of guitars with him for the chapel. One of the guitars was rarely claimed and thus I was able to keep it hostage at the BAS. His religious assistant plays guitar and was able to teach me some new material. I will let you be the judge when I get back as to whether I got any better.
I have always been proud to serve my country. However, most of the time I have served, it has been in a clinic/hospital taking care of military and their dependants. I definitely serve a purpose back home, but here it is a different kind of medicine taking care of those fighting for our country and way of life. One may question why we are here and what exactly our mission is at this point. However, the soldiers here are fulfilling the mission that has been directed to them by our government and they do so with honor and with purpose. Having now been deployed in a combat environment I can hold my head a bit higher knowing that I was supporting the Marine on the ground.
Speaking of Marines, I am so happy that I got attached to a Marine squadron instead of an augment to an Army unit. Not to piss any Army lovers off, but they are sometimes really backwards. The Marines are just more professional from top to bottom. I can further appreciate the Marines now since earning my FMF (fleet Marine force) device. I will be able to wear this device, as well as a few ribbons from this deployment to add some ‘bling bling’ to my uniform.
I have been able to meet many different people from many walks of life. They not only come from the U.S., but from many countries abroad. I have been able to taste different foods, hear a variety of languages and be exposed to other cultures. Some people can get on your nerves after 6 months of close interaction, but for the most part everyone was civil. There will be a few who I have felt a stronger bond and will look forward to keeping in contact in the future.
Lastly, despite being separated from my family, I have never felt more aware of just how important they are to me. I truly appreciate my family and my love has only grown. I think our bonds will only be strengthened by this experience. I am really proud that my wife and kids have done such a great job in my absence. (actually it kind of pisses me off since I do not feel as irreplaceable now :)
So there are some of the positives from this deployment. That being said, I am really looking for some old food favorites, any alcoholic beverage, a comfortable bed and the warmth and love of my family and friends when I close this chapter in my life.
Peace
Chief and HM1 posing in front of Camp Viking.
For one thing, I am in the best shape of my life. I have done my best to give Liz that prison body that she deserves. I have actually shed a few pounds despite engaging in gluttony. All the while I have increased the amount of weight I can lift. I have been pounding out sit-ups, pull-ups, dips and push-ups daily. I run most days of the week. This coming from someone who is accustomed to running 30 miles a year, not 30 miles a week. As an apogee of my running I have entered into the Rock ‘n’ Roll marathon in San Diego this June.
Even though I have not been challenged professionally, I have had time to read. I have read three textbooks and numerous articles to keep up with my specialty. Usually, these reading assignments sit on my desk for months. Despite the medicine here in my BAS being rather remedial, it is appreciated by the Marines.
I have been fortunate to have the chapel be next door to our BAS. I have been further blessed to have had our chaplain be a Catholic priest. It is uncanny that my faith has been able to grow in a country that is intolerant to other religions.
I was ecstatic when I found that the chaplain brought a couple of guitars with him for the chapel. One of the guitars was rarely claimed and thus I was able to keep it hostage at the BAS. His religious assistant plays guitar and was able to teach me some new material. I will let you be the judge when I get back as to whether I got any better.
I have always been proud to serve my country. However, most of the time I have served, it has been in a clinic/hospital taking care of military and their dependants. I definitely serve a purpose back home, but here it is a different kind of medicine taking care of those fighting for our country and way of life. One may question why we are here and what exactly our mission is at this point. However, the soldiers here are fulfilling the mission that has been directed to them by our government and they do so with honor and with purpose. Having now been deployed in a combat environment I can hold my head a bit higher knowing that I was supporting the Marine on the ground.
Speaking of Marines, I am so happy that I got attached to a Marine squadron instead of an augment to an Army unit. Not to piss any Army lovers off, but they are sometimes really backwards. The Marines are just more professional from top to bottom. I can further appreciate the Marines now since earning my FMF (fleet Marine force) device. I will be able to wear this device, as well as a few ribbons from this deployment to add some ‘bling bling’ to my uniform.
I have been able to meet many different people from many walks of life. They not only come from the U.S., but from many countries abroad. I have been able to taste different foods, hear a variety of languages and be exposed to other cultures. Some people can get on your nerves after 6 months of close interaction, but for the most part everyone was civil. There will be a few who I have felt a stronger bond and will look forward to keeping in contact in the future.
Lastly, despite being separated from my family, I have never felt more aware of just how important they are to me. I truly appreciate my family and my love has only grown. I think our bonds will only be strengthened by this experience. I am really proud that my wife and kids have done such a great job in my absence. (actually it kind of pisses me off since I do not feel as irreplaceable now :)
So there are some of the positives from this deployment. That being said, I am really looking for some old food favorites, any alcoholic beverage, a comfortable bed and the warmth and love of my family and friends when I close this chapter in my life.
Peace
Chief and HM1 posing in front of Camp Viking.
British vehicles lined up to go out to the fight.
Monday, February 15, 2010
okay
I have been a bit tardy in my blogging of late. Mainly this is due to communications being up and down. You all see the news and understand why this may be the case. Anyhow, I am very safe so don't fret.
Today we are doing post deployment health screens. All the Marines and Sailors in my unit has to do it. It takes about 30-60 minutes for each individual and each person has to see myself or my partner before it is considered complete. Talk about a headache. I guess I should not complain because the fact that we started them is a reminder that I will soon be home.
I fiished reading the State of Fear. Though it is a fiction book, it is heavily footnoted with actual articles. The author has some great comments in the back of the book that ring very true to me with our current obsession with global warming. I would recommend the read. The story is fun as well.
I also finished reading Left to Tell by Immaculee Ilibagiza. She survived the Rwanda holocaust by staying in a 4' x 2' bathroom with 7 other women for 3 months. It is a story about faith. Incredible story.
Will talk to you soon.
Today we are doing post deployment health screens. All the Marines and Sailors in my unit has to do it. It takes about 30-60 minutes for each individual and each person has to see myself or my partner before it is considered complete. Talk about a headache. I guess I should not complain because the fact that we started them is a reminder that I will soon be home.
I fiished reading the State of Fear. Though it is a fiction book, it is heavily footnoted with actual articles. The author has some great comments in the back of the book that ring very true to me with our current obsession with global warming. I would recommend the read. The story is fun as well.
I also finished reading Left to Tell by Immaculee Ilibagiza. She survived the Rwanda holocaust by staying in a 4' x 2' bathroom with 7 other women for 3 months. It is a story about faith. Incredible story.
Will talk to you soon.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
I have a picture, pinned to my wall
I have started my Spring cleaning early since I will be redeploying in the Spring. I have sent some packages home and have asked that no further packages be sent out (thanks to all who have sent packages to me over the months). I am starting to take down the numerous pictures and drawings that have been sent my way. I took a picture of my plywood wall in my hooch (tent) before I took them down.
I also took a picture of a bookmark that Anna Custodio made for me. It is a beautiful bookmark that I have definitely used, but I thought that the back of the bookmark deserved special mention and a picture so others could appreciate.
I realized that I never put anything in my blog about the Super Bowl. This is probably because I still had some resentment that my Chargers have yet again blown a great season with an early exit. Maybe it was better that they went out when they did instead of teasing me a little longer to just intensify my pain with a loss in the Super Bowl. Anyhow, the Super Bowl was shown on AFN without the commercials at 0400 (that is 4AM)! We still had about 12 people in the BAS watching (what else you going to do out here?). Since they did not show the commercials that you all were seeing, they showed commercial skits that DoD schools put together. HORRIBLE!!! Well the good news is that the Saints won. I say this because, well Indy already won a Super Bowl and more importantly one of my corpsmen is a huge Saints fan and would have been dejected for the rest of the deployment had they lost.
It has been very windy and cold here lately. No more hail which is good. I am supposed to run a half marathon on Sunday, but I am definitely a fair weather runner and if it is cold then I am a no go. I have already paid my entrance fee so I will show up to collect my shirt. That's right I will wear it even if I don’t run!
Headline of the day .... "First Lady Links Childhood Obesity to National Security in Launch of ‘Let’s Move’ Campaign". Really? Obesity and national security. I suppose that is like how the record snow falls are really caused by global warming like some are stating in the news. First rule of politics, spin current events somehow into your agenda no matter how absurd. If you keep saying it is true it is, right?
Everyone take care,
Mark
My art collection.
Handy bookmark.
Step back!
Trying to stay warm and awake for the Super Bowl.
One happy fan and more importantly one happy corpsman.
I also took a picture of a bookmark that Anna Custodio made for me. It is a beautiful bookmark that I have definitely used, but I thought that the back of the bookmark deserved special mention and a picture so others could appreciate.
I realized that I never put anything in my blog about the Super Bowl. This is probably because I still had some resentment that my Chargers have yet again blown a great season with an early exit. Maybe it was better that they went out when they did instead of teasing me a little longer to just intensify my pain with a loss in the Super Bowl. Anyhow, the Super Bowl was shown on AFN without the commercials at 0400 (that is 4AM)! We still had about 12 people in the BAS watching (what else you going to do out here?). Since they did not show the commercials that you all were seeing, they showed commercial skits that DoD schools put together. HORRIBLE!!! Well the good news is that the Saints won. I say this because, well Indy already won a Super Bowl and more importantly one of my corpsmen is a huge Saints fan and would have been dejected for the rest of the deployment had they lost.
It has been very windy and cold here lately. No more hail which is good. I am supposed to run a half marathon on Sunday, but I am definitely a fair weather runner and if it is cold then I am a no go. I have already paid my entrance fee so I will show up to collect my shirt. That's right I will wear it even if I don’t run!
Headline of the day .... "First Lady Links Childhood Obesity to National Security in Launch of ‘Let’s Move’ Campaign". Really? Obesity and national security. I suppose that is like how the record snow falls are really caused by global warming like some are stating in the news. First rule of politics, spin current events somehow into your agenda no matter how absurd. If you keep saying it is true it is, right?
Everyone take care,
Mark
My art collection.
Handy bookmark.
Step back!
Trying to stay warm and awake for the Super Bowl.
One happy fan and more importantly one happy corpsman.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
hail
Yesterday we got a lot of rain over the course of a few hours. It even hailed for about an hour. The sound of the hail hitting the tents and metal containers was intense and deafening. I included pictures below.
The problem with rain here is that the ground is not porous at all. Thus, I can expect to waddle amongst big muddle puddles for the next week. The bizarre thing is that the puddles will start to recede about a day after the rain, but only to grow to their previous size the next day. I think the ground initially absorbs it, but then the water is drawn back out when the weather permits.
Nothing exciting is going on this week. We are starting to prep for a move next month since our lease on this British base is up when our unit redeploys home. Thankfully, we have not had a lot of patients, at least nothing exciting enough to report here in my blog.
I read another couple of books since last post. I read one called Ghost Map about the great cholera outbreak in Victorian London in 1850’s. It gave a very vivid picture of how people lived in a densely (over 2 million people) populated London at that time. It was the first time that someone actually attributed the disease to contaminated water. The prevalent theory of the day was that of miasma. Miasma was thought to be a bad humor that would settle over areas of filth and which blamed disease on poor air or putrid smells. Anyhow, the first half of the book was good, then the author started to try and parallel to a lot of modern day problems which lost my interest.
The second book was by James Patterson called Double Cross. I read this book because I had never read this popular author, but also because he sent us a huge shipment of free books in support of the military. It was a quick read (which for me is saying something, because I am as slow as it goes). It was a ‘who done it’ serial murder book. It was satisfying.
Today I am going to start State of Fear by Michael Crichton. I understand that he started this as a book to help educate about global warming, but ended up being a book about how it is all a shame. Right up my alley. It will be a very contemporary book to read since more is in the news every day about how the governing bodies for global warming had been taking suspicious studies and unqualified research and presenting it as real. Also, we are seeing record snow storms this winter in many states. I have not heard an explanation from Al Gore.
I saw in a headline that Tomlinson will not be back next year. Unfortunately, two years too late. Had we cut him loose, kept Turner and suffered the public sentiment backlash, we would probably have a Super Bowl trophy. The guy was great, but it is a business and we kept him too long. Now we have to hope that there is a quality running back in the draft that will be able to start next year.
Okay, you know that I am bored if I have rambled on for this long. Enough of me, get back to your lives already. Love you all,
Mark
Corpsmen reeling in the flag during hail storm.
Well I guess we now have ice. Probably more palatable than the water we drink.
The problem with rain here is that the ground is not porous at all. Thus, I can expect to waddle amongst big muddle puddles for the next week. The bizarre thing is that the puddles will start to recede about a day after the rain, but only to grow to their previous size the next day. I think the ground initially absorbs it, but then the water is drawn back out when the weather permits.
Nothing exciting is going on this week. We are starting to prep for a move next month since our lease on this British base is up when our unit redeploys home. Thankfully, we have not had a lot of patients, at least nothing exciting enough to report here in my blog.
I read another couple of books since last post. I read one called Ghost Map about the great cholera outbreak in Victorian London in 1850’s. It gave a very vivid picture of how people lived in a densely (over 2 million people) populated London at that time. It was the first time that someone actually attributed the disease to contaminated water. The prevalent theory of the day was that of miasma. Miasma was thought to be a bad humor that would settle over areas of filth and which blamed disease on poor air or putrid smells. Anyhow, the first half of the book was good, then the author started to try and parallel to a lot of modern day problems which lost my interest.
The second book was by James Patterson called Double Cross. I read this book because I had never read this popular author, but also because he sent us a huge shipment of free books in support of the military. It was a quick read (which for me is saying something, because I am as slow as it goes). It was a ‘who done it’ serial murder book. It was satisfying.
Today I am going to start State of Fear by Michael Crichton. I understand that he started this as a book to help educate about global warming, but ended up being a book about how it is all a shame. Right up my alley. It will be a very contemporary book to read since more is in the news every day about how the governing bodies for global warming had been taking suspicious studies and unqualified research and presenting it as real. Also, we are seeing record snow storms this winter in many states. I have not heard an explanation from Al Gore.
I saw in a headline that Tomlinson will not be back next year. Unfortunately, two years too late. Had we cut him loose, kept Turner and suffered the public sentiment backlash, we would probably have a Super Bowl trophy. The guy was great, but it is a business and we kept him too long. Now we have to hope that there is a quality running back in the draft that will be able to start next year.
Okay, you know that I am bored if I have rambled on for this long. Enough of me, get back to your lives already. Love you all,
Mark
Corpsmen reeling in the flag during hail storm.
Well I guess we now have ice. Probably more palatable than the water we drink.
Hail collection between tents.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Happy Birthday Madeline
February 4th, my daughter’s special day,
And I am unfortunately far away.
What kind of gift should I buy,
That would capture my girl’s eye.
How then the solution came to me,
My daughter’s love of poetry.
Perhaps I could write an ode to thee.
But could I, being so such an anomoly?
For this is the problem you will note,
My literary skills are quit remote.
My views are often very obtuse,
And thus I sound much like Dr. Suess.
So here I am trying to ponder,
The best message to my girl over yonder.
When it comes to me, just to say,
I love you so, happy birthday!
Madeline and I climbed Diamond Head. She is 5.
Madeline in China at age 7.
Madeline, you are becoming a woman, but I will always remember you as the little girl in the pictures above.
Love ya!
Dad
And I am unfortunately far away.
What kind of gift should I buy,
That would capture my girl’s eye.
How then the solution came to me,
My daughter’s love of poetry.
Perhaps I could write an ode to thee.
But could I, being so such an anomoly?
For this is the problem you will note,
My literary skills are quit remote.
My views are often very obtuse,
And thus I sound much like Dr. Suess.
So here I am trying to ponder,
The best message to my girl over yonder.
When it comes to me, just to say,
I love you so, happy birthday!
Madeline and I climbed Diamond Head. She is 5.
Madeline in China at age 7.
Madeline, you are becoming a woman, but I will always remember you as the little girl in the pictures above.
Love ya!
Dad
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
February at last
So the computers are back on and I can once again get in contact with the outside world. I am doing fine now that we are in February. I am due back probably sometime in March which would be great. Now that I am done with my FMF pin, I started to pleasure read again. I am currently reading a book called ‘Three Cups of Tea’ about a man named Greg Mortenson who goes around the most remote areas of Afghanistan and Pakistan and builds schools mostly for girls to assure they get proper education. It is a very engrossing book. If you are looking for an inspirational story, I recommend this book. My next read will be about a great cholera outbreak in Europe.
I am also watching the complete 6 seasons of the Sopranos. I just finished season 4. It is entertaining, but it is starting to get a little old. This guy back stabs that guy because he is sleeping with this woman and so that guy shoots the other guy….Sounds a lot like past turmoil of Afghanistan. I have access to Heros, Lost, Dexter and 24. Any recommendations on which I should start watching next?
One of the allergy associations wants me to write a little blurb about what Navy allergists are doing out here in Afghanistan. I think that they are mistaken that we are actually doing allergy. Hopefully they will not be too disappointed to find out I am taking care of turned ankles, dry skin and runny noses. I included below the picture of myself and my allergy colleague from Bethesda. I am sending this picture into the allergy society. He is in a different uniform because he got augmented to the Army since the Army now depends on other services to do their medical job for them. So he showed up to a battalion with over 800 soldiers and no doctor, no PA, no nurse, just 2 medical techs (less experience than corpsmen). He has since had another 500-700 soldiers come in under the buildup with no further medical support. On top of that a bunch of them are reservists which means medically they are broke. He is much busier than I. He told me the other day that his unit has 3 Army doctors who are all at a bigger base and together see about a third of the patients that he sees. Injustice if you ask me. You have to ask the Navy for docs and you do not even work your organic Army docs as hard.
Okay, that is enough for today. I am going to force myself into a run. I have a half marathon coming up here in 2 weeks and Liz just signed me up for the Rock ‘n’ Roll marathon in June.
Take care
I am also watching the complete 6 seasons of the Sopranos. I just finished season 4. It is entertaining, but it is starting to get a little old. This guy back stabs that guy because he is sleeping with this woman and so that guy shoots the other guy….Sounds a lot like past turmoil of Afghanistan. I have access to Heros, Lost, Dexter and 24. Any recommendations on which I should start watching next?
One of the allergy associations wants me to write a little blurb about what Navy allergists are doing out here in Afghanistan. I think that they are mistaken that we are actually doing allergy. Hopefully they will not be too disappointed to find out I am taking care of turned ankles, dry skin and runny noses. I included below the picture of myself and my allergy colleague from Bethesda. I am sending this picture into the allergy society. He is in a different uniform because he got augmented to the Army since the Army now depends on other services to do their medical job for them. So he showed up to a battalion with over 800 soldiers and no doctor, no PA, no nurse, just 2 medical techs (less experience than corpsmen). He has since had another 500-700 soldiers come in under the buildup with no further medical support. On top of that a bunch of them are reservists which means medically they are broke. He is much busier than I. He told me the other day that his unit has 3 Army doctors who are all at a bigger base and together see about a third of the patients that he sees. Injustice if you ask me. You have to ask the Navy for docs and you do not even work your organic Army docs as hard.
Okay, that is enough for today. I am going to force myself into a run. I have a half marathon coming up here in 2 weeks and Liz just signed me up for the Rock ‘n’ Roll marathon in June.
Take care
Tactical allergists.
Friday, January 29, 2010
FMF
Last night I was in a tent with 2 other Navy officers sitting across the table from 3 FMF board members getting drilled for nearly 2 hours on all aspects of the Marine Corps. Why you ask? It was the final step for me to get my Fleet Marine Force (FMF) designator pin. You want to know who the first Marine Corps pilot was, I got your answer. You need to know the date and birthplace of the Marine Corps, no problem. Who is the 13th commandant of the Marine Corps, lets just say there is a camp on the East Coast named after him. You having trouble with your SALUTE reports or or SMEAC orders, I got your back. Maybe you need to know the distance the M16 is accurate to for a point target, 550 meters, that was easy!
Anyhow, I had already done the physical fitness test and the hump with a loaded ruck sack so this was the acme of the program and.............I passed. Yeah me! Three of us entered, but only two survived. Now the commanding general signs the order and I get to wear a shinny pin on my chest and have yet one more thing on my uniform that can catch on the seat belt.
The real reward is that I get to throw away all the notes and now concentrate on pleasure reading and videos. Maybe a little patient care.
I included a picture of the main hallway of a tent hospital behind the British hospital. This tent hospital seems to go on forever. At each junction between the subsequent tents in series (in line) there are 2 tents that jut out to each side to form different wards (lab, radiology, surgical, ICU....). It occupies a good piece of realestate. It serves two purposes. If something happened to the current hospital the they could theoretically move resorces into the tent hospital. It also serves as an overflow in case business picks up with operational tempo.
Anyhow, I had already done the physical fitness test and the hump with a loaded ruck sack so this was the acme of the program and.............I passed. Yeah me! Three of us entered, but only two survived. Now the commanding general signs the order and I get to wear a shinny pin on my chest and have yet one more thing on my uniform that can catch on the seat belt.
The real reward is that I get to throw away all the notes and now concentrate on pleasure reading and videos. Maybe a little patient care.
I included a picture of the main hallway of a tent hospital behind the British hospital. This tent hospital seems to go on forever. At each junction between the subsequent tents in series (in line) there are 2 tents that jut out to each side to form different wards (lab, radiology, surgical, ICU....). It occupies a good piece of realestate. It serves two purposes. If something happened to the current hospital the they could theoretically move resorces into the tent hospital. It also serves as an overflow in case business picks up with operational tempo.
Tired of pictures of me yet? Or maybe you do not see me, I am camouflaged.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
one of those days
Last night I decided to put away my all too efficient sleeping bag. It has been very warm in our tent with the heater on all night and I was getting a little baked in the sleeping bag. So I got under my sheets and blanket and went to sleep. Only to awaken in the wee hours freezing. I tried to get comfortable, but kept waking up due to the chill on my head and feet. I then realized that I did not hear any sounds from the heater. It broke. The one night I decide to go without the sleeping and that is the night the heater breaks. So here is the dilemma; I had another hour before I had to awaken. Do I get in a fetal position and pull blanket over my head or do I get out of what little warmth I have, get sleeping bag, and get back into the rack in the dark without waking anyone? I pulled the wool over my eyes.
So then I am getting ready to go to mass and I am asked if I wanted to go across base to breakfast. The breakfast is a lot better where they were going and so I was tempted to put my oatmeal aside, ditch mass and go for the good chow. Alas, I decided to stay and go to mass....only to find out it was canceled 5 minutes prior. Arrgghhhh!
So I go back to the BAS and get on my e-mail. Well, I need to open up a file, but for some unknown reason my Adobe does not work anymore. So I have to forward the e-mail to another account so I can look up that separate e-mail on a completely different computer. I was able to thus open up the document, but for some other unknown reason the printer is no longer recognized on that computer. I just cannot win. I seem to recall a book I use to read to the kids about a kid that had a very weird day on a Wednesday. Well it is Wednesday today and that is the only explanation I have.
I guess I should stop blogging and get back to studying. I have my oral board for my FMF (fleet Marine force) pin tomorrow. I therefore have been doing eveything I can to procrastinate and avoid studying.
Hey thanks to the Custodio family for the 2 board games they sent to the BAS for us to play.
So then I am getting ready to go to mass and I am asked if I wanted to go across base to breakfast. The breakfast is a lot better where they were going and so I was tempted to put my oatmeal aside, ditch mass and go for the good chow. Alas, I decided to stay and go to mass....only to find out it was canceled 5 minutes prior. Arrgghhhh!
So I go back to the BAS and get on my e-mail. Well, I need to open up a file, but for some unknown reason my Adobe does not work anymore. So I have to forward the e-mail to another account so I can look up that separate e-mail on a completely different computer. I was able to thus open up the document, but for some other unknown reason the printer is no longer recognized on that computer. I just cannot win. I seem to recall a book I use to read to the kids about a kid that had a very weird day on a Wednesday. Well it is Wednesday today and that is the only explanation I have.
I guess I should stop blogging and get back to studying. I have my oral board for my FMF (fleet Marine force) pin tomorrow. I therefore have been doing eveything I can to procrastinate and avoid studying.
Hey thanks to the Custodio family for the 2 board games they sent to the BAS for us to play.
Despite my bad day, the sun still came up.
Monday, January 25, 2010
another day in another week
I am starting to run out of topics to write about. I mean there is only so much life in the middle of an Afghanistan desert to talk about. I don't (and you wouldn't want) me to get too philisophical and I know there is only so much medicine I can write about without boring you to death.
We do get brillant stars at night out here since there is not much big city (actually no city) lights to obscure one's view. I have a star chart that I reference. You know you have been here too long when you can start to name the stars (Rigel, Betelgeuse, Sirius....). We also get some good sunsets and sunrises. Nature has a way of coming out beautiful no matter where you are.
We had 5 corpsmen with birthdays this month and 3 of them are here at the main BAS. We had a little birthday celebration for them. MWSS supports the MAG (Marine Air Group) with messing (cooking). We have befriended the cooks and they hooked us up with a cake made from scratch as well as some quesadillas. They will spot us in the chow line and give us some extra food (sometimes good food not necessarily on the menu that night). I am finding out more and more that it is who you know and what you have to trade that gets you places while deployed.
I do not know what it is with Filipinos and duct tape. I have a few Filipino corpsmen in out BAS and one of them did a fine fix it with duct tape. The picture is below and it is in honor of my father-in-law.
My mom wanted to know what they did with recycling and my daughter is a huge environmental citizen so I thought I would submit a picture of the local nationals picking up cardboard. The downside is to the best of my knowledge they are picking out all the cardboard because they burn that in a separate burn pit form the rest of the trash.
Me up close.
That is a rice cooker with the electrical duct taped to the side.
Notice the New Orleans spice next to it.
Recycling?
We do get brillant stars at night out here since there is not much big city (actually no city) lights to obscure one's view. I have a star chart that I reference. You know you have been here too long when you can start to name the stars (Rigel, Betelgeuse, Sirius....). We also get some good sunsets and sunrises. Nature has a way of coming out beautiful no matter where you are.
We had 5 corpsmen with birthdays this month and 3 of them are here at the main BAS. We had a little birthday celebration for them. MWSS supports the MAG (Marine Air Group) with messing (cooking). We have befriended the cooks and they hooked us up with a cake made from scratch as well as some quesadillas. They will spot us in the chow line and give us some extra food (sometimes good food not necessarily on the menu that night). I am finding out more and more that it is who you know and what you have to trade that gets you places while deployed.
I do not know what it is with Filipinos and duct tape. I have a few Filipino corpsmen in out BAS and one of them did a fine fix it with duct tape. The picture is below and it is in honor of my father-in-law.
My mom wanted to know what they did with recycling and my daughter is a huge environmental citizen so I thought I would submit a picture of the local nationals picking up cardboard. The downside is to the best of my knowledge they are picking out all the cardboard because they burn that in a separate burn pit form the rest of the trash.
Me up close.
That is a rice cooker with the electrical duct taped to the side.
Notice the New Orleans spice next to it.
Recycling?
Tasty cake.
Friday, January 22, 2010
more interesting cases
So we have had a couple of interesting cases this week. We had a military fire truck crash into a drainage ditch (I am working on getting pictures) when trying to avoid a local cutting them off. This resulted in one of the Marines smashing his left orbit into the dashboard. He was seen at the hospital and sutured up, but followed up to me the next day. His left eye was swollen shut except for a slit and was a deep purple. That was not the interesting part. He had hypesthesia (decreased or lack of sensation) of his left cheek, left upper lip and left gum. He also had a ptosis (drooping) of left upper lip. This was worrisome for a possible orbital fracture with infrorbital nerve entrapment. So I sent him to the hospital for an orbital CT and sure enough he has 3 orbital fractures.
The second case was a female Marine complaining of constipation and feeling of gurgling in stomach. She had also had some nausea some weeks prior. She has been working out like crazy out here and had been on a supplement allowing her to lose 35 pounds. She was convinced that she had worms. She does have a parasite of sorts…..a baby! When I palpated her belly the belly started to palpate me back. She has a fundal height (way of measuring the pregnant uterus) of 20cm. I figure her to be about 20+ weeks pregnant. Oh, she had a positive pregnancy test too. In case you are wondering, we have been gone about 18 weeks, so her pregnancy is legit.
I also had a pediatric consult today. I got a call from a satellite base about a local national 3 day infant boy who has not yet urinated. Feeding fine, no jaundice, consolable, but no pee-pee. I am worried about kidney problems (not making pee-pee) or posterior urethral valves (blocking pee-pee). Anyhow, we arranged for a helicopter to transport the kiddo to an Afghanistan referral hospital. I was about to instruct the GMO over the phone on how to do a suprapubic tap (sticking a needle through the lower belly into the bladder) had we not been able to get the transport.
Transport vehicle for the squadron. Yes, it is an old school bus.
The second case was a female Marine complaining of constipation and feeling of gurgling in stomach. She had also had some nausea some weeks prior. She has been working out like crazy out here and had been on a supplement allowing her to lose 35 pounds. She was convinced that she had worms. She does have a parasite of sorts…..a baby! When I palpated her belly the belly started to palpate me back. She has a fundal height (way of measuring the pregnant uterus) of 20cm. I figure her to be about 20+ weeks pregnant. Oh, she had a positive pregnancy test too. In case you are wondering, we have been gone about 18 weeks, so her pregnancy is legit.
I also had a pediatric consult today. I got a call from a satellite base about a local national 3 day infant boy who has not yet urinated. Feeding fine, no jaundice, consolable, but no pee-pee. I am worried about kidney problems (not making pee-pee) or posterior urethral valves (blocking pee-pee). Anyhow, we arranged for a helicopter to transport the kiddo to an Afghanistan referral hospital. I was about to instruct the GMO over the phone on how to do a suprapubic tap (sticking a needle through the lower belly into the bladder) had we not been able to get the transport.
Transport vehicle for the squadron. Yes, it is an old school bus.
My swing is looking good. I found 3 golf clubs. My mom and Liz sent out a peice of carpet and practice balls.
I was happy to see this small patch of greenery. This is the first green I have seen out here besides the color of uniforms.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
helicopter support team
So yesterday I got to participate on an HST (helicopter support team). Basically, we netted up some water bladders filled with drinking water (1000’s of pounds each) to be flown to another forward operating base. After you net them up and put on a huge D ring, a helicopter comes down to have it latched to its underside and then fly away with the goods.
In this case, it was 2 53s that flew in. So when they approach you have to brace yourself due to the immense winds they generate. I literally had to be in a crouch position leaning into the wind with my hands over my face. Even in that position, I was being pushed back along the rocks. You then rush under the helicopter and one individual holds a grounding rod to the hook from the underbelly of the helicopter while another individual (me in this case) hooks the D ring on the hook. Then we all skeedattle to the periphery, brace ourselves once again as the helicopter increases its collective (power) to lift off. When it flies away you see a brilliant electrical current on the edges of the rotor blades (only 175,000 volts or so…). Very motivating experience, great leg work out! Pictures limited due to being night time.
I am shocked that Scott Brown won the election for senate seat for Mass. It is an amazing story. He is a republican running for a seat that was held by the most democratic family (Kennedy's) in probably the most democratic state after being behind 35 points in the polls weeks ago....and he wins! This is a warning sign to those in Congress that people are fed up. Maybe this will turn the tide. I think it is a foreshadowing of waht is to come in Nov elections.
Forklift lifts the heavy water bladders onto the net.
Marines secure the net around bladders.
In this case, it was 2 53s that flew in. So when they approach you have to brace yourself due to the immense winds they generate. I literally had to be in a crouch position leaning into the wind with my hands over my face. Even in that position, I was being pushed back along the rocks. You then rush under the helicopter and one individual holds a grounding rod to the hook from the underbelly of the helicopter while another individual (me in this case) hooks the D ring on the hook. Then we all skeedattle to the periphery, brace ourselves once again as the helicopter increases its collective (power) to lift off. When it flies away you see a brilliant electrical current on the edges of the rotor blades (only 175,000 volts or so…). Very motivating experience, great leg work out! Pictures limited due to being night time.
I am shocked that Scott Brown won the election for senate seat for Mass. It is an amazing story. He is a republican running for a seat that was held by the most democratic family (Kennedy's) in probably the most democratic state after being behind 35 points in the polls weeks ago....and he wins! This is a warning sign to those in Congress that people are fed up. Maybe this will turn the tide. I think it is a foreshadowing of waht is to come in Nov elections.
Forklift lifts the heavy water bladders onto the net.
Marines secure the net around bladders.
Guy with grounding rod is on left and just released. I am far right backing up after I hook the load to the helicopter.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Go Chargers!
I requested at the last minute that Liz send me some Charger gear to wear for the playoffs. Amazingly she sent this jersey of mine just 7 days ago and it is here. I have to wake up at 2AM Monday morning to watch the game, but that is what being a fan is all about. If the Chargers lose you may next see a picture of this jersey being burned.
I took some motivating pictures of a couple of British troops about to go on patrol. They follow below.
Here is the brillant quote of the day by a wonderful liberal voice from Hollywood. Actor Danny Glover says the following about Haiti earthquake...“When we see what we did at the climate summit in Copenhagen, this is the response, this is what happens, you know what I’m sayin’?” Absolute idiot! I think he is officially worse than Sean Penn on my list of ignorant Hollywood types.
I took some motivating pictures of a couple of British troops about to go on patrol. They follow below.
Here is the brillant quote of the day by a wonderful liberal voice from Hollywood. Actor Danny Glover says the following about Haiti earthquake...“When we see what we did at the climate summit in Copenhagen, this is the response, this is what happens, you know what I’m sayin’?” Absolute idiot! I think he is officially worse than Sean Penn on my list of ignorant Hollywood types.
Friday, January 15, 2010
bucket list
So I got a copy of the movie The Bucket List. I have not yet watched it, but understand it to be a list of things one wants to do during their lifetime. I was in a particularly mundane meeting the other day and decided to make my own bucket list. Here are some things I would like to accomplish before I am too grey and arthritic. Top ten are:
1) Run a marathon – Planning on trying to do the Rock ‘n’ Roll marathon in 2010. Anyone want to join me?
2) Jump out of a perfectly good plane – I was going to do this on my 40th, but since I will be in Afghanistan I will push back a little bit. Again, if you want someone to jump out of a plane with, I am your man. As a side note, I actually had orders to jump school during medical school but they got pulled at the last minute for another group that was more in need. Bummer.
3) Bungee jump off bridge – Preferable in Australia.
4) Go to Australia – a) to accomplish #3 b) my dad always wanted to go to Australia and never had the chance c) it would be great trip for family
5) Go to Manchu Picchu – This is probably what I want to do most and would want to go within next 2-3 years. Anyone game?
6) Visit the Vatican – Of course would have to explore Italy at same time.
7) Go to Carnival in Rio de Janeiro – I just don’t know if Madis Gras in New Orleans would be enough.
8) See Christ the Redeemer statue – Hoping to parlay this with Carnival.
9) See the Pyramids of Egypt – Who wouldn’t?
10)I am leaving this slot open for now. There are some other places I would like to go (like Alaska and many places in Europe), there are other sites to see (like Mt Rushmore, Niagra Falls) or possibly trekking down to the bottom of Grand Canyon. Maybe I go wild and get a tattoo, I just don’t know yet. Any ideas?
My favorite quote of the week is from Vladamir Putin when he said ... “In addition to the global warming challenges, we need to address'global cooling' effects and to do so promptly,”. You got to wonder about some of the world's leaders.
1) Run a marathon – Planning on trying to do the Rock ‘n’ Roll marathon in 2010. Anyone want to join me?
2) Jump out of a perfectly good plane – I was going to do this on my 40th, but since I will be in Afghanistan I will push back a little bit. Again, if you want someone to jump out of a plane with, I am your man. As a side note, I actually had orders to jump school during medical school but they got pulled at the last minute for another group that was more in need. Bummer.
3) Bungee jump off bridge – Preferable in Australia.
4) Go to Australia – a) to accomplish #3 b) my dad always wanted to go to Australia and never had the chance c) it would be great trip for family
5) Go to Manchu Picchu – This is probably what I want to do most and would want to go within next 2-3 years. Anyone game?
6) Visit the Vatican – Of course would have to explore Italy at same time.
7) Go to Carnival in Rio de Janeiro – I just don’t know if Madis Gras in New Orleans would be enough.
8) See Christ the Redeemer statue – Hoping to parlay this with Carnival.
9) See the Pyramids of Egypt – Who wouldn’t?
10)I am leaving this slot open for now. There are some other places I would like to go (like Alaska and many places in Europe), there are other sites to see (like Mt Rushmore, Niagra Falls) or possibly trekking down to the bottom of Grand Canyon. Maybe I go wild and get a tattoo, I just don’t know yet. Any ideas?
My favorite quote of the week is from Vladamir Putin when he said ... “In addition to the global warming challenges, we need to address'global cooling' effects and to do so promptly,”. You got to wonder about some of the world's leaders.
Dug this picture up from my Okinawa days. I made this halloween costume from scratch. I spent entirely too much time and money in this project and this is the only picture I took of it.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
kaboom
We had another extended blackout of computers and phones. We get these when bad news needs to be relayed to families in the U.S. Even though it is frustrating not having access to communications to talk to our friends and families, everyone understands why the blackouts must occur and that we are lucky to be on a secure base and not fighting on the front lines. I imagine that there will be many more times for the remainder of the deployment where communications will be down for varying periods of time.
So, the other day I was in my room talking to the chaplain (my roomie) when all of a sudden there was a loud BOOM and the ground literally shook. Chaplain nearly dove under his bunk much like we were taught in elementary school for earthquakes. We ran outside and saw this big plumb of smoke arising from just outside the perimeter wall.
About 2 minutes later, there was an announcement over the loudspeaker system stating it was a controlled explosion. Usually, they will make the announcement before the controlled explosion such that we will be prepared and not freak out. Anyhow, the ground has not shook like that for me since….ah better stop there since the kids may be reading, and my mother-in-law, and my mom….
Speaking of loudspeaker announcements, you may remember that my squadron is pretty much the only Americans actually residing on a British base. Therefore, we get British announcements. Now, when I am sitting right next to some of these chaps I often cannot make out a darn thing they say due to their thick accents (it would interesting to know if they have the same problem listening to us, then again, English is getting pretty hard to understand in America even for me). So imagine what this same chap must sound like on a loudspeaker that is 50 feet in the air and about 100 yards away. A message like “There will be a controlled explosion at 1100” might sound like “Aerial bye uh enralled splashin aught oven and red”. It is sort of a game making it out.
Presto!
So, the other day I was in my room talking to the chaplain (my roomie) when all of a sudden there was a loud BOOM and the ground literally shook. Chaplain nearly dove under his bunk much like we were taught in elementary school for earthquakes. We ran outside and saw this big plumb of smoke arising from just outside the perimeter wall.
About 2 minutes later, there was an announcement over the loudspeaker system stating it was a controlled explosion. Usually, they will make the announcement before the controlled explosion such that we will be prepared and not freak out. Anyhow, the ground has not shook like that for me since….ah better stop there since the kids may be reading, and my mother-in-law, and my mom….
Speaking of loudspeaker announcements, you may remember that my squadron is pretty much the only Americans actually residing on a British base. Therefore, we get British announcements. Now, when I am sitting right next to some of these chaps I often cannot make out a darn thing they say due to their thick accents (it would interesting to know if they have the same problem listening to us, then again, English is getting pretty hard to understand in America even for me). So imagine what this same chap must sound like on a loudspeaker that is 50 feet in the air and about 100 yards away. A message like “There will be a controlled explosion at 1100” might sound like “Aerial bye uh enralled splashin aught oven and red”. It is sort of a game making it out.
Presto!
Typical bunkers around camp in case of need.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
my friend
Nice to be back on the computer. The power to the computer tent has been out for a couple of days.
So whenever I go somewhere for a substantial amount of time, I like to get some nice momentos to remember my experience. We have decked out our home with interesting pieces of furniture from our time in Asia, my office has plaques and knick knacks for me to remember my past commands. Unfortunately, my choices here on a base in Afghanistan are limited. I can chose from copy infringed DVDs, knockoff sunglasses, hookahs, or carpets.
I bought a couple of nice carpets for Liz earlier in the deployment (Take into account that I am a military man with no fashion sense picking out carpets). You can buy wool, silk or a wool silk combo. In a nutshell, the wool ones are more wear resistant and are meant to be on the floor for use, the silk ones are for hanging on the wall (and are usually from Iran, not Afghanistan) and the wool/silk blend is somewhere in between. I have learned to look at the carpets closely to assure not machine made, to look for single versus double knots and approximately how many knots per square inch.
So, I guess that I did okay with the first batch of carpets, because Liz has requested a runner for the hallway. Problem is that she has been a bit tardy telling me what color or size to get. Today I came across a new bazaar and came across a vendor of carpets. I decided to go ahead and look at what carpets he had and ended up doing a impulsive buy of a runner. Anyone who has traveled has a story about haggling for a price. I thought that I would give you a rundown of how my encounter with this carpet vendor went.
Vendor (V) “Hello my friend (even though we just met), how I help you”
Mark (M) “uhm, I am looking for a carpet, a runner, you know what I mean”
V “I give you good price, just for you (we now have known each other for 90 seconds), come here, look, hah, good carpet”
M “I like this one, how much?”
V “You pick good carpet, very good, see, look, feel, see, very good carpet, last forever”
M “How much is good carpet?”
V “$320, is good price, just for you”
M “Sorry too expensive”
V “Wait, how much you want to spend?”
M “A lot less than that…….how about $100?”
V “Ahhh, ohhh (look of horror), ahhh, nooo, this good carpet, take one year to make, feel”
M “I can see it is good carpet. What is your best price?”
V “Since you good customer, I give you special price, $260”
M “I can stretch to $120, but that is still more than I want to pay”
V “I go down $60 and you just go up $20”
M “Maybe we are too far apart, I will think about it, thanks”
V “Wait, $250, good price, lets shake” He holds out his hand. I do not shake because I do not like the price and I cannot remember which hand is used for eating and which for the bathroom.
M “Still too much, thanks”
V “What is your best price?”
M “$140”
V More cacophonous sounds “ahhh, ohhh, nooo, this too good carpet, take one year to make, feel”
Anyhow, this keeps back and forth until we are like $150 versus $180 and making no ground. I pull out $150 cash and say he can take it or leave it. He accepts and everyone happy. “You come back and buy more carpets” are his last words. This carpet is from Herat which is along the Iranian border and is made of wool. Hopefully Liz likes the carpet as well.
One last bargain story. I needed some cheap sunglasses and I picked up a pair and asked how much. Vendor says “$15”, “how much???”, “$10”, I hold up 5 fingers and he says “yeh yeh okay”. Quickest negotiations I have ever had.
Shopping at Camp Leatherneck
Runner purchase
Up close design
Previous buys
So whenever I go somewhere for a substantial amount of time, I like to get some nice momentos to remember my experience. We have decked out our home with interesting pieces of furniture from our time in Asia, my office has plaques and knick knacks for me to remember my past commands. Unfortunately, my choices here on a base in Afghanistan are limited. I can chose from copy infringed DVDs, knockoff sunglasses, hookahs, or carpets.
I bought a couple of nice carpets for Liz earlier in the deployment (Take into account that I am a military man with no fashion sense picking out carpets). You can buy wool, silk or a wool silk combo. In a nutshell, the wool ones are more wear resistant and are meant to be on the floor for use, the silk ones are for hanging on the wall (and are usually from Iran, not Afghanistan) and the wool/silk blend is somewhere in between. I have learned to look at the carpets closely to assure not machine made, to look for single versus double knots and approximately how many knots per square inch.
So, I guess that I did okay with the first batch of carpets, because Liz has requested a runner for the hallway. Problem is that she has been a bit tardy telling me what color or size to get. Today I came across a new bazaar and came across a vendor of carpets. I decided to go ahead and look at what carpets he had and ended up doing a impulsive buy of a runner. Anyone who has traveled has a story about haggling for a price. I thought that I would give you a rundown of how my encounter with this carpet vendor went.
Vendor (V) “Hello my friend (even though we just met), how I help you”
Mark (M) “uhm, I am looking for a carpet, a runner, you know what I mean”
V “I give you good price, just for you (we now have known each other for 90 seconds), come here, look, hah, good carpet”
M “I like this one, how much?”
V “You pick good carpet, very good, see, look, feel, see, very good carpet, last forever”
M “How much is good carpet?”
V “$320, is good price, just for you”
M “Sorry too expensive”
V “Wait, how much you want to spend?”
M “A lot less than that…….how about $100?”
V “Ahhh, ohhh (look of horror), ahhh, nooo, this good carpet, take one year to make, feel”
M “I can see it is good carpet. What is your best price?”
V “Since you good customer, I give you special price, $260”
M “I can stretch to $120, but that is still more than I want to pay”
V “I go down $60 and you just go up $20”
M “Maybe we are too far apart, I will think about it, thanks”
V “Wait, $250, good price, lets shake” He holds out his hand. I do not shake because I do not like the price and I cannot remember which hand is used for eating and which for the bathroom.
M “Still too much, thanks”
V “What is your best price?”
M “$140”
V More cacophonous sounds “ahhh, ohhh, nooo, this too good carpet, take one year to make, feel”
Anyhow, this keeps back and forth until we are like $150 versus $180 and making no ground. I pull out $150 cash and say he can take it or leave it. He accepts and everyone happy. “You come back and buy more carpets” are his last words. This carpet is from Herat which is along the Iranian border and is made of wool. Hopefully Liz likes the carpet as well.
One last bargain story. I needed some cheap sunglasses and I picked up a pair and asked how much. Vendor says “$15”, “how much???”, “$10”, I hold up 5 fingers and he says “yeh yeh okay”. Quickest negotiations I have ever had.
Shopping at Camp Leatherneck
Runner purchase
Up close design
Previous buys
Thursday, January 7, 2010
wearing thin
It is getting to that point of the deployment where I am like 'I am done already'. The fact is that I am only here for emergencies, which thankfully there have been few. Thus, I am not really challenged medically and I feel like my skills are dwindling. I have had plenty of time to read medical resources, but there is only so much of that one can tolerate.
You add the lack of professional stimulation to an environment that is cold, sandy and flat and then you mix in the fact that I have no privacy and you get one demotivated allergist. Of course, I could have gone to the Army as an augment as did one of my allergist colleagues. He is getting killed with patients because it is him and one Army medical tech to care for over 800 individuals. On top of that, a bunch of his unit are Army reservists who were not properly medically pre-screened. He has had to send home quite a few (incontinence, neuralgias, long history of GI bleed...). At least he has a pseudo office. I get a third of a picnic table as a desk and get to share a phone and computer with 14 corpsmen.
Let me pause for a second, because I am almost wishing that I was back at NMCSD seeing patients and that would cut into my workouts and my guitar practice that I do enjoy here.
Naahhhh, I am still going to complain. We get taskings to send corpsmen to different places and usually this requires that we send someone who is up to speed and motivated. Thus, we have sent off most of our good corpsmen. The ones we have left in the BAS are either anti-social (for instance you say hi shipmate and you get back a blank stare with no vocalization) or they move like a slug, or they are under investigation (can't divulge details).
Lastly, I want to give you an example of the types of people/situations that make my day entertaining. Yesterday I had an urgent message that a SSGT needed to know particular information about a Marine being flown out. I got back to him that I had already briefed the CO on the situation hours ago. He responded that he needed an e-mail telling him the information so he could brief the CO. I echoed again that I had already briefed the CO. However, he was going on protocol that he needed an e-mail and he intended to brief the CO on the matter. It did not matter that I verbally told the CO more info than I had e-mailed to the SSGT, he needed to brief the CO, it was his job. Kind of a small example of how government runs anything.
You add the lack of professional stimulation to an environment that is cold, sandy and flat and then you mix in the fact that I have no privacy and you get one demotivated allergist. Of course, I could have gone to the Army as an augment as did one of my allergist colleagues. He is getting killed with patients because it is him and one Army medical tech to care for over 800 individuals. On top of that, a bunch of his unit are Army reservists who were not properly medically pre-screened. He has had to send home quite a few (incontinence, neuralgias, long history of GI bleed...). At least he has a pseudo office. I get a third of a picnic table as a desk and get to share a phone and computer with 14 corpsmen.
Let me pause for a second, because I am almost wishing that I was back at NMCSD seeing patients and that would cut into my workouts and my guitar practice that I do enjoy here.
Naahhhh, I am still going to complain. We get taskings to send corpsmen to different places and usually this requires that we send someone who is up to speed and motivated. Thus, we have sent off most of our good corpsmen. The ones we have left in the BAS are either anti-social (for instance you say hi shipmate and you get back a blank stare with no vocalization) or they move like a slug, or they are under investigation (can't divulge details).
Lastly, I want to give you an example of the types of people/situations that make my day entertaining. Yesterday I had an urgent message that a SSGT needed to know particular information about a Marine being flown out. I got back to him that I had already briefed the CO on the situation hours ago. He responded that he needed an e-mail telling him the information so he could brief the CO. I echoed again that I had already briefed the CO. However, he was going on protocol that he needed an e-mail and he intended to brief the CO on the matter. It did not matter that I verbally told the CO more info than I had e-mailed to the SSGT, he needed to brief the CO, it was his job. Kind of a small example of how government runs anything.
Monday, January 4, 2010
exchange
Today I am going to talk about the exchanges here in Afghanistan. There are 2 American exchanges that have either an American military or civilian at the head and with third country nationals (TCNs) running the shop. We have the basics, but shelves go bare quickly when a new shipment comes in or when it is payday. Prices are about the same as in the States. The smaller exchange is about a hundred yards down from my BAS. The larger is a 5 minute drive. The larger one is always packed since it is on the main American base. Basically, the soilders have nothing better to do with their free time and so go there to loiter about and buy anything of interest.
There are also Dannish and British exchanges which offer a different variety of goods, but often the prices are a bit steep. I like to look at the food items because the labels are often amusing. An example would be 'digestives' crackers.
All the exchanges use the U.S. dollar as currency. You do not get coins as change though. Instead, you get 'pogs' which are silver dollar size cardboard cutouts with denominations written on one side and some sort of motivating picture on the other. You can actually use the pogs in American excahnges back in the States. I have been sending them in letters to the kids for souvenirs.
I had mentioned prior that it was getting colder here, but really the weather has been better than expected for this time of year. We have not yet had snow and the rains have been tolerable. I can only hope that this pattern holds through the winter. In other news, the U.S. is on target for coldest winter in 25 years (tell that to Al Gore).
Getting tired of seeing me in pictures yet?
There are also Dannish and British exchanges which offer a different variety of goods, but often the prices are a bit steep. I like to look at the food items because the labels are often amusing. An example would be 'digestives' crackers.
All the exchanges use the U.S. dollar as currency. You do not get coins as change though. Instead, you get 'pogs' which are silver dollar size cardboard cutouts with denominations written on one side and some sort of motivating picture on the other. You can actually use the pogs in American excahnges back in the States. I have been sending them in letters to the kids for souvenirs.
I had mentioned prior that it was getting colder here, but really the weather has been better than expected for this time of year. We have not yet had snow and the rains have been tolerable. I can only hope that this pattern holds through the winter. In other news, the U.S. is on target for coldest winter in 25 years (tell that to Al Gore).
Getting tired of seeing me in pictures yet?
Welcome to Camp Barber exchange.
Friday, January 1, 2010
happy birthday Liz
Today (at least it is the 2nd here in Afghanistan) is Liz’s birthday. I will not disclose her age, but will remind everyone that she reached a milestone last year! I love this part of the year because for the next 2 months she is 2 years older than me. As we get older it is not as big of a deal. Now when she was 21 and I was 19, there was cause for a lot of ribbing that she was a cradle robber. The only thing I can rib her about now is that we are in two entirely different decades of life (oops did I give another hint about her age?).
This, I believe, is the first birthday of hers that I will have missed since 1990 (we met 1989). I have helped her to celebrate her birthday while she was in college, while studying in nursing school, on both sides of this continent and even overseas. This will be the first from a war zone.
My birthday present to Liz is that I will refrain from making another video on my blog. This will help stave off some of the embarrassment that I have caused her in the past and that which I am sure to cause in the future. Honey, I have nothing to toast you with except for orange-squash or black currant juices (actual drinks in the chow hall…yuck). So I raise my lemon lime Gatorade bottle up and toast you on your special day. I love you.
I do not have my drive with all my pictures on it, but was able to find a few pics of Liz over the years on my hard drive which are below. As opposed to the kids and I, she appears to remain ageless in her pictures.
Club Med, Ishikaki (spelling?) in Japan around 2003. I include this picture a) because the bunny ears and b) because Liz absolutely hated this shirt of mine.
Liz and Madeline at a 'tea' a few years ago.
Liz and Kyle at Liz's BDay party last year.
Liz and Timmy in Okinawa circa 2003.
Maybe my all-time favorite Okinawa picture at peace park. Liz's wind blown hair, Timmy's look of terror, Kyle doing a superhero pose and Madeline giving her flower child peace sign. Classic!
This, I believe, is the first birthday of hers that I will have missed since 1990 (we met 1989). I have helped her to celebrate her birthday while she was in college, while studying in nursing school, on both sides of this continent and even overseas. This will be the first from a war zone.
My birthday present to Liz is that I will refrain from making another video on my blog. This will help stave off some of the embarrassment that I have caused her in the past and that which I am sure to cause in the future. Honey, I have nothing to toast you with except for orange-squash or black currant juices (actual drinks in the chow hall…yuck). So I raise my lemon lime Gatorade bottle up and toast you on your special day. I love you.
I do not have my drive with all my pictures on it, but was able to find a few pics of Liz over the years on my hard drive which are below. As opposed to the kids and I, she appears to remain ageless in her pictures.
Club Med, Ishikaki (spelling?) in Japan around 2003. I include this picture a) because the bunny ears and b) because Liz absolutely hated this shirt of mine.
Liz and Madeline at a 'tea' a few years ago.
Liz and Kyle at Liz's BDay party last year.
Liz and Timmy in Okinawa circa 2003.
Maybe my all-time favorite Okinawa picture at peace park. Liz's wind blown hair, Timmy's look of terror, Kyle doing a superhero pose and Madeline giving her flower child peace sign. Classic!
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