Back at my FOB after another sleepless night of waiting and waiting and then the Chinook, which is now a very cold ride as we slide into the fall. Flying through the high passes I observed that there is snow on the north facing aspects of the peaks. That's pretty cool. It will be a great ride through the mountains in January on my way out.
My BAF visit was successful. I got a brief taste of civilization and a little rest. I mostly enjoyed the bathrooms and showers in the hospital staff dorms, but I also got excited about the coffee shop, the big, open air gym (I would pay to belong to a gym like that), and hanging out with the other docs at the combat stress clinic at the hospital. Let me tell you, the Air Force really knows how to put together some nice living facilities in the war zone.
Other news: I found out that I have a replacement in the pipeline-- the person is going to the lovely Army Combat Skills Training in November and then will be joining us after the new year starts. I'm not 100% sure that they will be replacing me, but I was the earliest provider, so it would make sense that the first replacement takes my billet... That isn't notable news in itself, but it does mean that the end is approaching, and that's encouraging.
Being back with the USAF retarded my acculturation process-- just as I was getting acclimated to the Army and its mysterious ways, I spent four days with my Air Force brethren and got a shot of nicotine-and-obscenity-free air. OK, there was a little Army-bashing going on, which is unfair, but there is a big culture divide between certain elements of the two services. I am deployed with mostly scouts and infantry and I don't know much about the Army, but apparently that says it all. The fact that I am a member of the not-very-high-speed medical corps doesn't help either...
Don't get me wrong, these are good guys, tough guys, who do stuff I would never volunteer to do, but the charm of living with them has worn off. Jeez-- I just wish they would flush the toilet once in a while and maybe write some bathroom graffiti that consists of something more than: "I WUNT TO F^@K GERLS"
That was a slight exaggeration. Slight.
Keeping my spirits up and waiting for the snow!
