Fun, Food and Flying

Yet another KRAB week has passed. Although the days can seem to sometimes crawl, I continue to be amazed by how quickly another weekend arrives. God bless the gym and the running routes on base!! I had no trauma patients this week but did manage to treat a few common general surgey issues, including a young soldier with acute cholecystitis that was at a more forward base. Unfortunately for him, his illness struck during one of our weekly dust storms and I was forced to transport him by ground to Kirkuk. He stayed here for a little more than a day until the skies cleared and he was off to a cleaner facility with laparoscopic equipment to have his gallbladder removed. I have to admit, though, that a small part of me kept hoping he would deteriorate and allow me the privelege of shucking out that gallbladder the old fashioned way!

I am still working on arranging the driving training for this vehicle, but here is a sample picture of one of the MRAP's on base. These are the primary Army convoy vehicle, and were specifically designed to withstand IED blasts (improvised explosive devices, the most common terrorist weapon here). They come in many different configurations with various toys attached (this happens to be a medical MRAP, as is obvious by the red crosses).

This weekend, we had the best "trifecta" of food thus far. Friday was a BBQ at the Provincial Reconstruction Team's compound (the nation-builders that support education, healthcare and other Iraqi reform projects) and some interesting conversations with folks that I don't normally get to meet. Saturday was our weekly BBQ-and-a-movie at the EMEDS (we watched the original MASH movie) and Sunday was another EMEDS event with lots of incredible Korean BBQ (sweet beef, spicy pork, kimchi...). Thank you Sgt Parker for all of the time and effort spent preparing and cooking, it was worth it. Below is Dr. O manning the 'que, toasting some fantastic pineapple slices while enjoying a little treat from Baskin Robbins. Yes, deployments can be tough sometimes!

And, last but not least, I enjoyed some time on a flight simulator this weekend. We use them to train upcoming Iraqi pilots, but they always have unused time. So, the civilian instructors are happy to teach us enthusiastic neophytes and watch us try not to crash. By the end of the session, I could take off, fly around, do an aileron roll and land without any verbal instruction. I will definitely be making this a regular stop on my weekly rounds!

I love you always Cita!!