DAY 35 27DEC2009:
So a routine has set in:
0600: alarm goes off on my watch (I can’t plug in the alarm clock I bought in the States because i guess the hertz is faster here. So clocks that are not calibrated will run off an hour in about 45 minutes…who knew?)
0610-0615: actually drag my sorry butt out of bed. Im sleeping more here than I did at home. I guess that happens when an 80 pound chocolate lab isn’t licking your face, growling and jumping up onto you to get up and walk her
0630: By this time I have my uniform on, my workout clothes in my Assault Pack (that’s Army for back pack, guess back pack wasnt hooah enough) and I’m out the door. Note: I would like to be headed straight to the DFAC to get some breakfast but there are no packs allowed in the DFAC. M4’s, M16’s, SAWs and M9’s are allowed in the DFAC but bags are not.
0637ish: I get to the clinic drop my gear, grab my shaving kit and head to the bathroom. Here I perform the sacred three S’s prior to going to the DFAC. I also note that the swing shift crew once again did P90X last night and left a complete mess in my clinic. I have not been here long enough to let this kind of thing piss me off too bad so I clean it up (but I did leave a note today for people to pick up after themselves)
0710: I arrive at the DFAC. For whatever reason I like to eat alone in the morning. I try to eat light for breakfast but enough to where Im not eating my hand come 1000. I sit for about 15 min and try to watch CNN or a game that is going on live the night before in the States (still getting used to that).
0745: I get back to the clinic to start the day, and by this I mean I make a pot of coffee if someone hasn’t done so already. My tech is usually trying to find the Soldiers he is responsible for or just getting done with morning PT and therefore will be 5 minutes late to work every day (Doesn’t bother me but I really don’t get why he doesn’t get up five minutes earlier because it seems to bother him more than me). We open at 0800 officially but there are usually Soldiers waiting to start their therapy and usually the docs already have a patient or two for me to evaluate...so we open as soon as coffee is in hand.
0800-1030: We treat the bulk of our patients during this time. SGT Wise is running everyone through their exercises, Im evaluating people and running back and forth between radiology, ortho and my clinic. We have a great stereo system that was left here so the music on and the shades are pulled up. Its actually become a great little clinic. There’s a few guys that are regulars right now, 22 year olds with chronic back pain. Yeah Im working them to death and soon they’ll follow up with me and realize that they are doing harder work in here than at their job so they will be discharged back to full duty – how about that.
1030-1130: During this time we are trying to get the morning patients out the door (although without fail there is always the one that shows up just before you are going to close the door) and finish up our notes. Im trying to still do good notes on these encounters because supposedly the records will be available back home in the states. Im trying, but are my notes meeting the Joint Commision’s standards…..oh hell no.
1130: By this time my stomach is eating itself if I have forgoten to eat something during the morning (always). I round up some people to go eat some lunch. It’s a five minute walk down there and right now the weather here is great. Feels good to get outside and the endless concrete barriers, tan buildings, smog, and brown rocks just make you smile…ahhhhh. The DFAC rarely disappoints and another good tasting free meal is down the hatch. What did you have today Kyle? Well, I chose the grilled Panini, French onion soup and side salad…it was delicious thank you
1230: Back at the clinic and the food coma has set in...I start to read a book in the office for a little while. That’s right Daryl I read. We don’t officially open again till 1400 but it’s only a matter of time till they start coming in again. I may try to sneak in a workout here, go grab my laundry or get a little nap in at this time as well. I know…I have it freaking rough. (okay we also have meetings and other things going on at 1300 but if I can I will do my best to get out of all of those…people in the Army like to have meeting to discuss the work that is not getting done because we are at meetings)
1400-1630: Afternoon clinic is on and this is usually mostly treatments. Mainly putting the hurt on people and then putting them on ice or heat so they feel a little better as they walk out the door. During this block of time we will also pop in the video of today’s group workout. Treatment platoon has decided to do P90X with a mix of Insanity over the next few months. This means after work each day we workout in shifts. 5 or 6 people at a time in the room at once following along to the video. They are tough workouts…meaning the tiny room we are in smells to all hell by the end of the session. Anyway, we watch the video earlier in the day to see what we will need.
1630-1700: Time to get in a game of corn hole. This is basically bean bag horse shoes but you try to get the bean bags in the hole instead of the horse shoe around the pole. It’s a blast but feels off not having a beer in the other hand. Also the NCO’s are completely kicking the officer’s asses but it’s only a matter of time I think until the tides turn!
1700: P90X or Insanity is on and it time for some pain. It’s nice having some workout partners though…makes it harder to punk out.
1830: Shower at the Air force side of the aid station. Air Force always has nice amenities…why is that? Think I was meant for the Air Force.
1900: Its back to the DFAC for some chow. Every Wednesday night is no shit all you can eat crab legs. I mean giant King Crab legs staight from the Deadliest Catch to my plate in Iraq. It’s beautiful and I love it. I’ve never eaten so much crab in my life.
2000: I’m back to my CHU and ready to communicate with the real world and maybe watch a movie. When I say communicate I mean I try to call, make that Skype, my wife who is 10 hours behind or my Mom or Dad who are 12 hours behind. The time difference is mildly annoying. What really annoying is trying to Skype. My call will be dropped maybe 5 or 6 times during a 5 min conversation. When the person is talking to me I can make out maybe 2/3rds of the words and it usually sounds like some witness protection voice over. I already hate talking on the phone so you can imagine that my tolerance for this is very limited. So after getting completely aggravated and annoyed that I cannot carry on a normal conversation I call it quits, send a text from Google voice and pop in a movie to my laptop. This is great because the copy I have (sold to us at the Bazaar on the other side of the FOB) will surely have someone standing up and walking to the bathroom during an important scene. Down in front!
2200: Hopefully I’m tired and falling asleep. But I do have a pager just in case someone needs to learn how to stretch their IT band or put a heel lift in their boot over the next 8 hours, you know for all the PT emergencies….
Wow that was a lot of words to describe an incredibly boring day, sorry about that.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Friday, December 18, 2009
Life is...good!
DAY 26 18DEC09:
So things are pretty good right now which means there isn’t a whole lot to write about. I guess that’s a good thing. I’ve learned that I have much more to say when I’m irritated. It’s like the old adage that if you like something you may tell one person, if you don’t like something you tell ten. I guess that goes for how many words you’ll write too.
We have taken over clinical operations here for the past week and things are starting to fall into a smooth routine. My clinic is nice. We have most of the necessities; number one being plenty of space. The PT tech that works with me is great. He is very intelligent, motivated and easy going like me. We get along well and he is eager to learn as he actually wants to become a PT himself. He actually keeps me on my toes because he wants to treat patients with many skills and theories I learned in PT school but that I have yet to use in the real world. We cleaned up the clinic and organized everything and it’s turned into a nice little area that I think Soldiers (and co workers) want to come to. We have the music rockin, theraband flowin and windows open. We have freaking windows! Yeah to the outside…I know..its crazy. If you are a PT in the military you know this is a thing of beauty because for some reason every hospital, clinic or treatment area in the DOD is in a stuffy little room with no exposure to natural light. Who wouldn’t want to work out in that right? So far no shortage of patients either, which is no surprise. Plenty of aches and pains and many new injuries occur daily.
Outside the clinic things are quite right now. We hear of an IED attack just about every other day but the new MRAPs that our troops are driving around now seem to be protecting Soldiers much better. That, or people have been lucky thus far because we haven’t seen any trauma from these incidents yet. Let’s hope things remain like this for the duration of our deployment. It looks like we may be the last ones to hold down this FOB.
Seems that the main focus in the Company right now (other than work) is personal fitness. Everyone is watching what they eat, working out consistently. A group of us started P90X today. Only 89 more days and we’ll all be ripped right? Hope so, but I may have to work on my diet some.
Missing the wife and dog but staying as busy as possible. Doesn’t feel like Christmas time here but that may be a good thing as well. Things are good, we’re rollin. Just can’t think about the calendar too much.
So things are pretty good right now which means there isn’t a whole lot to write about. I guess that’s a good thing. I’ve learned that I have much more to say when I’m irritated. It’s like the old adage that if you like something you may tell one person, if you don’t like something you tell ten. I guess that goes for how many words you’ll write too.
We have taken over clinical operations here for the past week and things are starting to fall into a smooth routine. My clinic is nice. We have most of the necessities; number one being plenty of space. The PT tech that works with me is great. He is very intelligent, motivated and easy going like me. We get along well and he is eager to learn as he actually wants to become a PT himself. He actually keeps me on my toes because he wants to treat patients with many skills and theories I learned in PT school but that I have yet to use in the real world. We cleaned up the clinic and organized everything and it’s turned into a nice little area that I think Soldiers (and co workers) want to come to. We have the music rockin, theraband flowin and windows open. We have freaking windows! Yeah to the outside…I know..its crazy. If you are a PT in the military you know this is a thing of beauty because for some reason every hospital, clinic or treatment area in the DOD is in a stuffy little room with no exposure to natural light. Who wouldn’t want to work out in that right? So far no shortage of patients either, which is no surprise. Plenty of aches and pains and many new injuries occur daily.
Outside the clinic things are quite right now. We hear of an IED attack just about every other day but the new MRAPs that our troops are driving around now seem to be protecting Soldiers much better. That, or people have been lucky thus far because we haven’t seen any trauma from these incidents yet. Let’s hope things remain like this for the duration of our deployment. It looks like we may be the last ones to hold down this FOB.
Seems that the main focus in the Company right now (other than work) is personal fitness. Everyone is watching what they eat, working out consistently. A group of us started P90X today. Only 89 more days and we’ll all be ripped right? Hope so, but I may have to work on my diet some.
Missing the wife and dog but staying as busy as possible. Doesn’t feel like Christmas time here but that may be a good thing as well. Things are good, we’re rollin. Just can’t think about the calendar too much.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Boots on the ground
Day 13 05DEC2009:
Its strange, I’m now in Iraq but this could just as easily be Kuwait or Ft Irwin, CA. We had a fairly uneventful trip up here to FOB (Forward Operating Base) Warrior just outside Kirkuk, Iraq. It was Army efficiency as usual. Drop our bags at 2030 and don’t leave the immediate area, we don’t want to lose track of anyone. Wait outside till 2100 and have roll call. Wait outside till 2330 and board the buses. Drive 1 hour to the air strip. Wait in a tent for an hour. Take roll again in tent. Get in formation outside the tent and take roll again. We march onto our waiting C-17 at 0230. This is a large military cargo plane. All of our gear is on pallets in the rear and then 160 of us are filled into the seats in the middle of the hull. To say it’s a tight fit is a drastic understatement. We are wearing our IOTV (flak vest) and carrying our weapons and assault packs (backpacks). It’s tight but it does allow one to be propped up and able to sleep with your head fixed in place. After sitting in our seats for 45 minutes or so and watching the crew mull around we are told that the flight is cancelled due to so malfunction they cannot seem to repair. Not good news. We do not want to go through this process again. They tell us the busses that brought us here have been dispatched back to get us. “Just sit tight, and we’ll get you back to Camp Buehring”…just sit tight, good one. Another half hour goes by and we are told that the issue is resolved and we will take off soon. Great!!!....but its fixed right. We finally get wheels up at 0427. It’s a short flight and we touch down at Warrior Air Base at 0533. We march off the plane and its still dark but you can see trees lining the perimeter of the FOB and in the distance there are 3 orange glows of burning oil, a constant in this area.
As the sun comes up the FOB in all of its beauty is revealed. Bunkers are everywhere. All buildings are surrounded by some type of defensive structure whether its concrete “T walls” or “Hesco barriers” giant circular chain linked fences with a burlap sack filled with dirt. There are hard ball roads. There is a bus system. I brush my teeth in a bathroom being cleaned by an Iraqi who is washing his face. I say hi. I am assigned a CHU (Compartmental Housing Unit) to live in. Two of us in a 8’ by 20’-ish rectangle. Could be worse. We clean it out and divide it into two sides using wall lockers. We get some chow at a ginormous DFAC. Again, it appears it would be easy to get really fat here. We check out the Aid Station, drop of some laundry and take a long nap.
My first thought tonight after one day of being in country is that I don’t feel like I’m in a war zone and I don’t feel like I’m involved in a war. This is not a complaint but a feeling that maybe we all don’t need to be here. Officers are saluted, units march in formation and physical fitness tests are being conducted. These are commonalities back home in the states while in garrison but not what you would expect at a true FOB during war. This is more FT Warrior than FOB Warrior. I think of my buddies doing the same job in Afghanistan right now. I’m sure they are treating injuries sustained in while roaming mountains and dodging enemy fire. I will be treating sprained ankles from pick-up basketball. I could do this back home.
Its strange, I’m now in Iraq but this could just as easily be Kuwait or Ft Irwin, CA. We had a fairly uneventful trip up here to FOB (Forward Operating Base) Warrior just outside Kirkuk, Iraq. It was Army efficiency as usual. Drop our bags at 2030 and don’t leave the immediate area, we don’t want to lose track of anyone. Wait outside till 2100 and have roll call. Wait outside till 2330 and board the buses. Drive 1 hour to the air strip. Wait in a tent for an hour. Take roll again in tent. Get in formation outside the tent and take roll again. We march onto our waiting C-17 at 0230. This is a large military cargo plane. All of our gear is on pallets in the rear and then 160 of us are filled into the seats in the middle of the hull. To say it’s a tight fit is a drastic understatement. We are wearing our IOTV (flak vest) and carrying our weapons and assault packs (backpacks). It’s tight but it does allow one to be propped up and able to sleep with your head fixed in place. After sitting in our seats for 45 minutes or so and watching the crew mull around we are told that the flight is cancelled due to so malfunction they cannot seem to repair. Not good news. We do not want to go through this process again. They tell us the busses that brought us here have been dispatched back to get us. “Just sit tight, and we’ll get you back to Camp Buehring”…just sit tight, good one. Another half hour goes by and we are told that the issue is resolved and we will take off soon. Great!!!....but its fixed right. We finally get wheels up at 0427. It’s a short flight and we touch down at Warrior Air Base at 0533. We march off the plane and its still dark but you can see trees lining the perimeter of the FOB and in the distance there are 3 orange glows of burning oil, a constant in this area.
As the sun comes up the FOB in all of its beauty is revealed. Bunkers are everywhere. All buildings are surrounded by some type of defensive structure whether its concrete “T walls” or “Hesco barriers” giant circular chain linked fences with a burlap sack filled with dirt. There are hard ball roads. There is a bus system. I brush my teeth in a bathroom being cleaned by an Iraqi who is washing his face. I say hi. I am assigned a CHU (Compartmental Housing Unit) to live in. Two of us in a 8’ by 20’-ish rectangle. Could be worse. We clean it out and divide it into two sides using wall lockers. We get some chow at a ginormous DFAC. Again, it appears it would be easy to get really fat here. We check out the Aid Station, drop of some laundry and take a long nap.
My first thought tonight after one day of being in country is that I don’t feel like I’m in a war zone and I don’t feel like I’m involved in a war. This is not a complaint but a feeling that maybe we all don’t need to be here. Officers are saluted, units march in formation and physical fitness tests are being conducted. These are commonalities back home in the states while in garrison but not what you would expect at a true FOB during war. This is more FT Warrior than FOB Warrior. I think of my buddies doing the same job in Afghanistan right now. I’m sure they are treating injuries sustained in while roaming mountains and dodging enemy fire. I will be treating sprained ankles from pick-up basketball. I could do this back home.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
A River Runs Through It
DAY 6 28NOV2009:
I live in at tent village….and a river runs through it. Close your eyes and picture a desert. That is Kuwait, barren land with no trees, no hills, no end in sight…just sand and empty water bottles. Oh and now picture a lake or two, and mud everywhere. Imagine thousands of troops walking along the same paths creating trails of 8 inch mud slop. Imagine you have to use a port-a-potty every time nature calls. Now imagine mud caked all over your port-a-potty. Imagine you wake in the middle of the night having to drop a deuce and on your hazy walk to the John you step into a river that popped up over the 3 hours you were sleeping. Your running shoes are now soaked, your socks are brown, and you are pissed. But wait, this is no dream or figment of my imagination, this is the beginning of my deployment and this sucks. Please send me to Iraq.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Sounds About Right
Day 3 25NOV2009:
Yes that sucked. We are on day three but its still actually the first day. Its Wednesday 19:39 and I haven’t slept more than 2 hours since I woke up Monday morning. These are the times when the Army shows its stupidity and you question what they hell you are doing. Here is the list of stupidity since we left:
-We stopped in Wisconsin and were told we would be on the ground for 30 min. We got off the plane and went into a hanger with no chairs, bathrooms or anything else that may make your stop worthwhile. No big deal right, only a half our stop. We left three hours later.
-We stopped in Germany at a nice airport in some town I don’t remember the name of. We were told we would be on the ground for 2-3 hours. They had food, chairs and the all important internet access. Many Soldiers gave up the $10 dollars for 90 min of access so they could contact loved ones (really to update facebook). 30 min after getting off the plan, 10 min since buying their internet access we were told to board the plane, its time to go.
-We landed in Kuwait City at 00:03 Wednesday morning. We hopped on a bus. An hour and a half later we actually left the airport. We drove for 2 hours. We got to Camp Buering in Kuwait and got of the bus and were immediately sent to a briefing tent. After the second briefing an “acting 1SG” tells my battalion to go back to the busses and grab your bags and come back to the briefing tent. We get back to the tent and the NCOIC of the briefing is pissed we left and kicks everyone out who has a bag. Breakfast is from 0500 to 0830. We finally get everyone back in the tent, bag-less, and get our final brief. It lasts maybe five minutes.
We leave the briefing tent at 0550. We have no time for chow now. We have to march over to a training area and attend some pre-Iraq classes. Its about a 30 min walk and apparently imperative we do this RIGHT NOW. Near the end of our walk we are passed by shuttle busses that came from the area we just walked from.
We get out of our 3rd and final class of the morning at 0820. We all board the shuttle busses quickly and get a ride to the DFAC (dining facility). As we exit the bus we are yelled at to hurry because chow ends in 3 minutes. As we near the door the NCOIC of the DFAC informs us we are too late. Chow is over. I eat a beef stew MRE for breakfast. Fuck this.
This situation “sounds about right”. In Charlie Company of the 501st BSB that means that there was a situation with two options. There is option 1, the option never chosen. This option makes perfect sense, will cause the least headaches and flow very smoothly. When this option is ultimately not chosen (as is always the case) we will nod and state "why would we do that?". Then there is option 2. Option 2 is a horrible idea and will lead to wasted time and/or heartache combined with frustration. Option 2 is always the way we roll. We will nod in agreement with that choice and remark "yeah, that sounds about right".
Today sounds about right.
Goodbye
Day 1 23NOV2009:
Goodbye is hard. It’s hard knowing that you won’t see the person you love for months at a time. How will I change? How will she change? Will my dog recognize me? Will our lives fall back into place? I love my life. Many questions run through your mind. I really dont have any fear about going to Iraq. We are deploying to a huge FOB and I will have to travel to a few other locations to treat Soldiers from different battalions but lately all bad news coming from Iraq dealt with civilians being killed. We don’t have any combat operations ongoing. Over the past few days when I would think about how hard it is for me to leave my wife I would try to think of all the Soldiers over the last 7 or 8 years that were going into a much more dangerous situation. Or even today’s Soldiers who will be leaving for Afghanistan. I have it easy…but it’s still not easy. It’s putting your real life on hold and stupid shit can happen.
We have orders for a 365 day deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. I am a Brigade Physical Therapist attached to Charlie Med Company of the 501st Brigade Support Battalion with the 1st Brigade 1st Armored Division. None of that matters to you if you are not in the Army. My mission leading up to today was readiness. My mission starting today is to conserve the fighting strength. Mostly ill deal with aching backs from Soldiers wearing their IOTV (Improved Outer Tactical Vest/the current Army protective vest). We’ll treat sprained ankles, torn ACL’s and neck pain. Some Soldier’s will get heat exhaustion. Our biggest threat is likely to be ourselves. Someone will roll a vehicle, one will fall off a truck, and someone may accidently shoot themselves. Two weeks ago a US Army Major and mental health professional killed 13 fellow Soldiers at Ft Hood. There is a reason some people end up as mental health professionals, they need mental help. This is an extreme case but fratricide is definitely on my mind. I mean I have told more than a couple of Soldiers that they are full of shit in the weeks leading up to today as they tried to convince me that their back hurts so bad they can function as a Soldier. Really! You’re 19 years old. You signed up to do a job, now suck it up and do your job. Fucking dirt bag. I should probably be more tactful with some of these guys. He’s not a dirt bag.
Goodbye is hard. I was supposed to deploy on the 19th of NOV. That was changed 3 days prior and the new date was yesterday. I got a call the night before yesterday that we would not deploy till today. Seems like it shouldn’t be a big deal…but it is. Its takes preparation to say good bye and drawing that process out takes a toll. I could see it on many faces today. I watched parents and wives try to be strong. I saw young girls and boys say good bye to their moms and dads and they did not bother being strong, they just show their emotions as they feel them. So I haven’t slept in the last few nights and probably have not eaten as much either. My hunger was remedied today because after saying good bye to my wife and mom my apetite came back. The FRG had burgers, the DAG had steak and now on the plane I just finished off a roast beef sandwich. You will not go hungry in the Army.
We are in the air now headed for Wisconsin. Yes, I guess some other Soldiers need to hitch a ride. Then it’s off to Germany and then to Kuwait for a couple weeks of training. I have no idea how long this will take but it will suck.
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