6 Months In Kabul

First Day of the Blog

2008-06-03T04:43:00.000-07:00

Just a reminder, this is the first blog entry which means that it is the oldest. I reversed the order so it could be read like a book. Think of it as Chapter 1.

Today is the first day of my blog from beautiful Kabul, Afghanistan. I decided to start this blog because I have had such an overwhelming response from all of the wonderful people that have written me through Soldier's Angels and Any Soldier. I have received so many letters and care packages from people back home that I thought that it would be a great way for everyone to keep in touch. I have received mail from class rooms, senior centers, and people young and old throughout the U.S.. I had no idea that there was so many wonderful people out there. I encourage you to post a comment. I would like to know what you think of my site.

I decided to title my blog 6 Months In Kabul for obvious reasons. I actually today I only have 19 weeks, or 137 days, or 3,197 hours or 191,823 minutes left, but who is counting. In case you were wondering what a shazdoc is, I am not sure either. I was told by one of the students that writes to me that being a doctor is the shaz. I thought that it was a really funny word and it gave me a good laugh when I heard it. She guarantees me that it is a good thing.

For those of you that do not already know, I am a Family Practice physician. I was told one fateful day in June, while I was busy with a full schedule of patients, that I needed to pack my bags because I was going to deploy to Kabul, Afghanistan for 6 months. Of course, my initial response was shock, then I have to admit, a small bit of grief, then later I decided that like any other challenge in life, you just have to make the best of it.

My favorite quote of all time was from Richard Nixon's final farewell speech from Aug 8th, 1974:
"It is only a beginning, always. The young must know it; the old must know it. It must always sustain us, because the greatness comes not when things go always good for you, but the greatness comes and you are really tested, when you take some knocks, some disappointments, when sadness comes, because only if you have been in the deepest valley can you ever know how magnificent it is to be on the highest mountain. "

Yes, I was in that deep valley for a short while because, after all, I was going to be away from my family for 6 months and, like everyone else, I had heard of all the really bad things that were going on over here.

I had a week to gather my stuff and fly off to Fort Riley, Kansas where I spent 2 months preparing for my deployment. At Fort Riley I did a lot of Army basic training. I got qualified on a lot of different weapons, I learned to drive a HUMVEE, operate radios, practiced convoy exercises, land navigation and many other combat related activities. I also had a number of Dari classes and "Leader Meets" where we practiced the art of communicating with Afghan nationals through the use of an interpreter. The Army tried to make the training as realistic as possible. We regularly heard Muslim prayer through a loud speakers and we even had a number of exercises where locals from the community were dressed as Afghans. There was also a "Heat Trainer" which is a real HUMVEE that is rigged to spin 360' to prepare us for a rollover.

I arrived in Kabul in Aug after a short stop at Manas Air Base in Kyrgyzstan. I am currently staying at Camp Phoenix. The best way I could describe this base is it is very flat with wall-to-wall concrete. It has a ton of small wooden houses staked in real close (we call them B-huts). It gets very dusty at times especially when helicopters fly in. Outside the base the landscape somewhat reminds me of Phoenix, AZ but with a lot more pollution. Camp Phoenix is actually one of the better bases. It has a lot of very nice amenities. I hesitate to mention all of them because I afraid that everyone will stop sending me care packages when they learn how nice it is over here. : )

I work with 3 other really nice people, one of them is also a doctor and the other 2 work in health care related jobs. Our mission is to open up a new clinic. We recently toured their old clinic. Their current clinic does not even have running water! The clinic will not only be available to the police but also to their family members as well. I know that when it opens it will have a big impact on their lives. I am really proud to be a part of this mission.

I hope you enjoy this blog. Please feel free to add a comment if you like.

Eid

2008-06-02T03:20:00.000-07:00

Today was a pretty uneventful day. This morning I ate my typical breakfast of grits with a ton of kiwis. I do not know where I came up with this strange breakfast combination but I seem to have it every morning for the past month.

I spent a good part of the day working on a mass casualty plan for the new clinic. For those of you that do not know, a mass casualty is when a medical facility receives a large number of casualties that exceeds their normal ability to care for them. Patients are brought to a hospital or clinic and they are categorized based on their injury either Immediate, Delayed, Minimal or Expectant. Obviously, the Immediate patients require the most urgent care and so forth down the line. The idea is to focus your care on the people who need it most and are most likely to survive. I am curious how receptive my Afghan counterparts will be to my plan and whether or not it will be implemented. It will also be interesting lecturing with the use of a Dari interpreter. I will keep you posted on how it goes.

The highlight of my day was beating my office rivals in pool. We have a ongoing daily pool match where the winner gets to wear a 1st place medal. So far me and my partner have claimed the prize 2 days in a row. Tonight is poker night. I play twice a week. Last week I finished #1 out of 66. I won a casino PC game. It was pretty exciting. I doubt that I will be able to continue my winning streak. I am just hoping to place in the top 25 tonight. Poker is probably one of the activities that I enjoy the most at Camp Phoenix.

We are still awaiting the end of Ramadan, also called Eid ul-Fitr or just Eid. It typically ends with the next full moon. In case you did not already know, Ramadan is a Muslim holiday where the entire month is spent fasting. I copied a short summery of Eid from Wikapedia in case you are interested in learning more info.

Eid is an Arabic term meaning "festivity" or "celebration" while Fitr means "to break the fast" and can also mean "nature" from the word "fitrat" and therefore symbolizes the breaking of the fasting period. On the day of the celebration, a typical Muslim family is awake very early and then after praying the first normal everyday prayer, is required to eat in a small quantity, symbolizing the end of Ramadan. They then attend special congregational prayers held only for this occasion in mosquess, in large open areas, stadiums or arenas. The prayer is generally short, and is followed by a sermon. Worshippers greet and embrace each other in a spirit of peace and love after the congregational prayer. After the special prayers, festivities and merriment are commonly observed with visits to the homes of relatives and friends to thank God for all blessings.

For Muslims, Eid ul-Fitr is a joyous occasion with important religious significance, celebrating of the achievement of enhanced piety. It is a day of forgiveness, moral victory, peace of congregation, fellowship, brotherhood and unity. Muslims celebrate not only the end of fasting, but also thank God for the help and strength that they believe he gave them throughout the previous month to help them practice self-control. It is a time of giving and sharing, and many Muslims dress in holiday attire.

Happy 25.2% Day!

2008-06-01T22:18:00.000-07:00

I read a funny joke this morning:

Radio Command: "I am an admiral with the U.S. Navy. You are in the direct path of a battle ship. Alter your course immediately."

Radio Reply: "No, sir. You must alter your course. I am a lighthouse."

I sometimes feel like that admiral. Aside from today being Eid, today is also 25.2% Day!!! We are 25.2% finished with our deployment.

Fridays are normally our "down day." It is our one day off during the week and we are all in our office working. It helps to pass the time. The locals normally host a bizarre on Fridays. A bizarre is similar to a flea market where you can buy local crafts, rugs, and various other local souvenirs. It was canceled today because it is a Muslim holiday. Next week I will try and post some pictures of the bizarre.

Yesterday, I received the nicest care package from the "Busy Bees" at a Senior Center in Thousand Oaks, California. They sent a very nice picture of all 11 of them. It still comes as a surprise whenever a new care package comes in the mail. I still cannot believe that there are so many nice people out there that are willing to sacrifice their time and effort for all of us over here. The seniors knitted us mittens, caps, and booties. One of our office mates runs very early every morning and he says that the mittens will come in very handy. They also sent us snacks, toiletries, and other goodies.

I also got sent a collection of poems from students from a Marin County Middle School in California. I thought I would post one of the poems that gave me a good laugh this morning:

When I Was Little

When I was little, I ran naked.
Now I play hockey.
When I was little, I crawled.
Now I walk and run.
When I was little, I slept in a crib.
Now I sleep in a bed.
When I was little, I ate baby food.
Now I eat pizza.
When I was little, I cried.
Now I whine.

Isn't that cute. That was written by a fourth grader from San Pedro Elementary in California. I didn't include his name in case he does not want it on the web.

This morning I was working on the formulary for the new clinic. In case you do not know, a formulary is the list of medications that a pharmacy carries in a hospital or clinic. It is very interesting because they use different names for some of our more common medications. Did you know that Tylenol is called paracetamol over here? Also, when developing a new formulary you have to consider a whole different array of common ailments based on the country you are practicing medicine. Parasitic infections are a lot more common over here.

It will be interesting to see what it is like working with the Afghan doctors. One of the other physician mentors at a different base told me that the doctors that he works with treat all "inflammation" with antibiotics. He says that just about everyone that comes through the door receives antibiotics for just about everything. I was also told by a different physician mentor that they use methotrexate to treat asthma. For those of you that do not know, methotrexate is a chemotherapy drug that is also use to treat a lot of rheumatic conditions. It could be very toxic and needs to be monitored closely. Obviously, in the U.S. we have a lot safer medications for asthma. I am not sure if they use it because it is a cost issue or what. For instance, Advair is a common inhaler that we use for asthma and it can cost hundreds of dollars per prescription. Most Afghans do not even make that much in a month so you can see why they have to turn to nontraditional/alternative forms of medicine.

Later this month I plan on participating in 2 CMAs (Community Medical Assistance) programs. I have heard that upwards of 5,000 people come seeking medical care. It will be interesting to see how it goes. I will keep you posted.

The Macarena

2008-05-30T23:05:00.000-07:00

Today I am very excited because I had a great idea. I was thinking about the large number of hits that my blog has been getting over the past few days (over 100 to date!!!) and I thought that it would be a great idea to start a children's clothing drive (emphasis on warm weather cloths since it will be getting very cold over here very soon). We could even expand it to include toiletries and toys. I have been told that families over here share a single tooth brush per household. I do not know about you, but if I had to share a tooth brush with my brothers growing up I might not have ever brushed my teeth.

There are a number of opportunities for me to distribute the contributions that I receive, although I have not yet worked out any of the details. As I previously mentioned, I will be participating in CMAs (Community Medical Assistance) projects. We also will have our clinic which has a peds department. There is also something called Operation Not Forgotten which is a collection drive for children done by Camp Phoenix. I believe they go out to rural towns to distribute their donations. Believe it or not, there is also the Pul-e-Charkhi prison that is just down the street. I learned from an article that I read that children have to stay with their mothers when they get imprisoned because they have no where else to go. It is really sad. I encourage you to read the article online. I posted some pics from the article.

The article is titled: AFGHANISTAN: Children share deprivations of imprisoned mothers. Cut and past this title into google. It should be the first or second result to pop up. For some reason I tried to include the link and it would not work. It is from irinnews.org

I do have to mention that the success of my site also brings with it somewhat of a bittersweet feeling. I am concerned that the more people that visit my site then more people that will send us care packages which is not my intention. As I mentioned in my 1st posting, I earn decent income and we are very well taken care of over here at Camp Phoenix. There are some soldiers in Afghanistan that are on a 15 month "camping trip." They eat MREs (meals ready to eat) for every meal, they basically live in small Afghan villages, literally "embedded" with their Afghan counterparts, without any access to internet or phones. I included a number of soldier support links where you can send care packages at the bottom of my blog. Here is my recommendation, find out which ones live on a small FOB (a FOB is a Forward Operating Base). Those are usually the ones with the fewest amenities. Also, bases in Afghanistan that are in the southern region are usually a more hazardous place to live. They get more rocket and motor attacks then in the northern regions. This is a generalization of course. We have our own share of dangers in Kabul such suicide bombers and VBIEDs (vehicle borne IEDs) .

For those of you that still want to send us stuff we would love to receive it. I just wanted to set the record straight so I could have a clear conscious.

Last night I did my boxing class. I dragged my friend along- we call him "Puffy." We call him that because his last name is Combs. Parents, ask your kids for further explanation. I did not warn him how rigorous the class was going to be. I got a good laugh watching him struggle to do some of the ab exercises. The best was watching him bob and weave. He made the instructor crack up. The instructor said that it looked like he was doing the Macarena.

We should be getting actual boxing equipment in soon, like punching bags and gloves. I still need to order tape and a mouth guard online. I am not sure how far I will go with this. I may need to stop once the sparing starts. I do not want to get hurt. After boxing they had salsa dancing. I usually go just to watch them dance. Tonight they have Karaoke over at the Coffee Bean (yes, we have a coffee shop on our FOB, you see what I mean about all of our amenities). I am trying to get my team to participate. Maybe in the future I can learn how to post short video clips. It should give everyone a good laugh watching us try to sing.

Today we worked on the clinic layout. We have a copy of the floor plan on the computer and we were mixing and matching who should go into which room. I have been calling the new clinic a clinic but that really is not accurate, it is more like a small hospital. It has just about every subspeciality, including neurosurgery. One of the first things we will need to do before the clinic opens is give the doctors training on all of the new equipment. Most of the equipment is state of the art, and therefore, very foreign to them. I have started to contact some U.S. doctors in the area in an attempt to get them to provide some teaching for things like the optometry equipment. So far everyone has been really nice and has enthusiastically agreed to help out.

I am posting our address in case you would like to participate in my drive. Don't forget, you can send children's cloths, toys, toiletries, and anything else you think would be helpful. Used clothing is encouraged. Don't go spending a lot of money. Just send me the old stuff that you already have and want to get rid of. You know all of that stuff that it is just collecting dust in your garage or attic.

Thanks again for visiting. Now don't just log off- post a comment!! I would love to hear what you think. : )

Pesky Flys

2008-05-30T04:39:00.000-07:00

Good afternoon. Or for most of you I should say, good middle of the night. Everyone that reads this is probably fast asleep right now. That actually works to my advantage because usually the first and second drafts that I write have the most spelling and grammatical errors. By the time people are actually awake to read them they have been proof read a few times. By that time I have changed all of my macaranas to macarenas. I am sure plenty of errors still slip through the cracks.

I am beginning to learn a lot more about the world of blogging. My knowledge has been growing by leaps and bounds. My first accomplishment was to install a site counter. For those of you that do not know, it involves cutting and pasting HTML. I really know nothing about HTML but I do know how to cut and paste. Here is a good tip you can take with you- holding down the Ctrl and C key at the same time is a short cut to copy and holding down Ctrl and V key is a short cut to paste. The second slightly challenging thing I did is I created a photo album as you can see on the right column. I plan to add pictures daily so be sure to check it regularly. I plan on taking pictures of all of the major Phoenix events. For instance, there is a body building competition taking place in early Nov. That should be interesting. I also will try and showcase all of the various activities around Phoenix even though I do not participate in them, like Cigar Night which takes place 3 times a week (they actually give away free cigars!).

I anticipate that there will be many people logging on searching for info on Kabul and Camp Phoenix since they will be deploying here in the near future (like I did at Fort Riley). Hopefully, I can give them a taste of what it is like over here and somewhat put their mind at ease. I have a really funny thought, we could take it even further if we wanted to and we could really simulate what it is like over here. First, after blindfolding a person, you can burn a bunch of tires near them to recreate the smell. I have been told that tires are part of the ingredient that they use to make bricks and that is why they are always burning them. Next, you will need to add the occasional low flying airplane, a lot of dust and dirt in the air, and pesky flys buzzing in your face (but only when you are in your office typing on the computer). You also will need to add the sound of Muslim prayer in the distance 5 times a day along with Revele and Taps played over the loud speaker every morning at 06:00am and 21:00. If you recreate all of these sounds and smells then it will prepare you for Camp Phoenix. Maybe I should contact Fort Riley and let them know.

I think that the idea of a locations having unique scents and sounds is very interesting. If you can think of any other place that has an undeniable and distinctive ambiance then write them in the comment section. It would be fun to read them all.

Today I also came across a site called milblogs. It is a site that lists all of the military blogs listed on military.com. I registered mine. Here is a link, I hope it works:

http://www.milblogging.com/

It is fun but kind but overwhelming to see all of the different blogs that are out there. I think that I am going to favorite a few of them and read them on a regular basis. I should probably mention the blog that actually introduced me to and got me interested in blogging which was A*W*A*C. by Capt Traversa. He was also deployed to Camp Phoenix and he had a great way of describing his experience in a fun and entertaining way. Here is the web link:

http://traversa.typepad.com/

Surfing all of the blogs also inspired me to create a goal for myself. I would like to try and get 50,000 hits on my site and win the Air Force Milblogs Blog of the Year Award. Hey, if you are going to try for something you may as well go big. I think I can do it. After all, I have 6 months and plenty of time on my hands. Here is the award that I would like to win.
I hope you all got inspired by yesterdays blog. I expect to get a lot of children's cloth very soon in the mail. When I get a good amount I will deliver them and take plenty of pictures.

Thanks for reading.

Forgotten Heros

2008-05-29T03:05:00.000-07:00

There is a marine phrase that is commonly used, "Semper gumby." It basically means that you need to remain flexible because plans change. I was told by many people prior to deploying to Afghanistan that I needed to "remain flexible." I did not know quite what they meant but I am quickly learning. My job over here may be changing soon. I will keep you posted.

For some reason the new information that I recently learned got me thinking of the day that I was first told that I was going to be deployed. You have to understand the context, normally the Air Force deploys its people for 4 month missions and they are usually sent to relatively safe locations, especially if you are a doctor. It was the middle of the day and I was in the thick of a busy patient schedule. Both of my bosses came to my office looking very solemn. You could tell that they had something significant to tell me. In those 5 seconds before they said anything I thought to myself, "OK, what can it be?...did someone die?..No that can't be it....Noooooo, they are going to deploy me!!" During the short conversation I was told that I was going to Kabul, Afghanistan for an yet to be determined time period. I later learned that I would be filling an army deployment spot and that the entire deployment was going to last 8.5 months. Talk about a surprise.

I was told on a Friday afternoon that I needed to be at Fort Riley, Kansas for training on Sunday!! Fortunately, I was able to get my report date extended by a week. I tell you what, I have never wanted time to slow down like I did that week before my deployment. It was truly a wonderful week. Every second I spent with my wife and kids was invaluable. I could remember being at the park with my family and just wanting time to stop. They always say you should live for the day and I really was. When I get back home I would definitely like to recreate that week indefinitely.

I have to say, I do have a bit of guilt about having left my family. My children were 4 month-old and 3 years-old when I left and I feel guilty about having my wife carry the load. Before I left I taught my wife all of the little jobs around the house that only I knew how to do. I showed her how to change the air filters in the AC, how to shut off the main gas and water, where the circuit breaker was, how to work the automatic sprinklers, and a bunch of other things. I was a little worried that now that she knew how to do everything that I would become irrelevant when I came back home. I even found someone to take care of our dog, good 'ole Huckleberry. My wife said that it would be too much for her to handle so I found an incredible coworker that was able to adopt Huck and she eventually found him a really good home. While I was at Fort Riley I even had a home alarm installed.

I am looking forward to tomorrow morning because I will be seeing my family via my web cam. I recommend bringing a web cam if any of you reading this are scheduled to deploy to Camp Phoenix. The internet costs $35.00 a month but it is worth every penny. I deployed with the Navy to Iraq in 2003 and it took 2 months just receive a letter. Now you can talk and see each other in real time. It is absolutely amazing.

I have to mention before I get off of the subject that wives are truly the forgotten heroes of this whole Iraq/Afghanistan campaign. We get all of the attention and concern and wives are left to carry on a very hard and lonely job back home with very little appreciation. The next time you see a spouse of a deployed soldier be sure to thank her for her sacrifice as well.

Thanks for reading.

Power Point

2008-05-28T04:27:00.000-07:00

We had a very interesting time today giving the power point presentation that was both in English and Dari to our Afghan physician counterparts. LtCol Johnson did a very good job with the help of our interpreter. Maybe I could enlighten you on some of the interesting challenges we face in opening up a medical clinic in Afghanistan. Men and women can not wait in the same waiting room so we have to create different waiting areas (I do not endorse the customs I just follow them). It is important to take into consideration the religious customs when creating a clinic, for instance, the urinals should not face towards mecca. It is also very important that the Afghans have a way to wash a body right after someone dies, I am not sure why. Never the less, we need to construct a body washing area in the new clinic. There needs to be a place to pray in the new clinic so a prayer room needs to be constructed. It is traditional to sacrifice a goat at the opening ceremony to bless the facility (we are still working out those details). Some other interesting Afghan customs is that it is common for a man to kiss another man on the cheek as a form of greeting and hold hands. It is also customary to enjoy a nice cup of chai and talk about each others family prior to discussing business.

We had a lot of cultural awareness training at Fort Riley, they called it "Leader Meets." We actually had actors that dressed and acted as if they did not know any English and it took place in a traditional Afghan surrounding. We were presented with challenging scenarios that we had to work through all with the help of an interpreter. Let me share just a few cultural taboos with you. You should never sit with your legs crossed where the bottom of your feet are showing, this is considered rude. You should never place your hat on the ground (I am not sure why) but it is common for Afghans to kiss their hat after it falls on the ground. You should not give the A-OK sign because it is considered offensive.

Everyone seemed to be pleased with our layout of the floor plan so we do not need to make any major changes. Our next step is to start training the staff of how to use the new equipment. We also will be giving lectures on mass casualty and emergency procedures, and infection control. I am looking forward to it.

I learned yesterday the origin of the word blog. I believe that it comes from the combination of the words web and log. I found that to be interesting.

Thanks for reading.

Just Looking

2008-05-27T09:07:00.000-07:00

Good evening. Last night I watched a band play in the DFAC (that is another name for the chow hall which is another name for the place where we eat). You just have to smile at how the military likes to rename everything. For instance, the Navy calls a bathroom the head and the army calls it a latrine. Anyways, the band that played was really good. I would upload a picture but my camera's battery just died on me. It always amazes me the number of activities Camp Phoenix has to offer- weight lifting competitions, salsa lessons, women's basket ball, dominoes tournaments, guitar lessons, etc. I do not think I have ever mentioned but they even have a mini college on the base. They offer $1,000 to anyone that is intereted in teaching a class. You can fight in a war during the day and attend college classes at night. Talk about multi-tasking.

Angela and LtCol Johnson went to the National Military Hospital (NMH) today. The NMH is a newly refurbished old soviet built hospital. They said that the hospital is a very modern facility with state of the art equipment (courtesy of Uncle Sam, of course). Apparently, they say that you are allowed to smoke in the rooms. LtCol Johnson relayed a funny story about a patient that was complaining about his care to them while he was talking on a phone and smoking a cigarette.

LtCol Peters and I just worked on our power points that we will be giving the doctors at the new clinic. Believe it or not, one of our talks is just on the importance of hand washing.

Tomorrow is our one day off. It is nice because we get to wear our PT (our exercise) uniforms all day long. Of course we still have to have our 9mm and ammo on us at all times. It is funny how you can get used to always carrying a weapon around. There should also be a Bizarre tomorrow (in case you do not remember, that is where the locals sell a bunch of local souvenirs). I will be sure to take some pictures and upload them onto my site. They sell just about any recent movie for $1-2 dollars. The only problem is the movie is a CD of some guy sitting in a movie theater with his video camera filming the movie. You sometimes see the heads of people in the front of the theater. The box and the cover look very official but when you play the movie it just is unwatchable. They also sell just about any kind of watch and sun glasses you kind find. Of course there are plenty of Afghan rugs. The rugs can run pretty expensive.

As you walk down the isle of shops on either side of you have fairly aggressive vendors all vying to get you to buy their stuff. They all say, "Come here...just looking.....just looking." They think that they are outsmarting you by doing a preemptive strike on what you are about to say because you sound pretty silly when you respond "just looking" to their "just looking." Children with a bunch of bracelets, postcards, and stacks of Afghani currency come up to you. I bought some money and I have been sending it to some people that have sent me letters. Let me know if you want me to send you something from over here.

One of my "Angles" sent me a really good CD that I am listening to right now. It is not one that I would normally buy because it is country/blues but I am really liking it. The artist is Grey De Lisle and the album is titled Iron Flowers. Here is a link to her web site:

http://www.greydelisle.com/albumFlowers.html

OK, before I sign off I have to describe my room's pet peeves. Now, don't mistaken this for complaining because, like I have said before, I probably have just about as nice of accommodations as you can have in Afghanistan. There are some people who have to sleep under a tent under the stars in their sleeping bags. I only mention them because they have become so annoying that they have become comical. My mattress is just a little larger then a normal twin mattress so my fitted sheet is always half way down my mattress when I wake up. The walls of my room are deceivingly thin. I am not kidding when I say that I live in a shed- it is exactly like a backyard shed. I literally hear every detail of the person next to me from the velcro of his uniform to the creeks in his bed. Talk about bed creaking, if you just think about moving the bed frame sends out a long and loud creek that continues after you stopped moving. The AC/heater only works through the use of a remote controller that chirps really loud. The battery on the remote is low so it will chirp loud when you press the button but not change the temperature. Throughout the night I am constantly pressing the temperature change button trying to change the temperature without any success. So every night my neighbors get to enjoy their own personal remote control chirp and bed squeak symphony.

Thanks for reading.

The Gordian Knot

2008-05-26T07:08:00.000-07:00

“There are two kinds of people, those who finish what they start and so on.” --Robert Byrne

I discovered a great new website today called Quotationspage.com. I provided a link. They have a word of the day and a quote of the day section. I included today's word of the day because I thought it was so interesting: http://www.quotationspage.com/

Gordian knot (noun) [GOR-dee-ahn not]
1. an exceptionally complicated problem: "It took him years to solve the architectural Gordian knot, but finally, plans for an unprecedented high-rise stretched out before him."
2. the intricate knot tied by King Gordius of Phrygia to a pole near the temple of Zeus in Gordium and cut by Alexander the Great with his sword after hearing an oracle promise that whoever could undo it would be the next ruler of Asia; the knot cut by Alexander the Great at the temple of Zeus.

Some would say that the task of rebuilding of Afghanistan is a gordian knot. Go ahead and use the word with your friends. Be sure to act suprised when they do not now what it means.

Today we had a Bazaar (yes, I am actually spelling it correctly today). I took a ton of pics and created a photo book. I was not just looking today, I actually bought a dress for my daughter. Take a look.

The asking price was $60.00 and I got him down to $25.00. It is all hand made. I do not feel guilty negotiating because they actually expect it. The dress has bells and other metallic trinkets that make noise when it moves. I know my daughter will love it. I would say that she could wear it for Halloween but I think that my wife already has a costume picked out. I believe that she will be a cat this year.

I also uploaded some pics of the National Military Hospital (NMH) and my birthday in case you were interested.

I received a package today with 4 discs filled with PC games. I shared it with my office mates. I also received a very nice supportive email from a spouse whose husband who just deployed to Afghanistan. Keep them coming.

Thanks for reading.

FOB Snobs

2008-05-25T08:19:00.000-07:00

"Doubt 'til thou canst doubt no more...doubt is thought and thought is life. Systems which end doubt are devices for drugging thought."

-Albert Guerardd

Today we attempted to go to the old clinic to discuss some issues with the staff but we were unexpectedly sidetracked by security issues. We ended up spending the day over at Camp Eggers. Camp Eggers is another base in downtown Kabul. I was able to catch up with the people that I trained with at Fort Riley. When we first flew into Kabul the entire team stayed at Camp Phoenix for about 3 weeks and then the majority of the group broke off and went to Eggers because they were ready to start working and our clinic was not going to open for a few months.

There is a very interesting phenomenon in Afghanistan. People that visit from other FOBs (forward operating bases) always seem to point out only the good things about their FOBs and they always like to pick out things that they do not like about your FOB. They are like FOB snobs. Someone will visit and say, "Oh, my FOB has trees. I don't like Camp Phoenix because it is too dusty and there are no trees." Never mind the fact that they get rocketed on a regular basis and that you sleep in a tent, you still prefer your FOB because it has trees? I am exaggerating but you get the point. I think when people are forced into a bad situation you tend to point out all of the positives things to make yourself feel better about your situation. The weird thing is that you find yourself getting defensive over your FOB and you find yourself competing over who has the better FOB. It is all kind of silly. So the point of all of this is that the people over at Eggers do not want to leave Eggers and the people over at Phoenix do not want to leave Phoenix. We both think that our places are better then the other. Unfortunately, there is always talk of moving us to be with the rest of the team but we fortunatley have been able to stay put.

Another form of FOB snobbery is the whole going outside of the wire thing. Going outside of the wire is leaving the base. Some people do not have to leave the base because they have a job does not require it. Even so, there is still a subtle snobbery about this. There is even a name for people who do not leave the base, they are called Fobbits. The majority of the time you do not have a choice whether or not you go outside of the wire since it is dictated by your job. One last form of snobbery that I noticed recently is poker playing snobbery. It is starting to get so bad that I decided not to play last week. Here is an example, if you beat someone that has a strait on the flop when you get your straight on the river, they get mad at you because you got lucky with your river card and they deserve to win becasue they were dealt their good hand. Sorry for those of you that did not understand that. Start paying attention to the different forms of snobbery that is out there. It is really funny when you discover it.

It was nice to catch up with my friend Puffy. We became pretty good friends over at Fort Riley. He is a really good guy. In the morning we hung out in the Eggers coffee shop. Puffy told us about all of the new things that he bought from the bazaar. He bought 2 metal giraffes, a wooden box, marble tea set, and a burka. He told me that he ran out of money when he was trying to buy the marble tea set so he had to resort to bartering. He ended up trading a pair of tennis shoes for the tea set. He still does not know how he plans to get everything back home.

Here is Puffy with some of his proud purchases.

By the way, did you realize that I have had over 500 hits to this site? I heard somewhere that the average blog was read by only one other person. Not bad.

Thanks for reading.

Warehouse

2008-05-24T07:49:00.000-07:00

"I'm going to memorize your name and throw my head away."
-Oscar Levant(1906 - 1972)

This is just a random quote that made me laugh a lot. I didn't get it at first. I figure it has to probably be just about the worst insult that you could tell a person.

Today we went back to the new clinic. We have 3 weeks until it opens and we are still rearranging the room locations. Today, believe it or not, one of the issues was that women and men cannot share the same exam rooms. We knew that there had to be separate waiting areas but we did not know about exam rooms. That is an easy fix. A lot still needs to happen from a construction standpoint but I think that it should all come together on time. I am curious how receptive the Afghans will be to the committees I plan on starting. I could potentially start about 10 but I think I am going to limit it to credentialing, infection control, and emergency management.

After we left the clinic we headed over to the French compound called Warehouse. We went with the Wolf Pack which is a group of Army folks that have been nice enough to work us into their convoys. They have big guns on their vehicle and we don't. They were having a going away for one of their guys. I am not sure why the French call their compound Warehouse. Here is the sign when you first enter the compound.

The sign says, "Switch Off Your Jams." No, they are not talking about music. Jammers are electronic devices that jam IEDs (improvised explosive devices). They interfere with radio signals and that is why you have to turn them off.

I was impressed with the French base. They really know how to go to war. They have a number of nice restaurants. Take a look at this one. It looks like a regular restaurant that you would find in the states. War fighting by day, fine dinning by night.

Before we started to eat we had to exchange our money into Euros. I somewhat confused the guy at the exchange counter because I wanted to convert $18.00 and he was only used to $10.00 and $20.00 bills. He said that $10.00 should be enough for lunch. I went to the counter to order my meal and they had a bunch of photos where you could point to what you wanted to eat. I pointed to a sub sandwich and he said that they only serve this for breakfast. I then started pointing to just about every picture on the wall, even the weird long hot dog looking think that was split at each end in three different directions. every time I pointed to a picture he shook his head indicating that I did not have enough money for the meal. Meanwhile, the line was getting longer and the people were growing more impatient. I ended up borrowing 2 Euros and eventually got the pork medallions with mushroom and onions . It was qui a bon gout (delicious).

A few other observations from the French compound. They had a mini Eiffel Tower about the size of a light post. They have a club/bar and they are allowed to drink alcohol. They also wear really big, floppy, berets. I do have to mention, just about every French soldier that I have met has been really friendly. I have even made a couple friends over here at Camp Phoenix.

Lastly, my wife wrote to me earlier and told me that they had to evacuate our home over in southern California. She and the kids are staying with my brother's house in L.A.. She said that the flames are very near my daughters preschool. Hopefully they can get the fire under control. I am going to try and call them tonight.

Thanks for reading.

Live Life Like a Dog

2008-05-23T18:35:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had a “Coms Blackout” so I was not able to post a blog. A Coms Blackout is when they shut down all of the phones and the internet. They do this whenever a service member dies in Afghanistan. The purpose is so the military can personally inform the family instead if the family receiving the news in an email or a phone call. So for future references, if I do not write a post for a day it is probably because of the blackout. If I go two days without a post then we may have a problem. Please pray for the service member’s family who soon be receiving some very sad news.

I have a good friend from medical school that just so happens to be an excellent General Surgeon in the Air Force. He sent me a great email today. I distilled it down to its key message. It is about a boy and his dying dog and why dogs live such short lives.

"People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?" The six-year-old continued, "Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long."

Live simply.
Love generously.
Care deeply.
Speak kindly.

What a great message.

My wife and children are staying at my brother’s house. I believe the fires are under control in the immediate area where I live. I will keep you posted.

Today was not a very exciting day. We did a little vehicle maintenance. As you may know, our team is composed of relatively high ranking members so we unfortunately are left to do all of the less-then-glamorous tasks. I am posting a picture of the highest paid and best trained car washer in all of Afghanistan. A Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force with 20 years of practicing medicine under his belt and he is power washing a HUMVEE in Kabul, Afghanistan. It just goes to show what a great team I have.

Another good friend of mine sent me a care package today. Her name is Dani and her husband’s name is Mark they both live in California but they are currently in New York on vacation. She sent me a ton of candy, poker chips, a statue of liberty hat, and silly string. I hopefully will not be disarming any trip wires any time soon so the silly string should only be for fun.

I actually met Dani when I was in Iraq in 2003. She was an embedded reporter and she did a number of articles on our unit. I had a front page article in the Ventura County Times. My wife told me great story about when she was bought 10 copies of the paper as a souvenir. A young boy that was selling the paper asked her inquisitively why she was buying so many. She proudly pointed to the picture on the front page and replied, “Becasue this is my husband!” Ahhh, my 15 minutes of fame was so sweet.

Dani ended up coming home from Iraq early and she was able to contact my wife. They struck up a great friendship that continues today. Not only is Dani a great writer but she is also an accomplished painter and just an all around great person.

I provided a link to her an article she wrote summarizing her experience during the deployment.

http://www.danidodge.com/journalism/vc/iraq/firstperson1.html

Thanks for reading.

Day At The Museum

2008-05-22T05:50:00.000-07:00

"Cabbage: A familiar kitchen-garden vegetable about as large and wise as a man's head."

-Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary US author & satirist (1842 - 1914)

Today we actually had a very full day. In the morning we visited our new clinic and had a long but productive meeting with key staff. We asked a ton of basic logistical questions and got some very interesting answers. For instance, when we asked about how they did their medical records they said that that used to keep a "family book." The book served two purposes, one was to show who was eligible for care at the clinic through a photo that is displayed on the cover and the other was to document their care. They would bring the book in with them whenever they were seen for an appointment. The other interesting thing we learned is the way they pay out disability (remember this is primarily a police clinic). In the military when someone performs 20 years of active duty service the VA reviews their medical record and determines the percentage of disability that the service member should receive. The way the ANP physicians do it is they basically pay them cash on the spot when the injury occurs. They have a really big book that lists all of the different disabilities and how much the patient should be compensated.

We brought along an Army dentist with us and he spent some time with his Afghan counterpart. I also helped unload some of the new equipment like exercise bikes and exam tables.

After the clinic visit we hooked back up with the Wolf Pack (our Army friends who we hitch a ride with whenever we go out because they have really big guns on their turrets). They invited us to another one of their going away lunches. It took place a restaurant called "The Turkish House." It is located within the compound of the Ministry of Defense (MOD). The MOD is the Afghan equivalent of the Pentagon. The Wolf Pack mentors the senior leadership of the Afghan National Army (ANA) over there.

We had an incredible lunch. The Turkish House was really nice. There was a well known Afghan drummer and guitarist playing music. We sat around a huge table and ate kabobs, flat bread, rice, soup and eggplant. It was delicious. The occasion we were celebrating was the end of a deployment for one of the Army guys. He is a National Guard member who works as a music teacher in his civilian job. He was deployed to Kabul to help "mentor" the MOD's music band. I tell you what, there used to be a time when certain jobs were unofficially nondeployable but when they start deploying music teachers to war zones then all bets are officially off.

The person having the going away was also a liaison for the interpreters. I wanted to mention an interesting interpreter observation. A good number of the interpreters out here are actually doctors. The reason they are doctors is because doctors earn only $50.00 per month seeing patients verses $700.00 as interpreters. You really cannot blame them for what they do. I would probably be doing the same thing. The sad thing is that just about every one of them that you talk to is also trying to get a visa to go to the U.S.. The reason why it is sad is because these people are the brains of Afghanistan and we need them to stay and help rebuild their country.

I had a very poignant conversation with our interpreter when I was driving our HUMVEE back home from the clinic. We all communicate within the HUMVEE through the use of headsets that make you feel like you are in a cockpit of an airplane. During our long drive home I asked our interpreter what it was like when the Taliban took over their country and I got wonderful 20 minute first hand account of those terrible 2 years as we drove through the heart of Kabul. I felt like he was a narrator guiding me through a real life museum. Just imagine a mob of crazy fanatical people taking over your community and no one there to help out. People were scared to drive around town because the Taliban would take their cars away. They would cut off people's hands and hang them from light posts all for minor infractions. Women could not work, could not go to school, could not be in public without a man. I could not imagine what it was like. I asked him a question of whether life had improved since the Americans arrived (knowing the obvious answer, but I was curious as to how he would respond). He answered, almost yelling, a resounding, "Yes! It is much better!!" That simple affirmation was all I needed to reassure me that this crazy 6 month adventure was worthwhile. I know that I am participating in a worthy cause and I am proud to be a part of it. We are making important and lasting impacts on these people's lives and it is definitely worth my sacrifice.

Thanks for reading.

Sleeping With The Fishes

2008-05-21T03:54:00.000-07:00

"To be positive: To be mistaken at the top of one's voice."
-Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary US author & satrist (1842-1914)

Good afternoon. LtCol Peters and a few of my office mates returned from the new clinic this afternoon. LtCol Peters took what I think is my favorite picture of this entire trip. They were leaving from the clinic when this child on this donkey passed them by. Look closely and you can see that he is saluting the convoy.

I got a really great package and a ton of letters from an 8th grade class in Gaffney, South Carolina. I thought I would share of few snippets from some of the letters. I found them to be funny.

Hey. what have you been doing? Me, nothing much. I wish I could be home sleeping. This morning my teacher fell out of her chair. She said it was gracefully. I am bored. Life is crazy I can only imagine what it is like over there.

I have got horrible grades in Ms. Ivy's class. I am trying to get better grades. I do not know what my parents will do if I make an F.

Hello, I am going to church camp this weekend with my church. Also, my friend Josh has this piece of smarties paper and there is gum on it. He was sticking it on other people and it was really funny. Have you heard of the game Halo? I can play one of the theme songs on guitar.

Hi you long distance pal. I have a beef with you. You see this is the second letter and I still have not gotten a reply. That is something I do not understand. I am writing to know how it is in Kabul because nothing special is going on over here in Gaffney.

I better write to her before her beef with me gets any worse.

Yesterday while I was at the MOD a high ranking ANA General approached me and asked if I could help with a medical problem that one of his family members was having. I gladly agreed and asked him to meet me at the Camp Phoenix medical clinic. It was kind of funny because I had this sureal Sopranos moment while I was gathering her history. I thought to myself, I better not make an mistakes or else I will be sleeping with the fishes. I am obviously just kidding but it is true Tony Soprano was running through my mind.

I just read this from a fellow blogger at http://docinthebox.blogspot.com/ The History channel is doing a special on military blogging. You might want to check it out.

BAND OF BLOGGERS on the History Channel on Friday, 11/9, at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT; with an encore presentation on Monday, 11/12 at 6 PM ET/3 PM PT. Check out this very special hour and support our troops! You won't be sorry.

"Explore the impact of blogging as a new medium for immediate and raw information. In the midst of modern day combat examine the unfiltered and raw evolution of military blogs and bloggers. Listen as soldiers who during their recent Iraq deployments reflect on the important connection they had with their blogging and how the band of military bloggers has revolutionized the way we understand combat. Experience firsthand, unfiltered accounts of the pain, the hardship, and even the simple beauty found in Iraq; stories that often go unseen in the media's coverage of the war."

Climbing The Ghar

2008-05-20T07:43:00.000-07:00

"Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So. . . get on your way. "

-Dr. Seuss US author & illustrator (1904 - 1991)

I went to the post office last night after dinner and, I am not kidding, I had about 30 different care packages waiting for me. It was very overwhelming. The people over at the post office usually want you to open your packages before you leave to make sure that no contraband is being shipped to you. This time when I asked if I should open them up the person jokingly said, "No, just take them... just go!" I smiled and laughed. The last thing he wanted was to wait for me while I opened up all 30 of my boxes. I had to make 2 trips back to the office with the help of a dolly. Boxes were falling everywhere because the cement is full of pot holes. Random people were grabbing boxes as they fell helping me out. It was a funny site. Here is a pic. You really cannot appreciate the number because there is a whole back row that you are not seeing.

The majority of the boxes were toys and medicine that was sent for children from the Zonta Club of Marathon. I need to google them to find out who they are and them send them a really big thank you note. I also got a few care packages from very wonderful soldier support people back home. We got sent a a ton of games- scrabble, chess, dominoes, different magazines (about 30), and way too much candy and snacks. If we were to eat all of the candy that people sent us we would not be able to fit into our uniforms. Everyone, thank you all very much for everything. I have a Community Medical Assistance (CMA) coming up and I plan to distribute all of the toys, medicine, and some of the candy to the local underprivileged children. I will be sure to take plenty of pictures.

I also received another package of letters from the Middle School in South Carolina. I tried to load a web cam thank you video with a bunch of Q&As but the file was too big and it took too long to upload. Let me work out the kinks. I promise to have the video technology perfected sometime in the near future. Stay tuned. I also bought all of the students nice presents at the bazaar today. I will not say what I got them since I know some of them read this blog. It should take about 2 weeks for the gifts to arrive so be on the look out.

Today we climbed "The Ghar." The Ghar is a 1,500-foot rocky mountain that sits on the compound of the Kabul Military Training Center. It was really fun. The last 20 feet are the scariest. There is a very narrow part that you have to climb to reach the top. I just tried to not look down while I did it. The view at the top was spectacular. I took a ton of photos and loaded them onto a picture book on the right column. I encourage you to take a look. After we finished with the Ghar we visited an old Soviet military junk yard. We saw a bunch of old tanks and other vehicles. It was very interesting.

Thanks for reading. Take care.

Visit To Orphanage

2008-05-20T06:58:00.000-07:00

"If my hands are fully occupied in holding on to something, I can neither give nor receive."
-Dorothee Solle

This morning we convoyed over to the new clinic. Things are starting to kick into high gear. We are getting close to the big grand opening. Half of the the morning was spent moving stuff into exam rooms and the other half was spent meeting with the key staff. I have a new found appreciation for the weight of an autoclave. We are trying hard to encourage the new staff to take ownership of their clinic. We want them to start moving into their offices and to start rearranging the stuff the way they want it.

After we got back to Phoenix I went out again and went on a Humanitarian Assistance (HA) mission. We visited the Allahoddin orphanage. Before I describe the orphanage experience I have to mention the trip there. We road with a bunch of Army guys from Alpha Company. I was in the vehicle that they affectionately named, "The Beast." The entire way there they blared a loud and annoying siren. Normally when we convoy somewhere we somewhat blend into the traffic and, for the most, pass by unnoticed. This time everyone made a point of starring at us. There was this weird moment when we were stopped in a crowded market place. There I was wearing my big ski goggles and kevlar helmet peering out of this small, thick, bullet proof window from this heavily armored HUMVEE with a loud and annoying siren blaring. You could just tell that the people that were looking back at me had this strange expression like I was something very foreign to them. I felt like I was a space alien flying in in my little space craft looking out of my window starring at all of the humans. The humans were looking back at me with a strange expression because they had never seen a green alien with a third eye in the middle of his forehead. This was really the first time I felt this way mainly because we were drawing so much attention to our convoy. I am not criticizing the siren, it was actually very effective in moving traffic away, I just have not had that particular experience yet.

The first thing I saw when I pulled into the orphanage was the well that the U.S. installed during one of their previous HA visits. We actually have done a lot for this particular orphanage on previous missions such as painting the exterior of the building and rewiring the building for electricity. When we got there we unloaded all of our supplies. We brought with us a 5-ton truck full of toys, cloths, and blankets. All of the children came out of their dorms and lined up patently in 5 rows. I opened up a bag of jolly ranchers and handed one out to each of the children one by one. We were both studying each others face. We couldn't communicate very well but we were able to exchange smiles and laughs.

I was fascinated because they all had similar skin lesions. A lot of them had very large scars over their faces and really chapped cheeks. I brought over the interpreter who is, of course, also a physician. I asked him about the skin lesions and he said that it was the after effects of having once had Leishmaniasis a disease that is transmitted by sand fleas. Leishmaniasis is something that is extremely rare in the U.S.. As a matter of fact, I have only read about it in books and here 25% of the children at this orphanage have been afflicted with it. The interpreter also said that the abrasions over their cheeks were due to dry skin. I asked him if it was eczema and he said, no, just dry skin. We need to work on getting them some moisturizers.

Take a look at this little girl. No matter how hard I tried I could not get her to smile.

Doesn't it just break your heart. I posted a bunch of pics. There were so many incredible cute kids. I wanted to bring them all home with me. It is so much harder when you have kids yourself. I saw so many little girls that are my daughter's age. The cutest thing was watching them carry the blankets, jackets, and toys back to their rooms. They were so overloaded that they could hardly carry it all.

Today was probably one of my best days in Afghanistan. The quote up top is so true. I am going to try and do more community service when I get home. It truly brings a fulfillment that is unmatched by anything money can buy.

Thanks for reading.

Rambo

2008-05-19T02:24:00.000-07:00

"Speak the truth, but leave immediately after."
-Slovenian Proverb

I have been working on my blog a lot lately. I have decided I need an editor. It is so funny because I will write something that, at the time I am writing it sounds funny and clever, then when I read the same thing one week later I will say to myself, what was I thinking that sounds really stupid. Anyways, I think my new tag line should now read- New from Shazdoc Inc., 6 Months In Kabul Version 2.0- now with 50% less misspellings and grammatical errors. You see, I am going to read that line one week from now and think that it is really stupid. Oh well.

I also would like to thank the creator of the blog A*W*A*C*, Capt Traverso, for mentioning my blog on his site. He is responsible for a lot of the traffic on my site. If you are ever cruising the blogasphere pull over check out his site, here it is:

http://traversa.typepad.com/

Today I thought that it would be a great to get a picture with Rambo. For those of you that do not know, Rambo is somewhat of a legend in these parts. I really can not do him justice in explaining his contributions to Camp Phoenix. I will refer you to the USA Today Article that I have linked. I first heard about him over at Fort Riley. It was during my anxious phase of the predeployment period. When I was inquiring about the security over at Camp Phoenix someone told me, don't worry there is a local Afghan named Rambo. He stands at the gate and makes sure that no one bad gets it. At the time I thought to myself, are they kidding? How is one guy going to protect the whole camp. We even had an ongoing joke whenever I mentioned any security concerns, Maj Martinez would say in a loud tone, "Don't worry, Rambo will protect us."

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-03-08-rambo_N.htm

Rambo's wife and one of his children were killed when a rocket that was shot by a Taliban member hit his home. He was a truck driver and security guard for a transportation company that existed on the land that the U.S. bought to build Camp Phoenix in 2003. He has been here ever since. The incident that made him famous was back on 1/16/07. A suicide bomber driving a Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device (VBIED) had entered the gate of Camp Phoenix and he opened the driver's side door and pulled him out of the car before he could detonate his explosives. Rambo was even mentioned by President Bush in a national speech.

Here is the familiar salute that everyone receives when they return from a convoy and reenter the base. Thanks for reading.

Happiness

2008-05-18T05:21:00.000-07:00

"Money never made a man happy yet, nor will it. There is nothing in its nature to produce happiness. The more a man has, the more he wants. Instead of its filling a vacuum, it makes one. If it satisfies one want, it doubles and trebles that want another way. That was a true proverb of the wise man, rely upon it; 'Better is little with the fear of the Lord, than great treasure, and trouble therewith.'"

-Benjamin FranklinUS author, diplomat, inventor, physicist, politician, & printer (1706 - 1790)

"Happiness is as a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but which if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you."
-Nathaniel HawthorneUS author (1804 - 1864)

Today we took a different route to get to the clinic and I drove the lead vehicle. This past week I have really had a chance to see a lot more of Kabul and I am sort of feeling guilty because I had developed my impression of Kabul based solely on the not-so-nice parts that I have been seeing. Just like any city it has it's good and its bad, unfortunately, it has just taken longer for me to see the nicer parts. There was actually a moment today when I was driving home and I said to myself, "I could live here, this place is not so bad."

Driving around the streets of Kabul you get this sense that the city is so full of life. There is always a ton of people walking around. There are little makeshift shops everywhere. People are on the sides of the streets pushing carts selling bananas, pomegranates, french fries, etc. Children are everywhere. Where I grew up in Southern California you needed a car to get anywhere because everything was so far and spread out. People went about their lives in their own little world. I am not exaggerating when I say this, where I grew up in Woodland Hills, California, I could not have even been able to identify my neighbors if I passed them in the supermarket and I lived there for 8 years!

Over over here in Kabul people are out and about. There is a real sense of a community. I have spoken with a number of interpreters and they have all told me the same thing that their families are not spread out all over town. They all live together in large compounds with all of their extended families around them. In Kabul they may not have a Starbucks on ever corner and they may not all live in a big homes with a green lawns but they have something more important, such as close knit families, friends, religion, and community. These are all things that money and prosperity can not bring.

I found this great article on the topic. I highly recommend reading it. It also allowed me to figure out why I liked blogging so much- it is because of the "flow" it creates. Read it and you will understand.

http://www.yesmagazine.org/article.asp?id=866

When we arrived at the new clinic there was this awkward but funny moment when I said hello to the person in charge. I knew that he always likes to kiss on both cheeks whenever we meet and I was prepared for this greeting. This time I made him laugh because I think made to loud of a kiss sound. I think I got it down now. You just have to touch cheeks and not really kiss. They don't teach you this stuff over at Fort Riley. Today he also called me the "quick doctor." He said that he can always understand what LtCol Johnson is saying when he speaks but he can never understand anything that I say because I talk too fast. I just assumed that the interpreter would translate everything that I said and that why I have been talking so fast.

About 15 of the key staff showed up and it was a very interesting experience. Talk about herding cats. I basically went from room to room with the blueprint of the clinic in hand telling, or I should say recommending, which office was going to be theirs. It was a funny kind of experience that only someone that has grown up in an Italian household can appreciate. When Italians communicate they do so in a somewhat loud and animated manner, hand gestures and all. To the casual observer it would appear that a normal conversation is a heated argument. When I was growing up I can recall having to warn my friends that would come over for dinner so that they wouldn't think that we were arguing at the dinner table because it was our normal way of speaking. Afghans are very similar. I would stop in front of a room and say something like, "this is where Anaesthesia is going to be." The Anaesthesiologist would pause, look at the room, then look at the clinic commander and the interpreter, and then they would proceed to discuss it's size and location back and forth for 4-5 minutes. I am sure that it would be no different opening a new clinic in the states. As a matter of fact, I'm sure that it would have been much worse.

After about 10 minutes of discussing the room the Anaesthesiologist turned to me and asked, through the use of the interpreter, the location of the mechanical ventilator. I kindly reminded him that it is supposed to be an outpatient clinic. He somewhat persisted so I asked him what he is using now at his current clinic. He told me that he is using a small ventilator. I told him that he should bring it over to the new clinic and continue to use it. He thought about it for a second and then he shook his head and smiled with satisfaction. LtCol Johnson patted me on the back for that one and told me I did a good job.

After the clinic visit we visited our friends at Camp Eggers and had a productive meeting. Tonight I will need to go to bed early because we will be doing CMAs for the next 2 days. It should be an interesting experience. I will be sure to take plenty of pictures.

Thanks for reading.

CMA

2008-05-17T05:09:00.000-07:00

"Your manuscript is both good and original, but the part that is good is not original and the part that is original is not good."
-Samuel Johnson, (attributed)English author, critic, & lexicographer (1709 - 1784)

Today we did a CMA (Community Medical Assistance) project in a remote village in southern Kabul. It was a great opportunity to give out a bunch of the donations that we received. A ton of 6 M.I.K. 2.0 readers have sent me medical supplies, toys, candies, and school supplies. I loaded a picture book on the right hand column where you can view a lot more of the pics from today. I encourage everyone to continue sending me stuff. I will personally hand deliver them and always include pics. These 2 children below were some of the ones that benefited from your kindness.

Seeing patients today was definitely a challenge. I heard an appropriate analogy yesterday that is very applicable to today's situation, it was like drinking water from a fire hose. It felt like the entire village came out to see us. I believe we saw about 3,000 patients. We expect to see the same number tomorrow. The CMA was actually suppose to be an Afghan National Army CMA. They were supposed to be running the show and we were suppose to just help out where ever we were needed.

There were 4 tents, 2 for women and children and 2 for men. I worked in one of the women and children tents. There is a real delicate balance that you have to strike when seeing patients in these kind of conditions. We were seeing patients in a dirt floor tent, with no labs, no x-ray, and a limited supply of meds. There is not much that you can accomplish unfortunately. There is a mantra in medicine which is first do no harm. You really need to understand your limitations and not try and overstep your bounds. For instance, just about every older adult had blood pressure that was through the roof (yes this is an official medical term). You will not be helping them if you just give them just 3 days worth of blood pressure medicine because hypertension is a disease that needs to be managed over time. It would be harmful to give someone medicine to abruptly lower their blood pressure just to have it rise again 3 days later when they run out.

Unfortunately, a lot of what we saw today were chronic medical conditions that really needed to be managed in a clinic with regular close follow-up care over many months. My goal was to alert them of the problem and to encourage them to seek proper medical care.The only problem is when I suggested this their answer was always that they had no money and therefore did not have access to care.

I saw some children that I would have referred to an ER right away if I were in the states, but instead, they were left to walk back to their home barefoot. For instance, there were a couple of children with serious heart problems, probably ventral septal defects, this boy pictured below was one of them. He was as cute as could be. He had the classic "machinery mumur" on exam. I am going to try and make an effort to see if I can get in contact with a charitable organization to see what we can do to help him. He really needs to be seen by a peds cardiolothoracic surgeon. If anyone out there can help, ie., if you have any contacts, please let me know. You would be saving a life.

I saw a number of cases that I have never seen before. I saw a bad case of spina bifida. I also saw a young child that had the after effects of infantile polio. Obviously, there was not a lot we could do for them but we still tried our best to show our care and compassion. When we could we referred them to a local hospital out in town.

Another interesting thing I encountered was attempting to interview and examine a patient in a burka. There is a strict custom that dictates that all women wear a burka or atleast cover their head when they reach puberty. How strict this is followed depends on where you live. Usually the further you get from the city the more strict they are. It was strange peering outside the gate and just seeing the sea of burkas. I can specifically recall this one patient that the Afghan interpreter saw. She was being seen for arm pain, knee pain, and stomach pain. The interpreter said to me, you see, this is osteoarthritis, it is because she weighs too much. I looked at the patient who was completely covered with only her eyes showing and I thought to myself, "how can you tell?" But again, we were not there to cure any diseases we were mainly handing out over-the-counter medications along with antibiotics and it was not meant to be a comprehensive exam.

I expect more of the same tomorrow. Again, I wanted to thank everyone that has sent in meds, candy, and supplies especially the Zonta Club of Marathon (Marathon is a city in Florida). They must have sent about 20 boxes full of stuff. Some of the boxes cost $30.00 just for shipping.

Take care and thanks for reading.

Day 2 of the CMA and Happy Halloween!

2008-05-16T05:05:00.000-07:00

"One of the first duties of the physician is to educate the masses not to take medicine."

-Sir William Osler, Aphorisms from his Bedside Teachings (1961) p. 105British (Canadian-born) physician (1849 - 1919)

If yesterday was like drinking water from a fire hose then today was like drinking water from a fire hose that was connected to the Hoover Dam. I think everyone we saw yesterday told all of their family and friends to come today to be seen. It was like nothing I had ever seen. Around noon, after a very tiresome morning, I turned to the interpreter and asked how many more patients needed to be seen. The interpreter replied causally, "About 500." I smiled and shook my head. The people that we were seeing were the poorest of the poor. It did not matter if they were sick or not, they were going to be seen by a doctor because this was their one and only chance.

I actually treated some sick people today. One child was having a respiratory illness along with an asthma attack so we treated her with an inhaler, antibiotics, and prednisone. Another child had an abscess that needed to be lanced and drained. An older lady came in crying saying that she was very weak because she had not eaten for 5 days. I gave her IV fluids and one of our MREs. I saw more cases of Leishmaniasis. This one girl had it over a large portion of her cheek. I provided her with a referral to be seen at a specialty Leishmaniasis clinic. Usually if you give them a U.S. referral slip they are able to be seen because if they don't then we will stop donating supplies to the hospital.

I am going to reiterate the challenge of examining someone in a burka again. A very common complaint among middle aged women was pain- back pain, leg pain, neck pain. Initially, I would respectfully ask if I could interview them with the burka over their head. They would occasionally decline or act very uncomfortable at which point I would insist that they keep it on (they are always fully clothed underneath). I then would ask if I could examine the area that hurt. They would of course decline. So I literally had no idea what they looked like and, more importantly, what their area of pain looked like. Also, most people did not know their age either so I did not even know how old they were. For the most part, I gave them Motrin then recommended that they be seen at a local clinic for further care. What else could I do?

It was heart breaking examining some of the children. The huts that that they live in do not even have running water and they rarely bathe. I can recall this one child that was having leg pain. When I examined the leg he was bare feet and his legs were caked in dirt. It was very sad. I started to see a number of the children with similar problems- back and leg pain. I asked the interpreter, "Are these children pulling my leg? Why do they all have the same problem." He said, "Yes, they all just want some medicine."

A mother brought in her 7 year-old child who she said wet his bed every night. I asked if he had stomach pains, fever, pain with urination, etc. I did an exam and it was normal. I then proceeded to counsel her on limiting fluid intake and along with other conservative treatment measures. After I was done her story changed, the boy was having fever, pain with urination, and abdominal pain. Again, I just smiled and shook my head. I did not have any labs to help me out. I treated him as if he had a urinary tract infection and then I referred them to a local clinic for follow-up care.

Another problem I had was I wanted to hand out out a bunch of the toys and candy that was donated from people back home. It was very tricky because there were literally thousands of people waiting in line so, for one thing, I did not have enough for everyone and, second, if I were to start handing them out it would have created a riot. I waited until the very end right before we left to hand them out. It still created a mini riot but it quickly abated after all of the children with toys ran away. I learned a lesson that day, I will only give away donations to much smaller groups next time.

I almost forgot that it was Halloween. There is a comedian performing in the gym. It has been a long 2 days and I am feeling under the weather so I am going to go to bed early.

Happy Halloween and thanks for reading.

Zonta

2008-05-15T07:34:00.000-07:00

"I believe in getting into hot water; it keeps you clean."

-G. K. ChestertonEnglish author & mystery novelist (1874 - 1936)

Tonight I thought that I would highlight an organization that has sent me so many toys and supplies, the Zonta Club of Marathon Florida. I did a little research and I learned a little bit about them. I copied this from Wikipedia.

"Zonta International is a global organization of executives and professionals working together to advance the status of women worldwide through service and advocacy. The first Zonta Club was founded in Buffalo, New York in 1919. Currently, Zonta International is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The organization has over 30,000 members in 67 countries.

Zonta is well-known for its Amelia Earhart fellowship program, founded in 1938 in honor of Amelia Earhart, who was a member of Zonta Clubs in Boston and New York. The fellowship provides funds for women to study aerospace science or engineering at the post-graduate level. The organization also awards the Jane M. Klausman Women in Business scholarships to students entering the third or fourth year of a business-related undergraduate degree program, and the Young Women in Public Affairs Awards, which recognize pre-college women aged 16 to 20 and encourages their public service."

I have to mention something a little funny and I hope that they do not get offended. I have to post a picture of one of the stuffed animals that was sent by them.

Let's just say that this little guy will be coming home with me. There will be no international incidents started on my watch. My daughter will be very happy to get this new stuffed animal.

We will be doing a Humanitarian Assistance mission for a local school later this week and it will be a great opportunity for me to deliver a lot of the school supplies that I have received. Someone from Waynesboro Virginia sent me $50.00 worth of school supplies.

Tonight I received pictures of my children in their Halloween costumes. They looked adorable. As I mentioned previously, my daughter was dressed up like a a cat. My son and my wife had a shared costume which was themed after one of the episodes of The Office. I will spare you the details.

Lastly, I wanted to reiterate the purpose and goal of my blog. I have been getting a lot of mixed feedback lately. I think because it is starting to grow a little too big. Originally, it was intended to document my experience during this deployment and it was meant mainly for my family and friends at home to read. It has since evolved from being mainly about me to more about the good that is happening in Afghanistan and also about our supporters back in the U.S.. I want to be able to highlight all of the positive things that are taking place over here. My pool playing and the kiwis that I ate for breakfast just did not seem as intersting and as important as compared to the things that the military is doing over here and what the people back in the states are doing for us over here.

Before this deployment I had no idea that there were so many wonderful and caring people that have done so much for our troops. A group of ladies knitted over 500 hats, socks, and scarfs for the Afghan orphans. When I saw that huge box full of hand made winter cloths, I just shook my head with disbelief and amazement. The amount of work that must have gone into producing all of that cloths was just amazing. Similarly, there is a Soldier's Angle that I have been in contact with for a couple of weeks through email that started asking schools in her state to write letters to deployed soldiers. Through her effort she has received something like 50,000 letters. Just today she wrote me to tell me that there was another big box full of letters on her door step.

Similarly, there are thousands upon thousands of servicemen and women that are over here making a huge sacrifice by being away from their families and loved ones for upwards of 15 months, risking their lives on a daily basis, sometimes just to deliver toys and blankets to children in orphanages. This is important stuff and I want both of their stories to be heard.

I will not hesitate to edit and/or remove anything from my site that does not does not fit this mission. I want people back home and the soldiers deployed overseas to be proud of my site. No one should be allowed to complain that the media focuses only negative news from Iraq and Afghanistan if they themselves have not made an effort to be part of the solution. If I ever stop being part of the solution then you have my guarantee that this site will be discontinued. So please continue to give me feedback.

So thanks for putting up with my amateur writing and my corny jokes. Hopefully I can continue this blog and we can continue to spread the positive message. Thanks for reading.

Right after I wrote that last sentence taps came on on the loud speaker as it does ever night at 22:00 (10:00pm). It is obviously a very sad melody because it is played at every military funeral. Although, for me it is very soothing and comforting whenever I hear it every night before I go to bed.

I posted a link to a site with a .wav recording. Take a listen.

http://home.att.net/~HonorAmerica/taps.htm

Afghanistan Community Service Idol

2008-05-13T05:49:00.000-07:00

"I believe in courtesy, in kindness, in generosity, in good cheer, in friendship and in honest competition. I believe there is something doing somewhere, for every man ready to do it. I believe I'm ready, RIGHT NOW."
-Elbert HubbardUS author (1856 - 1915)

"In accordance with our principles of free enterprise and healthy competition, I'm going to ask you two to fight to the death for it."
-Monty Python

Thinking about all of the wonderful things that people back home have been doing for people in Afghanistan and the troops that are deployed overseas has given me a great idea (I know, I am so modest). I thought that it would be kind of fun to host an American Idol type competition where I showcased various community service projects that people have done or plan to do, specifically projects that support our troops and/or people of Afghanistan. This will also be a great opportunity for me to install the voting box that I have been dying to use. The winner of the contest will get a framed certificate signed by me along with and a very special place on my blog. The competition will take place on Nov 30th. Please email me with any entries you may have. Don’t worry, it is ok if you submit yourself.

Some ideas that you may want to consider is starting a 5K race and donating the proceeds to a local Afghan charity. Organizing a cookie drive for troops deployed downrange. Starting a children’s cold weather cloth drive through your church. The possibilities are endless. Be creative and more importantly make sure that you have fun doing it. Just for the record, I am not exempt from this competition by any means even though I am putting it on. I am working on an awesome community service project that will benefit local Afghan children. It will be hopefully be something that will be able to sustain itself after I leave here. I am going to have to keep you in suspense for a while until I get the details worked out. I am still in discussion with KBR, the Base mayor and some other folks out in town. I will keep you posted.

So without further adu, let’s start our first… (Dramatic pause)…..Afghan Community Service Idol….. (Cue the music).

Our first contestant is named Pink Country Girl (yes that is the name she provided on her email). She is a cousin of an Army Combat Medic stationed at COP near FOB Rustamiyah in Baghdad. She is currently sponsoring 2 soldiers through Soldier’s Angels. She has taken it upon herself to start a community service project where she asks businesses to donate medicines which she then sends to deployed soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. I have been the lucky recipient of one of her many packages and I have distributed them during the CMA that I participated in. The medicines that she sent were all high quality over the counter pharmaceuticals made by Perrigo Co.. They were donated by local Future Farmers of America alums. Additionally, the youth group that she is a part of is currently sponsoring 12 soldiers deployed overseas. Her quote is, “May the Lord bless and keep you for all that you are doing for the troops and the Iraqi people.” I am waiting for her permission to post her picture.

Lastly, I also have to mention, what is just as important as doing these community service projects is advertising and promoting them. I will be starting to write articles in an official air force capacity very soon. I think the first article that I will submit for publication will be on the HA school mission that I will be participating in later this week. Whenever an article gets published I will link it to the right hand column the right hand side so it can be showcased.

So do not forget to send in your submissions. I look forward to reading them.

Thanks for reading.

VFW

2008-05-12T09:28:00.000-07:00

"We find no real satisfaction or happiness in life without obstacles to conquer and goals to achieve. "
-Maxwell Maltz, Communication Bulletin for Managers & Supervisors, June 2004

The highlight of my day was getting to eat local Afghan food. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I will not get sick. I ate a kabob sandwich. It came wrapped in newspaper. The meat was spicy and delicious. The best part was the bread, otherwise known as naan. Naan is a very important part of Afghan meals. You see people carrying it in the streets and it being sold in shops throughout Kabul. It is absolutely delicious.

In today's post I thought that I would discuss what my community service project is in an attempt to encourage more people to submit theirs. A few days ago I thought to myself what a waste it was that we throw away so many plastic bottles and aluminum cans at Camp Phoenix. Most people over here drink about 5 bottles of water a day. I drink about 3 cans of soda. It all really adds up. Not to mention pollution is a really big problem in Kabul. I heard someone say, you can almost taste the air. As I have previously stated, instead of complaining about problems it is more productive to be part of the solution. So yesterday I was searching the internet trying and find a place that recycles aluminum cans and plastic bottles in Kabul. I had this idea that we could recycle the cans and plastic bottles then we could donate the profits to a local charity. While I was searching the web I came across this article.

http://www.defendamerica.mil/articles/sep2007/a092607ls1.html

Bagram Airfield is another FOB in Afghanistan. Coincidentally, they recently instituted a recycling program. According to the article they were burning 35,000 plastic water bottles and 2,000 cans a day! This program not only recycles the bottles and cans which helps in reducing air pollution but, additionally, it also creates local jobs that help the economy. As an added bonus the government saves money because of the reduced trash load that the civilian contractor has to process. It is a win-win-win situation.

I contacted the person in charge of the program late last night. We must have sent 5 emails back and forth to each other in a 5 minute period. It turns out that the contractor that picks up the recyclables at Bagram is based out of Kabul. After I got back from our clinic visit today I visited a number of different offices proposing the idea. Everyone I spoke to was very positive. We will see how it goes. I do not want to be overly optimistic but I think that it may have a chance of being implemented. We will have to see. I will keep you posted.

This is an example of how you do not necessarily have to have a completed project to be considered for the Afghanistan Community Service Idol. You just have to have an idea that you are developing. Another important point that I have to mention is that my idea probably would have never have gotten off the ground if it was not for the Defend America news article. Just as important as doing the task is also advertising that you are doing it to raise awareness for your cause.

I am going to add a column to the right hand side of my blog that will be a link to all of the various articles on what 6 M.I.K. readers are doing. There may not be any right now but I am pretty confident that by the end of the month there will be a couple.

Also, just for fun, I will test out the voting box on the ACSI blog. Go ahead and give it try a try. I cast my vote already.

The next contestant to ACSI is a Veteran of Foreign Wars program called Operation Uplink. Operation Uplink is an innovative program launched in 1996 that provides free pre-paid phone cards to active duty military personnel and hospitalized veterans. Through the generous support of VFW and the Ladies Auxiliary VFW Posts and members, and caring citizens, VFW Operation Uplink has been able to distribute millions of prepaid phone cards. My entire team has been fortunate recipients of their 90 minute phone cards cards. One of the most important parts of my day is when I phone my family in the morning. It is the fuel that drives my engine during the day. You can not put a price on the gift that Operation Uplink provides. They are doing a great service on a very large scale. Here is a link to their website.

http://www.operationuplink.org/

There is a VFW post very close to my home. I will have to visit them when I get back home and say thank you in person. I also hear that they serve cheap beer which will be an added bonus.

Thanks for reading.

Soldiers' Angels

2008-05-11T07:15:00.000-07:00

“I am not young enough to know everything.”
-Oscar Wilde Irish dramatist, novelist, & poet (1854 - 1900)

Today I received another care package from my favorite group of students over in Gaffney, South Carolina. They sent a bunch of great letters along with toiletries and even a Frogger PC game. I think I have enough toiletries to last me a whole year. I also received more packages from Zonta Club of Marathon- a lot of school supplies and candies for children. I tell you what, the Zonta Club of Marathon has really done a tremendous job sending me a lot of high quality school supplies, candies, and stuffed animals. Today I gave out one of their boxes. As I previously mentioned, from now on I will only hand out gifts to people on an individual basis. I am going to avoid the crowds and the chaos that it brings. It is so difficult because there is such a huge need but I guess we can only do so much.

Someone also sent me a PC game of Mahoung. I have never played it but I am looking forward to learning. I am getting behind on my thank you letters. Maybe I will work on them tonight.

It looks like we will be moving soon. Of course, I will not go into any of the when and where details yet for security reasons. I am feeling a little sad tonight because there is a lot that I will miss about this place. It has become my home. I have gotten to know a lot of people and I have developed somewhat of a routine. I will be able to forward any mail that is being sent to the Phoenix address so it will not be a problem if something is in the mail. I will give you all an updated mailing address when I get there. There is internet connectivity so I should still be able to continue my blog when I get there.

Someone from the Wolf Pack made this amazing 15 minute movie of the CMA that we did last week. It is a combination of short videos and photos set to music. I believed he used Microsoft Movie Maker to make it. It is really well done. I am trying to upload it to my blog but I think that it will be too big and will take too long to view. It is currently at 14%. I am going to let it upload all night. I would be more then happy to burn it to a CD and send it to any 6 M.I.K. readers for free if you would like to view a copy. Consider it my gift just for reading my blog : ). I will also be sending copies to people that have donated stuff for the CMA. Get your Kleenex ready because it is a real tear-jerker!

The next Afghan Community Service contestant that I wanted to feature on the ACSI blog is Soldiers' Angels. It is really hard for me to list all of the wonderful things that they have done for me and my team. I have received numerous care packages and letters expressing support and appreciation from people back home because of them. The amount of things that they have sent us is just too much to list. From the shampoo that I use to wash my hair in the morning to the underwear I am wearing. Sorry, was that too much information. Just last week I got an email from them asking if I wanted to participate in their new EPal program. I now regularly communicate with email supporters back in the states.

I copied this summary directly from their website.

“Soldiers' Angels is a volunteer based, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded by Patti Patton-Bader, mother of Sgt. Brandon Varn, who recently returned home from a years deployment to Iraq. Soldiers' Angels is a national organization with members in all fifty states and Puerto Rico, and several friendly countries who support our brave men and women in uniform as they carry out their mission. Soldiers' Angels was incorporated in the state of Nevada in June of 2003. Soldiers' Angels mission is to provide aide and comfort to the men and women of the United States Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force and the Coast Guard and their amazing families. The slogan describes the motivation behind Soldiers' Angels. By working together and sharing a common vision of service, the volunteers of Soldiers' Angels send care to deployed soldiers and their loved ones at home.

To date our volunteers have sent tens of thousands of care packages and hundreds of thousands of letters to our deployed heroes; we have helped those who have been wounded with our First Response Packs directly at the Combat and Support Hospitals (CASH) and at the major hospital in Germany, as well as providing care and comfort to those who are now in our military hospitals here at home; we have provided aid to military families in need; we have provided flights to soldiers on leave or in emergency situations and to their families to be with their loved ones upon return from Iraq and Afghanistan; we have provided level III KEVLAR Armor blankets to provide our heroes with some protection in their vehicles when it was needed; we help to honor the families whose loved ones have paid the ultimate price for our freedom and safety. This and much, much more has been accomplished by the many volunteers of this organization with the assistance of our generous supporters on behalf of the grateful citizens of the United States of America.”From its very inception, the focus of Soldiers' Angels has been: “Helping to bring home healthy soldiers.”

Here is their website:

http://soldiersangels.org/

Thanks for reading.

Have a Rainbow of a Day

2008-05-10T06:31:00.000-07:00

"Change is the process by which the future invades our lives."
-Alvin Toffler

Today during our convoy we actually saw a man pulling a decorated camel on the side of the busy surface streets. Whenever you drive the streets of Kabul just about every corner has a site that causes you to shake your head in surprise. Whether it is 5 kids hanging their legs out of a open car trunk of a moving car, or people piled on top of a roof of a bus because it is too full, to a beggar literally sitting in the middle of a busy street in the same location everyday, to freshly skinned goats with abnormally large dariers hanging from ropes outside of shops, to jingle trucks that are stacked amazingly high with almost anything you can imagine, to an old guy riding a bike with the fur of 10 freshly skinned goats hanging from the back. There is always one surprise after another.

Another interesting thing that you see when you drive are these huge really nice buildings that are wedding halls. One of them is ironically called the Kabul Paris Wedding Hall. Speaking of wedding halls, I thought that it would be interesting if I discussed how men and women get engaged in Afghanistan. For one thing, there is no such thing as dating. Usually when men are in their mid 20s the first thing they must do is save up for the wedding ceremony. Wedding are a really big deal over here. A lot of people are invited (like 2,000) and a lot of money is spent (I have heard one interpreter tell me that he spent $17,000). Considering the average salary is $100.00 a month, that is a lot of money. When a man likes another women the usual protocol is to approach your parents and let them know that you have an interest in someone and would like their approval. The man's parents then approach the women's parents to seek their approval. If both parents are in favor of the marriage then you have a match. I know it does not sound very fair for the women but her parents obviously look out for their daughter and, for the most part, want her to be matched up appropriately with someone that is worthy of their daughter (or at least I hope they do). What is also interesting is how low the divorce rate is. At least according to the interpreter, divorce is very rare over here.

I will list some other random interesting info that I learned from my interpreter today. The emergency phone number is not 9-1-1 it is 1-0-0. I pointed to a building that on the outset appeared somewhat run down, I asked the interpreter if it was considered a nice place to live. He informed me that wealthy Afghans live in these high rise condos and that they are actually very expensive. The main reason is because they are a lot safer then ground level homes. He said that people do not go out at night because of the crime.

For some reason I was also surprised to learn that they have a a fire department, weekly trash pickup, cable TV with 40 channels, banks (they do not use ATMs or credit cards). He said that they have a few ATMs in Kabul but they are not commonly used by Afghans.

Today we made a lot of progress at the new clinic. We basically had the entire staff over and they were all working diligently moving furniture and setting up their offices. There was a moment today when I was standing on the second floor in the midst of all of the commotion and noise of people moving furniture all around me. I just had to stop and smile with satisfaction. I thought to myself, "Ahhh, the sweet sound of progress being made." You can just tell that the staff are all excited and motivated to start working in their new clinic. This will be a huge improvement for them and they should be proud at how far they have come.

When I got back today I had 2 large packages waiting for me. Someone from Plano, Texas sent 75 knitted caps in all different colors and patterns. Can you believe it?!? She did not include a letter so I do not know if it was done by one person or a team of people. Let's stop and think about it. It probably takes 1 week to knit a single cap. Did it take her a year and a half to knit all of the caps? Just thinking about the time and effort that went into them is just amazing. When I put one of the caps on I noticed that there were also little notes inside many of them. Here is what some of them said:

Each stitch a prayer for your safe keeping.

May your guardian angle be at your side.

Each stitch binds us together with love.

The shipping alone cost over $25.00. How do you thank someone for a gift like this?

We also received a very nice Thank You card with a 75 minute phone card in it from someone in Euclid, Ohio. She had a great quote, I hope she does not mind if I print it, "Have a rainbow of a day." I think that it is physically impossible to say that phrase out loud without having a smile come to your face. I liked it so much that I made it the title of today's post.

So, try it out, tell someone tomorrow to have a rainbow of a day tomorrow. See if it brings a smile to their face. I bet it will.

Thanks for reading.

Bread House

2008-05-10T03:54:00.000-07:00

"When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a lily with the other."

-Chinese Proverb

Today we intended on going to the clinic but we had to postpone our trip because there was a student protest taking place nearby. When we went to meet the Wolf Pack we decided to stop over at the Bread House to buy some naan. As I previsouly mentioned, naan is an important part of every Afghan meal. One of my officemates described it as tasting like pizza dough. I uploaded a video up top of them making it. Here is what their shop looks like:

Here is the inside of the shop:

One person hands the dough to another person who spreads it out on a long board. He then places the long board within a fire pit that is dug beneath the ground. When inside the hole the board is slapped against the wall and it gets cooked. After it is ready someone else hangs it up against the wall. Watching them is like watching a well oiled machine at work. All of their movements seem automatic. For $1.00 we bought about 5 huge pieces of naan. Here is Bruce with his naan.

Parked nearby was a jingle truck. I have mentioned these briefly in past posts. This was the first time I was actually have been able to get up close and take a picture of one. Take a look:

You see these trucks everywhere. I am not sure why they add all of the eleborate decoration but it looks really neat.

The next person that I would like to feature on ACSI is an EPal of mine. I will call her by her email name which is proud guard wife. She started a letter writing capanign after she read an "Angle Alert" about a chaplain who wrote about how over 1,100 Army and National Guard soldiers' morale was really low. She wanted to write all 1,100 of them but she knew that it would be too much work for one person. She then reached out to principals in North Carolina and then took it to the other 49 states emailing and/or faxing every states superintendent or comissioner of education. Only 6 states have participated so far and she plans to reach out again to the local and state level. She says that she simply wrote the request and that they were the ones that made it successful. To date she has received box after box of mail along with care packages. I belive she said she has received 50,000 letters to date. She also received a yo-yo for someone's uncle who is "....somewhere out there." It came with a note that said, "Will you please see that he gets it." She is working on delivering all of the letters. She says that she is currently "taking a big breath as we get ready to wrap up this phase of it." All of her efforts are done with her own funds. To complicate matters someone just stole her purse last weekend along with over $100.00 that was suppose to go towards her soldiers' support project. She is even trying to write to all 1,100 Army and National Guard Soldiers in Iraq. She tells me that she is about a third of the way through.

Thanks for reading.

Pure Ghee

2008-05-09T02:48:00.000-07:00

“Don’t rush to act on great ideas. Great ideas are like colds; it takes a few days before you realize you have a bad one.”

-Shazdoc, physician, Afghan mentor, amateur blogger

I have to apologize in advance for the quality of my blog. My writing staff is currently on strike. Regarding my quote, the Afghan Community Service Idol idea no longer sounds like a very good idea anymore. I am just going to rename it Shazdoc Spotlight on U.S. /Afghan Community Service Projects and continue to feature projects every so often . I have had other stinker ideas recently as well. I had a "great idea" to sponsor an Afghan family during Christmas realizing shortly after that they do not celebrate it of course. I asked the interpreter today if they celebrate anything similar in December and he said that there is a “Big Eid” that takes place during the first week. So if I find the right family I may set up a Big Eid Drive for an Afghan family.

Yesterday I added a few new features to my site. One is a depot for all of my Afghan videos since I now know how to load them. Today I included a short clip of the orphanage visit. I will try and get more footage. It will be a multimedia Kabul blogsperience. Just be happy that I lack the ability to upload smell because I would not hesitate to upload the scent of burning tires just to make it more realistic. I also added a Shazdoc news article site. So far nothing has been published but I have a few things in the works so standby.

I saw a billboard today that made me laugh. Here it is:

Apparently Ghee is a vegetable substitute for animal lard. It is used in place of animal lard which is essentially pig fat and Muslims are prevented from consuming any pork. The words, perfect taste and perfect flavor, just seem ironic when you consider that they are describing vegetable lard. To me Ghee almost sounds like a bad word. I picture someone saying, “I think we are in some deep ghee!”

Today we met at the old clinic and had a very productive meeting. We were treated to Kabobs at lunch. It was a very special occasion for them. They mainly eat rice for lunch so eating Kabobs is a really big deal. Here is a picture:

We each had our own big plate. Of course, it came with naan. We also learned how to correctly say, “How are you,” which is, “Chetor asti.” Not to be mistaken for, “Shetor asti” which means, “You are a big camel.”

Coming home we had to take a big time detour because they were flying in some of the dead and injured from yesterday's bombing. It is all very sad to think about. I hear a lot of children were killed and injured. The violence just does not make any sense to me. I hear that Hamid Karzi has declared 3 days of national morning. I am not sure how this will effect our travel. We will have to see.

Check out the orphanage and the bread house video if you have not already see them. I should be adding more in the coming days. Thanks for reading.

Pol-e Charki School Visit

2008-05-08T04:53:00.000-07:00

“Never raise your hand to your children; it leaves your midsection unprotected.”
-Robert Orben

I just got back from a Humanitarian Assistance (HA) mission. We went to a school located in Pol-e Charki. All I have to say is that it was absolute pandemonium. It was definitely an experience that I will never forget. We pulled up to the school with 9 vehicles. One of them was a flat bed truck with 14 “inserts” on them. Inserts are large 5 foot x 5 foot cardboard boxes. The boxes were loaded with brand new cloths, shoes, and school supplies. I have to emphasize that although it was chaotic it was not angry chaos, rather, it was more like excited chaos. I would compare it to teenie boppers at a High School Musical concert kind of crazy. The children were all very nice and fun they were just all very excited to see us. When we got there we unloaded the flatbed truck and spread out into different parts of the school. I was assigned to the “primary school” which is grades 1st-5th which had about 1,300 students.

As you can see from some of the pictures in the photo book on the right column the school is not exactly in the best shape. I included a picture of the bathroom not to be disgusting but rather to highlight how primitive it really is. The bathroom is essentially a small hole in the ground. There is no running water or toilet paper and the waste is never removed. The class rooms were just as bad. They were basically empty rooms with old broken desks inside. Children were crowded inside sitting on the ground.

When we arrived it was orderly for about 20 minutes. All of the students were all well behaved staying in their classrooms. After we started handing out the shoes is when it started to get a little crazy. There was no way to make sure that every child got a pair of shoes. There were just too many kids. We made sure to reward a class that was really well behaved. We were able to give shoes to at least one entire classroom.

There were kids everywhere. I was surrounded by a large groups. They would ask me for my pen, my notebook, my watch. I kept saying “Estad sho” which is Dari for “stop.” I would also say “burro” which means “go.” Like I said, it was all done with a smile. I would smile and say “burro” and they would smile back and say “burro” right back. The teachers were just resigned to the chaos.

I felt really sorry for this little girl. She really needs a bath and some new cloths.

In all of the melee one of the kids split open his upper lip. I was able to suture it back together. I had very limited supplies so I was not even able to numb him up. I was so shocked at how stoic he was. The cut was located over a very sensitive area and he hardly flinched.

I am in the process of writing an article for the base paper. Today I felt like a real reporter. I had my pen and pad out and I was interviewed a teacher and some students. When (I should probably say if) it gets published I will make it available on my site. I am also going to try and upload some of the videos from today.

Thanks for reading.

Eat a Toad

2008-05-07T08:23:00.000-07:00

"Eat a live toad the first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day."
-Unknown

That has to officially be my favorite quote yet. Can someone send me some toads? I would like for that to be the worst thing that happens to me while I am here.

Yesterday someone mentioned that they were having trouble viewing the school album. I hope I fixed the problem. Let me know if you are still having problems. Those kids were something else.

Today was our "down day." We are not officially allowed to call it a day off because we are supposed to be on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. I cleaned my rifle in the morning and I also got rid of a lot of unnecessary things in my room to get ready for the big move.

We had a ceremony for a fallen soldier today. It was the third that I have attended since I have been here. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers tonight.

I will cut it short today since there is not much going on. We have a busy week ahead of us. It should be very interesting.

Thanks for reading.

4,297

2008-05-06T04:51:00.000-07:00

Today we woke up to some more sad news that resulted in a "Coms blackout." 6 more soldiers died in Afghanistan. All I know is what I have read in the news.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/11/10/afghanistan.nato.clashes/index.html

These 6 people are not just numbers. They are actual people with friends and families that were waiting for them to come home. Most of them were very young. I attached a link to a website that the Washington Post maintains. It has most of the pictures and very brief description of all of the people in the military that have died both in Afghanistan and Iraq. On this Veteran's Day weekend it is a good way pay tribute to them by reading some of their stories.
http://projects.washingtonpost.com/fallen/afghanistan/

I came across this condolence letter when I was reading a Guest Book of a fallen soldier. It just broke my heart.

http://legacy.com/WashingtonPost/GB/GuestBookView.aspx?PersonID=94265440

To the Family and Friends of this Soldier: I will stand in grief with this soldier's family to honor him. For every fallen HERO there is a bright star that shines in the evening sky to remind us of the cherished gift we were given – even if for too short a time.

My heart breaks again as I sign yet another guest book of another courageous young soldier who gave their life so selflessly. I wish I never found myself in a position to have to sign another guestbook for the rest of my life, but I promised Brent that neither he nor any like him would be forgotten and so I will continue until the day there is no longer the need.

We lost our son SFC Brent A. Adams on 12/1/05 and it seems like yesterday. I wish so badly there were things I could say to you right now to make the pain you are feeling go away, but I know first hand there simply are no words that will bring you the comfort and peace your heart aches for. Just know that you are not alone. My heart, thoughts, and prayers are with you all as you go through this tragedy moment by moment and as you mourn this loss.

We don't know each other, will probably never meet, but will forever be united in the loss of our Heroes. We have, unfortunately joined a group none of us wanted to join, an ever-growing group of families in this situation. May God grant you peace and strength to get through this and be able once again to smile at a memory rather than have only the tears that flow so easily now. To be so proud of your loved one and so saddened at the same time is a mix of emotions very difficult to deal with as our hearts both burst with pride and pain together.

I am sorry that I never knew your soldier personally. While they can never be replaced, neither will they ever be forgotten. You must trust that sometime, someday the loving memories you have will help to sustain you and help you go on. This courageous soldier will forever be your Angel watching over you all for the rest of your lives. It's what brings me some measure of peace and comfort and I hope it will you as well.

To his family and friends in pain, I offer this comfort: When you find yourself in that dark sorrowful place, think not only of how you will miss him, but instead recall the years, days, hours and minutes gifted to you by his presence. The one thing that cannot be taken from you is your wonderful memories that now will mean more than ever. If you ever want to talk, I'm only an e:mail away and would love for you to tell me more about your Hero.

God Bless this soldier and family who gave all and God Bless legacy.com for setting up this site where families can so quickly share their condolences and prayers with others like themselves.Proud Parents of SFC Brent A. Adams, KIA, 12/1/05, Ramadi, IraqPam and Bill Adams, Lancaster, PA"

"The least of learning is done in the classrooms."
-Thomas MertonUS religious author, clergyman, & Trappist monk (1915 - 1968)

My internet subscription ran out today and I am reluctant to renew it since I will be moving soon. Because of this I had to spend some time in the computer lab to do my blog. I have not been there for a while. When you are in there you can not help but to be nosey. One person was on an internet phone very upset and loud talking about how his wife is going to leave him. A bunch of other people are on webcams. The computer I am using is greasy and disgusting.

Today I gave my lecture on mass casualty to the staff of the new clinic. It took a while to figure out where to give it. We just ended up picking a wall a set up a bunch of chairs. We had a pretty good turnout. All of the people there seemed to all be listening attentively. I tried to make it a little interactive. It went pretty well.

I get a bunch of mail from people who got my name though soldier support sites like Soldier's Angles. Today I got a couple of letters from some of them and I though I would share a couple of them with you. One nice lady from Lockport, N.Y. always sends me a typed letter and includes a medical related article that she cuts out from newspaper.

I also received another letter from a young girl from Indianapolis, I.N. I am assuming that she is about 13 years-old from her letter. I thought that it would be fun if I answered one of her questions on my blog.

She asks, "Why do the women wear all of those cloths?"

I am assuming that she is referring to the burqa. I found a really good explanation from Wikepedia that I copied verbatim.

"A burqa (also transliterated burkha, burka or burqua) is an enveloping outer garment worn by women in some Islamic traditions for the purpose of cloaking the entire body. It is worn over the usual daily clothing (often a long dress or a shalwar kameez) and removed when the woman returns to the sanctuary of the household.

Many Muslims believe that the Islamic holy book, the Qur'an, and the collected traditions of the life of Muhammed, or hadith, require both men and women to dress and behave modestly in public. However, this requirement, called hijab, has been interpreted in many different ways by Islamic scholars (ulema) and Muslim communities; the burqa is not specifically mentioned in the Quran.

The full Afghan chadri covers the wearer's entire face except for a small region about the eyes, which is covered by a concealing net or grille. Pakistani and Indian burqas may expose the face or eyes. The garment is usually sewn from light materials, and requires many meters of material. Blue is a favourite colour for chadris. The cap from which the material hangs may be decorated with embroidery.

The chadri was created by one of Afghanistan's rulers trying to stop anyone from seeing his wives' faces. He came up with the chadri, which became a sign of an upper class citizen; however, as times changed, the new government decided that chadris weren't modern enough and banned them. The upper class people then gave them to their servants. The chadris in those days were made out of silk and the mesh at the front was lace.

Before the Taliban took power in Afghanistan, the chadri was infrequently worn in cities. While they were in power, the Taliban treatment of women required the wearing of a chadri in public. Officially, it is not required under the present Afghan regime, but local warlords still enforce it in southern Afghanistan. Due to political instability in these areas, women who might not otherwise be inclined to wear the chadri must do so as matter of personal safety."

That last line is key. I do not think that it would be very safe for women to go out in public without atleast a headscarf. It would not be appropriate for me to criticize or debate this topic since I am a guest in their country and I also represent the military so I will leave that for another place and time. Never the less, I still find Afghanistan's culture and customs to be very interesting.

Thanks for reading.

Gross Anatomy

2008-05-05T03:39:00.000-07:00

"Et tu, Brute!"
-William Shakespeare, "Julius Caesar", Act 3 scene 1Greatest English dramatist & poet (1564 - 1616)

"The billeting office will require you vacate this room by 30 November."
-Camp Phoenix Billeting Manager

I am being thrown out of my own home. Good 'ole Camp Phoenix is kicking me out of my room. They want me to move into a B-hut. It is just as well, I was leaving them anyways. I am moving on to a bigger and better FOB.

Today's lectures went very well. One of the lectures was a continuation of my mascal lecture from yeaterday and then I touched on some physical exam topics. They really liked the scenerio where a soldier had a rocket granade embedded in his leg. It actually came from a real life incident. It is a tricky scenerio because if you try and remove the granade it might blow up. "How would you catagorize him?," I asked. "Immediate, Delayed, Minimal or Expectant." Bascially I was asking what order you treat this patient if you had a number of patients that also needed life saving care. Unfortunately for the soldier in my example leg amputation might have been a real possibility.

I planned to show some physical exam videos and I needed a sleeve to hold my CD. I thought that my choice of sleeve cover was kind of ironic.

They are both kind of related. They both deal with physical anatomy. One just goes into a little more gross anatomy. Emphasis on the gross.

After the lectures we then started to discuss equipment training. I set up 3 stations- an EKG machine station, otoscope/ophthalmoscope/blood pressure/temperature station, and fetal doptone station. All of the equipment was new to them. It was all fancy equipment that even I do not have in the states. I asked the ENT doctor if he wanted to discuss how to use the otoscope (the hand tool that allows you to see the eardrum). He declined indicated that he wanted me to show how to use it. After I showed everyone how to use it the ENT doctor wanted to look in my ears. He just about penetrated my brain with how far he inserted the ear speculum. Then they all took turns looking into each others ears. I tried to tell them that they should change out the speculums. I think it got lost in translation so I just let them do their thing.

All in all I think that it went very well. I heard a funny quote not too long ago that aptly describes how progress is made in Afghanistan, "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time."

Thanks for reading.

The Smog of War

2008-05-04T03:20:00.000-07:00

"Thank God men cannot as yet fly and lay waste the sky as well as the earth!"
-Henry David ThoreauUS Transcendentalist author (1817 - 1862)

The air in Kabul was so thick with pollution this morning that you needed to use a fork and a knife just breath it. The air had the appearance of dirty fog. The problem with the air in Kabul stems from the fact that the city is surrounded by large mountains so the pollution is essentially trapped inside and can not easily ventilate itself. There are also a number of other causes which exacerbate the pollution, such as, cars that burn diesel fuel, people burning wood in furnaces to heat their homes, and, worst of all, everywhere you look they are burning tires.

Driving in Kabul is definitely an experience, especially when you are driving a Humvee. I loaded a few videos onto the shazdoc video site. The best way I could describe it is it is like you are driving an ambulance with blaring sirens. You have to be somewhat aggressive but at the same time very safe.

Today we did more equipment moving. Most of the doctors arrived wearing very nice cloths like leather jackets and turtle neck sweaters. I do not think that they came expecting to lift boxes and move furniture. I tried to lead by example. I grabbed a heavy box and I said, "Come on, grab a box. Lets put them in your room."

When I got back I had 2 big boxes waiting for me. I told the person working in the post office not to be surprised if he starts to getting packages addressed to 6 M.I.K.. He looked at me a little funny and jokingly asked to see my ID.

One of the packages I got was a box full of children's socks from someone in Waynesboro, Virginia. The second box was filled with towels and watches from someone from Newbury Park, California. People always ask me if I need anything and 9 times out of 10 I say, "No thanks, I am doing just fine. We are very well taken care of over here." Well when I got asked this question recently I answered truthfully saying that I really needed a new towel and a really cheap watch if one was lying around. Because of this request I got sent 20 watches (if you look closely you can see the price tag of $250.00) and 20 towels. What can I say. That is Soldiers Angles for you. When you ask for something they really deliver. I gave out the watches to all of my office mates and they were all very appreciative.

I have not mentioned it for a while but I am still more then happy to distribute any donations that you send me. I prefer that you send me stuff for Afghan children. Whatever you send I will try and personally hand them out and take pictures. Don't worry about how my address is changing. The post office here will easily forward anything you send to my new address.

Thanks for reading.

Hard Work

2008-05-03T04:49:00.000-07:00

"Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work."
-Peter DruckerAmerican (Austrian-born) management writer (1909 - 2005)

I have to say that today the Air Force got their money's worth out of me. I officially worked my butt off and I am now very tired. Let me show you some of my handy work. It is hard to appreciate but everything you see had to be unpacked, put together, moved, etc. and this is just one of the many rooms.

We had some fun with some of the kids around the clinic. I was able to hand out some of our donated supplies. They really appreciated it.

For lunch we gave our interpreters some money and they went out and bought us some naan and lamb kabobs. It was really good.

Seeing all of the kids at the clinic inspired me to open up all of the boxes of donated goods that I have received and create a bunch of little care packages to give out tomorrow to kids. The bags are a mixture of notebooks, pens, markers, candy (a lot of candy), cloths- hats, gloves, and socks. I was able to make about 20 bags. Each bag is enough for an entire family with 3-4 children. My goal, and I am not sure whether or not I can do it, is to deliver them to families that my interpreter refers to as nomads. They officially are the poorest of the poor. The basically are homeless. They live in makeshift tents in empty dirt lots. It will not be safe enough for me to deliver the supplies but my interpreter said that he would be happy to deliver them for me. I will have him take my camera. Here I am putting the bags together.

Thanks for reading.

Kochis HA Drop

2008-05-02T05:35:00.000-07:00

"Make your life a mission - not an intermission."
-Arnold Glasgow

Today we accomplished a lot. I will only comment on part of the day because I don't want to discuss ongoing projects for security reasons. I asked the interpreters to hand out the gifts that people sent from back home. I did not go with them for security reasons. The interpreters were able to film the whole thing so fortunately I was able to view it.

I have been hesitant to incorporate donations from home with the previous Humanitarian Assistance (HA) mission's donations because I did not want them to get lost in the shuffle. I consider this to be the first official Shazdoc HA drop. All of the donations came exclusively from readers of this site. The supplies were delivered to a group of people called Kochis (pronounced coochies). They are tribal nomads.

Take a look at the background. You can see the tents that they live in. They all live very hard lives. It gets really cold at night and I am sure that those flimsy tents do not provide a lot of warmth. I am sure that they do not get a lot of food and have a way to bathe either.

I gave out a ton of school supplies, toys, candy, and cloths- socks, hats, scarfs. The video that the interpreters filmed is 8 minutes long and would take too long to upload to my site. I would be more then happy to send it to anyone who would like to have a copy. You just need Quicktime loaded onto your computer to view it. It is an .mov file.

The other really neat thing that happened when I got back is I got a package from Q100, a radio station in Atlanta. They did a letter drive for deployed troops. They were able to gather 500,000 letters. I received a big stack of them and I am going to work on getting them out to people. I am not sure if you can appreciate it from the picture, but I probably received 1000 letters from school children. Wow. I will have to add this one to the Shazdoc Spotlight on Afghanistan Community Service website.

Keep the donations coming. I want Shazdoc HA drop #2 to be bigger and better than #1.

Thanks for reading.

Living the Dream

2008-05-01T06:46:00.000-07:00

"Change is the constant, the signal for rebirth, the egg of the phoenix."
-Christina Baldwin

Today we moved into our new home over at Camp Eggers. It is kind of a sad day for us because our team is somewhat breaking up. Doc Peters is staying back over at Camp Phoenix for now because of some medical issues. We linked up with our teammates that we trained with over at Fort Riley. We are somewhat spread out throughout the base. All and all, I have to say that it is a much better move in the long run because it cuts down our commute which ultimately makes it safer. The base is nicer then Camp Phoenix in many ways. It has a lot more trees and I think a lot more social activities.

The base is in somewhat of an interesting arrangement. The military basically bought up an entire neighborhood of nice homes and walled it off and turned it into a base. Where there were swimming pools and yards they stacked connex boxes and made offices and sleeping quarters. Connex boxes are large metal containers that you load stuff into. There is not a lot of free space so finding your way around is interesting. You have to walk through all kinds of passage ways. I actually have to walk though a bathroom everyday to get to my new office. I had to navigate through this dark and narrow passage way just to get to the office to type this post.

The chow hall is not as good as Phoenix. Most importantly, it just does not have the homey feeling that Camp Phoenix had. I am sure that it will come with time.

I am currently staying in temporary housing. Here is a picture of where I am living. Lots of bunk beds. Yep mom, I am living the dream! I am actually kidding. The accommodations are again very nice compared to other FOBs around Afghanistan. Most other service members in Afghanistan are living in tents and B-huts. I am very fortunate to be in a hardened structure. I am on a waiting list for more permanent housing.

We had a short birthday party for one of our teammates tonight. Afterwards we all went and ate dinner together. It was very nice.

Camp Eggers had their big bazaar today. I am getting the Fetish Bear charm that was sent to me yesterday made into a necklace otherwise I will lose the little thing. Here is a picture of the bizaar.

Tonight Bill O'Riley will be speaking in a place called the Clam Shell. I have made a point to keep this blog apolitical and I plan to keep it that way. All I have to say is that I appreciate him making the effort to visit us over here in Kabul. I will let you know how it goes.

Thanks for reading.

Hemoglobin Juice

2008-04-28T06:57:00.000-07:00

"The art of medicine consists in amusing the patient while nature cures the disease."
-VoltaireFrench author, humanist, rationalist, & satirist (1694 - 1778)

Today we visited a supply depot that is located at the National Military Hospital (NMH). I am really impressed by the size and appearance of the hospital. From the outside it looks like one you would find in the states.

Visiting the supply depot was kind of fun. It was very interesting for me to go through all of their different meds. Take a look at a few of these.

How about a nice warm drink of Hemoglobin juice- yuck!

I did not know that you could detoxify your liver. I had a lot of friends in college that could have used this.

I am not sure that I would take a medicine with this picture on it.

How about replacing your morning coffee with some of this.

We stopped off at a little shop that we affectionately call 7-11. I bought some soy nuts.

The reason we were visiting NMH was so that one of our preventative medicine techs could pick up some vaccines. He was making a point of personally delivering something like 15,000 doses of different vaccines, such as, hepatitis B, meningitis, polio, etc. He is delivering them a smaller city outside of Kabul. The person delivering the meds is doing it by his own initiative. I was thinking about what he was doing earlier today and it just struck me what a profound impact that his efforts will be having. If through his efforts he prevents just one case of polio or one case of meningitis then I believe that he will have more of a significant impact on Affghanistan then most people have during their entire deployment. What a wonderful thing he is doing for the people, most importantly the children, of Afghanistan.

I will continue my discussion of Afghan history and culture. I copied this right out of a travel book.

The King

King Zahir Shar returned to Kabul from Italy in April 2002 after 29 years in exile. For many Afghans, especially the older generation, the king’s 40-year rule from 1933 is regarded as a period of peace and stability when women were educated and a free press encouraged. Zahir shah was born Oct 15th 1914 and educated in Kabul and Paris. He became king in 1933 just hours after his father’s assassination. But his cousin and a former prime minister, Mohammad Daud, deposed the king during a coup in July 1973 while he was receiving medical treatment in Italy, bringing to an end the rule of the Durrani dynasty and a monarchy in Afghanistan. Daud declared himself president of a new Republic of Afghanistan. In 2002 the king returned to Kabul from Rome expressing no political ambitions. Later that year he opened the June Loya Jirga grand assembly at which there were moves to have him reinstated.

I think I am officially over the deployment hump (I have reached the half way point). I can feel a light breeze on my face as I begin my initial coast down the hill. I hope that these next few months go by just as fast.

A Soldiers Angels buddy of mine sent me this great link to her website. Take a look. They are doing a lot of really great things for the troops.

http://azsoldiersangels.blogspot.com/

Thanks for reading.

Buzkashi

2008-04-28T06:38:00.000-07:00

“Yak roz didi dost. Digar roz didi brodar”
Friendship grows into brotherhood
Literally: One day you see a friend. The next day you see a brother.
-Afghan Proverb

Last night I decided to go see Bill O’Riley just for the fun of it. I am not really a fan of his show but I thought that it may be a fun to see a celebrity. I walked down to the coffee shop called The Coffee Bean. Right away I saw a long line. I was not sure if he was going to give a little speech or what but I was curious so I decided to wait . Shortly after getting in line I saw him walk towards the back of the line. He was with a small entourage and was being escorted by a General. He must not of been in a very good mood because had an obvious scowl on his face. When I snapped a picture he stopped in his tracks and gave me the stink eye. I am not sure why. He might have been jet lagged so I will give him the benefit of the doubt. It ended up that he was only signing books and mugs so I decided to leave.

The next morning I saw his crew in the Goat House which is one of the two places around here where you can eat. I had to laugh to myself because they, of course, are from Fox News and CNN was playing on the TV. I had a really nice breakfast with 2 Albanians.

I just moved into my permanent housing. I have a descent size room with a very nice roommate. I really can not complain. I helped LtCol Johnson move into his new room and I visited my friend Adam. Here is a picture of him in his room.

Adam is an absolute crack up. My other good friend Puffy had to go back to the states for family medical reasons. He should be coming back by the end of the month. I am looking forward to it.

I thought that it would be fun to discuss some Afghan history and culture every so often. I will do it in pieces so as to not bore you too much. I find it to be extremely interesting and I hope you do too.

Buzkashi is the national sport of Afghanistan. It is usually played around Oct through Nov. 20. The way it is played is 30 horsemen will split into 2 teams. This is not an absolute rule because at times hundreds even thousands of horses and riders take part. The aim is to get a decapitated calf weighing around 150 pounds to a heavily defended marked point and back again to the starting point.

Here is a Wikapedia article on the topic:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buzkashi

Thanks for reading.

KAIA

2008-04-27T07:42:00.000-07:00

"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail. "
-Ralph Waldo EmersonUS essayist & poet (1803 - 1882)

Ok, that picture up top has nothing to do with Kabul or Afghanistan. Never the less, I thought that it was really neat and worth posting. That a look at it from both sides.

Today was a significant day in the clinic. We actually turned over all of the keys. The facility no longer belongs to us now.

I helped out with a nighttime convoy so I got in a little late tonight. I am a little tired right now but you know what they say, the blog must go on. Tonight was one of the first time that I traveled at night. We had to drop off our teammates at the airport. They are going to deliver the vaccines that were picked up yesterday.

Traveling at night was interesting. The streets are just as busy as during the day. We got to ride in style in an uparmored SUV. On the way to the airport I actually saw some Christmas lights which was somewhat surprising. The airport is called Kabul International Airport or KAIA (pronounced KIA). If you have orders to come to Kabul this is the airport you will be flying into.

We had a chance to eat at their dinning facility. The food that they served was pretty good. The food is prepared by European contractors. After we ate we stopped by a place called Air Force One. They serve food and they have some recreational activities.

I loaded a new picture book today. It was a long time coming. I discovered a bunch of old pictures that I thought were lost. The pictures are of Fort Riley and of the Oz Museum. Yes, that's right, Kansas has an Oz Museum. It was in a little strip mall. It was as you would expect a little museum in a small town in Kansas would be. I still had a great time and enjoyed the trip.

Thanks for reading.

Computer Lesson

2008-04-26T06:10:00.000-07:00

"I could dance with you until the cows come home. On second thought I'd rather dance with the cows until you come home."
-Groucho MarxUS comedian with Marx Brothers (1890 - 1977)

Sorry for the quality of that picture. We shot it as we were passing by in a car. As many times as I have seen it, I still can not get over seeing the hanging meat.

Another long day. I MOVED AGAIN. I think that I have moved 3 times over the past 4 days. Moving is not an easy task. I probably have about 10 different bags. One thing is for sure, I am not moving out of this room. Speaking of all of the bags, no one could ever say that the government does not equip us properly. I have so many uniforms, so much cold weather gear, the most advanced body armor, etc.. Even the cars we drive are all brand new. We are really well taken care of over here. Even the food is plentiful. I consider myself to be an all-you-can-eat buffet affectionado . We have a Las Vegas style, all-you-can-eat buffet three times a day. I am surprised that I can still fit in my uniform the way that I have been eating.

I decided to be a good friend to LtCol Peters and give him my old room so he does not have to walk as far in his body armor. It was an act of pure selflessness (not to mention the other room was private and also came with a TV, but that in no way factored into my selfless decision). Entering my new room was almost comical. Again, like always, I have to preface this by saying I appreciate my living conditions because most people do not have it this good. I walk into the room and I turn on the lights and I hear a loud buzzing sound coming from the light fixture and then the light just flickers instead of coming on. The room looks like an old Motel 6 hotel room but 1/3 the size. It is really not that bad. Here is a picture.

Today at the clinic I sat and had chai for about an hour with one of the Orthopedist. A large part of creating success in Afghanistan is about building good relations. When you meet with someone you should not rush and discuss work matters, rather, you first need to sit down and discuss how they are, how their families are doing, and then the work gets discussed a little later.

A son of one of the people that runs the clinic came to visit today. He is about 12 and speaks pretty good English. I sat down with him in front of one of the new computers and I thought that I was going to teach him a thing or two. He quickly reversed the roles and was the one that ended up teaching me. I had never seen anyone so fast with a computer before in my life. He would open different screens, click here, type there, all with lightening speed. We even made a short movie with windows movie maker all in 5 minutes. It had music, pictures, special effects, and even credits (I was the executive producer by the way). I was very impressed.

Coming home today I saw this same homeless family that is always in the same spot whenever we pass by. I am not exaggerating when I say this, the mother and father actually sit down in the middle of a busy and chaotic street. They have 2 children that walk from car to car begging for food or water. For some reason seeing them today really struck a cord with me. I kept thinking about the two children all day. They are 2 little girls probably around 10. Both were filthy. Their hair was all in dreadlocks. They have just been born into such unimaginable hardship. At least the children in the orphanage that I visited were housed, fed, and bathed. These children not only did not have any of these things but they are also forced to beg for food and water in the middle of a busy street. I am going to try and do something good for them. I can always ask the interpreters to drop something off for them. It obviously would be too dangerous, not to mention against the rules, for us to stop the convoy. I will also try and see if I can get some pictures uploaded. If anybody wants to send them anything I would be happy to deliver it to them.

Someone was asking for my email. Here it is gph13040@gmail.com. I would prefer if you posted a comment on the guest book or in the comment section of the post. Emails are great but they get deleted and no one else gets to read them.

Thanks for reading.

Act

2008-04-25T00:09:00.000-07:00

"One kernel is felt in a hogshead; one drop of water helps to swell the ocean; a spark of fire help to give light to the world. None are too small, too feeble, too poor to be of service. Think of this and act."

-Hannah More

My favortie 8th grade class from South Carolina actually left a comment on my guest book. They said that they have a way to check my blog out from their class. How exciting. Hey guys, did you get the package that I sent you?

Today's post will be photo heavy. LtCol Johnson and I decided to donate some money to help out a homeless family that sits in the middle of the street everyday. That photo at the top of the blog is the image that haunted me all day yesterday. The mother of that child looks almost like a ghostly figure. She sits on the street under the burqa waving her cane at the passing cars. Meanwhile her two children are always doing the same thing. They are moving their hands to their mouths signaling that they want food from the passing motorists.

It really does not take a lot of money to make a big impact in Afghanistan. A typical physician makes $80.00 per month and lives fairly well. So a $10.00 donation goes very far to feed a family. I also gave them some donated gifts from back home that people did not want. For instance we were sent laundry detergent but we have people who do our laundry for us. I hope the people back home do not mind.

The interpreter was nice enough to go out and buy the supplies and donate them for us. This picture is of the vendor selling him oil and rice.

Here they are receiving the supplies.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, please try and give that one kernel of food, that one drop of water, or that one spark of fire to people that are less fortunate then you. If everyone helps out just a little bit then it will end up making a great big impact.

Thanks for reading.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2008-04-24T07:44:00.000-07:00

"Dear Lord, I've been asked, nay commanded, to thank Thee for the Christmas turkey before us... a turkey which was no doubt a lively, intelligent bird... a social being... capable of actual affection... nuzzling its young with almost human- like compassion. Anyway, it's dead and we're gonna eat it. Please give our respects to its family..."

-Berke Breathed, Bloom County Babylon

Happy Thanksgiving. Today's post is only for the most dedicated 6 M.I.K. reader only because it is fairly long. I will spend the first part discussing our Thanksgiving. Second, I am not sure if you remember, but I had a long discussion with one of the interpreters the day the clinic opened. That day I asked if he could type up a summary of his experience about when the mujaheddin came and took over his country. Remember, it was the mujaheddin that was fighting the Russians who had been occupying Afghanistan. When the Russians left the Mujaheddin fought a civil war up until the Taliban came along and took over.

I read his email last night and I was just floored. He has been through such unimaginable events. Last night we had a "Hail and Farewell" party which is essentially a welcoming and going away party for incoming and outgoing people. The same interpreter got up and gave such a moving speech. He thanked the people that were leaving for what they had done. He also described how we are making history and that we should be proud everything that we are doing. I can not even come close to recreating the moment but it was really a moving speech.

I was walking towards the office this morning and I came upon a 5K Turkey Trot that was going on. Later we had an "All Air Force" meeting where a 3 star General, General North, and his staff came and spoke to us. He is the head of all the Air Force personnel in all of Afghanistan and Iraq. He gave a really great motivating pep talk. It is always nice to get those every so often. It recharged our batteries, if you know what I mean.

After the meeting we went to go eat lunch. Maybe I am just easily impressed but they really had an impressive spread at the Goat House (the chow hall). It must have taken 3 weeks just to carve out all of the figurines. There were ice sculptures, every kind of meat you can imagine, a big bowl of peeled shrimp, ice cream, egg nog, etc. I must have eaten 4,000 calories.

Here is a picture of my plate.

Here is a big leg of roast beef. The guy actually smiled in the second picture but it was unfortunately blurry.

This is just a very small sampling of the cakes and deserts.

The ice sculptures were amazing.

They made a little turkey house. The roof was made out of pasta.

Here we are, minus Angela.

This was the best part. I had to include it.

Egg nog!!

Zalmai’s Tales: Life in Afghanistan by Zalmai Yawar

In early 1992 everything changed for the worse. The mujaheddin who were fighting against the communist government came to Kabul. Even before they entered the city, some parties started fighting each other. We happened to be living in the western part of the city which was controlled by the Hazaras of the Wahdat party. By this time fighting was going on in different parts of the city. The government forces (Jamiet-I-Islami) were fighting in two fronts, against Ezbe Wahdat of the Hazaras in the west and against Ezbe-I-Islami of Hakmatyar in the south. Due to the fighting, a lot of non-Hazaras had to leave their homes in the western part of the city. The Hazaras killed a lot of people and looted many homes as they left. My family is Pashtun. Therefore we had to leave, and went to Logar, the province were my father and my mother were born. But not all of us could leave all at once. I had to stay at home in Kabul, to look after our house and our belongings. I was seventeen years old and spent more than nine months by myself in our house. Our house was near Kabul University and when the university library was looted by the Hazaras, they sold a lot of the books in the shops. People would stand by the side of the road and buy them when armed men brought them in sacks. But in those times, books were more valuable as household goods than as literature. The men would remove the hard cover from the books and sell those separately to people who were making shoes and used them as soles. The paper of the books was bought by women who were making bags. It was very sad to see so many good books destroyed. The books were sold by weight. The price for 7 kg books – which was called a ser – was just 700 Afghanis, roughly about 16 cents. I bought a lot of books. I would collect the best ones and put htem in the scale and buy them with some of the money that was sent to me for food. I made a new cover for the books at home. Because I was alone, I kept myself busy reading English books. The books gave me heart. I would say things like, “Well, there were other times in the past when innocent people suffered for one reason or another.” For example, the book The 25th Hour told me the story of a man who was a Jew and had to suffer because of it.

* * *

One day my younger brother Masoud came from Logar and wanted to stay a few days. I did not like this idea because I did not want anything to happen to him. When he was leaving for Logar a few days later, I went with him to the city. On our way we were stopped at a checkpoint and taken to a car. We were taken to the front line which was located behind the Ali Abad Hospital. The armed men who had taken us would not go with us. They told us to go ahead and then turn right where we would find shovels and pickaxes. We were asked to dig our share of the trenches and come back. We went to the place where the shovels were and looked up. Armed men from the other side were watching us. They belonged to the Jamaiet-I-Islami party. They were aiming right at us. If they wanted to shoot at us they could, but they were just looking at us. If they had mistaken us for Ezbe-I-Wahdat men, they would not have missed us. The Amherst Story Project - 2004 Our hands were shaking as we tried to tell them that we had been brought there by force by armed men. We were really scared. But we were not as frightened of the people who were aiming their guns at us as we were of our captors. The whole area got very quiet. Suddenly, we heard an explosion and some gunfire. The thump of an explosion was followed by the rat-tat-tat of machine gunfire. Mortars and machine gun fires whistled through from both sides. We did not know what to do. We were in a far more dangerous place than those who had brought us there. We ran toward a room near us. We just sat there in the corner, scared. A lot of bullets were hitting the walls of the room. The fact that we were in a room and not outside comforted us. We sat there for just a few minutes. But the minutes seemed like ages. The exchange of machine-gun fire and mortars continued. We could hear when the other side fired a mortar and cringed because we thought it would land on the room where we were, but thankfully it would hit somewhere else and we would be relieved. I do not remember how many hours the fighting lasted, but when it got quieter we left the room and tried to go back to the place where the men had left us a few hours earlier. After so many mortars, we were not afraid of machine-gun fire, so we started running towards the main road. The front line was a residential area. They had dug holes in the walls of houses. One could go from one house to another through these holes. One our way back we also had to jump from roof to roof with some roofs as high as three or four meters. It was something which I could not do in ordinary circumstances, but fear gave me strength. Eventually we got away from there and arrived in a place which was still occupied by families, and we felt safe.

* * *

Sometimes the fighting would be brief. But usually it would go on for days and even weeks. I always kept enough food supplies to last for at least three weeks. To get to the nearest bakery that was still baking bread, I had to walk about 45 minutes. One day, the government forces (Jamiat-I-Islami) launched an offensive to capture Kabul University from the HEzbe-I-Wahdat forces. The fighting was intense and went on for weeks. I did not have the chance to buy bread, which was the only thing that I had to survive on. I spent most of the three weeks of fighting in the basement of our house. It was dark, damp and smelly. My food ran out. All I had left was wheat. For days I boiled wheat and ate it three times a day. The Iranian Embassy negotiated a truce, but even that truce did not last long.

* * *

I saw so many people killed by bullets fired from the top of the hills surrounding the western part of Kabul. You would be walking on the road and all of a sudden a man or two or sometimes even three would fall down to the ground and then you would here the sound of the guns that had fired the bullets. People would run and hide behind trees, walls or anything that would give them protection. Getting injured or even killed was so common. Yet it never occurred to me that I would be one of those people hit by a bullet or that I would be in one of those houses hit by a rocket until it almost happened. It was the winter of 1993. I woke up from the sound of shooting and rockets. It was four o’clock in the morning and I was in bed. I covered my head with the blanket. Part of me said to go downstairs to the basement, but I got lazy and decided to stay in bed in the upstairs room. The fighting got more intense and the explosion of mortar shells got nearer and nearer to my house. I decided to go downstairs but I The Amherst Story Project - 2004 made the decision a bit too late. I went downstairs and took a few steps towards the entrance of the basement. I heard an explosion and saw a big blast about thirty or forty meters away from me. I saw pieces of bricks flying in different directions and heard the sound of shrapnel hit the roof. Just about four or five seconds later, another blast came much closer. I pressed myself against the nearest wall for protection, then tried once more to get to the basement. But there was yet another blast. Before I could do anything I felt a hot wave of air hitting my face and I felt something hitting me on my thigh and my groin. I did not feel any pain. It was like a bee stinging you. My eyesight was blackened and that is all I remember. The last mortar shell had landed on meter way from me, behind the corner of a room on which I was leaning. When I opened my eyes I was staring at neon lamps. I was puzzled because we did not have power at home, let alone non lights. Just then I heard people talking. My mouth was dry. I saw other people lying on beds. I found out that I was in a hospital and then remembered the events of the morning. The first thing I did was to move my hands to make sure that they were still there. My body felt heavy. My legs were still there, too, but my right leg felt strange. It felt as if there was an iron bar in side it. A nurse later told me there was nothing serious, the shrapnel had been removed. She also said that I was brought to the hospital by my neighbor. I also had a burn on my face which left a small spot on the white part of my right eye. When I was brought to the hospital my eyes were full of gunpowder. The nurses were washing my eyes with a kind of solution. Other patients in the ward were more wounded than I. When we left the hospital, we went to Logar. My mother, brother and sister were really happy to see me. I was also very happy to see them. By this time our house, which was unguarded for several weeks, had been looted. We had lost literally everything – all of our furniture, books, clothing and family photographs. I felt despair. All those troubles that I had gone through had been for nothing. My mother told me that she did not want anything. She said the fact that I was alright was everything for her.

* * *

During the five year the mujaheddin were in power, the city was reduced to ruins. During that time more than 40,000 innocent people died.

* * *

Throughout the twenty-six years of my life, I have felt like a ship sailing in the ocean. A ship with no skipper, blown about by the arbitrary direction of the wind. I am waiting to see whether the sea will calm down or whether we must endure more devastating storms in the future.

"I have lived in Kabul my entire life"

"Here's Habibia High School in Kabul, where I graduated. It was really hard to go to school under the Taliban with all their ridiculous roles and regulations, like growing a long beard and memorising long verses from the Koran. It was a nice building before the war, but the bombing destroyed it."

"The other day I took a picture of it again after it was renovated, so it shows what peace can bring."

"About 14 years ago, the only bus you could find was like this. People called them pressure cookers because they had no ventilation and the windows were sealed by pieces of irons and were very hot. I remember my aunt saying, 'Masoud, can you check the tires of the bus and make sure that all the four wheels has its nuts!'. Often, in the middle of a journey, the tires would go flat and their nuts loosen and fall off, adding one or two hours to your already boring journey."

"I have experienced the horrible years of civil war in the early 90s and the brutal rule of the Taliban. Despite all the hardships that I and most of the people living in Kabul went through I managed to go to school."

Thanks for reading.

Women of Hope Project

2008-04-23T03:29:00.000-07:00

"Women who seek to be equal with men lack ambition."
-Timothy LearyUS psychologist & promoter of mind-altering drugs (1920 - 1996)

Today I got caught up with thank you and Christmas cards. I think I sent out 30 thank you cards and 50 Christmas cards. My tongue is really sore right now. Those cards were just to people that have written to me since I have been deployed. My wife will send out cards to our friends and family back home. I apologize in advance if anyone is Jewish or Muslim because I wished everyone a Merry Christmas. I would love to get Christmas cards but please do not send me any gifts. It would only make me feel guilty. I would love to receive stuff that I could donate to poor Afghan families or soldiers located on smaller FOBs. Read further if you would like to learn more.

Since today is Friday it is a “low tempo day.” I am really excited because I made a couple of really good contacts. The first one was a nice lady by the name of Betsy Beamon. She is the Director of Woman of Hope Project. She has a small booth near the main bazaar. The things she was selling really caught my eye because you could tell that they were hand made and of really good quality.

I starting talking with her and it turns out that she is a civilian who, after Sept 11 2001, decided that she wanted to come to Afghanistan to help out. She has been here for 5 years and has started an amazing organization. She has dedicated her time and efforts to help out poor girls and women throughout Afghanistan. She has about 50 women who each have about 7 women that work for them. They create crafts, cloths, dolls, and embroider material which she then sells for them. The organization takes a 10% profit, a large portion of that is put towards other goodwill efforts. She also goes to refuge camps and teaches them how to grow vegetables via a hydroponics method. Apparently, the soil in Afghanistan is really high in fecal material, I believe something like 75%, and this causes a lot of dysentery in children. She showed me pictures of how many different women have created these beautiful hydroponic gardens where they grow all kinds of vegetables. They also are developing a literacy program as well as a small business loan program where the women pay pack their loans as their business earn money.

I also met someone who is in charge of a military sponsored charity program. Every week or so they go out and donate all of their goods that they collect from people back home. Sort of what I have been doing but on a lot larger scale. Today they visited a refugee camp and dropped off a bunch of supplies that helped out about 50 families. I think next week they will be planting a bunch of apple trees. I would like to get involved. Here is their warehouse.

In addition to helping out local poor Afghans they also run a program where they send “down range” donations from home to soldiers located on smaller FOBs, with something like 100 to 200 people. I hope that you guy do not mind, but I will probably give any additional care packages that I receive to these programs so they can forward them on to smaller FOBs. If you like you can keep sending me stuff and I will gladly pass them along.

I have a great idea for holiday gifts. You can buy something from the Woman of Hope Project. Not only will you be giving a present that is unique and hand made, more importantly, you will be helping to support low income Afghan women and children. Here are some of the gifts that you can buy.

Hand made wall rugs.

I really like these. They are so colorful.

Purses.

Table cloths

Hats

Nice cloths for your kids. Very unique and one of a kind.

More cloths.

Handmade Christmas ornaments.

Dolls with Burqas.

A burqa for wine bottles. Now wouldn't that be a great gift.

More burqa dolls

Oven mits

Pillows and decorative embroidery.

Bookmarks

If you want to buy any of these things you can email Betsy Beamon at jaydasnan@aol.com or inquiry@womenofhopeproject.org and let her know what you want. The prices are pretty reasonable.

Here is their website in case you would like to learn more about their organization or donate money to their cause.

http://www.womenofhopeproject.org/

I have been into little mischief lately. Whenever we open our doors or windows in our office we smell all of the smokers downstairs from us. I decided to create my own nonsmoking zone. I posted the sign late at night and I think that it has worked.

Thanks for reading.

....and a multivitamin!!!

2008-04-22T06:12:00.000-07:00

"Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first, the lesson afterwards."

-Vernon Sanders Law

My job has started to get a lot more fun. I am finally done with the boring part, which was the setting up of the new clinic. I now have started to do the "mentoring" part that I was so looking forward to.

I brought with me to Kabul with a number of old medical texts and medical related CDs. After I arrived the Army provided me with a number of new books, some of which cost almost $200.00. So I decided that I was goint to give some of my old text books to some of the providers in the new clinic. You would have thought that I gave them Rolex watches. The ER doc in particular was the most appreciative. You could see his eyes light up when I gave him the ER text. It is probably the only medical book that he owns that was written in the past 20 years. He was so excited that he had me write a little note and sign the inside cover.

My first order of business was to gauge the doctors level of medical knowledge so I could see where my focus should be. I went through a medical text and ask questions like, "Abdominal pain, what is your differential diagnosis for this location?" "How would you treat a myocardial infarction?" For the most part they got most of the answers right. A couple of answers threw me for a loop though. We were discussing the treatment for back pain and the ER doctor initially gave me all of the right answers. He said that he would use an anti inflammatory agent, then he mentioned a muscle relaxant, then he threw in, ....."and a multivitamin!!" I said, "a multivitamin, why a multivitamin?" He went on to give some explanation that did not quite make a lot of sense. I just smiled and gave him one of my funny looks. I figured if the medicine didn't hurt the patient then I will pick my battles.

Like I said, he did pretty good with all of the medical questions that I quizzed him on with exception of one big one, diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). Usually when someone with Type 1 diabetes is first diagnosed they come into the ER with nonspecific symptoms like confusion, fatigue, increased thirst, frequent urination, etc. Their symptoms are related to their blood sugar being too high because they do not have insulin to process it. When I asked the ER doc how he would treat a patient with DKA he hesitated for a second and thought long and hard. After about 1 minute he came back with, "A diuretic!"A diuretic is the opposite medication that you would use. You would not want to give it because patients are usually severely dehydrated. We spent some time discussing this issue.

I now have identified a few areas that I need to focus on. Tonight I am going to work on some lectures and load them on to my thumb drive so I can do some more teaching.

I am trying to load a picture book of the volunteer community relations (VCR) project that was done yesterday. They delivered some cloths to some really needy families. In addition, they also delivered a bunch of balloons and bubbles to kids. Most of those kids had never played with bubbles. The pictures that were that taken were some of the best that I have seen so far. It just continues to amaze me how, where ever you go in Afghanistan, no matter how terrible the living conditions are, the kids are all the same, happy, laughing, and smiling. Adults could really learn a lot from them. They really know how to make the most out of really bad situations.

That reminds me of a conversation that I had with one of the doctors the other day. We were talking about his son and how his son is always distracted and never wants to do his homework. I asked him why, and whether or not it because of a computer or video games. He answered, no, he was too busy playing with his marbles. That gave me a big laugh. So, no matter if it is video games, computers, or marbles, kids are the same where ever you go.

Thanks for reading.

Pomegranates, Kite Flying, Buddhas of Bamyan, and Marjan the Lion

2008-04-21T04:43:00.000-07:00

"Food is our common ground, a universal experience. "
-James Beard

"Part of the secret of success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside. "
-Mark TwainUS humorist, novelist, short story author, & wit (1835 - 1910)

The training went well today. It is kind of funny because there are a number of doctors in the clinic and they all want you to come into their office and hang out and have some chai or have you teach them about different topics in medicine or even about computers. I spent some time with the female OB/GYN doctor. Today was the first day that she ever touched a mouse. I was prepared to go over a prenatal lecture with her but instead I ended up teaching her the basics of using a computer. She was very appreciative. She told me that she has been delivering babies almost since I have been born (1978). Whenever I approach doctors like her, that have so much more experience then I do, I try and tell them that we are going to learn together. She will teach me and I will try and teach them something.

I discussed chest pain and myocardial infarction (heart attack) with the ER doctor today. He does not know how to interpret an EKG so I am having to start with the basics. It is also hard because the do not have a lot of modern meds that we use in the states- not to mention they did not even have oxygen at the old hospital. You could tell that

he was very receptive to my discussions and was able to pick up most of the information. I will have to see how much he retained tomorrow.

As I was in discussion with the ER doctor when the Orthopedist came in and asked me to come up to his office. I told him I would after I was finished with my discussion on chest pain. I was walking up the stairs when the Anaesthesiologist snagged me and tried to hook me into his office to help set up his computer. The Orthopedist ended up winning the battle by offering me pomegranates. He must have know my weakness. Here are some pics. They were the largest and the sweetest pomegranates that I have ever eaten. He said that they came from Kandahar which is in the southern region.

While we ate the pomegranates we had a great discussion about a number of different topics because I was finally given my own dedicated interpreter. One of the main past times in Kabul is kite flying. I find it to be very interesting. Every Friday a lot of people gather at the main stadium and engage in a kite flying competition. 2 kite flyers fight with their kites and attempt to cut the others string. It sounds really fun. There are different dirty little tricks that you can play to gain an advantage with your opponent. The interpreter was explaining how you can embed fine glass particles into your string by gluing crushed light bulbs to the string. The interpreter said that he will try and take a short video of the flying and I will try and load it onto my site.

We also talked about the famous Kabul museum. Before the Taliban and the mujaheddin came it used to be absolutely amazing with all kinds of really old artifacts. Remember, Kabul is 3,000 years old. A lot of the artifacts were Buddha related and the Taliban did not like it so they destroyed a lot of the pieces. I am not sure if you remember but the Taliban also destroyed the Buddhas of Bamyan in March of 2001. Here is a link to a Wikapedia article on the topic. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhas_of_Bamyan

Here is a word-for-word summary on the topic from Wikapedia.

"The Buddhas of Bamyan (Persian: تندیس‌های بودا در باميان tandis-ha-ye buda dar bamiyaan, Pashto: د بودا بتان په باميانو کې De Buda butan pe bamiyano ke) were two monumental statues of standing Buddhas carved into the side of a cliff in the Bamyan valley of central Afghanistan, situated 230 km (143 miles) northwest of Kabul at an altitude of 2500 meters (8,202 feet). Built during the 6th century, the statues represented the classic blended style of Indo-Greek art.

The main bodies were hewn directly from the sandstone cliffs, but details were modeled in mud mixed with straw, coated with stucco. This coating, practically all of which was worn away long ago, was painted to enhance the expressions of the faces, hands and folds of the robes; the larger one was painted carmine r ed and the smaller one was painted multiple colors[2]. The lower parts of the statues' arms were constructed from the same mud-straw mix while supported on wooden armatures. It is believed that the upper parts of their faces were made from great wooden masks or casts. The rows of holes that can be seen in photographs were spaces that held wooden pegs which served to stabilize the outer stucco.

They were destroyed in 2001 by the Taliban. Japan and Switzerland, among others, have pledged support for the rebuilding of the statues. "

Lastly, we also talked about the Kabul Zoo. The interpreter made a really funny joke when he said that there is not very animals left in it, maybe a dog, pigeon cat, etc.. At one time there was this well known lion named Marjan. He was half-blind, lame and almost toothless. The story behind Marjan that had made him so well known stemmed from an incident that occurred while the Mujaheddin was in power in the early 90s. A member of the mujaheddin had been high on hashish and decided to enter the lions cage and challenge him to prove his bravery. Marjan ended up killing the man and the next day his brother returned to the zoo and threw in a grenade which caused his injuries. He ended up become somewhat of a symbol of endurance for the war torn city. He eventually died in 2002.

Here is a link to an article

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1783910.stm

After we ate the pomegranates the head nurse decided to treat us all to lunch. We had a delicious meal of naan, lamb kabobs and rice. The rice is a very important staple for ever Afghan meal. Rice and naan is pretty much what is eaten every day. Here is a recipe for the rice.

AFGHAN RECIPE
Qabeli Pilau (Yellow Rice with Carrot & Raisins)

1 lb (2 ½ cups) long grain rice
4 oz black seedless raisins
6 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 tsp char masala or cumin
2 medium onions, chopped
¼ tsp saffron
1 ½ - 2 lbs lamb on the bone or 1 chicken
salt
2 large carrots
pepper

"Directions:
Rinse the rice and leave to soak for at least half an hour. Heat 4 tablespoons of the vegetable oil in a large pan and add the chopped onions. Stir and fry them until brown. Add the lamb. Brown well on all sides in the oil. Add about 1 cup of water, and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat, cover and simmer until the meat is tender. While the meat is cooking, wash and peel the carrots and cut into pieces the size of a matchstick. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a small pan and add the carrots. Cook the carrots gently until they are lightly browned and tender. Remove the carrots from the oil, add the raisins, and cook these gently until they begin to swell up. Bring 5 cups of water to a boil and add about 1 teaspoon of salt. Drain the rice and add to the boiling water. Parboil for 2 to 3 minutes before draining the rice in a large sieve. Put the rice in a large casserole and sprinkle with char masala and saffron. Then place the cooked meat on one side of the casserole and the carrots and raisins on the other. Cover with a tightly fitted lid and place in a preheated oven at 300 degrees F for about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and serve."

This recipe was copied directly from The Survival Guide to Kabul website. Let me know how it turns out if you decide to make it.

We have started to get into the Christmas spirit over here and we have put up our Christmas tree. A very nice person from back home sent us one. Take a look.

Thanks for reading.

10 Mud Bricks

2008-04-20T05:51:00.000-07:00

The photo under the title is courtesy of Women of Hope Project. I included their newsletter in this post. It is kind of long but well worth the read. I encourage you to print it out and read it in your free time. If you do not have much time then skip over my stuff and just read her newsletter. They are doing some amazing work.

"Estimated amount of glucose used by an adult human brain each day, expressed in M&Ms: 250."

-Harper's Index, October 1989

Last night I attended a comedy show at the Clam Shell. I am not sure if I was just desperate for a good laugh but it was the funniest comedy show that I have ever attended. I literally laughed out loud for about an hour. It was great. It is so nice that entertainers go out of their way to come to Afghanistan to visit and entertain us. My friends that just came back from Herat told me that Fez from That 70s Show visited them over there.

This morning we taught the ER doc how to use the EKG machine and we also did some more teaching on interpreting EKGs. I felt really bad because when I went upstairs to sit down with the OB/GYN doctor she had a nice plate of nuts and warm chai waiting for me but I had to run and pick up our friends at the airport (KAIA). They had just come in from delivering vaccines and scoping out sites for some new clinics.

After we picked up our friends we at lunch at KAIA. Here is the dinning facility.

After we finished eating I saw this really cute cat. I thought that I would take a picture of it.

They had a lot of really neat shops at the airport. Here are some of the pics. These blue stones are called Lapis lazuli. They are only found in Afghanistan.
I am not sure why anyone would want to buy a stuffed goat head but here one is if you are interested.

Some of the shops have some really nice stuff like this one shown below.

A beauty salon. You can fight in a war and get your nails done all in the same day.

They sell Cuban cigars. Their warning label does not leave a lot of room for ambiguity.

After we got back I had 2 packages and 3 letters waiting for me. A really nice ePal of mine from Surprise, Arizona sent me a ton of hand crafted Christmas cards. She must have sent 500 of them. Each one of the cards had such attention to detail. Everyone in my group loved them. She also sent a box full of cookies, drink mix, and playing cards. She also included about 20 heart charms that were all unique and made from really neat stone or painted with a psychedelic design.

Later that night I participated in a volunteer community relations (VCR) sorting. There probably was 30 people out there all sorting different donations from the U.S.. Cloths, toys, school supplies, candy. It was really fun and I met a lot of new people doing it. The warehouse where they keep the supplies is located inside an old swimming pool. Remember, Camp Eggers used to be a neighborhood and all of the pools were covered over with connex boxes. Here is a view from inside the empty pool. Next week we will be planting apple trees as a communty service project. In a few weeks we will be donating coal to 50 needy families.

Betsy from Women of Hope Project sent me their newsletter. I thought that it held such important information that I decided to post it in its entirety on my blog. It is really a shame that I was not able to include all of the pictures. Let me know if you would like me to send you the entire newsletter with the pictures.
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For those of you that were looking for a good charity to donate to, this is the one. Betsy is the real deal. She has risked her life everyday for the past 5 years to be over here in Afghnaistan to help women in need. She is doing really amazing wook.

TO ALL OF OUR FRIENDS OF THE WOMEN OF HOPE PROJECT:
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GREETINGS FROM AFGHANISTAN!

The past six months have been a very challenging and exciting time for the Women of Hope Project. It is important to me to keep you updated on our activities, so I beg your pardon in the lengthy time since our last newsletter. With just a staff of three on the ground here in Afghanistan, every day is filled to the brim with work to do. All I can say in my defense is that most of the time, when my days are done, I am too tired to write even my own name! There is a lot to tell, so sit down, make a cup of coffee, and let me spend some time with you, and share with you all that your support has made possible in the lives of the Afghan people this year.
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BEN-E-WASAK REFUGEE SCHOOL
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Six months ago I wrote to tell you that the children in the refugee camp we have been working with for the last three years asked me if we could give them a school. At the time, I knew we had no resources to fulfill such a request, but the pleading looks of the children begging caused me to step out in faith to somehow find a way to fulfill their wish.
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The response from our supporters has been overwhelming. You provided the salaries for two teachers for one year. Some have donated and sent school supplies and clothing. Some have given money, which has provided us with the funds to purchase the tent and furnishings for the teachers, such as desks, filing cabinets, blackboards, dry erase boards, chairs and plastic carpets for the school floor. This has truly been a testimony to “What God orders, He pays for!”
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These refugee families have been moved to permanent land by the Afghan government, and they have all been working hard to build a brand new community from scratch. Literally. This new community has since been named Ben-e-Wasak. It is located about 90 minutes outside of Kabul City, behind a mountain currently used as a shooting range for the Bagram Air Force Base. At present, there are 293 families with homes, and the Afghan government plans to move another 160 families there before the end of the year.
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Although the children wanted the school desperately, the conservative elders of the village had reservations about allowing girls to attend school. We agreed that the security situation was becoming increasingly unstable. The possibility of a new outbreak of war or the Taliban returning to power looms constantly in all of our minds. I shared with them my experience of coming to Afghanistan in 2002 and finding a country full of desperate and hopeless women. Women who had been denied an education under the Taliban rule; women who had no way to make a living to support their families; women who were used to having a husband, son or father to take care of them, all of whom had died during the wars. Respectable women had been reduced to beggars. I asked these elders what would happen to their wives and daughters today if war broke out again, and they were killed. Did they have a plan which would enable their families to survive? At that point, after much discussion, all of the village elders agreed that the girls should be educated.
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The remote location of the village and non-existent road conditions have made it difficult for us to find qualified teachers willing to travel the distance to get there. Last week, we received a call from the village elders that two teachers had agreed to come, and we quickly went to meet them. The teachers’ names are Noor Agha and Mustafa. They are brothers, and both are Certified Teachers. Mustafa told us, “When I heard that an American woman was willing to come here, with no benefits, to help these children have a school, I was ashamed, so I decided to come to be their teacher.” They are willing to travel 40 km everyday to teach these children. The teachers agreed to register the community’s children.
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In the first week, 200 children registered, including 130 boys and 70 girls. We advised that the tuition for the school for each child would be 10 mud bricks, one of which had to have their handprint on it. It is my desire to use these bricks to have the children build the foundation for a real “bricks and mortar school” one day. While meeting with the teachers and village elders, a young boy, about age 12, and his sister, age 10, came in to sit with the adults and listen. When he heard the suggestion about the bricks, he interrupted the conversation to announce, “I am going to make 500 bricks!” Then, his sister joined in by announcing that she was going to make 100 bricks! The little boy told us he had gone to school in Pakistan until third grade, but it had been so long, he has forgotten everything. His sister, like most of September 6, 2007Page 3the children in this community, has never been to school and can only dream about what it will be like to learn.
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This past Thursday, one week after this meeting, we returned to Ben-e-Wasak, with school supplies and furniture and teaching supplies for the teachers. The children could hardly contain their excitement and pride as they pulled me along by the hand to show me what they had done. I was shocked and thrilled to see the tent had been raised and a foundation of mud bricks made by the children had already been laid to secure the tent. I was overwhelmed! I am confident that this wall will become part of the foundation of their future school!
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Within minutes, as I looked out the tent flaps, all I could see were children running towards us, at full speed, from every direction! I expected to be mobbed, but when they got to the tent, they entered with a quiet reverence, and naturally organized themselves to sit and prepare for the school supply distribution. I have been working with these children for a long time, and I have NEVER seen them so cooperative and well-behaved. Many of them were students in our hydroponic micro-gardening class, two years ago, while they were still in the refugee camp.
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As the children settled in, I asked them, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Most of them said “Teachers”. Some wanted to be doctors. A couple of them wanted to be engineers. One of the boys said he wanted to be village leader! Perhaps the Wakil [of this village], the village leader, will be willing to mentor him! We asked the children if one of them would like to lead us in prayer to thank God for all of His blessings and for this school and the hand of one little boy, about 8 years old, flew up. The sight of all of these children with their hands raised to God in thanksgiving brought tears to my eyes. Again, I was asked by the village elders to offer up a prayer of my own, in blessing for the school. The joy on the faces of the children was something that I will never forget! I just wish all of you who have helped to make this dream of theirs a reality could have been there to see it.
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The teachers, elders and some of the parents assisted with the distribution of 200 packets of notebooks and pencils. The teacher conducted his first role call and called each one by name. Several of the children that are still too young to go to school cried. That was heartbreaking, but gratifying at the same time, to know that they WILL have a school to go to when they come of age.
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To view the entire album of pictures from the school supply distribution, you may go to: http://pictures.aol.com/ap/viewShare.do?shareInfo=qehO4z9cYll9sAidV33r7ZxcNsCvhBKwwEK62qIkk7ZWGd%2bBXiXp6w%3d%3d
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This distribution was only for the initial 200 children who were already registered. There are still 200 more children in the village who want to register. After the distribution was over, one of the Afghan fathers started to argue with the elders, insisting that they allow his DAUGHTER to register! This is truly a miracle, as this is a very conservative Afghan village and a year ago, none of these men would have considered allowing ANY of their daughters to attend school! The elders explained to him that we would continue to register the other 200 children within the next few weeks; however, we would have to find more teachers and more tents to accommodate all of them. By next spring, with the additional 160 families being moved to this community by the government, we are estimating an additional 400 school age children.
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Still, I was disappointed that I did not see the face of one particular 14 year old girl, who was in my gardening class, registering for school. I was told by the elders that she was too old because she was engaged to be married. Cultural changes come slowly…step by step. WOHP has always worked with families steeped in poverty. We try to help them identify cultural practices that keep them from prospering and ways to break those cycles.
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In order to ensure that all of the children of this community are given an equal opportunity to attend school, we need more tents and teachers. A teacher’s salary in Afghanistan is only $60 per month. That is not a living wage. Fuel costs are very high here. Due to the distance any teacher would have to travel, WOHP had agreed to pay $100 a month per teacher for one year, to cover the expense of fuel for traveling to the camp. This salary is still not enough for a teacher to support his family, and we still need 12 more teachers to support the entire school-age population, based on a maximum of 60 students per teacher. The two teachers we have now will divide the 200 students up for partial school days, until more can be located, supported and hired.
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We also need 8 more tents. Each tent costs about $400. These tents are not the quality that can survive the harsh winters and intense summer sun for more than a year or two. We are seeking donations from the various military organizations here to provide more permanent tent structures. Ultimately, we will have to consider a real bricks and mortar school but…who knows…maybe we can get the children to build it themselves!
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How can you help?

• Sponsor a teacher. Either through monthly donations of $100 a month or a one-time $1200 cash donation, you can provide the salary of a teacher for this community for one year.

• Each $400 donation will purchase one additional tent, which will be the school room for the children until, with a lot of prayer; a real school can be built.

• Additional school supplies still needed are learning aids, posters, crayons, pencil sharpeners, book bags, clothing, shoes, coats, hats, gloves and toiletries, such as soap, shampoo, combs, brushes and beanie babies! We separate the donated clothing into pink and blue bags, by appropriate sizes. We try to give each child two sets of clothing, underwear, socks, shoes and a coat. Most of the children have never owned a toy, so we would like to put a small toy, such as a beanie baby, in each bag. We like to give them all the same thing, so that no friction or jealousy among the children is created.

• Your general financial support is always appreciated. WOHP is funded strictly through the donations of individuals, churches and civic organizations. We depend on your regular monthly donations to support our capacity to continue to this work.
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WOMEN’S VOCATIONAL CENTER
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One of my first dreams I had when deciding to come to Afghanistan was to open a Women’s Vocational Center, where Afghan women could take off their burqas and have an opportunity to be whatever they wanted to be. Finally, after five years of many disappointments, frustrations and preparation, WOHP has finally realized that dream! One month ago we rented a ‘pink’ building, for a rental rate we could afford, and have now opened that Center. The building is being dedicated in the memory of our dear friend, Wanda Spiker of Virginia Beach, Virginia, who went to be with the Lord in December 2006, after fighting a valiant battle with cancer. She was a tireless volunteer for WOHP, actively worked on our Advisory committee, and was a dear friend to us all. She has been greatly missed by all, but has left behind a legacy worthy of her dedication.
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Our Center has 3 large classrooms, a prayer and meditation room, an office, a receiving room, a small kitchen, a small in-house store and a greenhouse, which we moved from the Ministry of Agriculture, and a small yard which we hope to get into shape by next spring. We have hired 2 guards, an assistant, and a woman to cook and clean. To date, 70 Afghan women come to learn Embroidery and Textile Design, Literacy, and Hydroponic Gardening. They have asked for English classes, however we do not yet have the funds to pay an English teacher’s salary. The women are so excited to have a place to call their own, and their creative juices are flowing! We hope the future will provide us the opportunity to offer these women any classes they would like to take.
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EMBROIDERY PROJECT…
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It is important to remember that in the recent past, due to cultural restraints, 90% of our ladies are uneducated. They have not been encouraged to think either independently or creatively. Therefore, most of our teaching involves inspiring them to look at the value of their own ideas and to honor the ideas of their peers. To this end, we are making great strides. Our ladies are producing exquisite hand-embroidered tablecloths, table runners, placemats and napkins, clothing, purses, computer bags, Christmas items, kilm carpets, dolls, wall hangings, decorative pillow covers and many, many more items. Each woman has her own account, and each item is inventoried with her assigned number.
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Every week we sell these goods at Camp Eggers Military Base and the ISAF Base in Kabul. The women are paid each week for the items they sold. A year ago, most of them could not afford to send their children to school. Their small sons supported their families as shoe shine boys, selling newspapers on the street, pushing wheelbarrows in the bazaar or begging. Now most of their children go to school. The women are able to support their families and pay their own medical bills. They all are building their own networks from within their own neighborhoods to help them keep up with the demand.
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The quality of their work has brought them much recognition in the past few months. The International Embroiderers Guild featured our ladies’ embroidered goods at their annual meeting in San Antonio, TX. They made tablecloths and custom buffet covers to grace the table of the United States Ambassador to Afghanistan, Mr. William Wood, for official functions. Those of you in the Hampton Roads, Virginia area may take time to visit Original Artworks and Gifts at 3115 Western Branch Blvd. in Chesapeake, VA. This store is full of indigenous crafts and carries products made by our ladies. Elizabeth Lawson is the owner, and she has been a great source of support and encouragement to us.
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THANKS ALSO TO…….
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U.S. Navy Lt. Commander Brenda Steele has been staunch supporter of ours, and has contributed her financial support and professional expertise to assist us for the last 15 months. She has been our link to so many people who have stepped forward to help us we cannot list them all. In particular, Brenda is a member of the Daybreak Rotary Club in Cocoa Beach, FL. Through her introductions, they have adopted the Women of Hope Project and the club is selling the women’s goods to help support them and to raise funds.
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Members of the Army Corp of Engineers, including Bruce Pastorini who organized three Catholic Churches in Jacksonville, FL to send a generous supply of clothing and shoes, and Kristine Stoehner, who organized a city-wide drive to collect school supplies through her church and her community, have stepped forward to provide assistance. A soldier’s wife in the United Kingdom is sponsoring a Walk-a-Thon to raise funds where our products will also be sold. We are just now venturing onto the bureaucratic highway to discover how to export these goods in a more efficient and cost-effective way. Postage here is very expensive. Next week I will attend a class by Aid to Artisans to expand our marketing and exporting expertise.
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There are so many more friends to thank, we cannot possibility list them all. Women of Hope Project sincerely thanks each and every one of you who are working so hard to help us continue to expand our work here and to achieve our goals. I am truly humbled by all of the friends around the world, especially those whom we have never met, who have come together with unified hearts to donate their time, money and personal sacrifices to “be the backs that these women and children stand on to rise above the ashes of their broken lives!”
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FUTURE GOALS…
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Women of Hope Project has been invited several times to address the Anti-Insurgency Training school called the COIN Academy for the U.S. military, the Afghan National Army (ANA) and the Afghan National Police (ANP). There truly is an effort here among the locals to understand what causes insurgency and to prevent it from increasing in their country. As we share our work with the poor, we are able to share some of the conditions among them that make them prey to insurgency As well as some of their hopes and fears.
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A shift in focus is necessary here; the men of Afghanistan must also be supported in obtaining the skills and training necessary to support their families and to become self-sufficient. This is still a patriarchal society. Poor young men, desperate to support their families, are being recruited as suicide bombers. With no education or skills, they are living in a state of hopelessness and are willing to sacrifice their own lives in exchange for money to help their families survive.
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In Ben-e-Wasak, out of 293 families, there is only one carpenter, one mason, and two vehicles. There are no stores or services. These people must share the two vehicles to drive for miles to obtain goods and food for the entire village. A few of the men have jobs which require them to travel long distances and to be away from their families for weeks on end. During the post-war times, most of these men were farmers. Multiple wars caused them to become refugees. Ample farm land is not included in the planning of these new communities. At this time, this community is surviving strictly on charitable distributions of food.
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Our first goal is to offer $500 small business start-up packages, which will provide a couple of grocery stores, a propane shop, a bread bakery, a tailor, a dry goods and textile shop, and a tool and building supply shop with the initial stock of supplies to sell and have available to meet the community’s needs. Each shopkeeper will be chosen by lottery and must agree to contribute 10% ($50) of their earnings toward setting up the next shop. The Afghan government plans to move a total of 42,000 refugee families into this area to provide them with permanent land. For less than the cost of one food distribution, we can provide the entire community with economic stability and jobs, and means to earn money to buy food and other necessities on a regular basis. -
Our second goal is to obtain enough funding to support vocational skills training for the men of the community to teach them such valuable skills as carpentry, masonry and well-digging. As the UN and other organizations assist these refugees in creating their new communities, the organizations would then have a pool of skilled men to employ to do the work.September 6, 2007Page 9You can help make a difference in the sustained peace and stability of this community in the following ways:
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• Become a Community Development Sponsor with a donation of $500 toward the start-up costs of a community business.
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• Share your time and skills as a short-term volunteer to teach a vocational skill to the men of this community. Your financial support will enable us to obtain training materials and tools and/or to pay a qualified trainer. Each vocational training program will cost approximately $5000 to implement.
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GARDENS OF HOPE
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Last but not least, I want to bring you up-to-date on our Gardens of Hope Sponsorship program. Many of our current sponsored families have been moved into the Ben-e-Wasak community. Each family paid the government $90 for a small plot of land. They were not provided any wells, shelter (tents or homes) or other services, such as bazaars or markets. Since that time, this community has been in need of emergency relief, and donors have come forward to provide wells and materials for housing. During this time, WOHP has placed our Gardens of Hope Program on hold. We will resume garden sponsorship in the spring of 2008, as many of the families will be stabilized by then.
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However, a story worth mentioning concerns two of our gardening students, Latifa and her mother, Bebe Hawa, women we wrote about earlier during our micro-gardening training program at the Riasat-e-Pinj refugee camp. Latifa and her mother are now blessed with their own home in the Ben-e-Wasak community. During a visit, while Latifa’s mud house was still under construction, she proudly pointed to the wet walls near to ceiling to show me that she had planted seeds in the wall, which were now growing! Last week I visited her again, and she took me outside to show me her garden in her small yard. Although it is not a soil-less garden, she told me, “You showed me how to plant this. I learned how to feed my family from the Women of Hope.” It warmed my heart to know that this training has made a difference in at least one family forever!
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As you can see, WOHP has had a very busy but fruitful year. All of this has been made possible by YOU! Thank you, and remember your continued support will grant us an opportunity to help even more of these people! God bless each and every one of you!
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Betsy Beamon, DirectorWomen of Hope ProjectKabul, Afghanistanhttp://www.womenofhopeproject,org/jaydasnan1@aol.com
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HOW CAN I HELP?

WOHP is funded solely by private donations from faithful supporters like you. Your generosity will make a huge difference in the lives of many poor people in Afghanistan. May God bless you for enabling Women of Hope Project to continue providing the means to help these Afghan women and their families help themselves.
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All contributions, except for product sales, are tax-deductible in accordance with our 501 (c) 3 status. Please make all checks out to WOHP and mail to WOHP, 4876-118 Princess Anne Road #203, Virginia Beach, VA 23462. Email us at info@womenofhopeproject.org.
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Please consider how you can help give these families hope and a future. The smallest amount can give an Afghan woman and her family a new start in life. There are many ways to help:

_____ I will help support the Women of Hope Project by giving a tax-deductible monthly donation in the amount of $_______ for a total of $_________ yearly. Enclosed is my first check.

_____ I will help support the Women of Hope Project with a tax-deductible donation. Enclosed is my check in the amount of $_________.

_____ I would like to sponsor a teacher for $1200 for the year.____ Enclosed is my check for $1200.____ I will give $100 each month for 12 months. Enclosed is my first check.

_____ I would like to donate a tent for a school room. Enclosed is my check for $400.

_____ I would like to sponsor a start-up business. Enclosed is my check for $500.

_____ I would like to contribute $______ for the Women’s Vocational Center.

_____ I would like to contribute $______ for ___________________________

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I am interested in selling/purchasing Afghan merchandise. Please contact me with more information.
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YOU CAN ALSO MAKE YOUR DONATIONS ON-LINE THROUGH PAYPAL.

Please go to http://www.paypal.com/, and send funds to donations@womenofhopeproject.org.
Name:_______________________________________
Email:____________________________
Address:___________________________
City/State ZipPhone: Home_____________________
Work__________________
Cell____________________

Thank you for your donation.

Please make all checks out to WOHP and mail to 4876-118 Princess Anne Road #203, Virginia Beach, VA 23462. E-mail: info@womenofhopeproject.org.
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Thanks for reading.

Snow Day

2008-04-19T06:38:00.000-07:00

Title photo courtesy of Women of Hope Project

"Reality continues to ruin my life."
-Bill Watterson, Calvin and HobbesUS cartoonist (1958 - )

This morning was a little scary. I have to say that it was the first time that the reality of where I am sunk in. It is really easy to get into a mode of routine and forget where you are. Needless to say, we are all fine and, as they say in the Navy, we will continue on smartly.

Traversa from A*W*A*C* blog would describe these kind of days as “snow days.” Whenever something bad happened, and you were confined to the base for the day, it was comparable to when you were a kid and you could not get to school because of the snow. We took advantage of our snow day and decided to take care of our other jobs. Those of you that have been reading my blog since its inception know that about 2 months ago my job sort of changed after getting here. Aside from moving to a different base we also were integrated into the larger staff that is making plans to build a lot more new clinics throughout Afghanistan. We had some meetings on this topic and assigned some work. It was a pretty productive day.

My favorite 8th grade class from Gaffney, South Carolina sent me a big box with some interesting looking stuffed animals. I will try and get them to Betsy so she can forward them to the children in the refugee camp. It really shocked me when she said that some of the kids she encountered had never had their own toy before.

Someone from Summerville, Massachusetts also sent us a care package. One of the nurses said that Apples to Apples is a really fun game. I look forward to playing it.

I received an email from someone from the Volunteer Communty Relations (VCR) group. I wanted to share it with all of you. I posted some of their pics on my slide show up top.

"This was a special Thanksgiving holiday for the VCR because we spent it on a humanitarian mission. We visited an extremely poor community as you can see by the mud huts and ruble in the background. Some of the people had no material possessions to speak of except for the clothes on their back. There were 56 families in the village and we gave each one three large bags of clothing, blankets and toys. We spent time with about 200 children blowing bubbles and playing with balloons. The people were so friendly and happy…just look at the smiles on their faces!

Although these Afghans don’t know anything about Thanksgiving, I know they spent the day being extremely thankful for the generosity of the Americans who made this program possible through their donations. In fact one of the teachers gave us a post card that said “we prayed….we asked God for helping this people (SIC) …he sent you! Thanks Sanolro, Gislene BYTC Students Kabul, Nov 2007”. She said they had been praying for help because they have nothing and they need clothes and blankets for winter. She said we were the answer to her prayers! It truly is a great feeling to know we are making a difference.

If you would like to make a donation of new or gently used winter clothing, blankets, school supplies or toys please send them to me and I will make sure they get to the Afghan people. A couple things we are running low on include bubbles and balloons and since winter is rapidly approaching we can also use blankets and winter clothing. We used these for entertaining the children especially in more confined spaces like this village where there is not a lot of room for organized games. If you send it SAM (Space Available Mail) it only takes a couple days longer and it is half the price of priority mail (contrary to what the post office will tell you, it usually only takes 10-12 days).

Thanks for your support! "

VCR Program
Pool House
CSTC-A CJ5
APO AE 09356

Thanks for reading.

Take Nothing But Pictures

2008-04-18T06:37:00.000-07:00

"Take Nothing but Pictures. Leave nothing but footprints. Kill nothing but time."

-Motto of the Baltimore Grotto (caving society)

Someone wanted to know more details of what happened yesterday. I included a link of a New York Times article. I was not involved but it was very close.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/28/world/asia/28kabul.html?ref=asia
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This will be a picture heavy post. All of the pictures were taken by Dr. Massoud Yawar. He was nice enough to let me post them on my blog. The captions that are in quotes are from the Survival Guide to Kabul. I copied it word-for-word excerpts.

Dr. Massoud has a great story about how he got the camera that he used to take all of these pictures. The BBC was asking people all over the world to write in and tell them why they should win a camera that they had as a prize. In his submission he explained that his country has gone through many years of war and now it is going through a massive reconstruction effort. He wanted to document the effects of war so the younger generation can see what it is like so they do not repeat it.

Here is just a small sample of some of the pictures that he let me use.

A shop that sells naan.

This is a very old and famous wall that divides Kabul. The walls are discussed a little further down in the Bala Hissar caption.

Cute kids playing with a tire.

This is Bala Hissar.

"BALA HISSAR The ancient citadel and home of some of Afghanistan’s most important kings is now off limits and extremely dangerous owing to unexploded bombs and landmines. However this magnificent building dating, it is believed, in parts from the 5th century has played a role in every twist and turn in the city’s often violent history. Bala Hissar sits to the south of the modern city centre at the tail end of the Kuh-e-Sherdarwaza Mountain. The famous Walls of Kabul, which are a staggering 20 feet high and 12 feet thick, start at the natural fortress and follow the mountain ridge in a sweeping curve down to the river. Bala Hissar was originally divided into two parts. The lower fortress where the stables, barracks and three royal palaces were contained and the upper fortress called Bala Hissar which housed the armoury and the infamous Black Pit, the dungeon of Kabul were situated. However the arrival of the British in Kabul marked the end of the citadel. From 1839 onwards the British used it on and off as their barracks until the massacre of the British Mission by mutinous Afghan troops in 1879. General Roberts was dispatched to Kabul to quell the situation and took the citadel. Shortly afterwards an explosion in the powder magazine partly destroyed upper Bala Hissar. General Roberts decided to finish the job off and ordered the destruction of the rest. Perhaps, however the last word lies with the founder of the Mogul empire, the Emperor Babur who captured the fort at the start of his conquering career and went on to write of the magnificent building: “The citadel is of surprising height, and enjoys an excellent climate, overlooking the large lake, and three meadows which present a very beautiful prospect when the plains are green.” Today the fortress is home to the 55th division of Kabul. The big green gates are adorned with photos of Karzai and Massoud. Visitors are not allowed in."

The Kabul Zoo.

A crowd formed when they saw this man with a big snake.

A market that sells birds and bird cages.

Kid selling balloons at the Kabul zoo.

Kid getting a haircut on the street. The bald spots should grow back in no time.

No eye protection needed for this job.

You can get a little drink of chai at this shop.

Cobbler fixing some shoes.

Raking cotton.

Great picture of a goat.

Kid in wheel.

Front of Kabul Zoo.

"KABUL ZOO Kabul Zoo is a soulless complex and is not a great place for its inhabitants. In 2002 China donated two lions, two bears, two pigs and a wolf. In addition there are a number of other species including nine bears, jackals, birds, rabbits, eagles, wild boars, foxes, guinea pigs, monkeys, owls and six huge vultures. In total the zoo has 116 animals and a staff of 60 to care for them. Conditions are poor but it is a popular place for Kabulis and up to 3000 people will visit during a week according to the director Sheragah Omar who has worked at the zoo for nine years. A British animal protection group, the Mayhew Animal Home in London, ensures there is enough food for the animals, and the 25 kilos of meat the two lions Zing Zong and Dolly eat every day. Zookeeper Aziz Ahmad is also an obliging guide with gruesome stories about the fate of the zoo’s last elephant (the elephants house is completely destroyed) and for a small tip will show you the final resting place of the zoo’s most famous resident, Marjan, the one-eyed lion. Donatella the famous bear is undergoing daily treatment for a nose infection from German ISAF. The zoo is open from 06.00--18.00 every day and entry costs five Afghanis."

That's right, 5 people on one motorcycle.

Kids getting some water.

Carrot juice anyone?

Public swimming pool in Herat. Of course women and girls are not allowed.

Child sleeping in a wheel barrel.

Here is the Darulaman Palace that was destroyed after years of war.

"DARULAMAN PALACE The palace built by King Amannullah in the 1920s is set into a small hill in front of the Kabul museum with the once impressive four-mile avenue (once lined with poplars) past the former Soviet embassy, schools and ministries leading to it. Fighting from 1992 onwards destroyed the building but it remains one of the most impressive, albeit shattered structures in Kabul. The palace was used by King Amannullah and was later used as the Justice ministry and Defence ministry. The equally striking former Defence Ministry is on the hills behind."

Would you go to this guy for your physiotherapy? I hope that those are not his patients.

Here are some young aspiring body builders.

Thanks for reading.

Christmas Spirit

2008-04-17T07:48:00.000-07:00

"Some people feel the rain. Others just get wet."
-Bob DylanUS singer & songwriter (1941 - )

Today was the first day of rain. It was wonderful. Kabul was in need of it badly. Aside from being in a drought, the rain helps to keep down the dust.

It is starting to get really cold. We are expecting it to snow very soon.

OK, I said that I would never move again, believe it or not, I just moved again. Hopefully, this will be my final move. Apparently, the 4th time is a charm. I have a very nice roommate. I just have to figure out what I am going to do with all of my stuff. I think that I am going to have my bed raised tomorrow and then I will just shove everything under it.

I have started to get a lot of things in the mail and I am have not been able to display everything on my blog yet. Here was the stack of mail that was waiting for me when I got back.

Yes, that big package was a Christmas tree from Soldiers' Angels. We have officially welcomed the Christmas season into our office. My new crew helped me decorate the office. Take a look at some of the fun.

I know, you are probably asking, "Did you have to use duck tape to hold up the garland and the wreath?" It was the only thing we had handy so we had to make due.

It is pretty funny because I have had so many Christmas firsts this year. One of the big ones was sending out Christmas cards (my wife usually does it).

We all had a good time decorating the office. It was really fun. When we were all done Adam asked if the flickering of the Christmas lights was normal. Steve said that that it is a normal occurrence right before they catch on fire. Good thing the fire extinguisher is nearby.

Thanks for reading.

"smexi-ubercool-shaz-o-mite"

2008-04-16T06:13:00.000-07:00

The title is courtesy of one of the students from a Gaffney, South Carolina high school that has adopted me. I am thinking of legally changing my name to it. Another student by the name of Jessi wanted me to add a little flare to my blog by adding background music. She requested My Chemical Romance. I will see if I can accommodate her. I will let you guys vote on whether or not I should keep background music.

"By mutual confidence and mutual aid -- great deeds are done, and great discoveries made."

-Homer

This quote was sent to me by a reader. Today was our "low tempo" day. I was supposed to plant apple trees but it was canceled for security reasons. Instead I helped to unload 3 huge pallets of food that was donated by the base store because it was about to expire. We plan to give it to the refugee families that were mentioned in Betsy's newsletter.

Take a look at the stuff. Here is the forklift bringing in the supplies.

No those are not cigarettes we are just using the box to hold sodas.

I am not sure what they are going to do with all of the gum.

Soups, Nutter Butter cookies, chicken in a bisket, chips , twislers, all kinds of goodies.

Lots of Gatorade.

We were given a couple of things from the store that we chose not to include in the stack of donations. One was pregnancy tests and the other was diet pills. I don't think that they would appreciate either of those.

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I got a number of Christmas cards and letters today. One of the envelops was filled with letters from my favorite 8th grade class from Gaffney, South Carolina. Their letters are both touching, heartfelt and also funny. Here is a sample of 2 of them.

"I am starting to like my feelings more. We're okay with each other. They don't bother me and I don't bother them.....I accidentally got the cheese off of a Dorito chip in my eye this morning. It hurt really bad."

Dorito chips can be so dangerous. I recommend using eye protection next time.

"Thank you for the cool items you sent us. I think that was sweet of you. I hope you are doing well. I'm still praying for you and if you need support you can always talk to God. We are also here to support you whenever you want. I believe in you. God bless you! You are my angel. "

I put the picture that they sent me on the wall of my office.

Thanks for reading.

Pinball Wizard

2008-04-15T07:15:00.000-07:00

"Computers make it easier to do a lot of things, but most of the things they make it easier to do don't need to be done."
-Andy RooneyUS news commentator (1919 - )

"Making duplicate copies and computer printouts of things no one wanted even one of in the first place is giving America a new sense of purpose."
-Andy RooneyUS news commentator (1919 - )

Uploading music to my blog is new to me so I am learning as I go. I hope you can turn it off if it annoys you. I actually listened to the song that I posted yesterday and I had to delete it. It was not a very good version. You will probably think the same of my music. My wife can not stand it. I actually am listening to my blongs as I write this blog. Now you have my words, pictures, video, and music to enjoy. This post will be picture less because I lent my camera to one of the interpreters so he can photograph the donations that I gave him to hand out. I can not wait to see what kind of pictures he brings back.

Today it actually started to hail. It was almost like the weather was teasing us before it decides send us the snow that we know will come any day now.

Today at the clinic I worked with a few new doctors. I got to work with the Neurosurgeon. I got a little anxious at one point because I do not really know him very well and he wanted me to come into his office so I could teach him how to use his computer. He escorted me into his small office. His partner also came in and they closed the door behind them. The three of us sat huddled in front of the computer. I was calculating the best way to escape if anything happened.

There was a funny moment that happened right after we booted up the computer. In his broken English the Neurosurgeon said that he desperately wanted me to help him with something on the computer that he was working on. I was very impressed that he had started to work on something and wanted me to help him fix his problem. He opened up a pinball video game and asks me, "How do I make this screen bigger." I had to laugh and shake my head. His big concern was making the screen bigger. After i showed him how to make the screen bigger I was able to get him to practice Microsoft word, excel and power point. His eyes lit up when he saw that you could change the font size and color. He loved it when I took a picture of him and then put it on his computer desktop. You could see that it made him feel very proud. A big hit with most Afghans is to take their picture and then bring them a printed copy. Not many of them own a camera or have a way to develop pictures so whenever they get a picture of themselves they are very appreciative.

The Neurosurgeon wants me to give lectures on some medical topics. I think I will find a review article on stroke. It is really nice because I just load articles onto my thumb drive and then transfer them to his computer. I also will give him a new text book. He was asking for a book on physical exam and I think that I can give him one of mine.

We visited our old stomping ground, Camp Phoenix. We picked up 12 new laptops for some Navy folks and brought a humongous printer to be fixed. I swear, I am going to leave Kabul with a big inguinal hernia. Everyday I tell myself that I am going to stop lifting heavy objects but everyday there just seems to be something heavy that I need to lift or carry.

I received another care package today from Soldiers' Angles. Most of the stuff were Afghan donations. As I previously mentioned, tonight I gave the interpreter about 5 big boxes of donated supplies. I decided that the VCR program had so much stuff that my stuff would just get lost in the shuffle. I hopefully will have some good pictures to share with you tomorrow.

Thanks for reading.

Carrying A Heavy Load

2008-04-14T06:58:00.000-07:00

"If you aren't fired with enthusiasm, you will be fired with enthusiasm. "
-Vince LombardiUS football coach (1913 - 1970)

"Never despair; but if you do, work on in despair."
-Edmund BurkeIrish orator, philosopher, & politician (1729 - 1797)

Those are 2 good deployment related quotes. I am working on a deployment tips blog. I will let you know when it is up and running.

The interpreters came back from dropping off the donations. They actually went to a couple of different locations. They took a lot of videos so my camera's memory got full very fast. I have not been able to load a photobook because the office computers are kind of restrictive. I should be getting internet in my room very soon and then I will load a bunch more photos and videos.

There must be something in the water in Kabul because kids over here are just so darn cute!

This kid did not even mind getting a pink hat.

I received a grey bear that is actually meant for patients after they had a heart bypass. It is really flat and hard. You are suppose to hold it up against your chest when you cough to help reduce the pain.

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Here is how it arrived.

Here is the child getting it. The kid looks so excited to get it.

Look how excited the little girl is. The other boy is looking on very curious.

She is carrying a heavy load.

Today I received a box from Freedom Pens. Take a look.

I was sent 5 handmade wooden pens. I used them to write a bunch of thank you notes tonight. On their website they say that they have shipped 73,134 Pens Shipped to the Middle East. Here is their website.

http://www.freedompens.org/?gclid=CNKY8_CMipACFRHTXgodVBLyLQ

They deserve a spot on my Spotlight on Community Service site.

I also learned that I have been sponsored by another school. This time it is a 2nd grade class. Here is the care package that was sent from them. I have a lot of fun communicating with different classrooms.

I also continue to receive a lot of Christmas cards. This one had a homemade ornament with it.

Someone sent us homemade hot sauce.

Remember just a friendly card will do. We do not need any presents only donations for needy kids if you want to send something.

Thanks for reading.

Teaching Them How To Care

2008-04-13T06:27:00.000-07:00

"I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand."
-ConfuciusChinese philosopher & reformer (551 BC - 479 BC)

Today is a significant day for 2 reasons. For one thing, I finally have internet in my room so I do not have to hang out in the office until midnight. The second thing is my replacement is probably at Fort Riley right now. I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. At the same it is also kind of sad because we are really getting to know and like the people that we work with in the clinic. We are developing a genuine friendships.

One observation I had today, which is somewhat concerning for me, is the difference that the Afghan physicians have concerning a patient's well being. I am not sure if the difference between the U.S. and Afghan's mentality stems from a fear of getting sued, I would like to think not, but in the U.S. we legitimately want to do what is right. I can remember walking out to my car, after just finishing a long day at an urgent care clinic. It was after 5:00pm and the clinic had just closed. I saw a mom escorting her young son who you could tell had an injured arm. I knew that he required an X-ray and that we had just turned everything off and everyone was getting ready to go home. I could have very easily just driven off and no one would have criticized me for it, but instead, I had the staff open up the clinic out of a sense of duty to the patient. Over here, just from the limited patient interaction that I have witnessed, I don't think that they have developed that same concern for the patient. I hope that it is a teachable quality.

For example, we had a guy come in with an obvious hand fracture. I had to go out of my way to motivate the ER doctor to act and to order and x-ray. There was another gentleman that came to the hospital yesterday with a life threatening condition and was turned away because the clinic is not quite up and running full speed. He died in route to another hospital. I think that I am going to spend some time tomorrow trying to ingrain this important trait. I can easily treat someone how to practice medicine. I am just not sure that I can teach them how to care.

When we asked why they didn't call their equivalent of 9-1-1 for the patient that came in yesterday with the life threatening condition, their response was, "There are 6 million people in Kabul. Do you think an ambulance would come?"

Today I had a long conversation with one of the police recruits that came to the clinic for back pain. I would love to post his picture but I won't for his security. We talked about how he is unable to go back and visit his family who live in the Helmond region of the country. He says that he has a huge extended family but if he goes back it would be very dangerous for him because everyone in his town knows that he is a police officer. The same applies to the interpreters and anyone else seen cooperating with the government or U.S.. I asked him what do the police officers that live in the Helmond province do them. His response was that they all live in a secure compounds and that they have lot of weapons.

He was attending his first year of a four year police program. He came in with bad back pain and was just kind of asked a few questions in the front lobby then sent away. Oh, there is so much that needs to be fixed. Baby steps.

As much as I want to go home, I can still appreciate why the deployments have gone to 12 and 15 months. Making any progress in Afghanistan takes a long time, and unfortunately, developing good relations and getting yourself up to speed takes about 2 months.

I hear my replacement will be here for a year. A number of our teammate have already been contacted by their replacements. They have the advantage of having us over here to show them around. We had to somewhat start from scratch. The transition for them should be much smoother then what we had to deal with.

Here is a good picture that all of us took for a kinder garden class. This is probably half of the team.

I posted another countdown and this time I hopefully will not get in trouble because it is plus/minus 7 days. I am really looking forward to Valentine's Day this year (hint hint).

Thanks for reading.

Boxer's Fracture

2008-04-12T06:53:00.000-07:00

"Fill all thy bones with aches."
-William Shakespeare, "The Tempest", Act 1 scene 2Greatest English dramatist & poet (1564 - 1616)

I like that quote. It should be the theme for this deployment.

As you can see I am experimenting with some new photo sharing websites. They are kind of fun. For the record, the title picture and the slide show pictures were not taken by me. They were taken by various people during the last VCR trip. Looking at those photos makes you realize that I am having a life changing experience. They are just so moving. My entire perspective of different parts of the world has been chmaged. The pictures also show you that you do not have to give the kids very much make them happy. Bubbles and balloons is all that it took. The photo sharing site that I am using is soooo much better then Picasa. I can not even tell you. The pictures took seconds to load and the slide shows are so much cooler. Let me know what you think.

As you also can see from the short movie below, the gentleman with the hand fracture returned today in the same condition as yesterday. When he showed up to the ER today the ER doc escorted him up to the Orthopedist who then put on a cast. It is kind of interesting because we would have treated him a little differently in the states. We would have put on a larger cast, his last 2 fingers would have been in the flexed position, and we would have told him to keep the cast on for 6 weeks instead of 3. Because I am mentoring an Orthopedist with 20 years of experience under his belt, I try and respectfully tell him how we would do it in the states without insisting that he change the way he treats his patients. After all, what we do may not be entirely correct either.

It was somewhat entertaining to watch the doctor patient interaction between the Orthopedist and the patient with the hand fracture. You have to understand that people in Afghanistan are very stoic. They have endured years of hardship and their pain threshold is a lot different then you and me. For instance, when I sutured the child's lip when we did the high school HA drop I did it with no local anaesthesia (because I did not have any) and he was standing (because there was no where to lay him down). It must have been very painful for him but you could hardly even notice a reaction on his face. So today after the cast material was still soft, the orthopedist decided that he wanted to place a little traction on the broken finger to set it in place. It must have been excruciatingly painful for the patient. The Ortho doc tugged on his finger a few times to get it just right. The one time that the old man decided to display any evidence of pain the Orthopedist looked at him in an irritated manner then, after shaking his head, he turned to me and smiled.

We also had someone come into the ER with really bad abdominal pain. We suspected that he had a kidney stone but we really had no way of confirming it because the lab is not yet up and running. We also do not yet have the ultrasound machine up and running yet. We did not have very strong pain meds to give him so unfortunately we were not able to take care of his pain very well. I learned a very interesting thing the other day regarding the way that they treat kidney stones over here. Typically in the states we do lithotripsy, which is where we send sound waves through water to break up the stones, or we place a stent into the ureter to facilitate the passage of the stone. Over here, when the stones get to be to big to pass naturally, they actually excise them out of the kidney. I never knew that you could even do that. You would think that you would be doing more damage by making an incision into the kidney then by just leaving it alone.

When I came back today I had 3 packages waiting for me. They all were from the same person. One box was toys for the kids.

The other was a big box filled with all of the ingredients to make smores. We have a really big fire pit that people gather around most nights. I will host a smores party some time soon.

Another package was a great big box of cookies.

We had another bombing today. We all are just fine. The secretary of defense also came and left. I did not have a chance to see him. Maybe next time. Hope you enjoy all of the new pictures.

Thanks for reading.

Fat and Bald

2008-04-11T06:12:00.000-07:00

"You can go a long way with a smile. You can go a lot farther with a smile and a gun."
-Al CaponeUS gangster (1899 - 1947)
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Everyday the clinic gets busier and busier. The patients that are coming in do not just have minor problems either. One of the first patients that was seen was a police recruit that was shot in the hand by his instructor. I know, how ironic. You can not make this stuff up. I would love to show you the picture but it would be way too graphic. The first thing I said to the ER doctor was, "So, what do you want to do for him?" He replied, " I want to clean it, then sew it up." I then asked him, "What about if there is a fracture, don't you want to get an X-ray to make sure?" He agreed. Fortunately there was no fracture.
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Another patient came in with really bad dehydration. Apparently, the Dermatologist is helping out in the ER because they are short staffed. The U.S. nurse and I watched, almost covering our eyes, as he tried to start an IV. The nurse was able to step in and show him the right way to do it. Little by little, day by day, they are learning and improving the way they provide care.

We also did some trauma training today. The infectious disease doctor was my make believe patient. We applied tourniquets, showed them how to use oral and nasal air ways, and discussed a bunch of other trauma topics.

A couple of ANP Generals also came in for VIP care. They came specifically because they knew that an American mentor was going to be at the clinic. I wish I could have gotten it on film when the 3-star General was told that I was the American doctor that was mentoring the Orthopedist. You have got to understand the culture. One of the interpreters explained it to me last week. In addition to being an interpreter he is also an oral surgeon. He had to stop being an oral surgeon because he looked too young, so therefore, people did not have a lot of confidence in him and he did not have any patients. He said that you have to be fat and bald to be respected as a physician in Afghanistan. Forget about where you went to medical school or your level of experience, you have to have a spare tire and a shiny head to succeed as a physician. I have been told ever since I graduated medical school, back in 1999, that I look too young to be a physician. I am wondering if I will ever look the part.

The reaction from the 3-star General when he saw that I was the American physician was priceless. You would have thought that I just insulted his mother. I just looked too young to be a doctor to him. I did not say anything in response. I just smiled. Frankly, I really did not care if he did not want to be seen by me. One of his American mentors had to reassure him that everything was fine, telling him that I was very competent and well qualified.

He had an Orthopedic problem that probably required surgery. The problem is you probably would be better off not having the surgery in Afghanistan. Even if you were in the states surgery would not be a magic bullet. Pain is something that doctors, medicine, or surgery can not always fix.

Before I finish with the clinic I wanted to show you what one of the Canadian soldiers had in his ear. He said that it is acupuncture for his back pain. Like I have said before, just because we do it one way in the states does not always make it right. The Afghani Orthopedist probably thought that he was weird for putting pins in his ear to fix back pain (for the record, so do I). So before I ever criticize or correct them, I first think to myself does it make sense, and more importantly, does the habit need to be corrected.

I do not think that I spent enough time talking about the cookies that I got yesterday. The cookies were sent from "Cookies Direct" from Yarmouth Maine. A really wonderful "Angel" from Inyokern, California sent them to our team. She also sent the other gifts that were on yesterday's post. This is from their website.

"COOKIES DIRECT is a cookie mail order gift service specializing in truly homemade, fresh baked, hand-packaged cookies. Since 1991, we've delivered thousands of delicious gift packages to family, friends, students, the military, and businesses throughout the country and overseas as well. We operate this cottage industry from our 195-year-old home located in the heart of Yarmouth Village, Maine."

http://www.cookiesdirect.net/

Here is a picture of some of the team members enjoying the cookies.

Today I received 3 big packages. One of them was a box full of Christmas stockings.

The other box was hats and gloves for kids.

The last one was another care package from a second grade class from Nevada.

I am trying to think of something good to send some of the students that write to me. Our next bazaar is on Friday. I plan to buy them something. I hope I can make in on time for Christmas.

There were more bombings today. Here is a link to a NY Times article.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/06/world/asia/06afghan.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

Thanks for reading.

The Classic Make To Smile Blog

2008-04-10T01:28:00.000-07:00

"In the fight between you and the world, back the world."
-Frank ZappaUS musician, singer, & songwriter (1940 - 1993)

"To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best day and night to make you like everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight and never stop fighting."
-e e cummingsUS poet (1894 - 1962)

I hope you enjoy the little slide show that I put together. I just visited a night time bazaar and I could not help but to take a picture of some of the movies that they were selling. I did not change the covers in any way. I had no idea that Mel Gibson and The Rock were in a movie together. Someone needs to tell Quinton Tarentino that when a critic says that a movie is "incomplete" that it is not a good thing. I do not even know what a lot of them mean. Some of them are just a jumble of words that are put together to make an incomprehensible sentence. For instance, "Global Irritable War Piece First." That sounds like a great movie. What about, "North American Provocatove," Are they trying to say Provocative? And lastly, "Men and Women Occult." What does that even mean?

A lot of what I saw today you would probably not want me to talk about because it involves drainage of large amounts of pus and car accident victims. I will spare you the details.

A lot of the teaching I did was on physical exam. I am trying to emphasize the importance of it because I think that it is something that they have let fall by the wayside. The ER physician is sharp and willing to learn, he has just not had someone there to teach him anything. You can build a building and buy a lot of expensive equipment, but if the staff does not know how to use it and the doctors do not know how to practice medicine then it is not of much use.

I used the interpreter as a patient and we went through a complete physical exam. Other doctors such as the Infectious Disease doctor and the Dermatologist were also listening in. I also tried to emphasize the importance of taking vital signs on every patient. So far I have not seen them do it on a single patient. We all practiced taking blood pressure, temperature, and heart rate. It was all very productive.

I saw a family looking kind of lost carrying a little child. I asked them if they needed help and they said that they were trying to find a Pediatrician. The mother said that her child fell down a stairs 20 days ago and still is unable to walk. The Pediatrician was not on duty so I recommended that they return when he was available. Before they left I decided to get a quick X-ray just to make sure that there was no obvious fracture. Here was the film that I got.

I had a hard time seeing the knees so I hand them repeat it minus the hand. I did not see anything obvious but just in case I loaded the X-ray onto my thumb drive and I am going to shoot it over to a Radiologist just to be sure.
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Here are some of the supplies that I received today. I am going to give them directly to the VCR program. Thanks so much for sending them. Giving them to the VCR program is the best way to guarantee that they will go to people that really need them.

Check out my deployment tips blog if you are deploying soon. It is a work in progress. I plan to add a lot more in the coming days.

I will leave you with a really cute kid that is also a really good business man.

Thanks for reading.

Laughing Camels

2008-04-09T06:52:00.000-07:00

The title picture was not taken by me. It was sent to me from someone that participated in a previous VCR drop.

“The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.”
-Khalil Gibran

That quote is courtesy of a reader. I really like it. What a great way to turn something that is negative into a positive. The quote is kind of is fitting for the week that I have been having. I have found that if you have a positive attitude then it will usually outlast whatever difficult time you may be having.

I am about to have an overdose of Swedish Fish. I just can not stop eating them. They came as part of a care package. Today was our one "low tempo" day of the week (our one day off). The VCR program planted apple trees today but I was just too tired to participate. I heard that it was a lot of fun.

Take a look at the mail that came in today.

This care package from someone from Sherman Oaks, California. I added that garland to the tree already. I got so many movies today that I decided to dedicate an entire shelf in our office so everyone can enjoy them.

Someone from Encino, California sent me a CD with a very nice card.

Here are some more movies and CDs. This package was from the Books For Soldiers group. They must have sent us 30 CDs. I thought that one of the band's title was really funny, The Flesh Eaters.

These cookies are from "The Cookie Lady" and her "Crumbs" from Treat the Troops. It came with a number of really great letters. One of the bakers calls herself an "Old Crumb." She says that she has been baking for 9 years.

Here are some presents for some of our team members from an Angle from Inyokern, California. I put them under the tree already.

Some stuff for kids- hats, sandals, stuffed animals. I will give these to the VCR program.

A ton of cards from second graders from Surprise, Arizona. Here are some other team members that you may not recognize.

Lastly, I wanted to end with a great picture of Adam when he was in Herat. He is so full of positive energy and a really fun person to be around. He has helped to make this deployment really fun. Here he is goofing around with a camel.

Thanks for reading.

Hoof Beats

2008-04-08T06:46:00.000-07:00

"A baby is God's opinion that the world should go on."
-Carl SandburgUS biographer & poet (1878 - 1967)

Today we had a pretty interesting morning. We had a camera guy follow us around during most of the morning. It made seeing patients a little awkward. We saw a gentleman that was in a bus that was hit by a car bomb. He had a foreign body in his cornea. The Ophthalmologist thought that it was a piece of glass. He was sent to a different hospital to have surgery.

We had an interesting conversation with the ER doctor which, by the way, was all caught on camera. He was asking about the blue pen light that I gave him the other day. He wanted to know what it was for. I told him that it can be used to identify scratches or ulcers on the cornea. The lesions light up after you add a chemical called fluorescein. He was a little confused because back in his old hospital he would use the blue light as a form of disinfectant. He thought that you could run the UV light over objects to disinfect them. He said that in the OR they had UV lights attached to the ceiling and they would turn them on for a short while so the room could be disinfected. I told him then if that was the case then everyone that used tanning beds in the U.S. should be free of any bacteria. I tried to explain the proper way to disinfect surfaces and rooms. I am not entirely convinced that he believes me. I think that it will take some more reinforcing.

About the same time that we were having the conversation about the UV lights one of the cleaning crew workers came in and started wiping down light switches and door handles with a dry cloth. We asked him what he had on his cloth and he replied nothing. We tried to educate him on the importance of using disinfectants. A lot of the education that we provide is really simple basic stuff that will end up making a big difference in reducing the spread of bacteria in the long run.

We saw a guy who was hit by a car and had right shoulder pain. I asked him what had happened and he said that he was hit by a car and then the driver sped off. I asked how he got here and he told me that he called his brother to pick him up. As we were interviewing the patient the camera man asked me, "So how does this patient differ from one you would see in the states?" I said, "Well for one thing, in the states the driver probably would have stopped to help him and he probably would have been brought here by an ambulance."

I was talking to the Orthopedist and I asked him what happens if a patient needs to be operated on after hours. He told me that an ambulance comes to his house and picks him up. He arrives at the old hospital with sirens blazing. I kind of like that.

We also had another older patient come in with chest pain. The ER doctor was able to get an EKG on his own and was even able to interpret it stating correctly that there was an abnormality. He was correctly able to identify that the patient was having an early heart attack. I felt very proud of him. He both learned how to operate an EKG and learned basic EKG interpretation all in one week. The treatment part was not so simple. Obviously, our treatment options are very limited in Afghanistan. Even so, he knew what the basic meds were that he needed to prescribe and he was able to provide as best care as he could considering the circumstances.

The OB/GYN doctor came to the ER to see me because she had 2 OB patients and she wanted me to teach her how to use the new fetal doppler. It is a little hand held ultrasound that lets you hear a baby's heart beat. When we first showed her the instrument back during the equipment orientation she actually thought that was harmful to use on pregnant women. We had to reassure her that it is safe and commonly used in the U.S. When I went up to the room I was faced with a challenging dilemma. I needed to show her how to use the device but the only problem was I am not allow to see, or heaven forbid, touch another female since I am male. So I had to figure out how I was going to teach her how to use the doppler without using a female patient. I decided to use the male interpreter who happen to be a very good sport about it. We went through all of the typical motions and we were even able to pick up pulsations from his abdominal aorta. I told the OB doc that I would be right outside the door in case she had any questions. With the door cracked open I was able to hear the wonderful sounds of hoof beats which let me know that she was successful.

We still had the problem that both patients had no paperwork, had not had any ultrasounds, and were not on prenatal vitamins. One of them had lab work that was positive for Toxoplasmosis - an infection that can be extremely harmful to the fetus and protein in her urine. The mom said that she had 2 previous miscarriages. I asked the OB doc where she normally did her deliveries and she said that her patients come over to her house. I am not kidding. She asked if she could deliver babies in the new clinic. I told her that it would be better then delivering them in her home. I am now faced with the task of converting a basic exam room into one that is suitable to support a delivery room and even a small nursery.

Since the OB doc did not even have a chart or a medical record on the 2 patients I decided to download a standard OB template that is commonly used in the states. I also downloaded a paper ruler so we can measure the fundal height (the belly). My goal is to have a medical record started on every patient, regular scheduled visits with vital signs and labs, physical exams on every patient, and a half way descent delivery room.

After she identified the baby's heart rate with the small Doppler she asked me if she could use it to tell if the baby was breech or cephalic (head down). I told her that you can only determine a babies heart rate with the device and that you have to feel the abdomen to determine how the baby is lying. I do not think that she quite understood me. When I also suggested that she do a vaginal exam for one of the patients that was 36 weeks she gave me another strange look. I have a feeling that she has never checked for cervical dilation on a patient. This was especially surprising since she says that she has been delivering babies since the 70s.

I would also like for the OB doc to start doing basic ultrasound. I am not very proficient at it myself but I at least am able to check if the head is down and the level of fluid in the amniotic sac.

Take care. Thanks for reading.

Lord of the Flies

2008-04-07T04:26:00.000-07:00

Dance like it hurts,
Love like you need money,
Work when people are watching.
-Scott Adams, The Way of the Weasel US cartoonist (1957 - )

Those kids in the video are so funny. They just spontaneously started to dance. They reminded me of a scene from Lord of the Flies. There were 20 or so kids with no parental supervision. It was cold and rainy outside and they did not have a care in the world. They just were dancing so full of joy. What made me think of Lord of the Flies was when they decided to build a fire and dance around it. They looked like they were having so much fun.

Another image that struck me today was when we were convoying back from the clinic. Like I said, it was raining and very cold today. We passed by a father and a daughter who were homeless and sitting on the side of the road. The picture is not very good because we were moving very fast but I think that you can get the jest. They are sitting by the side of the road, in the rain, and the daughter huddled up to her father eating some naan. It is both adorable and sad at the same time. It makes me sad just thinking about it. Tomorrow I will give them some of the donations. I am sure that they will appreciate it.

A lot of changes are going on at the clinic. The Afghans are in the process of converting it to a hospital. They brought some of their old beds over and were cleaning them today. It should be interesting when they start to have inpatients.

Some of our teammates visited a children's hospital called Indira Ghandi yesterday. It is run by doctors from India. I was so amazed to learn that they had one over here. From the pictures it looks like a really modern facility. They had some pretty sick children in the hospital. My friend took a lot of pictures. I won't post any pictures of the kids since they are sick and in the hospital but I will describe a few of them. One of the pictures is of a male child that looks about 8 years old. He was a victim of one of the recent vehicle borne suicide attacks. You see him lying in bed with dressing around his head because he had to have brain surgery from all of the shrapnel. There are a number of really young and premature little kiddos that have feeding tubes through their noses. One of them has bruising around her eyes. The person that took the picture thinks that it may of been a shaken baby. Some of you will be happy to know that some of the toys that were sent to me were given to some of the children in the hospital. I am sure that they appreciated them.

I am sorry. I will try and be a little more uplifting tomorrow. I lent my camera to one of the cleaning crew. He was going to a wedding. Weddings in Afghanistan are really big deal so I thought that it was important to get some first hand pictures.

We also visited Phoenix today. Here is a pic. Take care.

R.I.P. Hard Drive

2008-04-06T04:00:00.000-07:00

"True knowledge exists in knowing that you know nothing. And in knowing that you know nothing, that makes you the smartest of all."

-Socrates

My computer died on me earlier today. I will need to get a whole new hard drive. All of my music and photos are gone. I will just have to continue on undeterred.

The housekeeper said that the people that were getting married did not want him taking photos at the wedding. So instead he gave me a photo taken at one of his relative's wedding.

Today we had a peaceful protest near our base. I was told by one of the interpreters that they were the widows of men that had died from war related causes. They were protesting the UN building for more widow's rights.

Today at the clinic I spent some time with the OB/GYN doctor. I think that I will dedicate a lot of my time with her. It is like I am starting from scratch. She does not do any of the basic assessments that are normally done in the states. From the measurements of the abdomen of 2 of her patients today I am not even sure she knows how to accurately predict due dates.

Although I was really impressed by something that she did. Like I said yesterday, one of her patients tested positive for something called Toxoplasmosis. Just to give you an example of how rare it is in the states, one of the nurses over here is married to an OB doctor that has been practicing in the states for over 20 years. She asked him what to do to treat Toxoplasmosis and he said that he had only one patient 20 years ago with it and he is not quite sure what he used. I did a little reading yesterday and I found that Spiramicin can be used to limit the transmission to the fetus. Here is the article.

http://www.aafp.org/afp/20030515/2131.html

I have never heard of this drug and in the article it says that Spiramycin can only be obtained through the manufacturer (Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Bridgewater, N.J.) with approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. I thought to myself there was no way I was going to get a hold of this drug. Earlier today I was going over how to do a OB history and physical. When we got to the part where we list the current medications the patient pulled out a plastic bag and took out boxes of Spiramicin. I was shocked and thrilled to see it. My faith in the OB doctor was renewed.

The G.I. doctor came down to the ER to get my opinion on a abdominal CT result on a 30 year-old patient of his. The report said that there was an abdominal tumor that from the appearance most likely looked like a sarcoma which is a type of cancer. He asked me for my opinion and I told him that he should get a biopsy and then the patient should be referred to an Oncologist. The G.I. doctor replied that they do not have any oncologist in all of Afghanistan. I asked him how do they give chemotherapy or radiation to people with cancer and he said that they don't. I found it to be so strange. It really makes you think twice about trying to institute any screening measures for cancer if you do not even have any way of treating it once they get identified.

One last interesting thing. Today a husband brought his wife into the ER who was having problems with headaches, dizziness, and episodes of fainting. The ER doctor was doing a great job obtaining a history and then doing a physical exam. He moved the patient's head scarf just slightly over to the side and started to palpate the side of her head. 999 times out of 1,000, when someone comes in with a headache and you actually feel their head, you will not find anything. Well when he did it, with his hands deep under her headscarf, he said with a big surprise, "Oh, there is an abnormality!" I looked at him somewhat skeptical. He pulled back the head scarf to reveal a golf ball sized mass over the upper part of her head. You think that she would have mentioned it before we examined her. It was a good catch by the ER doc.

The VCR program did their sorting tonight. There was a lot of donations. It obviously had to do with Christmas. Take a look.

Thanks for reading.

Barf on the Ghar

2008-04-05T06:47:00.000-07:00

"When it is dark enough, you can see the stars."
-Persian Proverb

"We are all too much inclined to walk through life with our eyes shut. There are things all around us, and right at our very feet, that we have never seen; because we have never really looked."

--Alexander Graham Bell

Both of those quotes are from different readers. I really like them. People have been sending me so many great quotes that I no longer have to look for them. If you have any favorites then feel free to send them to me.

I spoke with my parents tonight and my mother says that she loves the blob.

Today was a long day. I felt like we drove all throughout Kabul. We ended up eating lunch at KAIA and dinner at ISAF. It actually snowed for the first time today! Barf came from the sky. Yes, believe it or not, the word for snow in Dari is barf. It was a really beautiful site seeing the snow coming down. Here is a pic.

Here is a picture of barf on the ghar (mountain).

Today at the clinic I spent a lot of time with the OB doctors. I really enjoy teaching them. It is so much fun when you have eager learners. All three of them were taking detailed notes. We went over all of the various routine prenatal assessments, common medical problems related to pregnancy, and various treatments. With everyday that passes we make more and more progress.

We had a patient come in that had been shot in the abdomen. The ER doc wanted my advice on what to do and I told him that he needed exploratory surgery ASAP. He was going to medevac him to a place that had surgical capabilities. You never know what kind of patient will come through the clinic doors.

I wanted to share a photo that one of the cleaning crew members took. I had no idea that they did this. They roll out a carpet and sit together at night for dinner.

We have been getting so many care packages and letters lately and I have not been able to post all of the pictures so I apologize in advance if your care package did not make it on the blog. Just today I got a box with 20 small stockings filled with goodies. I put them all under the tree.

Thanks for reading.

The Kitchen

2008-04-04T08:42:00.000-07:00

“We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand... and melting like a snowflake. Let us use it before it is too late.”
Marie Beyon Ray

That picture is from a NY Times article here is the link
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/12/world/asia/12afghan.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper&oref=slogin

Welcome to my blob. We had a good time today. One of the boss’s young son came to visit so I lent him my digital camera and iPod for the day. He had a good time going around the clinic taking all kinds of pictures. I think that it was the first time that he ever used a digital camera.

Today the inpatients from the old hospital moved in. It was a little amusing seeing the train of patients in their gowns and foley catheters walk slowly through the front door and up the stairs to their rooms. A lot of them were in pretty bad shape and had to be carried up the stairs in their wheel chair.

The ER is an interesting place. It almost reminds me of when you have a party, no matter how big your house is, everyone always ends up hanging out in the kitchen. That is what the ER is like. Even though they have a big hospital all of the specialist bring their patients into the ER. I think that it has to do with its location and that it is well stocked because we have been focusing on it.

The surgeon brought a patient in with a pretty bad ingrown toenail. Toenail removals are pretty routine and fairly easy procedures for Family Practice doctors to perform in their office. This definitely was the most interesting one that I have seen. First of all, when you numb up the big toe you usually have to give it a good 15 minutes before you do anything because it takes a while for the digital block to take effect. Immediately after applying the lidocaine the surgeon went right to work and you could tell that the patient felt it. The surgeon was as sympathetic as the Ortho doc was the other day. I am a little less assertive when it comes to mentoring the specialist only because I do not have the experience and knowledge to back me up. Towards the end of the procedure the assistant proceeded to splash water onto the patients face and body and then the surgeon lifted both of his legs 90 degrees, I think in am attempt to get more blood back to his face. Everyone was laughing (the patient had a smirk on his face). I just looked on and smiled wondering how to even start the mentoring process.

A cute little boy that was six years-old came in with his father. I make a point of keeping candy and toys in my pockets and I hand them out whenever I see some children. I gave the little boy a lolly pop. After a little bit I asked the ER doc what was wrong with the little boy. He said, “He is here for a circumcision.” My eyes got really big in surprise. I said, “Are you kidding with me?” He said,” No, male Muslim children need to get circumcised by age 7.” I asked how they planned to do it. He said that the surgeon planned to use local anesthesia. I replied, “What will you use for pain?” He replied, “Ibuprofen.” I looked at the poor child thinking in my mind, he has no idea what he is in for.

We visited Phoenix today and I was able to get a new hard drive. I should be up and running after I install all of the new software. It was snowing really hard over there. If you stood in one spot for longer then 10 minutes you looked like a snow man.

I came back to a ton of packages, everything you can think of, candy, beef jerky, movies, toiletries, batteries, games, books, all kinds of great stuff. I also received a really nice Santa suit and 3 more Christmas trees. We will be moving offices soon so I think that I will set it up over there. We also got a few boxes full of new winter clothes for the VCR program. I plan on going on a trip this Friday. I will be sure to take a lot of pictures.

Take care.

Silver Bloggers Network

2008-04-03T07:58:00.000-07:00

The title picture is courtesy of Dr. Mossoud.

"Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'Press On' has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race. "
-Calvin Coolidge30th president of US (1872 - 1933)

"Energy and persistence conquer all things."
-Benjamin FranklinUS author, diplomat, inventor, physicist, politician, & printer (1706 - 1790)

Today the surgeon was the star of the show. He had a number of cases back to back that he was managing in the ER and I was his assistant. As I mentioned before, it is somewhat challenging to mentor a specialist because, for one thing, they are stuck in their ways, and second, my surgical knowledge is somewhat limited.

A phenomenon that is very interesting is their use of betadine and hydrogen peroxide on most patients. They use it regularly on every kind of injury. In the U.S. we have sort of altered our use of these two agents and have relied more on irrigation with normal saline. Even though peroxide and betadine are effective against killing bacteria they also can be destructive to healthy tissue. After every suture, while cleaning any wound, you name it, peroxide and betadine are used. On one gentlemen that had lost the lower portion of his leg to a rocket attack, he used it to treat a healing wound. I suggested using some bacitracin and I went to the pharmacy to retrieve some but all they had was something called Burn Cream. It is essentially the same thing but he did not want to use it because he said that it was only for burns.

Another younger guy came in, he must have been in his early 20s. He was concerned about the cosmetic appearance of an old Leishmaniasis scar. Leishmaniasis and the residual scars that are left after the infection is something that is very commonly seen in Kabul. The young guy came in yesterday to see if anything could be done to improve the appearance of the scar. He was dressed somewhat fashionably and had long hair. You could tell that the scar effected his self esteem. The people working in the ER kind of laughed wondering why someone would care about a scar living in Kabul. After all, they said, it is not like he is living in L.A.. I thought that that was the end of it so I was surprised when I saw him come back again into the ER this morning. I asked the surgeon what he planned to do and he told me not to worry and to just watch.

He made a fairly large incision and basically excised the entire scar to include about a centimeter around the perimeter. The interesting part was that he did all of this without wearing any gloves and he did not exactly have a sterile field. I did not want to say anything in front of the patient. At one point he asked for my help to dab the blood. I made a point of asking for gloves. The interpreter said that the surgeon blushed when I did that. The site looked pretty good when he finished, he just had a scar that was twice the size. Maybe it will heal better then the previous one.

Today was thank you card writing night. Those of you that sent multiple boxes will get multiple thank you cards. I do it mainly so you can know that I received the packages. I must have received 20 boxes over the past 2 days filled with all kinds of goodies. I sent out an email for people to come and pick out what they wanted. Whatever is not picked up by tomorrow will be sent downrange to more remote FOBs. Thank you, thank you and more thank you to all of those that have sent stuff. Thank you also to those of you that have sent Christmas cards. This was yesterday's mail. We got a similar stack today. Most of it was cloths for the VCR and care packages for the troops.

A ton of people helped to load the trucks for tomorrow's VCR trip. We loaded a truck full of discarded Styrofoam that hopefully will be used for insulation. We also loaded the food and the cloths that were donated by the bx and from people back home. A few of the boxes were from 6 M.I.K. readers.

I had an idea that I wanted to run by some readers. Please let me know if it is a stinker. I was thinking about blogging how it is such a great way to help pass the time. It also serves so many other functions; it can serve as a historical record, a means to educate people, a tool for social interaction, and so much more. Who would benefit most from learning about blogging then the elderly. Many of them are alone and in need of an activity that engages their mind and that is both fun and rewarding. I was thinking that we could rally a few 6 M.I.K. readers in an attempt to find someone that may be willing to try it out. We could try and encourage them to learn how to blog. They could record their life history, random thoughts, or even just what they did that day. They would be leaving a historical trail for others to read for years to come (how long will Google be around?). This involves no spending of money or major effort on anyone's part. All you would have to do would be to find someone that is eager and willing to learn and to teach them how to do it. You could even visit a local nursing home that has Internet connectivity and give an hour lesson every 2 weeks. I would be so interested to learn what they would write about. I could link all of the blogs into one big blog and we could read and enjoy. We could call it the Silver Bloggers Network.

Let me know what you think. If you guys like it then I will work on it more and give you more details. Let me know if you have anyone in mind. It could even be a relative.

Thanks for reading.

VCR Trip

2008-04-02T09:47:00.000-07:00

"To see the earth as it truly is, small and blue and beautiful in that eternal silence where it floats, is to see ourselves as riders on the earth together, brothers on that bright loveliness in the eternal cold."

-Archibald MacLeishUS administrator, dramatist, & poet (1892 - 1982)

Today I went on a VCR trip. There was a little hang up getting there. The truck that was carrying the styrofoam broke down on the way there. We managed to get it towed back to the base and we were able to carry on with our mission. This was my first trip so I was very curious how it would go. To me it seemed very orderly. The people that organized the trip seemed to really have it down. Seeing how the people lived was really sad. They seemed to be living in old, bombed-out, abandoned buildings. What surprise me most was how the children were all still typical children, happy and playful, despite all of the harsh conditions.

I wanted to show you a few interesting features of the village. Here is a "home" which is basically a small room where 10 people stay. In order to keep warm at night they all sleep under a coffee table that has a blanket on top. Under the table is a pan with some coal. I could not imagine having to sleep like that.

Here is the back side of a "bathroom" located in a different home. Of course, there is no running water or electricity in any of the homes.

One of the women made chai for us. I was a little hesitant to accept it at first because I was not sure where they got the water from. I then thought about all of the little buggers running around, and I reasoned, if they can drink it then so can I.

Chickens and goats were walking around freely.

Take a look at this home. They placed a ladder on the side of the bombed-out building. I bet it is considered to be one of the nicer homes comparatively speaking.

They passed out large bags of coal, cloths, and food.

I thought that this girl was interesting and sad at the same time. It looks like she opened up a ball point pen and tried to use the ink as lipstick.

This is a great pic. That is a 2 star General lugging cloths, coal, and food in a wheel barrel up a hill. This picture really says it all.

Thanks for reading.

Blowing Bubbles

2008-04-01T07:41:00.000-07:00

"Rest is the sweet sauce of labor."
-PlutarchGreek biographer & moralist (46 AD - 120 AD)

"Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop."
-OvidRoman poet (43 BC - 17 AD)

We are given four days during our 6 month tour that we can use as a "pass." In the past we were able to fly to different places but because it takes so long to travel back and forth we are restricted to taking our pass in country. So today was one of my pass days. It allowed me to catch up on all of the things that I have been putting off like laundry, cleaning my room, and downloading all of the software that was on my old hard drive. I am officially ready to start disorganizing my life again.

At night we had a short smores party at the fire pit. I received a big box filled with all of the essential ingredients from a reader. It was fun.

Since it was a slow day I thought that I would post some more pics from yesterday's VCR. Most of these were not taken by me, including the title pic.

This girl was just too cute. Here she is trying to blow bubbles.

Here is a cute kid with a balloon.

This picture pretty much sums up the sentiment of their situation.

A man carrying a bag of coal back to his home.

Here I am getting a little too close to a goat. Notice where the goat is in relation to the homes.

Thanks for reading.