The Chronicles of Jake

"It's been a nice ride..."

2007-06-24T18:24:00.000-04:00

"...but now I'm gonna have to shoot your horse"...

You know I dont even know if anyone out there still reads this dinosaur of a blog anymore, but if you do and you've been waiting for a post I do apologize for the lack of notification that I will no longer be blogging. Well at least for now, and at least not as Jake Commando.

So, this is my official sign off from this blog, and should I return I will certainly let all of you know. As for an update on my life... Well, I officially donned the Green Beret in April of this year after finishing language school successfully in Arabic, and then completing the final training exercise known as Robin Sage. I've been assigned to 5th Special Forces Group at Ft. Campbell, KY and am looking forward to joining my new team and deploying ASAP. All is well.

I will still continue to receive email at the address on this site, so feel free to keep in touch. I have thoroughly enjoyed all of the great debates, and getting to know all of you. I will continue to read your blogs when I can, but as you know, my time is no longer my own.

Your truly,
Jake Commando

Abraham Lincoln Once Said...

2006-11-12T23:14:00.000-05:00

"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character give him power."

-Abraham Lincoln

I think this is an appropriate thought for our current political atmosphere. The Republicans showed us what their character is like when in power, let's see if the Dems can do any better. Let's hope they'll put some good ideas forward- really. Thus far, I haven't heard anything other than "Bush sucks", but I am a reasonable man, and am certainly all ears if the Democrats have an actual agenda other than yelling about how much they hate the POTUS. Let's see what they do with their new found power. Any guesses or predictions?

You Raaannng??

2006-10-31T17:02:00.000-05:00

I was going to be ROY G BIV tonight for my Halloween costume and just offer some of the neighborhood kids some Warlock Stew (Dr. Pepper and Orange Soda with Dry Ice for special effects) but now I think I'm going to go as Lurch from the Kerry Family and terrorize the neighborhood. Seriously- this guy is scary.

I'm usually not one to make fun of people, especially the way they look, but John Kerry has brought the worst out of me. I was dumbfounded by his comments recently, and even more dumbfounded by the fact that the audience laughed, genuinely thinking that was a funny remark. I just watched the CNN headline news girl at 1645 EST today try to say that it was all a mistake, and that is was simply misspoken. She must think we're as stupid as Kerry thinks we are. The man said what he said. It's not like this is the first time he has said something stupid. It's not like this is the first time he's said something in opposition to the armed forces of the United States. The guy called us terrorists not that long ago. I wasn't at all surprised by his remarks, but I was pissed. Speaking for myself, I received a college education at a public university in my home state on a full scholarship. Granted, my humble Conference USA school is by no means Ivy League, but I worked hard and earned a degree in Management Information Systems which is not an easy field. If I were born into a rich family, or blessed with being a super-genius like Stephen Hawkings, maybe I could've gotten into Yale. I guarantee you one thing- had I gotten in, I would have performed much better than Senator Kerry on my report cards. My degree program opened up an opportunity to work as an intern during my junior and senior year for a major defense contractor at one of NASA's space centers. Upon finishing my degree, instead of taking a generous job offer I decided to do some non-profit work instead of going right into the rat race. I was burned out from the treacherous meanderings of the cubicle jungle, and felt, in my heart, I was being called to Christian ministry at least for a few years. Then came September 11th. That changed everything. Even so, I finished my committment overseas, and tempered my desire to enlist immediately with prayer and above all- time. It was a thoroughly explored decision process to eventually join the Army. I joined a full two years post 9/11 with the same fervor I had on that tragic day. When I joined the Army I found people from all walks of life, as I expected. However, one thing I have yet to find is someone who says they joined because they had nothing else to do. Now, I'm sure there may be some out there, but I haven't met one yet. Now that I'm in the Q-course, the quality of men I'm around is incredible. These are the smartest, strongest, and most dedicated guys I've ever known. You simply need to meet some of the guys I hang with every day. One word to describe them. STUDS. Yes, me too. As for education, my bachelor's degree is one of many in my circle of friends. In my eleven man language class alone there are five college grads, one of whom is an electrical engineer. We're all learing Arabic while three of us, myself included, already speak other languages. In a couple of the other classes there are a few guys with Master's degrees. None of these men are officers- all are enlisted. So, we're not stupid Mr. Kerry, and Miss CNN headline news anchor. We volunteered for this, and we freaking love it. So, when politicians say stuff like this, and patronizing news anchors try to insult my intelligence, yes, it pisses me off.

That's all for my Halloween post. Have a good time tonight, and whatever you do- don't go dressed like this. What a shmuck.

*** UPDATE ***

Here are some other of us so-called dummies who weighed in on the cerebral Mr. Kerry's comments.

The Fast Squirrel
SGT Hook
Andi's World
Blackfive

Think You Can Hang?

2006-10-12T12:09:00.000-04:00

A good buddy of mine (like many guys I work with) is a fitness guru. He's one of those fellas who works out in all of his free time, and loves it like an eight-year-old loves ice cream on a warm summer day. I'm more of a adventure seeker in my free time who likes to stay fit, does that make sense?

He's just started his own blog called Crossfit: SWCS where he keeps track of his workouts, along with anyone who wishes to enter the torture chamber with him that day. Yes, you will see my results on there as well. I recently took Drew on one of my adventures on the Gauley River in WV for some whitewater rafting, and now he has recently convinced me to do Crossfit. Is that a fair trade? I don't know, but I nearly killed him on the water, and I gotta tell ya he nearly killed me on day one in the gym. I've never done Crossfit exclusively for my daily routines. I've always used it as a "shock day" to get my routine out of stagnation. It's a hell of a routine, not for the faint-hearted so if you think you can hang- give it a shot.

So, go give Drew a visit and tell him how nice his pectorals are. He really likes that.

Al-Lawrence, and Today's 500 pound Gorilla

2006-10-06T17:05:00.000-04:00

"So long as the Arabs fight tribe against tribe, so long will they be a little people, a silly people - greedy, barbarous, and cruel, as you are."

I've been quite busy studying Arabic as of late, and recently took a break to watch an old classic that I hadn't seen in a long time, Lawrence of Arabia. I usually would not quote a movie on such a weighty subject, but this quote really caught me off guard as I watched the scene unfold. Is this the same continuing problem the Arab world has today? T.E. Lawrence was certainly an extraordinary man, and one whom would be of great assistance in today's current affairs. However, I'm not sure a Westerner could accomplish what he accomplished with the Arab people today. Lawrence believed in the Arab people to the point that he was willing to go against all schools of thought in the British Army at the time, and succeeded in many ways, but also watched much of his success eventually crumble as time and time again the Arab people, frankly, couldn't get their act together.

My other thoughts as of late concern Islam. Is Islam itself a threat to the Western world rather than Islamic terrorists? Is Islam really a peaceful religion perverted by a few "fundamentalists"? Personally, when I see the attempts the media makes at projecting that view, and when I hear politicians call Islam a "peaceful" religion, I am extremely skeptical. It seems to me that political correctness and our pluralistic, multi-culturalistic views have us hog-tied when it comes to articulating the motives behind Islamic jihadists and the Islamic mind. Why are we so afraid to interpret things at at face value? It's the classic case of the 500 lb. gorilla sitting in the room about to kill someone while everyone just kind of pretends it's not there. Another question I have is how can people make comparisons between Islamic fundamentalists and Christian fundamentalists? If a looney Christian blows up an abortion clinic, he is fundamentally going against anything the Bible, or Jesus taught. Now, let's take a suicide Jihadist killing some Zionists or Infidels. The Jihadist is doing what the Koran and Mohammed taught and what the majority of preachers in mosques are teaching today. Not only are the occurences of violence by Christian fundamentalists scarce in comparison with Islamic fundamentalists, but 99% of Christians would say that's crazy, while Muslims would certainly not have any near the same percentage of dissent, but would likely be sympathetic to their "martyr". When's the last time you heard an Ayatollah condemn such attacks on innocents? Never. When will we wake up?

Here are some articles a friend passed on to me concerning the growing threat of Islam.

The first article is written by a well-known liberal, and he is surprisingly unbiased in his assessment. Great read. He choades both Liberals and Conservatives in his 10 reasons. The second article is by conservative Tony Blankley who is spearheading the conservative think-tank effort to educate Americans about the truth concerning Islam and it's threat to our way of life. He highlights the points in the Pope's now famous speech and Henry Kissinger's recent weigh-in on the Nuclear clash of civilizations. Comment which points from the following articles struck you the most.

"Can the West defeat the Islamic threat? 10 Reasons Why Not" by David Selbourne

"The Pope and Kissinger Warn the World" by Tony Blankley

I apologize for my lenghty absence. I simply do not have as much time now. However, I will coninue to post when I can, and hopefully it won't be a month at a time.

The Gipper Once Said...

2006-08-21T22:06:00.000-04:00

"Politics is supposed to be the second-oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first."

-Ronald Reagan

"Hey, I'm no Dr. Phil"

2006-08-08T19:42:00.000-04:00

I went to Charleston, S.C. last weekend for a little R&R. One of my best friend's wife invited me along with a couple of her friends and her sister. I don't want to drag this out too much and I know she is reading this now, so "A" I'm about to let off some steam- prepare yourself and forgive me ahead of time. I'll be brief and begin with how I was completely unprepared for how very difficult some females can be to travel with. I've been spoiled with some pretty good gals whom I hike, kayak, and backpack with now and again here in N.C., and I think I was in shock when I had to deal with the typical Mississippi Southern Belle and her high-maintenance ways. Examples? How about wearing heels after being warned not to because of all the walking required in Chraleston, and then complaining and wanting to go home because of blisters? Another example? How about not taking advice to get a solo kayak rather than a tandem, and then complain about how horrible the tandem is and then go so far as demanding that someone switch? It gets better- how about throwing a fit all night long keeping everyone up by slamming the hotel room door, and crying and screaming and arguing with folks until someone finally caved in to give said person her due attention... this is a 29 year old BTW and I finally got to sleep at 6AM and woke up at 7AM to lead a kayaking tour. I could go on and on, but then I'd be borderline asshole, maybe even total asshole. Now, in all fairness, this young lady happened to be going through a very tough time in her life, and I suppose I should have been a little more sympathetic. I was not on my best behavior in the sensitivity department although I did make a valiant effort- I swear! I have a very sarcastic and dry sense of humor which can be taken incredibly offensively if one does not know me very well as I tend to deal with difficult situations with these, in my opinion, "qualities". I am also quite arrogant at times, which is certainly not my intention, but my confidence can certainly get out of hand. To make a long story short, this girl went barking up the wrong tree with her manipulative ways, and Jake had to send that dog wimpering away with her tail between her legs. Yes, I made her cry. In the end, all I can really say is, "Hey, I'm no Dr. Phil."

Charleston wasn't a complete failure. I and the others still made the best of a bad situation. The city is incredible, it reminds me of New Orleans in many ways except cleaner and less sweltering. I ate enough to feed Somalia for a week and I think I fell in love... with the views of course. I was constantly wondering about these South Carolinians and their flag. If you've ever been you know what I'm talking about. That flag was on every vehicle, in every window, and on every other T-shirt. I began to have dreams about that damn thing. At first I thought to myself "that looks like some kind of Muslim flag- what the hell?" After some investigation and interrogation of a local merchant I got the full scoop over a praline and bottled coke. Apparently, the Crescent was worn by the militia during the Revolution, and the Palmetto (which is a plant) was used to defend the city against the cannons of the British Navy during the great blockade. Apparently the pliability of this large plant faired better than hardwood, even causing some of the cannonballs to bounce off them. The explanation was much more colorful and storytellish than what I just regurgitated, but that's the impatient Jake version. I've got a lot to talk about and am trying to cut this down a bit. These South Carolinians are worse than Texans with their flag, and I'd say they rival the Canadians and that little Maple Leaf obsession that those confused North American/French/Indian (sorry Jenna just a small joke) insist on sewing to their luggage and backpacks when traveling. Kayaking was cool, we saw dolphins up close the entire time, and it's always cool to see new kayakers enjoy themselves so much (all but one). A horse carriage ride is a must, as is a walk in the old artillery battery. Charleston is haunted too, and I think my ghost will be returning again soon before I leave the East Coast. Oh yeah, and I brought back two and a half pounds of pralines.

That's what I did last weekend, the week before that I was simply eating, working out, sleeping and eating... a lot. My training over the last few weeks at Camp Slappy was intense to say the least. Turns out eating acephalous worms, turtles, grass, stingling nettle, and berries doesn't do much for nutrition, and neither does stealing a handful of rice from prison guards. I lost a total of 22 lbs. It was all muscle, as I didn't have an ounce of fat on my body going out there. When I got home and looked in the mirror, I thought I looked like a light-skinned Ehtiopian. I was in such disarray I decided to call Worldvision and apply for being a Worldvision kid. I figured I could get a couple of sponsors who would help nurture me back from starvation. Turns out I'm a little old for the program, so I called Sally Struthers, turns out she's been long forgotten somewhere in the dark continent herself. So, I've taken to two-a-day workouts, lots of Muscle Milk, and Creatine, and lots of resting, hence my absence.

I also was able to see Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby this past weekend. Holy cowbell! That movie was ridiculously funny if you're a Will Ferrell fan. It is a total joke of all things Red State. The worst part is that Red Staters have no idea they're being made fun of, and all those Red Sate Nascar fans are the ones buying all those tickets. Go figure.

Lastly, what is the deal? I leave for three weeks and come back to Israel invading Lebanon? Mother of Pearl! I always miss the big stuff. Well, there's the update- long and uneventful. I am officially back, but I can't say that I'll be as active as I was before, I just am getting the squeeze on some things here, and things are a little crazy with Mother Army these days. I'll keep you posted.

Forza Italia!!!

2006-07-10T01:48:00.000-04:00

How about those Italians in the World Cup today? Did anybody catch the game? I have a special place in my heart for Italy. I spent two and a half years of my life there, and witnessed the 2002 World Cup dreams come to a bitter and disappointing end for my new friends. It was my second introduction to soccer, but my first experience really. I had played when I was young, but eventually quit in order to pursue basketball and baseball. No one liked soccer at the time, and my parents had to drive me three hours away to play as our town didn't have enough people to form a team much less a league. So my love for soccer would be birthed twenty years later in a town called Pisa where I honed my own skills amongst the locals, and acquired a taste for this foreign obsession. I knew Italians took their Calcio serious when during one of the games, my neighbors at the time, Francesco and Giada, took their TV and threw it out of the window into the Piazza from three stories up when they lost. I had never witnessed fans like this before. The whole city was closed, hell, the whole country, when Italy had a match. I have been a soccer fan ever since. Today was a highly emotional match, I found myself running around my friend's house like an "escaped mental patient" rambling and cursing in Italiano while my friends looked on in bewilderment. When the Azzurri pulled it off, I felt the joy of the Italian people from across the Atlantic. I wondered what Franc and Giada did this time around, or what my local butcher would be roasting in celebration in the Piazza, or what I would have done had I been there. I speculate I would have probably been so overcome with emotion that I would have planted a juicy kiss on one of those beautiful Ragazze and eloped to Capri. Yeah, that's what I would have done. I am sure the Italians will be celebrating for the entire upcoming week at the least. So this shoutout goes out to the Azzurri, any Italians reading this post... and of course Mother Mary.

I'll be headed into the woods for a few weeks for some survival training until the 30th-ish. Pray for big earthworms.

Shamrock is coming with me, and after his last rant where he sums our Arabic experience thus far, and calls the North Korean dictator a "portly lil spring roll" I think he could use some time away in the woods. Shamrock certainly has a special sense of humor.

A presto!

Thanks Robin!

2006-07-08T01:15:00.000-04:00

So, guess which blogger received a "shoutout" from CNN's brightest, most beautiful, and most beloved anchor?... Michelle Malkin? Nope. The Daily Kos? Nope. Blackfive? Nadda. It was none other than... *clears throat* yours truly, Jake. No, I am not bragging... I am gloating in the oh-so-honorable mention. Speaking of mentioning- did I mention I received an email from the ever so gracious Robin as well? Yes I did, and let me tell ya, I about pissed my pants. Alright, I better shut up lest I sound like a certain word over at Doug's the other day.

The quick shoutout was the talk of the schoolhouse, and I was the recipient of many a high-fives throughout the day. Robin Meade sai hello, specifically, to my buddies and I at the Special Warfare Medical Group at 0806 EST Friday July 7th, 2006 on her show, Robin and Company.

Guess what else? You're not going to believe this, but I actually missed it. I know, I know. The one day I decide to skip my daily routine of eating breakfast at the chow hall, and enjoying Robin and Company is the one day my favorite anchor says hello to me and my friends. What is the deal with that luck? I've been loooking for a podcast or a transcript, but have had no luck on the CNN site.

So, a special thanks to the charming Robin Meade for a small, thoughtful gesture that made quite the big splash. Muchas Gracias! Neva- I am forever grateful.

Teddy Roosevelt Once Said...

2006-07-07T09:44:00.000-04:00

"Americanism means the virtues of courage, honor, justice, truth, sincerity, and hardihood- the things that made America. The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, peace at any price, safety first instead of duty first, the love of soft living, and the get-rich-quick theory of life."

-Theodore Roosevelt

I know this isn't much, but bear with me until later today/this evening. I'll have something decent up by tonight, and I'll be saying goodbye for the rest of July on Sunday.

On "Supporting the Troops"

2006-06-23T10:32:00.000-04:00

I've been thinking a lot about two things the last week in light of recent events. First, the side discussion we had the other day on supporting the troops but not the war, and second, what I see as an attempt to equate not only our crimes to the crimes of the jihadists, but our methods of waging war with their methods as being one in the same- morally. I think this cartoon says a lot about how the typical soldier or marine feels. Every morning after a good PT session, I go to the chow hall to eat breakfast. I am not alone there, the DFAC serves a wide variety of soldiers from all the 18D and SOCM students, like myself, (which include SF, SEALS, Rangers, Marine Recon, and foreign allies) 7th and 3rd SF group soldiers, and an 82nd Airborne Engineer battalion soldiers. Every morning we have a ritual of tuning the TV to our favorite anchor, Robin Meade, on CNN headline news. And every morning it's always the same as we listen to the latest journalism about the military, and the war. Lots of quiet. Lots of shaking heads, and silent disappointment. Lately, the news has been grim, well actually it's pretty much always grim. Everything from Haditha, and John Murtha, to a certain Senator accusing us of terrorizing "kids and children", to the recent proposals in Congress to completely withdraw, and most recently, my last straw, the mutilation of two of our own by the jihadists.

On supporting the troops and not the war, the logic behind the line of thinking, in my humble opinion, leads only to ultimately not supporting the troops. I'm not saying any support by those who disagree with the war isn't welcome, and absolutely necessary, but it seems to me that eventually it leads to demoralizing the men on the ground, or the guys preparing to take their place, and, even worse, potentially endangering them. How can one support the troops, but not the mission they are on? An editorial I read today linked from today's cartoon asks an interesting question.

"...As war critics mourn three jihadist suicides at Gitmo, we have three dead soldiers who might have met their fate simply because, after Hamandiyah and Haditha, they took too long to determine if their kidnappers were friend or foe. If they'd killed their assailants, would they now also be accused of killing "innocent" civilians?..."

On equating us with the jihadists. A thoughtful, insightful, and brilliant friend of mine O'Cealleigh continued with the moral equivalence discussion on his blog in which he certainly jousted me from my horse in the debate. I couldn't even respond. However, though I couldn't respond at the time I still couldn't disagree more. Bottom line, it is my opinion, that many in our country are attempting to draw a moral equivalence with our soldiers and the jihadists. Was Abu Grahib horrible? Yes. Was it wrong? Yes. If the allegations are true concerning Haditha it too was also horrendous, and wrong. However, if we were to take a look at the way these jihadists treat POW's and the way they wage war then compare it to our doctrines, one thing is for sure. They are, by our Western Standards, savages. But that is still not the point. Why are they worse? Are our hands clean? No, absolutely not. However, if you were to take the Jihadists worldview, their ways of warfare, their culture, and compare it to ours. Is there a difference? I think this is essential in the debate. Everyone hates to try and make "good guys" and "bad guys", but I think it is unavoidable. Jihadists certainly have made up their mind calling us "crusaders" and "infidels". I am still finding it very difficult to articulate what I mean on the moral equivalence debate. Anybody out there got any input? Here is another interesting statement in an article linked along with the cartoon...

"So why is it that My Lai has become a byword for brutality while Hue is a footnote? Why will Menchaca and Tucker be forgotten while incidents like those under investigation — or the grotesque theater of Abu Ghraib — will persist, fester, be written about, analyzed, become vehicles for critiques of U.S. policy, the military, or the whole of American culture? By rights these incidents should demonstrate that we are better than our enemies. We are civilized, they are barbarians. What we are fighting for is objectively superior to what they are fighting for. Our struggle is legitimate, theirs is not. There is no room for moral relativism in this war. Certainly those who view torture and beheading as acts of piety have no problem seeing it as a black and white conflict. And when faced with extremism of this sort, we should take it at face value."

This is certainly drawing the line in the sand. I am with this guy on the moral equivalence issue.

Lastly, it is very difficult for me to watch on CSPAN the arguments on the House and Senate floors concerning withdrawal, and come to the conclusion that the Democratic party supports the troops when the leadership of said party are the same people who not only draw comparisons to Vietnam with Iraq, but are the same people who so grotesquely "protested" (that's really not a good word for the way in which those demonstrations took place) Vietnam. It's difficult for me when I a rooting for Hillary Clinton, of all folks, to change the minds of her fellow party members. The crediblity of their claims just doesn't hold water. This is a shame, because I know we need the Democratic party. National security is the one thing that I think we cannot afford to be divided on. When I read what Al-Zawahiri wrote in a letter to Zarqawi concerning Vietnam where he explains,

"What drives me to broach these matters while we are in the din of war and the challenges of killing and combat?My answer is, firstly: Things may develop faster than we imagine. The aftermath of the collapse of American power in Vietnam-and how they ran and left their agents-is noteworthy. Because of that, we must be ready starting now, before events overtake us, and before we are surprised by the conspiracies of the Americans and the United Nations and their plans to fill the void behind them. We must take the initiative and impose a fait accompli upon our enemies, instead of the enemy imposing one on us, wherein our lot would be to merely resist their schemes.

I wonder how the Vietnam generation, most of all, could read this and not even consider rethinking their position. Well, for now, Hillary has. In light of yesterday's news of a terrorist cell's plot to hit the Sears Tower, I wonder if we as a people really understand the reasons we are at war. Do we? I sometimes wonder if it would take another attack to get our attention again, I hate to think that may indeed be the case.

*big sigh*

Okay, I'm finished. On an unrelated note. I have been slotted for 10th SF Group which is located at Fort Carson, Colorado (Colorado Springs) and Stuttgart, Germany. I am pretty excited to finally know where I'll be, kind of a morale booster. I still do not have a language assignment, as it seems higher up is trying to push me through without going to language school because I speak Italian. I am appealing this on Monday in order to get Arabic. I wouldn't mind getting out of here sooner, but I don't want to get deployed without speaking the language of my area of operation. I am enthusiatic about languages, and I am pretty good at picking them up. I really don't understand why higher up would think Italian will be useful as a defense language, but who am I to question brass? Keep your fingers crossed for me. The Ranting Irishman also got slotted for 10th Group so I am sure we'll both have some good blogging for you from there (one day) when not deployed.

Fast Squirrel, a seasoned SF guy, had an open thread yesterday which went along a related topic to my post today, go check it out.

The Ranting Irishman went off yesterday, be warned though, it is truly a rant.

Shayna needs some folks to join in on her caption contest. (I'll be judging BTW)

Patriotic Cowgirl never ceases to amaze her loyal readers with her vulnerable, and charming style.

Go check these out before the weekend, and don't forget to put a definition in over at Waking Ambrose if you haven't tried already.

"Wrote a song about it... Wanna hear it? Here it goes..."

2006-06-14T12:38:00.000-04:00

The other day I went over to My Music Highway to see what Shayna was up to, as is my usual ritual, but this time I decided to enter her Song Lyric Caption Contest for the first time. It works like this: Shayna puts up a ridiulous picture on her site to which her loyal readers compete to make a song lyric to. I've been getting quite jealous of her prizes which have included a place at her sidebar, and a song or poem. Once, Shayna even sang her song to the lucky winner. Well, lo and behold, my brain got creative and I pulled off quite the ditty... Go check it out! I have been amply rewarded with a song about me written by the angelic Shayna. Grazie Shayna!

Equines, Canines, and a Ranting Irishman

2006-06-13T12:10:00.000-04:00

So, I think yesterday was a full moon, and I suppose TS Alberto blew in some pheromones from the equator or something. Ms. Howard, as usual, turned Waking Ambrose into a bordello, and dragged me down with her. I highly recommend both of these sites, but keep the debauchery at Ms. Howard's. She thoroughly enjoys and welcomes it. For my part, being the good Christian boy that I am, I have decided to fulfill my penitence in the form of a more humble avatar. I don't know how long it will be up, but I have a feeling it is very much in order. How did we go from the death of Zarqawi to a cyber mating ritual? It all started in the defense of a beautiful, firecracker named, Ann...

So, back to some real posting.

Since returning from the Reservation, we have had quite the veterinarian medicine journey. As usual, it has been a crash course. A couple of days with the horses; learning to assess, handle, and ride these beautiful creatures along with some basic veterinary care. We also trained with some military working dogs, even allowing ourselves to be attacked. We also ran two vet clinics for the schoolhouse where any military personnel and/or spouse brought in their pets for vaccines, and treatments. Thursday our training will culminate with an exam, and a good old-fashioned bar-b-q. Then I will officially have graduated and received my MOS of 18D. We were supposed to know our Group and Language Assignments by now, but Mother Army has been making several changes to the training pipeline, so we're in a holding pattern for now. All I have left now is Language school, Robin Sage, and S.E.R.E.

This past weekend, I once again made a solo seakayaking trip. Just an onvernighter, but I decided against a rudder in order to refine my paddling skills. Let's just say I need more practice before I can really call myself a paddler. This pic is from the weekend.

Lastly, I want to take the time to introduce a friend of mine in my class. He is a fellow SF medic, and we've both been entertaining one another through all the "traumatic" experiences. I'm not real sure how his blog will take shape, but it's likely to be extremely funny coming from this Mad Irishman. Please do go visit the Shamrock at the Illegal and Political Rantings of Shamrock7!

Task Force 145 gets their Man

2006-06-08T06:19:00.000-04:00

Yes, it has been confirmed. Bill Roggio at The Counter Terroism Blog has the scoop on why this is important, and the impact it will have on Al-Qaeda in Iraq. Go read the link.

Michelle Malkin has the rundown on all media outlets. An Iraqi Blogger named Omar responds as well.

Chris At Home has a very interesting, short read on the wide array of different reactions from the News networks and other individuals and entities.

Who is Task Force 145? They're a group of Special Operators whose sole mission was to find this man and kill him. Here is a good article from the Marine Corps Times.

"My name is Jake... and I'm a blogaholic"

2006-06-04T11:35:00.000-04:00

So, I am in the Atlanta airport as I type. I think this is evidence that I have a new addiction with this blogging stuff. At least I am no longer in denial, that's always the first step to recovery. I spoke these words this morning. "My name is Jake... and I'm a blogaholic." It seems I'm not the only one though. I've been thinking about possibly starting a 12 step group. I know at least a few others on my sidebar that are probably still in denial, and a few who I know would join. Apparently, there is a lot of money in this business too from what I hear, maybe I could become a recovering blog addict who does speaking gigs for crowded audiences all across the world. I don't know how this all began, it happened so fast. I used to look at the internet in awe of all the info, and like a sponge, soak up the knowledge. Now, it's like some old book on my shelf and I feel like saying, "the internet? yeah, I've read it." There are also so many facets to the internet, blogging is merely the gateway drug, kinda like the internet equivalent to Marijuana. Have you heard of Myspace? Yeah, that should be called MyCrackSpace. Then there's the internet dating thing. I haven't done that, nor do I plan on it. No really. Most of the people who do would never admit to it, but everyone is definitely doing it. I go to school with a bunch of guys who utilize it all the time to meet up with gals in Raleigh/Durham. I simply refuse to give in. I think it would be the equivalent of Crystal Meth on the internet, freaking dangerous territory. I don't think one can return from such a move. I shall be like the Last of the Mohicans as far as that is concerned. Call me old-fashioned, but that's my plan and I'm sticking to it. Probably in about ten years I predict it will no longer be so taboo, well I suppose it's not taboo, but it certainly is the skeleton in everyone's closet, at least they treat that way. Okay, enough about my thoughts on internet drugs. I now digress.

So, the last weekend in Belcourt, ND was mostly uneventful. However, there were a couple of things I saw that I would have never thought I'd see. Take for example a local bar. This bar had two things that I don't think I'll ever see again. 1) a drive thru window to buy beer 2) a place to tie your horses down if you decide to come on horseback. Yes, I watched two guys ride their horses to the bar, tie them up, and then later that night they rode their horses back home from the bar. Isn't that crazy? I also noticed that the days are really long here. It gets light at around 4AM and then it doesnt get dark until about 11pm, really strange stuff for a kid from Mississippi. I certainly rubbed elbows with the locals on a regular basis, and of course I met a few gals. One in particular, I hung out with quite a bit. She is a dental assistant, and quite the looker, but of course, there is just so much baggage. Not that everyone doesn't have baggage, but this girl had a boyfriend and a child that I didn't find out about until recently. It seems that I always run into such situations. I meet the craziest girls. The last rotation I asked out a fine young lady who ended up "having a girlfriend". Yeah that was awkward. She wasn't gay, she was bi, but "in a relationship" What the hell? -over. I hope this is entertaining to all of you, I'm in a good mood and thought I'd share some candid humor.

I'm really glad to be back in civilization again, I just checked my voicemail and had about 20 messages. My phone hasn't had a signal in 4 and a half weeks which makes for a lot of pissed off friends. So, now I'm about to kill some more time making phone calls. The experience overall in Belcourt was great. Everything from the medical training, to the hanging with the local natives (literally) was fantastic. However,I wouldn't recommend it for a vacation. Oh yeah, did I ever mention I stayed in a Casino Hotel? Let's just say I got to refine my Texas Hold Em skills which I haven't utliized since Fraternity Poker night in college. Good times. I'll post some more serious stuff later. I find out where I'll be stationed tomorrow- pretty exciting. Hopefully I'll get 10th Group in Colorado or Germany. *fingers crossed*.

Geronimo!

Medicine Man

2006-05-27T14:07:00.000-04:00

I was at a Brain Trauma conference on a Saturday morning and was invited to a"sweat lodge". The old man who invited me was the tribal Medicine Man. This old man knew who Sgt. B and I were immediately, I think Sgt. B pretty much gives us away everytime as he is black, and there are no black folks here. I could pass for Native American, but I still stick out like a sore thumb too with the way I dress. He knew we were the Special Forces guys, but he liked to call us the medicine men. He thanked us for our service to the country and our service to his community here. It was neat to talk with him. Unfortunately, we couldn't make it to the ceremony, but it was cool just to be invited. It wouldn't be the last time I heard someone call me medicine man here either.

The hospital staff has been incredible to Sgt. B and I. We've been floating between the ER, Podiatry, Pediatrics, OB/GYN, Surgery, and Dentistry inside the hospital shadowing a physician in each department. We've also had the opportunity to go out into the community with a Public Health nurse and do some house calls. Lastly, there is a walk-in clinic, and on Tuesdays there's the diabetic clinic where the community's diabetics come in for a check up. I've only seen one life-threatening trauma come in since being here, and it was pretty hairy. A baby was at a daycare here in town and, supposedly, another child was stabbing this baby in the mouth with some keys. The baby's tongue swelled up and he lost his airway. The EMT's were unable to intubate en route, so by the time we got him it was looking pretty bleek. The ER doc on call attempted an intubation, but to no avail. He then tried to do a cricothyroidostomy, but was unsuccessful as well. I really don't know how this baby made it, to be honest. The Nurse Anesthetist (former Marine) arrived after being beeped and he saved the day with a miracle blind intubation. Sgt. B and I were assisting the whole time as the two ER nurses completely lost it, they froze up and freaked out because they knew the child and family. It was an "oh shit" moment for the ER as they don't get stuff like this often. The ER doc was pretty shaken up as well. Afterwards, upon inspection of the tongue and mouth we all thought it odd that there were no cuts or abrasions in the mouth if it were keys that caused the trauma. The ER doc concluded that there could have been some abuse, so it was promptly reported, and is currently under investigation. The police suspected a bottle being shoved in the baby's mouth forcefully and repeatedly. Sad stuff if true. Another sad moment was in Pediatrics. A young mother with a 4yo. girl came in because she suspected sexual abuse. The pediatrician did an assessment, as I was shadowing. I can't even begin to describe what I saw. It was the first time I've ever had to walk out. The mother was in tears when Dr. A confirmed her suspicions. It's the uncle, and this was the third time. It's been depressing working here to say the least. There are a lot of diabetics, I mean a whole lot. The elderly are plagued by it, and the young are plagued by Crystal Meth. While in dentistry I saw a lot of high school aged kids getting teeth pulled as well as young twenty-somethings. The dentist explained to me that several of them are meth users, and it wasn't the first, nor will it be the last tooth they get yanked. Apparently, meth destroys teeth along with every organ in the body. There are banners all of the place like a Just Say No campaign saying things like "The High is a Lie" and "Meth Kills".

*big sigh*

On a positive note... on my house calls with the Public Health nurse, I have been able to interact with people at their homes, and enjoy some hospitality after ministering to their physical ailments and wounds. This has been quite enjoyable, it kind of brought me back to my missionary days, I wished I had these skills then. This is going to sound so cliche, but an old lady dressed with long grey hair in pig tails and traditional shawl called me a "great medicine man" after I redressed her diabetic foot ulcers. Like I said, it wouldn't be the last time I heard that. I've also had the chance to hang with some of the "local natives" out on the town. We've enjoyed some nights of dancing, playing poker, and just cutting up. I also went to a Catholic service on Sunday, which was very interesting. The music was really, really cool. The music was led by a los lonely guitarist who sang in the tradition of the old west with these weird tribal instruments in the background. The opening song made me feel like I was walking into a saloon for a gunfight except the words had to do with Jesus having victory over death. It was very Clint Eastwood movieish. That's the best I can describe it. The preferred modes of transportation here on the reservation are horse, fourwheeler, or some sort of farm vehicle. I am pretty sure there are more of these than cars. There is also a herd of buffalo on the res as well, but they're quite small compared to the ones I've seen in pictures. I don't think they're well nourished. There is a barber shop called "Scalp 'Em" and they don't play around. I went from cool guy SF hairdo to looking like a damn Hardy boy. The food around town isn't so good, but I've had a few homecooked meals which were quite delicious. Anyways, this is the first time I've been on an Indian Reservation, it's been quite the experience thus far. I think I'm going to try and go to the Badlands tomorrow if the weather holds up.

Have a great Memorial Day Weekend everyone!

The Wisdom of Teddy

2006-05-17T00:18:00.000-04:00

Why is it important to be a student of history? Because most of the time, in one way or another, most issues have already been dealt with before. As Solomon once said, "There is nothing new under the sun."

"In the first place we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the man's becoming in very fact an American, and nothing but an American... There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an American at all. We have room for but one flag, the American flag, and this excludes the red flag, which symbolizes all wars against liberty and civilization, just as much as it excludes any foreign flag of a nation to which we are hostile...We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language...and we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people."

Theodore Roosevelt 1907

Phatasses, Jackasses, and Chimpanzees...

2006-05-16T22:35:00.000-04:00

Elephatasses and Jackasses. Pfft. I guess we're just a bunch of freaking Chimpanzees...

The Elephatasses in the Senate and President Bush are utterly failing our country on the issue of border security, I say border security because what good is immigration reform if we cannot stop illegal immigration in the first place? I point my finger at the Elephatasses because they were supposed to be the party of reform who were given a mandate by their constituents over the last decade. I mean, they control the House, the Senate, and the White House and can't please their constituents? Who the hell are they catering to on this issue? Mexicans? That's a damn shame. Those of you who vote liberal may very well cheer that it is the Elephatasses taking all the heat in the press on this issue, but the fact of the matter is, no one has ever expected the Jackasses to secure our border. It's like watching the, obviously, better team hand over a win to the JV squad. Frankly, the Jackasses are simply the benefactors of a rumblimg, fumbling, tumbling bunch of Elephat-asses. Both sides want immigration reform, neither side wants to secure the border. The Jackasses have absolutely proven they are impotent on this issue. Sure, on immigration reform Jackcasses have a couple of ideas, but what good is reform on immigration if you can't put a halt to the source of illegal immigration in the first place, an unsecured border? The Jackasses and these "maverick" Elephatass Senators are like a bunch of nimrods bailing water out of a sinking fishing boat while not trying to plug the hole that's causing it to sink in the first place.

Where is the common sense?

Immigration reform and illegal immigration/border security are two separate, but related issues. This links to a break down of the vote today which clearly shows which Senators are for some real border security, and which would rather shun the issue. Are you satisfied with your Senator? I am pissed off at my Senators, Lott-R and Cochran-R of Mississippi who didn't even place a vote. I will be making a phone call to both of their offices tomorrow.

The other thing is the Jackasses think they are actually "winning back America" as if to say our ideas, and our liberal agenda, is what the American people want. I'm sorry Jackasses, but that's just not the case. The Elephatasses have simply pissed off their consituents so much that they will not be going to the polls in November- period. When the Jackasses take over, it will not be a vote of confidence in them, so much as it will be a vote of silence for their opponents, the Elephatasses.

*Sigh* Okay, I am officially finished venting. I guess I'll go eat a banana now, and find some Elephatasses and Jackasses to throw my poo at.

Abraham Lincoln once said...

2006-05-14T23:34:00.000-04:00

"I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom, and that of all about me, seemed insufficient for the day."

-Abraham Lincoln

Taking care of feet

2006-05-13T22:45:00.000-04:00

Theodore Roosevelt once said about the importance of taking care of your feet, "Sound hearts are not much good if the feet won't stand." Any infantryman who has put a ruck on his back and worn combat boots would attest to the same. I believe that second only to the maintenance of one's weapon is taking care of one's feet. That was reiterated by my preceptor on day one. My mentor here, we'll call him "Dr. L", blew all of my expectations away as a civilian Doctor. Typicaly, physicians I've worked with, so far, on the civilian side have had no interest in applying his/her knowledge to a military setting. I don't think it has been intentional, but rather, naturally, one would gravitate to his/her strength which in most cases is civilian medicine for most doctors. It takes either a lot of experience in war medicine, or a good imagination and in-depth research to take the scope and knowledge of an M.D. and transfer it to an SF Medic in a way that best prepares him for what he'll see. Dr. L has shown this to be his mission for me and my battle buddy, "Sgt B" while we are here on the resevation. Dr. L isn't former military but his enthusiasm and knowledge, particularly of the SF mission, is umatched by even some of the military doctors that I know. Dr. L's plan is to make sure we get training in various different scenarios from truama, to delivering babies, to going out to homes in rural North Dakota for treatment, to dealing with translators (which we will certainly need here), to the simple things like feet, and more complicated things like surgery. Day one was feet. Dr. L said, "Guys, I know you may want to go straight to the OR or ER, but I think we should start with an often overlooked area for the soldier- the feet. You guys have already had your trauma rotations, so now we're going to focus more on clinical medicine because most of the time you'll be treating indigenous village folk in order to build rapport and gather that valuable human intelligence. And it will be you, the team medic, who will be getting this intel after you've taken care of a son, daughter, or chief with simple clinical procedures." I was impressed by this conversation and many others throughout the day. I am very fortunate to have such a dedicated preceptor, he is more dedicated to us than to anyone else in the hospital, he makes it very clear to everyone that we are priority one, and he makes it clear to us that we are to actively seek out his colleagues for their valuable knowledge. The physicians here have all been excited to meet us, and even on day one I was invited to come to a Brain Trauma Conference at the community college outside of town with the ER doc, which was today, and was great. Anyhow, back to the feet. What did we do? We did a lot of wound care with diabetic patients whose feet ranged from literally rotting off, to simply paring down callouses and seeing if an ulcer was about to open up. We also did some ingrown toenail removals, all along talking about how to treat infections, trench foot, plantar warts, blisters, gangrene, and when to recognize the need for amputation. Very good training. With every procedure and patient Dr. L would apply his favorite SF mantra "See one, do one, teach one." We would watch him do a procedure, then we'd do the procedure ourselves, and then we'd have to do some role playing and explain step-by-step how to do the procedure. Looks like it's going to be a great learning experience here.

Another One Bites the Dust

2006-05-07T22:19:00.000-04:00

I just finished Surgery and Anesthesia, and am utterly exhausted. We lost 4 guys in all. Every single phase of the Q-Course has left me with less comrades. At first, during the Selection phase it was due to guys getting hurt or quitting. During the Small Unit Tactics phase it was a lack of being able to patrol. This phase, it has been guys either not making the grade, or guys just being careless. It sucks to see friends go, but at the same time if they aren't up to par- well, like I always say... It's been a nice ride, but now I'm gonna have to shoot your horse. Tomorrow we start dentistry, and Thursday we head to clinical rotations. North Dakota- here I come! (I'm trying really hard to get excited about the fact that I am going to the land of... land?)

On an unrelated note- I've added a few bloggers to my sidebar... Be sure to check them out! And guess who's back from across the pond...

The Fast Squirrel. Go read what he has to say about various squirrely matters as he ponders about how to solve all of the world's problems.

Hesiod once said...

2006-04-23T21:48:00.000-04:00

"Before the gates of excellence, the high gods have placed sweat."

-Hesiod 8th century B.C.

MIA

2006-04-23T21:42:00.000-04:00

I'll be MIA for the next week and a half or so, probably won't be able to post, but will still make time to visit all of your sites and comment. Surgery is completely consuming every moment of my life right now. Good training.

Easter on the Ocean

2006-04-17T21:56:00.000-04:00

WARNING THIS POST IS RELIGIOUS IN NATURE!!!!

Every Easter I usually do something in the wilderness. I like to take some time out to reflect on what Jesus did on this particular weekend. I ponder his last meal with his buddies which would have been on Thursday night. I think about what he was thinking knowing it was his last meal, and his last time with his best friends. Later that night, he asked his buddies (who were clueless) to pray for him, to be there for him. He was let down- those guys were tired, it was late, and they didn't know. Kind of like a buddy falling asleep on guard duty, really dangerous stuff, we call those guys "blue falcons". Then the police came and arrested him in the middle of the night. He was then caught between two politicians, and a bunch of angry religious zealots in an illegal arrest, unlawful trial, and bum sentence (no due process of course); all night being beaten between the groups only to finally be traded for a murderer, and then sentenced to flagellation and crucifixtion. Also of note, his best friend, when accused of being his buddy, completely disassociated himself- wouldn't even claim he knew the guy. We would call that "selling out". What a night. Then after being literally torn to pieces, with no food, no water, he then carried a cross carved out of a tree to his execution site, where he was given vinegar to drink. This all happened in one night and morning. Finally, he was hung with these really long nails, they had to be close to a foot long. He finally passed away, but not without asking God to forgive his killers. Then a couple of days later, he rose from the dead!

This is what I pondered this weekend. I have often asked myself "do I really believe that a man rose from the dead?". There I said it. I also wonder if other Christians think about this. I've only been a Christian for six and a half years, so these questions are still out there every now and then. Then I also wonder if non-Christians ever consider this, not if Jesus was a good teacher and all, (I think everyone acknowledges that) but if the guy really rose from the dead. If you really think about it, its a lot to swallow. And more importantly, what the ramifications of that question would mean. I mean if I believe a guy can come back from the dead in his own power, that's kind of crazy, maybe even a little insane. However, if He really did, then it validates all of his almost psychotic claims. But, I've once again come to the conclusion that I do indeed believe that Jesus lived, he healed the sick and the lame, and then he died, and then he rose from the dead. I believe it because my gut tells me its true. Don't get me wrong, I can put forth quite the intellectual argument for Christianity, and I believe it is a sound, logical, and relevant faith, but ultimately it still comes down to an almost primitive instinct, at least for me. That may not be enough for some, but I trust my gut. I suspect my belief also has a lot to do with hope. There is no other story I have ever heard in my life that has such hope for us, for human beings. Hope for something more. I thirst to live life, and no matter what I do I always get a sense that there is something more. That's what I've been thinking about this Easter.

Switiching gears...

So, I did all this thinking in the context of a seakayaking adventure on the outer banks of North Carolina. Bear Island specifically. I headed out at 4AM Friday morning, arrived in Swansboro, NC, at 630 and rented a kayak from an old man named Lamar. Lamar looked like something out of a Hemingway novel. He had almost cancerous bronze skin, as wrinkled as a Shar-pei, with a skinny stature, but disproportionately large shoulders, I assumed from all his kayaking, and large, leathery hands. He was the kind of old man, that you just want to beg for him to tell you a story. I felt like a little boy in his presence. He asked me a lot of questions, and was curious as to why I was alone, I asked him a lot of questions and asked him if he's ever seen a shark. "All the time." said Lamar, "They like to come up and surface next to you, but they always go away- they're just curious you know?" Lamar continued, "but there was this one time when a big one followed me when I was a couple miles off shore... it was about twelve feet long and it kept coming up next to me, and then finally was just right behind me, fin outta the water and all! Made me really nervous, and I paddled harder than ever paddled in my life, but it finally left me alone." I was awestruck. Lamar has crossed the Arctic Northern Pacific, paddled in Wales, Australia, all over the US, seen sharks, orcas, whales, and manta rays. I felt like I was talking to a lost race of a man. We talked quite a bit, and by the end of the weekend I had an offer to come paddle with him next time in the deep, which I can't wait to do. During my paddling retreat I saw some neat stuff, most significantly, a beautiful sunrise, and sunset, and a quiet paddle in the light of the full moon. The ocean glowed. It looked like something from another planet, I was alone, and it was dark, but light at the same time. Hard to describe. Sometimes "beautiful" just isn't sufficient. I also was followed by a pack of four dolphins for an hour. That almost made me piss my pants at first, because they were so close and I thought they were sharks (I was paranoid from Lamar). I could reach out and touch them with my paddle when they first surfaced. I had packed my kayak with a tent, bag, food and water, and camped out on one of the smaller islands, there were oysters and clams everywhere, so I started a fire and shucked some oysters, and had a feast. All I did was paddle, eat, sleep, read, and paddle. It was glorious, one of those rare times in our lives. Time went a lot slower too. It was like a never ending weekend. I paddled over twenty miles and my shoulders and core are still feeling it. Alright- I could go on and on, but enough of my sap. My Easter was great, and I had to share.

Belcourt, North Dakota- ay?

2006-04-10T17:38:00.000-04:00

A Native American reservation in Belcourt, ND. That is the location of my clinical rotations which I have been assigned to for May-June. So, I've never been, but I hear it's cold up there- ay? When I was told North Dakota, I thought to myself, *hmmm. when was the last time North Dakota ever entered my mind in a thought.* Thus bringing me to the conclusion that I am certain that the words "North Dakota" have never crossed my mind or my lips since taking geography in high school. I even tried to remember whether it was a blue state or a red state in the last election, but I came up with nothin'- I don't remember a thing. Is that bad? Folks from up there probably did the same with Mississippi until Katrina, and the MSM's memory of my state certainly has vanished as of late. Anyway, North Dakota here I come! I'm looking forward to it. I plan on doing some intelligence gathering here in the upcoming weeks in order to find out a little more about my future Area of Operation. We are allowed to do our clinical rotations on the reservation as it provides more freedom and scope in our clinical training than a civilian hospital. From what I've heard it's some of the best training offered in this course, and worthy of the culmination exercise for an SF medic. In other news- after staying up until 2AM studying last night, and studying all weekend non-stop for my final Med Blocks B exam; I will be going directly into my Oral Board exam tomorrow afternoon, WOW. I am pretty freaking sleepy right now to attempt to study, but a pot of coffee is brewing. What is the Oral Board? It's where you are given a mock patient whom you must assess, diagnose, and provide a treatment plan for while a Doctor, and three P.A's assess your skills. The scenario could be just about anything that could possibly happen on a typical SF mission ranging from a teammate who came down with diarrhea, a local village mother bringing in her child who has a mysterious rash, to an indigenous village leader with some sort of hemorrhagic fever, you name it- it's possible. So, I'm looking forward to that being over after tomorrow. Then a small break for Easter before surgery begins. Then- the hits just keep on comin'.

X-rays and Osgood Schlatter

2006-04-06T17:02:00.000-04:00

So, I recently learned how to take an X-ray. It was a one day class, and pretty cool. After our lecture and demonstration we all paired up with a buddy, as usual, and began taking X-rays of one another. I took the first X-ray of my friend, Drew, who thought it would be really cool to have an X-ray of his skull to hang in his room. So, of course, I obliged and shot an X-ray of his huge noggin, and it is currently on the wall in his room in full view. I think he's planning on shooting his whole body while he in his surgery block. Funny guy. I, on the other hand, decided to take an X-ray of my knee. I have always had a large, funny bump on the anterior proximal portion of my tibia, right below the knee cap. It's been there since I played high school basketball, and it has always given me some minor, dull pain when I do a lot of running, jumping, rucking, or whatever to this day. I never had health insurance growing up, so if I wasn't dying I didn't see the doc much. Lately, while learning about orthopaedics, we came across a common finding for young althletic kids called osgood schlatter's disease. I hate the word disease because it makes it sound so bad, but really it's nothing. Anyway, when my instructor began showing some pics, with the signs and symptoms, and immediately I knew I had it. This leads us back to the recent X-ray. First off, my knee pokes out pretty far, and when Drew saw it he kind of freaked out, but continued with the X-ray to do some further investigating. Of course, once we saw my film there was no doubt. My particular malady actually is a full avulsion from the tibia rather than a partial as seen in this photo. What does this have to do with the price of oil in the Middle East? Not a thing.

All in all, it's been great learning how to do X-rays, now I just have to learn how to read them which, I'm afraid, is a whole 'nother deal.

The Pledge of Allegiance

2006-03-30T11:26:00.000-05:00

"I pledge allegiance"
(I promise to be true and loyal)

"to the flag"
(to the symbol of our country)

"of the United States of America"
(each state that has joined to make our country)

"and to the Republic"
(a republic is a country where the people choose others to make laws for them -- the government is for the people)

"for which it stands,"
(the flag means the country)

"one Nation"
(a single country)

"under God,"
(the people believe in a Supreme Being)

"indivisible,"
(the country cannot be split into parts)

"with liberty and justice"
(with freedom and the upholding of the laws and principles of the land)

"for all."
(for every AMERICAN regardless of race, color, or creed)

I remember assembling before school when in 1st grade with the entire school including teachers, staff, and students to recite the pledge, and sing the National Anthem every morning. I wonder how students today would react, especially in those protesting schools, if they also were required to do so. Why don't most schools do this anymore anyway? What's wrong with understanding your country's creeds?

Why is this not in the News?

2006-03-29T20:02:00.000-05:00

I think this picture speaks volumes about our current illegal immigration situation. Is anyone else disgusted? This took place in Pioneer, California during the walkouts this week. I am very curious as to how our government would have reacted to this in the 19th century. Personally, I find it be an act of aggression towards our country. The only time I have ever heard of such acts were when a country successfully invaded and conquered it's enemy, or when a coup d' etat took place. Imagine if Taiwanese did this in China, or Palestinians in Israel, Algerians in France, Albanians in Italy, Turkey in Germany, the list can go on forever. What would be the reaction by the governments and what would be the reaction by the people of these nations? Am I being intolerant? Pfffft.

I got the pic and link from Michelle Malkin who is tracking this story and other such examples that continue to develop.

Barry Goldwater once said...

2006-03-29T19:53:00.000-05:00

"I would remind you that extremeism in the defense of liberty is no vice!... And moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!"

-Barry Goldwater

Death by Powerpoint

2006-03-27T19:14:00.000-05:00

Where have I been? I have been sitting in a classroom for what is known as "Med Blocks" . Basically, we are learning a lot about diseases, and disorders, and how to diagnose and treat, or manage them. We sit in a small classroom all day in front of a projector screen and take notes from a powerpoint presentation for 8 hours a day. It is brutal. I think I am slowly going blind, I no longer respond to caffeine as I drink a pot of Joe a day, and my inner mouth is raw from chewing on sunflower seeds in order to stay awake. We, the students, commonly call our current learning environment, "Death by Powerpoint". Everyone has a different way of coping, I drink coffee and chew sunflower seeds, some drink "redline" or "monster" and most guys dip smokeless tobacco. Yes, in class. There is also a wide variety of snacks and protein-rich foods and supplements scattered about. This all makes for a very smelly learning environment to say the least. Whatever it takes to stay awake, so we can continue to learn as if we were drinking water from a firehose. Three more weeks of this and I'll move to surgery and anesthesia, clinical rotations, and then I will be freaking finito! Should be done in June. So long as I can continue to resist the slow painful death by powerpoint.

Death of an unsung heroine

2006-03-07T11:14:00.000-05:00

Dana Reeve died yesterday. There aren't many ladies like this around these days. I know because I am still looking. Character is the single most important quality to look for in another person (in my humble, unmarried opinion). It is always easy to find attractive people, but attractive people with character is a different story. She was certainly one of those rare few. I have always admired this woman's dedication to her husband, family, and philanthropy in spite of the unforgiving difficulty. May she rest in peace, and be reunited with her husband.

Jump Day

2006-03-02T10:35:00.000-05:00

We jumped yesterday out at St. Mere Eglise dropzone earning our $150 extra bucks for the month. Other than the first 6 seconds where you're waiting for your chute to open I'm getting pretty used to doing it. I still don't particularly like it, as I am very much a keep-my-feet-on-the-ground guy; I prefer mountains, oceans, and vehicles. I really don't understnad why we still do static line jumping either as I can't imagine doing any World War II type invasion as an Operator. It would be too detectable for our type of mission. So I assume it's because it's is an old army tradition, and a reason to get some extra pay, and I imagine that many guys really do love "jumping out of perfectly good airplanes".

One thing, however, that I have noticed (at least for me) and really appreciate is the fact that jumping always makes you think about loftier things in life. Above all, it forces one to overcome fear- to be brave. It's making your body do something that it naturally doesn't want to do. The "fight or flight" mode kicks in- adrenaline, bronchodilation, vasoconstriction, dilated pupils, and your body gets ready for either running like hell, or fighting. It's good to kill any fear and learn to control it in order to perform. There aren't many avenues available for the average guy in the average workplace to face this kind of stuff regularly to refine one's courage, so I am grateful. War is life and death, and there is no room for cowardice.

George Orwell once said...

2006-02-27T16:43:00.000-05:00

"Good people sleep peacably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." -George Orwell

The Capital of the Free World

2006-02-21T16:10:00.000-05:00

There were a lot of names on that Memorial, it was quite overwhelming. I never expected to be so moved, yet there I was- unable to persuade my eyes from gazing at that haunting black marble, and the names... the names. Then, there was Arlington Cemetery. I would embarass myself trying to quantify in writing how I felt and what was going on inside my little head as I strolled, ever so quietly, up and down hills speckled with white tombstones. If you have never been you should go, it is a sobering reminder/tutor of what was given so that we might simply enjoy a life of freedom.

I began my tour on Friday with a visit to my Congressman, Gene Taylor, of the illustrious state of Mississippi in order to see if I could swing a pass to see the House and Senate in session. Gene was out of the office at the time, but a lovely aide was more than helpful. I was quite embarrased though, as the young lady recognized me from college (The University of Southern Mississippi), and I simply drew a blank. She remembered my name, my fraternity, and judging from the look on her face a few more things that I should have remembered as well- besides her name. I quickly began scanning the desk for a nameplate, but she caught me, and all I saw was a sorority insignia. So, I tried to play it off with "Phi Mu, right?" Well, she wasn't buying it, and I certainly blew that one, but she was gracious enough to still get me some passes. After I left the Congressman's office, I had to stand right outside the door to wait for the elevator, and I overheard her saying to her colleague about how she couldn't believe I didn't remember her from... (such and such). What a shame- she was certainly a cutie. Anyways, enough of my crash and burn stories. I get to the Senate, and I'm watching Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist conduct some formalities for President's Day to the pro temp, and in walks John Warner, the senior Republican senator, from Virginia. Now, the Senate chamber is empty with the exception of Frist, Warner, the pro temp, and a few clerks. Apparently, there is a tradition where someone reads one of Washington's addresses to the Senate every year. Frist was about to adjourn the Senate for the day when suddenly Warner asks for Frist to yield some time to him for more President's day "talk". Frist yields the floor, and Senator Warner begins on a 15-20 minute speech on when he was chosen to read Washington's address back in God knows when. He was saying things like "Yes, I remember that morning quite clearly because I had to walk in three feet of snow for four miles in order to get here..." He basically went on and on about himself conceitedly forever. The clerks, and pro temp were obviously perturbed. Then Senator Warner begins preaching about the War on Terror, the NSA, WMD's, and other various topics. After about 5 minutes Frist kind of looks up at the few, like five of us, who are actually there and laughs, shakes his head, and gives us one of those raising the eyebrows looks as if to say this guy is off his rocker, and heads out of the Senate chamber. Keep in mind Senator Warner is talking to an empty room, there is no one there but him! He has his hands waving about going on and on, speaking to and addressing the Senate body, even individual Senators, but literally speaking to empty chairs. It was one of the weirdest things I had ever seen. Everyone was kind of just lloking around saying, "who is he talking to? what is he doing?" Needless to say, it seems to me the Senate is just a bunch of grandstanding, one of the security personnel told me that was normal for Senators to get "on the record" as having said such and such. Our tax money hard at work ladies and gentlemen!

I then headed to the house Chamber, but they weren't in session so I just kind of piddled around there for a bit and then visited the Supreme Court where I was unable to see a case being argued, but was able to hear a lecture, and tour the actual courtroom. It was much smaller than I had anticipated, yet still maintained a majestic aura about it. That evening I went out with an old friend of mine in dowtown Arlington, where we had drinks, listened to some live music, and reconnected. Saturday brought the Smithsonian museums of Natural History, Art, as well as the National Gallery of Art which had an incredible Cezanne exhibition. I also took a tour of the Library of Congress where I registered and received my very own Library of Congress Card. I tried to wait in line for the National Archives in order to see the founding documents and perhaps listen to some oral arguments from the Supreme Court, but it was just too cold outside. BRRRRR! It was freaking cold! Saturday night I attended a "Winter Be Damned Party" at the house of the aforementioned friend in downtown Arlington along with a buddy of mine from college who is now an attorney for the Dept. of Justice, who was the best wingman I've ever had. (Appreciate it Josh) Sunday was the day of the monuments and was supposed to end with the Spy Museum. I did the monuments and opted to save the Spy Museum for the next time so I could attend church services with my buddy from college. Sunday also ended with another party at a friend of Josh's house named Jono- "pronounced like Bono with a J". Anybody with a name like that is bound to throw a decent party, and he certainly came through as we all spent most of the night singing and playing piano. It was a good time. Appreciate it Jono and Paul.

Overall impression- D.C. is awesome. The people are great. The singles scene is fantastic. I will be back very soon. Very soon indeed ;-)

Off to Washington D.C.

2006-02-16T10:29:00.001-05:00

I've never been to the capital of the free world before. This weekend is President's Day weekend meaning a long holiday for me. What better way to celebrate President's Day than touring the District of Columbia? I'm planning on hitting the Supreme Court, Congress, and of course the Smithsonian as the main events. The International Spy Museum will also be on my hit list. The White House would be really nice, but I couldn't get a pass on such short notice, that'll be just another excuse to come back. Last but not least- the nightlife. I am definitely going to meander the various array of entertainment spots scattered throughout the District, and Arlington. The only negative is I have two tests when I return, so I'm going to have to study somehow between metro stops. I'll be sure to post some pics when I get back. Have a great weekend.

Valentine's Day

2006-02-14T12:16:00.000-05:00

Here is my Valentine, we'll be going out to eat, and then head over to the range to practice our marksmanship. Sound romantic? If only it were true...

Quote of the Week

2006-02-10T07:37:00.000-05:00

"He is no fool, who gives what he cannot keep in order to gain what he cannot lose."
-Jim Elliot

BTW there is a movie out about this fellow, its called "End of the Spear" and is playing at a theater near you.

Dermatitis or Tinea?

2006-02-08T22:27:00.000-05:00

One of the advantages of learning medicine is being able to self diagnose one's problems. One of the advantages (?)of Army medicine is that we experiment on one other to learn. Just as we once practiced IV's on one another until we could no longer recognize our appendages, we've also continued this Frankenstein experimenting in the labs. I've looked at my buddy's glowing, body-building-supplement, radiaoactive urine; determined his blood type, white and red blood cell count, etc.; and attempted to grow whatever we can find on each other's body in a petri dish just for s**ts and giggles. Most recently, I allowed my buddy to take a skin sample of a rash I've had on my back for months now to rule out any kind of tinea (fungal infection). It has never really hurt or anything and hasn't spread, so I figured it was some contact dermatitis, but I have yet to figure out what exactly has caused it. Nothing has been able to make it go away, so I thought it'd be good to confirm my suspicions about this only being some simple dermatitis. So, we scraped some skin from the site and took a look under the scope- whew- no fungi present, just dead skin cells. So that means that it's probably a certain fabric, or detergent, or maybe just the weather or water in the barracks causing the irritation- who knows? Tomorrow we'll look at some Staph and Strep bacteria, as well as do another urine sample. Sound like fun? The only bad part is the headache from looking through a microscope all day, and of course, the smell. GO ARMY!

I just don't believe it...

2006-02-03T15:37:00.000-05:00

GW recently called Islam a "noble" religion. I just don't see it. This is not noble.

Quote of the Week

2006-02-03T07:13:00.000-05:00

"Ability is the poor man's wealth." -John Wooden

Hematology, Urinalysis, and Ben Hur

2006-02-02T23:18:00.000-05:00

Red blood cells, white blood cells, and urine. Such fun things to look at under a microscope all day. That's what we're doing right now... Labs. I was never much of a scientist, the only times I can remember being fond of any science was earning an Astronomy merit badge in Boy Scouts, and winning the mousetrap race car competition in my high school physics class. This has been a challenge for me thus far. Trying to count white blood cells is tedious, and I'm not wired for such tasks, but of course I won't have the benefit of a couple of lab techs working for me when I'm in the field, so here goes nothing. Other than that, not much exciting going on around here unless of course you like looking through microscopes all day. Actually, we parachuted out of airplanes yesterday, that was pretty fun.

Also of note- I found an old blockbuster receipt in my truck's center console which had a free non-new release rental set to expire this week. Being quite the movie goer, everytime I go into blockbuster I have a difficult time picking out non-new release films as I've pretty much seen all of the ones worth renting. As is my normal custom, I use these moments to experiment either in the foreign film section (usually Italian) or I opt to find an old classic that I've never seen before. The classic title which I ran across this time was "Ben Hur". I had no idea what this movie was about, but three things that stood out to me on the cover were: ancient Rome, Charlton Heston, and Best Picture 1959. I figured with those three things, surely this will be a decent film, and I was not disappointed. It took me two nights to finish it, and all I could think about afterwards was how the heck did Hollywood go from selecting films like "Ben Hur" for Best Picture to nominating films like "Broke Back Mountain" for such honors. By far, the best film of this year was "Cinderella Man" and if you haven't seen it yet- go get it after work Friday because nothing good is opening this weekend anyway- you will love it. Any film about religion ("The Passion") or traditional values ("Cinderella Man") these days gets snubbed for awards. However, if a film is about homosexuality, euthanasia, bashes a conservative political figure, or demeans religion it is automatically "One of the year's best films". This year, the Academy was so blatantly biased that even proponents of such films would have to admit that there is something wrong. Do actors even care? If I were Mel Gibson, Russell Crowe, Renee Zell..., Reese Wither.. I'd be pissed that my line of work's recognition system was so obviously discriminating. Hollywood is crazy.

Geronimo!

2006-01-29T14:48:00.000-05:00

So, my laptop came back repaired at the total cost of $329. Too much to be called affordable and worth it, but too little to justify another brand-new purchase. So, Hewie was spared the "Office Space" baseball bat beating. However, my printer (Epson Stylus) decided it didn't want to work anymore either... so his fate was being thrown off the third floor of the barracks and as you can see from the picture he didn't fare so well. So, Epson will be sleeping in the Silicon Valley of Death. I purchased another printer, and so now all is peaceful and quiet once again in my room, and I can get back to more important things, like catching up on email, and blogging. Let's hope I didn't piss off the silicon gods too bad and end up with more electronic malfunctions. **Knocking on wood**

Laptop Woes

2006-01-23T19:15:00.000-05:00

So, my warranty ran out December 30th for my Hewlett Packard laptop, and sure enough my laptop decided to not turn on the other day, hence my abrupt cyber absence. So, after getting no pity from the HP's customer service I brought my piece of junk to a computer repair shop who still has no idea what's wrong with it- he's had it a week now! So- two lessons... 1) Don't buy a Hewlett Packard laptop (because they should have stuck with making printers) 2)Always, always, always get the extended warranty. I know, I know, how did I not see this coming. I'll not be posting until I get the piece back, and hopefully the repair won't cost an arm and a leg, otherwise, I'll just have to buy a new one which honestly I'm almost tempted to do right now. I get really loyal to my product purchases, and I take it personal when something breaks prematurely. In this case, even if I get the idiot box back fixed relatively cheap, I'll always hold a grudge against it, I'll never type on it with the same confidence, I'll even allow my eyes to wander to other prospects on my next Best Buy run. I'll essentially continue to harbor this beast in my home, but Hewie and I's relationship will never be the same, matter of fact, I think Hewie will be sleeping with the chippies in silicon sea after I give him the "Office Space" fax machine revenge treatment. I've had better weeks. More medicine later, when I've taken mine.

Neuroscience ICU

2006-01-12T14:34:00.000-05:00

I was in NSICU last night, which basically consisted of all the major head injury patients. The patient that stood out the most was a 16 year old young man who had mutiple trauma due to a drunk driving accident. He was the passenger in his friend's SUV who was driving insane according to the other friend who was in the back seat. They were driving like 90 mph, the driver and the other friend were totally trashed, and the passenger was as sober as a judge. I still don't know why he wasn't the one driving, but my guess is the driver was the leader of the little crew. As is the case most of the time, the two drunk kids walked away from the accident with a head a laceration and a sprained ankle bt the two of them. The sober kid in the passenger side had his seatbelt on, but was on the side where the tree had crushed into the vehicle. The firemen used the jaws of life to get him out and he was just destroyed, but alive. He suffered from a subdural hematoma, and an epidural hematoma thus causing his intracranial pressure to go through the roof. His ribs on both sides were shattered and he had two collapsed lungs, which of course also included pulmonary contusions, and heart contusions which resulted in cardiac tamponade. So this kid had bilateral chest tubes put in, a catheter put into his skull to drain out excess cerebral spinal fluid to decrease the intracranial pressure, and he had a pelvic fracture and femur fracture on his right side along with a broken arm. Miraculously there are no abdominal injuries. I helped monitor this kid last night and he was constantly on the brink of "coding". I'll be surprised if he is still alive when I get back on shift tonight, but nurses there say they've seen a couple like him make it before bc he is so young, and a younger body is able to fight longer and harder. The worst was seeing family come in and then watching the attending doctors from trauma and neuro fighting over how to treat him. It was a mess. It seems like there isn't a clear protocol on who is in charge in the hospital, and it sucks to see that affect the treatment of the patient. We always refer to these doctors who come in only for major stuff in the trauma ER as the "Greek Gods and Goddesses who come down from Mt. Olympus". It's good when one comes down, but two God-complexes in one room is a disaster. That's all I got for now, tonight I'll be in Surgical Trauma ICU, and then I'll probably try to make my way down to the ER again bc it's more exciting down there in general. -Jake out

The Operating Room

2006-01-10T21:58:00.000-05:00

Today, I was assigned to the operating room(s). There are 24 operating rooms all doing everything from heart bypasses, to knee reconstruction, to breast implants. I scrubbed in on an appendectomy, a skin graft on one of my burn patients from yesterday, a debridement of a MRSA ulcer the size of a grapefruit, and a lumbar fusion. It was exciting to say the least. I also followed around an anesthesiologist in order to do some endotracheal intubations. I had a blast, and learned a lot. The surgeons and residents were more than happy to explain and show me everything they were doing in their procedures. The surgeon performing the appendectomy was quick to remind me that a ruptured appendix could occur with one of my teammates, and that the SF medical handbook includes how to do a field appendectomy. The odds, of course, are slim to none, but after today I think I could pull it off if there were no way to get my buddy out, but I seriously doubt it will ever happen. After the OR, I headed back down to the ER for some faster action, and got in on a GSW to the right tib/fib which had bone fragments everywhere, but didn't bleed much. We simply cleaned it up a bit, pulled traction to put it back in-line, and put a cast on it to get him to the OR for surgery. Then right after that, a 17 year old who had fallen asleep at the wheel came in with an avulsion to the forehead with arterial bleeding. I pulled back the entire forehead for the trauma doctor to pinpoint which arteries the bleeding was coming from in order to tie them off. I could see the kid's skull, and he was alert and oriented talking to me the whole time, it was nuts. Also, of note... the hospital environment is by far the best workplace to meet singles. I've worked in a lot of places, but none had so much potential. WOW! Doctors, residents, and nurses- mostly type A's (like myself) and smart as whips in general. Now I just have to find one that wants to do missionary work. Once again I was approached by a young nurse (from the OR) who asked me out. This is a stange phenomena- getting asked out by girls. I think our society is changing tremendously if the female playing the pursuer is normal these days; maybe it's just my Southern upbringing.??? I have never had so many dates in such a short period of time, it's been fun, but I'm afraid that I still have not met my future wife, and I am still trying to hold out for when I finally meet Ann Coulter. Tsst. Wht a shame that this gal is still single. Anyway- more stuff later...

Labor/Delivery and Burns

2006-01-09T19:34:00.000-05:00

This will be a short post, I plan to elaborate later on my overall ER experience, which was good, bad, and ugly. Anyway- I might be the most unlucky SF dude that has ever walked through the doors of the L&D department at Richmond's MCV hospital. Why? Because there wasn't a single pregnant woman in the department for the two days I was there, so I didn't get to deliver a baby like the rest of my buddies. Bummer- guess I'll do that in my next rotation in the Spring. To catch you up to speed, I finished the ER rotation when I got back here from Xmas leave and then moved to L&D, and today I was assigned to the Burn Unit which included the Burn ICU. It was tough seeing all the patients in so much pain, especially the pediatrics. There were three sub 18 month olds, and a three year old all little girls, it about made me cry. Had I not been in front of such cute nurses I might have shed a tear ;-). My day consisted of unwrapping dressings, debriding wounds, applying topical ointments, administering pain meds, and rewrapping the wounds all of which consisted of 2nd and 3rd degree burns. I also helped out the Occupational Therapist get some of these guys moving and working their limbs again. Pain, pain, pain. That about sums up a burn patient. I can't think of anything more painful. Alright, that's about all. We are working 6 twelve hour shifts so I've been absolutley exhausted, but still trucking. I'll keep you posted.

Back from Christmas Leave

2006-01-04T00:02:00.000-05:00

I just got back to Richmond from Christmas leave. Sorry for the lack of posting, but I was home in Waveland, MS and Slidell, LA helping out around the community, and seeing friends and family. Will be posting again soon...Jake out.

To the Iraqis!

2005-12-17T13:30:00.000-05:00

I am amazed at the bravery of the Iraqi people. Against all naysayers here in the U.S., and Europe, against all odds in the Arab world (talk about peer-pressure), facing the known threat of suicide bombers at polling booths, they came out to make their purple mark in casting their vote and letting the world know that they want freedom. The rest of the Arab world has to be peeing their pants that such a phenomenon is taking place. "Allah" forbid that a Western idea like democracy ever be considered an option. Iraqis have now twice proven that they are capable of exercising democracy. Sure it isn't perfect, but when has democracy ever been? And when is the last time we've had close to an 80% turnout for elections? The word "politician" has such a negative connotation here in the States. "Statesman" is never used to describe any of our representative officials these days, but how about these Iraqi politicians? They go out on the campaign trail with bodyguards knowing that someone is probably going to try and kill them, and many have certainly died trying to run for office. Can you imagine your state rep running for office and getting blown up by an IED while on the way to your house to ask for your vote? Those Iraqi politicians are brave men and women, and I cannot wait to see what kind of statesmen they will be. They are birthing a new nation, a huge burden, and it will certainly be tough, but the world hasn't seen this kind of resolve for freedom in a very long time. So tonight when you go out, lift up your suds for a toast to the Iraqis. Cheers!

Spinal Tap

2005-12-16T04:28:00.000-05:00

Just got off my first ER shift, and all I can say is... Holy blood draws! I lost count of the IV's and blood draws I did. It was a fairly slow night in the ER so we were pretty much just helping out the Nurses with IV's, and doing physical assessments with the Docs. There was only one trauma patient tonight who came in with 3 GSW, (gun shot wounds), one in the lower back, one in the right bicep, and one right above the knee which went straight through his femur causing obvious deformity- his leg was at a right angle when he came in. I was hoping to get a chest tube, but it wasn't necessary as the lower back wound didn't penetrate the pleural cavity. The highlight of my evening came when one of my patients presented with a stiff neck. She had no fever so I figured it was probably simple musculoskeletal aches and pains, but the Doc wanted to be absolutely sure it wasn't meninigitis, so he called for a lumbar puncture in order to see her cerebral spinal fluid. Guess who got to perform the procedure- moi. I located the iliac crest, found my plumb line for L4 (lumber 4) and inserted this huge needle/catheter into this lady's lower spinal column, and retrieved some spinal fluid. Once it started dripping out of the catheter, I could tell it was normal, it looked like water. It was so cool! Doc Rob was impressed with my confidence and aggressiveness, as most interns trying that for the first time are pretty scared. As a matter of fact, the young intern assigned tonight was making fun of me b/c I was having trouble with some of my IV's, but had no problem with a lumbar puncture. She claims to still get quite nervous with those. Oh, I love medicine! So, there is my first day in the ER. More soon.

Quote of the Week

2005-12-15T13:12:00.000-05:00

"There is no room in this country for hyphenated Americanism."

-Theodore Roosevelt

The End of the Ambulance Runs

2005-12-15T12:49:00.000-05:00

24 hour shifts every other day... I am exhausted to say the least. It was snowing again this morning so I eagerly went out for a walk and then some coffee and a good book at Starbucks. Gingerbread latte- delicious. It gave me that nostalgic feeling of Christmas which I just haven't had time to enjoy yet. We have been ridiculously busy, and it has taken its toll, but it has come to an end at last. Now we'll go to the Virginia Commonwealth University hospital for clinical rotations, ER is first. The schedule will be 12 hour shifts Mon-Sat, half graveyard shift and the other half day shift. I am looking forward to a change of pace. The ambulance shifts were great, but there were a lot more BS calls than actual emergencies, which was disappointing. It amazes me how some folks will just totally waste taxpayer's money, and valuable resources on such petty nonsense. I won't go into it, as it frustrates me. Overall, it was a good training experience, I learned a lot from these awesome firemen/paramedics here in Richmond. Coming to a scene and being able to take charge was probably the most important aspect I learned. Crazy stuff happens out there, and it was great to be ready for anything, and respond to chaos. I love chaos. I'll depart after this weekend temporarily for Christmas leave and come back on the 4ht of the new year. Still not sure where I'll be for Christmas as most of my family no longer has a house, but I think my cousin may come through for us, we'll see. My dad is still cleaning up and just beginning to rebuild in Waveland, MS. Sorry it's been so long once again since I last posted, but sometimes work is just too overwhelming.

My First Ambulance Run

2005-12-03T17:00:00.000-05:00

I walked into the Henrico County Firehouse, Engine No.5 at 0630 yesterday morning not really knowing what to expect. The only instructions I had been given was to make sure I kept track of any procedures or treatments that I do, and have the paramedic on duty sign off at the end of the shift which would be 24 hours later. I was also told that if I am lucky enough to get some shut eye that I would need a sleeping bag because Firehouses are notorious for keeping their sleeping quarters cold. I had packed up my backpack pretty full with a variety of articles- workout clothes, protein powder, my ipod, Anne Rice's new book "Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt, my Bible, some cash to pitch in for Firehouse chow, stethoscope, shears, some quick-reference emergency care handbooks, a headlamp, and of course my pocket knife. I was dressed in some ugly faded black cargo pants issued by the army for rotations, a black SOCM Medic T-Shirt, a XXL Navy blue Jacket with an EMT patch on it (also issued to me by the Army), and my hiking boots. If any of you know me, I am not a large-framed fellow so that Big and Tall jacket swallowed me whole, and I looked absolutely ridiculous, but orders are orders. As soon as I walked into the side door of the firehouse, my roomate Derrick, who had the shift the previous night, was walking out and immediately stopped me stared me dead in the eye with the most alarmed expression on his face after giving me a quick once over, and said, "Dancing Jake- you gotta get rid of that jacket, they are gonna give you shit all 24 hours man. Trust me, I am gonna burn mine when I get back!" I about pissed myself laughing at the dire look on his face, and he finally loosened up and followed with a roar of laughter realizing the hilarity of his urgent warning. Anyhow, it was just the stress relief I needed as I once again headed into the unknown. I immediately ran back to the van and pulled out my handy dandy North Face Denali jacket and switched it out, waved goodbye to my buddies who were waiting to either get dropped off at the next station or were coming off last night's shift, and then headed back inside.

I walked into the firehouse and on my left were the trucks, one EMS Advanced Life Support unit, and one Fire Engine. To my right was a small but sufficient workout area complete with a tread mill, weights, and a couple machines. I looked across the garage and there was a door marked "sleeping quarters" and a door with a window where I saw some fellas shooting the bull, and drinking some coffee. I approached the door and made my entrance. A tall, older fella standing arms folded and stern immediately turned, looked at me and said, "Well, who the hell are you?" I fired back, "I'm Jake 'Last Name'- who the hell are you- sir?" He was immediately disarmed I suppose, because his stone face wrinkled to a grin as he then approached to shake my hand with a huge chuckle and said, "Captain Lane, of Engine no. 5, you must be another one of those Special Ops guys huh? I'm your supervisior for the next 24 hours." And of course I replied, "That's right. It's good to meet you sir, I'm reporting for EMT duty so I'm all yours."

I was then introduced to the rest of the fellas who were both coming in for work and a few who hadn't left yet because they were sharing about their calls from last night. Apparently, it had been a pretty busy night last night because all they could talk about was that "multiple stabbing" they had. Derrick had apparently done an excellent job in treating and evaluating the patient under thier supervision so I had a big show to follow. It got me excited and I was a little jealous, but I knew I'd get my chance. The fellas ranged in age from mid-twenties to upper-forties and seemed like a pretty decent group of guys. They immediately thanked me for not shameing their Firehouse with one of those horrendous GI-issued EMT jackets that my buddy Derrick had worn yesterday. I told them that I would have never dreamed of getting caught in public with that thing. ;-)

After a couple hours with no calls we started to do some chores around the station, and the paramedic in charge of me, Brent, got me familiar with the truck and protocols. Brent showed me how all the equipment worked, the airway kits, the AED, the Adult kits and then the Pediatric kits, which he said we would probably never touch. How wrong he was today. Our very first call was a motor vehicle accident involving a school bus loaded with about 30 kids and a sedan with two passengers. We arrived on the scene within 5 minutes of the call, and it was crazy. Kids were just on the side of the road screaming and hollering, and teachers trying to calm them down as the accident happened about 200 yards from a local elementary school. We immediately got out of our truck and approached the scene and looked to see if anyone was in need of critical care. After being statisfied that everyone could move on their own we directed the students to go towards the school where we got them into a classroom to triage them. Two students were having trouble breathing and about five others said their neck and side hurt. We then directed the rest who were okay to another classroom, and began surveying each of the students with complaints. We packaged the kids who complained of neck pain with a C-collar and long spine board and then checked out the otehrs to see if there were possibly any signs internal injuries. The two who had trouble breathing seemed to be hyperventilating due to being scared, but their airway was in no way compromised. Anyhow, to make a long story short, we brought them to the hospital. Our truck had the bus driver and a twelve year old girl. Th bus driver couldn't move her arm, so we suspected a possible fracture, but she didn't seem in too much pain. The little girl was one of the hyperventilators. I was in charge of the little girl and basically just gave her some oxygen took a set of vitals and tried to calm her down. She eventually calmed down and was breathing normal at the hospital arrival. That's about it for my first run. We also made the local evening news and were filmed putting our patients into the truck. As for the rest of the day and early next morning we had three more calls. One 1o month old baby who was having a seizure, one 12 year old boy who was feeling really weak, and one 75 year old woman who had fallen. The baby ended up being fine and was not having a seizure, but the two very young teenage parents were scared as their baby was "vomiting white stuff". Her temperature and vitals were fine, and it seemes that all she really needed was to be burped after being fed her formula. The 12 year old was diabetic and had taken too much insulin thus causing him to become hypoglycemic. We simply took his blood sugar, and after determining it as low, gave him some oral glucose, and his mom fixed him a PBandJ sandwich which got him up to par in no time. The elderly lady was fine, but scared, and was just given some oxygen to calm her down. I'll be posting more as I get it. Hopefully, we'll get some more exciting stuff next time.

Quote of the Week

2005-11-30T08:27:00.000-05:00

"The mass of men lead quiet lives of desperation."

-Henry David Thoreau

Richmond, VA: Day 1

2005-11-29T22:48:00.000-05:00

We just arrived in Richmond this afternoon, and I just walked in from dinner and spirits with my 6 roommates after a long day of driving and settling in- cleaning, grocery shopping, orienting ourselves to the new surroundings, etc. etc. Tomorrow we'll get our hospital/EMS orientation and then Thursday we'll get started. My team (Team 1) is assigned to EMS first so I'll be riding in the ambulance for one of the local fire departments and I cannot wait. Team 2 will of course be assigned to the hospital first. WOW! It's so nice to be away from Post, I feel like a free man again. My blogging has been sporadic lately, but I promise to try and post everyday while on rotations. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. I was able to visit some friends in New York City and do thanksgiving dinner- New England style. It was wonderful! The hospitality rivaled the best I've known in the South, and the cooking was incredible. I hope to get a digital camera soon and post some pics as well. In the meantime, I look forward to writing about my latest adventures. Be on the look out!

Quote of the Week

2005-11-22T06:39:00.000-05:00

"What the country needs is dirtier fingernails and cleaner minds."

-Will Rogers

Long Time No See

2005-11-16T10:03:00.000-05:00

Yeah- it's been a while since I last posted. Combat Trauma Management was by far the most difficult section to pass thus far in the SOCM course (Special Operations Combat Medic). It is so difficult that you get three shots at it. I was trained well by my cadre and passed on my first run last Thursday. I'll be up for best clinic but there were a couple other clinics that were a little faster than mine- we'll see. Only 8 of us out of 60 passed on the first time around. The rest of my team (7 others) are retesting today, and so far two others have "go's". My lack of posting has been due to studying and training hard. This weekend I took a little break for the Veteran's Day four-day holiday (read this post by Fast Squirrel)and saw some family in Birmingham, AL and some friends in Athens, GA. It was a much needed stress free weekend. Next we'll do Pediatric Life Support and then head to a hospital for clinical rotations. I got slotted for Richmond, Virginia which at first I was a little disappointed because I wanted to go to Tampa, FL. However, word on the street is that the smallest group goes to Richmond (14 guys) so we should get more procedures than the other two groups in Tampa, and Jacksonville. I am excited to get in there and learn and apply what I've learned thus far.

Close One...

2005-11-01T11:33:00.000-05:00

Well, it seems that I have now had two close calls in testing. Yesterday, we had our ACLS test. The test consists of two parts: a Practical and Written examination. The written exam was all textbook material, and was fairly simple. However, the bread and butter of ACLS is reading EKG's (squiggly lines) and assessing your overall patient; that was where the practical exam came in. For this part of the test, it was me and my "Zoll" manual defibrillator and the dummy patient. The Zoll we train with is a $20,000 piece of equipment and is capable of not only defibrillating, but getting a pulse oximetry, blood pressure, 12 lead EKG, and comes several other neat things which are too many to list. The dummy we train on is also capable of simulated breathing, pulses, verbal responses, and can even exhibit signs of various pulmonary and cardiac life threats. It's a great training tool, and the Zoll is a life saver. So, all week I studied the sequence, the various EKG's, and the various cardiac drugs (indications, doses, contraindications, and mechanisms of action), I thought I was ready, but I missed a critical criteria. I misinterpreted one of my EKG's as a 2nd degree Type I heart block, and in reality it was a 3rd degree heart block. This makes a huge difference when administering drugs, and I unfortunately administered a contraindicated drug. There were about 5 different heart rhythms for test day, and when I had finished the run I had no idea I had made a mistake, I was utterly confident I was a "go". My instructor let me go all the way through, and then we sat down for the second half of the practical exam which consisted of simply reading strips. There were 4 strips in all, and I, of course, got all of them right, but when I finished up, my instructor asked me to take a look at the 3rd degree heart block strip (which I had just interpreted) and compare it with the one I printed out during my run on the dummy. My jaw dropped, and once again, I was with the retesting crew today. 18 guys in all had to retest, and I just got out of there with a "go", but I'm still not sure how everyone else did. Anyhow, another target down. On to Combat Trauma Management!

ACLS

2005-10-24T11:01:00.000-04:00

Advanced Cardiac Life Support... I'm studying a bunch of squiggly lines trying to figure out what kind of heart rhythm each squiggly represents. The test is Monday (written and practical); I have to know a bunch of squiggly algorithms after recognizing the squiggly heart rhythm, and which drugs to treat the squiggly with. It's a lot of info for one week. Really it's squiggly that we only have a week, but as always we'll get it together by Monday. Then I'll be on to Combat Trauma Mgmt, Pediatric Life Support, and then finally Rotations at a Metro Hospital, hopefully Tampa, FL.

Squiggly, squiggly. I've been dreaming of squigglies all weekend. Squiggly.

Quote of the Week

2005-10-21T06:42:00.000-04:00

"The longest way around is the shortest way home."

- C.S. Lewis

Gotta Save My Buddy!

2005-10-19T15:42:00.000-04:00

So, I had my practical exam on Monday for Trauma Lanes, and I was a "no-go". Basically, truama lanes is a simulated scenario where you have to go in and save your buddy who has some sort of crazy combination of injuries ranging from gunshot wounds, impalements, eviscerations, burns, squirting arterial bleeds, and at least one major fracture. It requires you to go through an initial, rapid, and detailed trauma sequence. You have 6 mintues to finish the intital, 29 minutes to get the rapid done, and then 30 minutes once you get your buddy to the safe location of the medical tent to package and treat your patient in more detail. The first two portions take place in the woods, and you get a helper endearingly known as "Haji" who can't speak much English, but can bag a patient for you and hold pressure on bleeds as well as maintain C-spine stabilization for you. You're in full battle rattle (Kevlar helmet, weapon, LBE, and medical bag) and the patient is moulaged up with all kinds of Hollywood-like fake blood, gratuitous injuries, and even some arterial squirting. Patients take great pride in their acting skills as well, so it tends to turn into mass chaos out there at times. Anyhow, so here's what happened to me...

My Haji and I were all ready to go, it was about 0700 and the sun had just peaked it's little halo upon the horizon, so it was still quite dark out. I knew it would be a challenge to see, but I was ready to show off my skills, as I've been practicing night after night. Nothing was stopping me now. I had two cups of Joe at this point as well which added to my adrenalin pump as I waited for the familiar call... "Medic!"

We were off- I could hear the screams a hundred meters away, and we hauled ass through the woods to our desiganted site. The brief was simple- an IED had hit one of my teammates' Humvee and it flipped and caught fire. One survivor had pulled himself out and crawled his way to a berm where he was waiting for his buddies to come get him the hell out of there. As soon as we found our man, it was obvious he was in pain. His entire right arm, neck, and face were covered in black soot- a burn patient. His left arm was shot up, revealing an open radial/ulnar fracture, and he was having serious trouble breathing. I immediately got to work, and I was moving fast. By the end of the intitial and rapid I had cut off all his clothes, did a thorough head to toe assessment and began treating each wound. I wrapped the burns in Kurlex, converted a tourniquet to pressure dressing on the open fracture, and splinted it up using my handy dandy articulating splint. The patient went apneic during the rapid sequence due to his airway being burned up and swelling, thus cutting off his way of breathing. Only one thing to do... I had to perform a cricothyroidostomy and insert an endotracheal tube. No problem, I was the man. I finished all this in 18 minutes flat, and I was pretty sure I hadn't missed a single detail. One thing left to do, I had to give this guy some fluids via an IV stick. Normally, on test day at least one of the arms are available for a stick in the antecubital vein, but my patient had traumatic arms, and that meant that I wasn't allowed to go there for test purposes. So, I had to go to the feet, and hope that this guy had some good Saphenous veins. Well, my patient happened to be one of the Navy Corpman guys. He's 42 years old, and let's just say he isn't in the best shape. His little bird legs had nothing popping out for me. Granted it was about 45 degrees out that morning, so he was probably shunting really bad due to the cold, but I was getting nothing and cursing the guy in my head "Bastard why don't you work out or something, and did you even hydrate last night to get some more blood volume?". I put two constricting bands on both feet and started rubbing and flexing them hoping to get something to pop out in one of them. I even pulled out my BP cuff and had it on one foot as well. Finally I saw one on the top of the foot, it was crooked, but I've gotten the catheter to curve with those before- it was my only shot. I stuck him, got flash in my tube, and began advancing the catheter carefully trying to get it in, but I met some resistance, and I could see below the skin that the end was about to infiltrate through. "Can't stop now", I thought, but sure enough there was the hematoma bubbling like a balloon. One down. I kept looking in this guy's foot and if you look at your feet, it's tough to find a straight vein there. I knew I had to try the saph stick blind. I knew anatomically where it lied so I started going at it. Another needle down, and another, then another, no flash. I kept going in both feet, but couldn't get it. I was down to my last needle. I then requested to do an EJ stick (the big one on the neck), but the instructor said "no can do", I then said, well, at this point if I were in the field for real I'd have to do that or a venous cutdown as the patient has no vein access in his feet. "Yes, you would, but I can't let you do that today". I was stuck. Here goes nothing! After another minute or so torturing my patient with my last needle I took it out and called for end of clinic. 25 minutes and 50 seconds. This was after 7 sticks total. Oh, was I infuriated! My instructor pulled me aside afterwards and showed me my scorecard- as I expected it was perfect, and had I got my first stick it would have been by far the fastest clinic. Hell, had I got my last stick, it would have been one of the fastest still. (Most guys average bt 25-28 minutes). The instructor went on to say that I just got some bad luck and just needed to come back on Wednesday, and do the same thing and that I should get an arm next time. So, I didn't make it to the tent, and I was pretty discouraged, but I knew I'd get my day of redemption which was today.

Once again- Haji and I took off at the call for medic. Once again I was pumped on my double dose of caffeine, and adrenalin. Once again I utterly destroyed the initial and rapid like a good SF medic should. This time the brief was to get a buddy out after a fire fight with some enemy troops. He was all shot up. One chest wound and an exit wound on his back. He had an open tibula/fibula fracture with an entrance and exit wound there as well, and another gunshot in his left leg. So, I packaged this guy up with a splint, two occlusive dressings on his chest wounds, a couple of pressure dressings, and even performed a needle decompression in his chest due to his tension pneumothorax from the sucking chest wounds. Once again, I was a machine. This time, fortunately, I had an arm to stick for my fluid resuscitation. No problem. I called end of clinic at 23 minutes after my stick and taking some vitals. It was a little slow for me, but I was a "go". I then proceeded to get my buddy out of there and into the detailed medical tent where I continued to treat my patient for hypovolemic shock, infection, and perfomed a chest tube.

Good times, good times indeed. So, another target down in this never ending story of the 18D medic course.

Quote of the Week

2005-10-03T11:58:00.000-04:00

"Courage is the first of human qualities, because it is the quality that guarantees all the rest."

-Winston Churchill

Return to Linville Gorge

2005-09-29T20:20:00.000-04:00

So I went to Linville Gorge again this past weekend, but this time not alone.
This time I took four other friends (2 fellas in the Q-Course with me and two girls from Athens, Georgia) and once again the scenery was absolutely beautiful. Friday, we met up in Linville Falls, and hiked in late that night around 10:00PM utilizing our handy dandy Army Night Land Navigation skills. I knew all that wandering we did at SFAS would be useful out in the civilian world someday. Upon our arrival to our designated point we made our bivouac site on a cliff overlooking the entire gorge, and roasted S'mores over an open fire. After some meaningless banter, jokes, and lots of chocolate the girls pitched their tent, and the fellas slept in the open (which ended up being very cold, but incredibly beautiful). Do you like sunrises and sunsets? Me too, but I think I am more of a fan of the Moonrise. I can't really say which is better because they are such contrasts, but certainly the moon hasn't gotten its fair share of respect. When I first went to sleep it was pitch black out, but when I woke up to a cool breeze at about two in the morning the moon had sneaked its way out to spy on me. I was in awe. The moon makes the forest smile at night, and the sounds that accompany it at such hours make those info-mercial nature CD's sound like cheesy Halloween sound effects tapes. Yeah, I'm definitely a fan of the moon. I'm more of a night person anyway, so that may explain it too. Anyhow- the next morning we got up, ate, made a cup of Joe, enjoyed the (overrated) sunrise, and headed down into the gorge. Jessica almost fell of the cliff at one point while trying to climb over a tree on the trail. She is a tiny little thing standing at a mere 5'0 tall and a hundred pounds (though I'd argue she's 4'10 pushing 95lbs) so when a branch that she was bending back decided that it didn't want to be bent, it literally just started pushing her off the edge of the trail where a 1900 foot fall awaited her. Fortunately, she had a vice grip on that branch and my buddies who were pulling rear security snagged her back. That probably would have been the most dangerous moment we experienced for the weekend until... we arrived at our new bivouac site later that afternoon only to find that every single get 'er done redneck trout fishermen in Western North Carolina had come out this weekend with a sidearm on his belt. It was so strange looking down the river and watching every single guy fly fishing all decked out with the normal vest, net, hat, and then.... a ballistic weapon?!. It made the girls a little nervous, and my buddies Brendan and Norm who are from California and Wisconsin just didn't get it. I wasn't too surpised because I'm from Mississippi, but it was still a site I'd never seen before. The rest of the weekend included swimming, fires, napping, a broken fishing pole, fires, lots of food, and did I say fires? Rebecca and Jessica did really well for their first time backpacking, and my Army buddies and I were quite impressed as we didn't know what to expect. The girls later told me that it was definitely very difficult, but worth it; and that they look forward to doing it again. I was so proud. Don't you love introducing friends to new things? It's ten times cooler when they end up actually liking it. Let's hope they weren't just being polite. So, that was my weekend at a glance, and I would have written sooner, but we just began Trauma Lanes this week back at the Q course. Let's just say that the days of the walking hematoma have returned once again. More on that tomorrow...

Quote of the Week

2005-09-21T12:42:00.000-04:00

"The harder you work, the tougher it is to surrender."

-Vince Lombardi

"Whatcha Heard Through the Grapevine Haji?"

2005-09-17T00:14:00.000-04:00

You know, I'd be better off just sitting in traffic, picking my nose, and waving down the taxi driver stuck next to me so I could ask him "Whatcha heard through the grapevine Haji?" than attempting to get a genuine balanced story from ABC, NBC, or CBS.

I don't normally post this late on Friday nights, but tonight was special, not only because it was a blockbuster night and I got to watch a classic, "Shaka Zulu", but because I once again almost puked at seeing more Mainstream Media liberal bias. I've posted about this topic once before in July, and it led to a pretty good debate. Let's see what reaction I get this time. It all began after my African warrior marathon when I decided to check out the web for some scoop. I ran across this article in WorldNetDaily. In this revealing piece, one can see first-hand how ABC news correspondent, Dean Reynolds, in a live interview from the Houston Astrodome so blatantly loaded his questions as he asked some New Orleans evacuees about their thoughts on President Bush's speech yesterday evening. To Mr. Reynolds' surprise, and dismay every single evacuee thought quite highly of the President's remarks and plan. After several attempts to get a negative answer from these evacuees he was stumped. It's quite hilarious. You must read the transcript and see the video for yourself.

After reading the article and watching the video, I then went to the ABCnews Hurricane Katrina coverage website in order to see if ABC had followed up this story. What did I find on the thoughts of evacuees after Bush's speech? Well, let's just say Dean's video didn't make the cut. I found one single article entitled, "Viewers Skeptical Over Bush Speech". In this pathetic, putrid example of journalism, six people were interviewed that absolutely hammered Bush again and again, and then, finally, two small, yet positive quotes were kind of thrown in almost carelessly at the end- (Kind of like you do when you get a couple of pennies back for change, but really don't want to keep them, so you put them in the little "give-a-penny-take-a-penny" tray for some other patron to use).

Yeah, and ABC wonders why nobody watches them anymore. On that note, if you still do watch these guys, why don't you do yourself a favor and head to the local Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey circus to get your clown fix there instead. Anyways, clowns are creepy. Last I heard, Bozo was dead and haunting people. But who knows? Maybe Dean Reynolds and his 12 mini-me sidekicks will jump out of their ABC company Ford Pinto (as it bursts into flames) to come to the rescue of their circus and finally redeem the American clown image. I think he may even make quite the Ronald McDonald.

Here's the transcipt... (I highlighted the loaded questions)

"I'd like to get the reaction of Connie London who spent several horrible hours at the Superdome. You heard the president say repeatedly that you are not alone, that the country stands beside you. Do you believe him?"

Connie London: "Yeah, I believe him, because here in Texas, they have truly been good to us. I mean-"

Reynolds: "Did you get a sense of hope that you could return to your home one day in New Orleans?"

London: "Yes, I did. I did."

Reynolds: "Did you harbor any anger toward the President because of the slow federal response?"

London: "No, none whatsoever, because I feel like our city and our state government should have been there before the federal government was called in. They should have been on their jobs."

Reynolds: "And they weren't?"

London: "No, no, no, no. Lord, they wasn't. I mean, they had RTA buses, Greyhound buses, school buses, that was just sitting there going under water when they could have been evacuating people."

Reynolds: "Now, Mary, you were rescued from your house which was basically submerged in your neighborhood. Did you hear something in the President's words that you could glean some hope from?"

Mary: "Yes. He said we're coming back, and I believe we're coming back. He's going to build the city up. I believe that."

Reynolds: "You believe you'll be able to return to your home?"

Mary: "Yes, I do."

Reynolds: "Why?"

Mary: "Because I really believe what he said. I believe. I got faith."

Reynolds: "Back here in the corner, we've got Brenda Marshall, right?"

Brenda Marshall: "Yes."

Reynolds: "Now, Brenda, you were, spent, what, several days at the Superdome, correct?"

Marshall: "Yes, I did."

Reynolds: "What did you think of what the President told you tonight?"

Marshall: "Well, I think -- I think the speech was wonderful, you know, him specifying that we will return back and that we will have like mobile homes, you know, rent or whatever. I was listening to that pretty good. But I think it was a well fine speech."

Reynolds: "Was there any particular part of it that stood out in your mind? I mean, I saw you all nod when he said the Crescent City is going to come back one day."

Marshall: "Well, I think I was more excited about what he said. That's probably why I nodded."

Reynolds: "Was there anything that you found hard to believe that he said, that you thought, well, that's nice rhetoric, but, you know, the proof is in the pudding?" <--(GET A LOAD OF THIS ONE!)

Marshall: "No, I didn't."

Reynolds: "Good. Well, very little skepticism here. Frederick Gould, did you hear something that you could hang on to tonight from the President?" (WELL DEAN, IS THAT ALL YOU WERE LOOKING FOR WAS SKEPTICISM?)

Frederick Gould: "Well, I just know, you know, he said good things to me, you know, what he said, you know. I was just trying to listen to everything they were saying, you know."

Reynolds: "And Cecilia, did you feel that the President was sincere tonight?"

Cecilia: "Yes, he was."

Reynolds: "Do you think this is a little too late, or do you think he's got a handle on the situation?"

Cecilia: "To me it was a little too late. It was too late, but he should have did something more about it."

Reynolds: "Now do you all believe that you will one day return to your homes?"

Voices: "Yes" and "I do."

Reynolds: "I mean, do you all want to return to your homes? We're hearing some people don't even want to go back."

Mary: "I want to go back."

Reynolds: "You want to go back."

Mary: "I want to go back. That's my home. That's all I know."

Reynolds: "Is it your home for your whole life?"

Mary: "Right. That's my home."

Reynolds: "And do you expect to go back to the house or a brand new dwelling or what?"

Mary: "I expect to go back to something. I know it ain't my house, because it's gone."

Reynolds: "What is the one mistake that could have been prevented that would have made your lives much better? Is it simply getting all of you out much sooner or what was it?"

Mary: "I'm going to tell you the truth. I had the opportunity to get out, but I didn't believe it. So I stayed there till it was too late."

Reynolds: "Did you all have the same feeling? I mean, did you all have the opportunity to get out, but you were skeptical that this was the really bad one?"

Unnamed woman: "No, I got out when they said evacuate. I got out that Sunday and I left before the storm came. But I know they could have did better than what they did because like they said, buses were just sitting there, and they could have came through there and got people out, because they were saying immediate evacuation. Some people didn't believe it. But they should have brung the force of the army through to help these people and make them understand it really was coming."

London: "And really it wasn't Hurricane Katrina that really tore up the city. It was when they opened the floodgates. It was not the hurricane itself. It was the floodgates, when they opened the floodgates, that's where all the water came."

Reynolds: "Do you blame anybody for this?"

London: "Yes. I mean, they've been allocated federal funds to fix the levee system, and it never got done. I fault the mayor of our city personally. I really do."

Reynolds: "All right. Well, thank you all very much. I wish you all the best of luck. I hope you don't have to spend too much more time here in the Reliant Center and you can get back to New Orleans as the President said. Ted, that is the word from the Houston Astrodome. And as I said, when the President said that the Crescent City will rise again, there were nods all around this parking lot."

Why Ben Stein is The Man

2005-09-15T10:05:00.000-04:00

I've been hesitating on commenting on the politics of Hurricane Katrina as it would require a novel to vent all of my frustrations. However, I think this article by Ben Stein pretty much sums it all up.

And on a side note... if the FEMA director deserves to be axed, then does that not logically conclude that Blanco and the mayor of New Orleans should also be axed? Were they not more responsible? Anyhow, read the article and another good post by a Navy SEAL on "Froggy Ruminations" on Ben Stein's wisdom. Both are quite thought provoking.

A Good Idea to Save on Gas

2005-09-15T09:45:00.000-04:00

Heh, heh, heh- I got this from a friend of mine via email. (Thanks Jenny)I remember the good old days when gas was only like $0.99 a gallon. It wasn't that long ago. Hell, at this point $2.00 a gallon would be nice! It's a shame that when I first purchased my truck (Land Rover Discovery) I was paying like $40 to fill it up, and am now paying $65. I bought it in June of 2005 not realizing that gas would climb so high, so quickly. I think if this trend continues I may have to sell it which would break my heart, as I love taking it to the great outdoors on my various little adventures; it's quite the SUV.

Pics of Downtown Bay St. Louis

2005-09-13T10:45:00.000-04:00

Quote of the Week

2005-09-13T09:13:00.000-04:00

"There has never yet been in our history a person who led a life of ease whose name is worth mentioning."

-Theodore Roosevelt

I'm back...

2005-09-08T21:21:00.000-04:00

Well- I could not get emergency leave from my commander unfortunately, but I was able to get a pass for the Labor Day weekend which I used to go home. I would have posted something sooner, but it's been hard to do much of anything after seeing all that I saw of what is left of my town. I don't have all of my pics yet, as most of them are still in my best friend's hands in Mobile, AL.

So, my trip began sometime Thursday afternoon and I arrived in Pensacola at a friend's house at 0530 Friday morning. The drive took forever because I was fearful of taking the more direct route through Alabama due to rumors of gas shortages, so I took I-95 down the East coast into Jacksonville, Florida, and then headed west only to find that gas was short from Tallahassee westward. Fortunately, I brought 8 extra gas cans with me. I also brought along MRE's and water for whoever I ran across. After a thirty minute power nap, I left my buddy's place at 0615 to meet my cousin Brandy, her husband, as well as my Great Aunt and my other cousin Amy, then bee-lined to Waveland. All looked normal on I-10 west until we reached the Mississippi-Alabama line. It was as if we entered a war zone at that point. Shrimp boats and yachts lined many spots on Interstate, and you could see where the storm surge had bent or snapped all of the trees inland. Also of notice were the casino billboard ads which were also completely annhilated.

Once we arrived to Hwy 603 and into Waveland it only got worse. Cars, boats, and trees lined the roads as if a Giant had forgotten to pick up his toys. The smell was not indescribable to someone who has been to a third world country. I've been to several, and the one it remineded me the most of was Haiti. A putrid aroma of urine, pine sap, fuel, mold, raw sewage, and death combined with 90% humidity made the air thick and nauseous. The streets and stragglers were lined with this "mud" making it seem you were no longer in America. Trees were everywhere and oddly the ones still standing looked like they were all dead or dying.

When we arrived to my cousin's I went in first with my Landrover's 4WD and parked in a safe place. My cousin stayed back and walked it in. While I was waiting, I made my first contact with people, except they didn't look so happy to see me. They apparently thought I was a looter bc I was by myself with a truck and was obvioulsy not from around their neighborhood. The two men approached with baseball bats at the ready. At this point, I was regretting having left my firearm back in NC, but I had my blade, and was praying that these guys weren't looking for trouble (I surely wasn't). After a prolonged pause, I broke the stare-down with my best Mississippi accent and asked if they knew anyone around that may need some food, water, and supplies, or even a ride out. They immediately began to question me, but their countenance noticeably changed. Within a few minutes we were trading war stories (which I had made up), and the rest of my little gang showed up to give me legitimacy as to being on the property as they recognized my Aunt and cousins. The two fellas ending up giving me some good tips for getting around, where to go and where to avoid.

I then proceeded alone to my part of town to see my dad's house which was closer to the beach (not even a mile away).

*** To be continued...

More Pics...

2005-09-08T21:05:00.000-04:00

**** John- I believe the second pic is of Forrest St. in Clermont Harbor.

Some Pics

2005-09-08T20:56:00.000-04:00

The first pic is one typical street in my neighborhood. The second is a pic of what is left of my cousin's house on Saint Joseph St.

How you can help

2005-09-01T08:40:00.000-04:00

Here is a link to charities that fellow bloggers have found that are already actively involved. Way to go America, keep it up. We need you.

Here is a list of all money given so far and by whom...

I'm in the process of getting emergency leave right now, pray that my commander would be generous, and understanding.

There is a way to get in by the way if you are coming from the East thru Alabama, you can get in via I10 but not sure as to when they'll start beaqring down on regular civilians coming in.

Hey Angelina Jolie- Where are you?

2005-08-31T13:05:00.000-04:00

You know, after seeing the drive by all these celebrities to support "One", and "Live8" and AIDS for Africa while at the same time bashing our president who has been the most philanthropic in terms of money in our history, I wonder where they are now.

Where is Martin and Charlie Sheen? Where is Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie? Where is Susan Sarando, Tim Robbins, and Alec Baldwin? Where are you Sean Penn?

My friends and family are literally starving on the Gulf Coast and New Orleans. There is no way into the area, and no way out. There is no electricity for the forseeable future, and worst of all no water. New Orleans and Gulfport/Biloxi are getting most of the coverage, but Bay St. Louis and Waveland took the brunt of the storm. Nothing is coming out of there, and we are worried. The stories that are coming out of there via blogs is horrifying.

The only big donators who are helping out financially right now are the typical same folks like WALMART. Are we not good enough for you Hollywood? We are your own countrymen.

Can't Get Home...

2005-08-31T13:00:00.000-04:00

Well, I got to speak with another buddy who is in Hattiesburg, MS. He said that all of the area is without power, and water. I asked how he is talking to me on the phone, and he said he charges his phone in his car, but us runninng out of gas. Gas is the biggest problem to getting into the area. There isn't a gas station open anywhere, and when it does get open the lines are a mile long (literally), and they run out within the day.

So, I've been plotting how I could home and get in there to bring some MRE's and water, and assess my own damage, but it looks like it will be feeble to try and get in, because I may not be able to get out.

I keep getting emails and phone calls from friends and family, and some are still unaccounted for. It is a disaster- undoubtedly the worst natural disaster to hit the US.

Links for Hurricane Info

2005-08-30T18:40:00.000-04:00

For Gulf Coast residents, the best place to start looking for loved ones is on WLOX's website.

This is a pic of one of the casinos which was literally washed across the other side f the highway.

The best feature of this site is the forum which people from all over the ocuntry have been posting to trying to get info on whereabouts of loved ones.

Here is the best blog on the chaos in New Orleans http://deadlykatrina.com/

It has everything from stories about police looting, to suicide jumpers in the Superdome and incredible stories of survival. You can't get this stuff on the TV news.

Also covering several different stories is Michelle Malkin's blog here.
Check it out as she has a knack for finding the best stories, and getting others to write about them as well.

I just spoke with a source in BSL who said that people were drowning in the Church across the street from the BSL post office on Hwy 90. The water came much further than it did in Camille, and people were not expecting it.

Also, this is grim news, but people are marking houses in BSL with black paint or red paint. Black indicating bodies that need removal, and red indicating suriviors who need rescue as they are immobilized.

more as it comes...

More news...

2005-08-30T18:21:00.000-04:00

Raun's fiance just called me and said that his parents and grandma are okay. The house is torn wide open so they can't leave due to the threat of looters. The message was from Raun's mother given to him by and insurance company rep. She asked Raun that if he got in to bring food and water.

My other friends John and Nancy are safe and sound with their newborn in Orlando, FL. However, John's parents (Wade and Charlotte) and whole family (24 people) stayed in Diamondhead, MS and their home was flooded 8 ft high. John is not sure of the condition of everyone, but said that they are all accounted for. John's sister and brother-in-law, Hannah and Charles, are still unaccounted for as well.

Family Head Count

2005-08-30T17:13:00.000-04:00

Here is the Family head count, I'll continue to update ASAP and leave messages for all as I get them. Let me know if you know of anyone else.

Rick, Rocky, and Jody: safe in Kansas City, cell phones down
Ray: safe in Hattiesburg, MS, cell phone down
Leah: safe in Pensacola, FL
Aunt Sandra and Uncle Dave: safe in Pensacola, FL
Clint, Danielle, and Dane: safe in Houston, TX

Brandy and James: safe in Ft. Walton, FL
Aunt Margaret and Amy: safe in Ft. Walton, FL
Uncle Ray and Aunt Joanie: safe in Fort Walton, FL
Brent and Sherry: safe in Jackson, MS
Chris and Todd: safe in Fort Walton, FL

Can anyone account for...

Aunt Velma:
Donald and Robin:
Aunt Mel and Aunt Mickey:
Uncle Gary:
Uncle Brian and Aunt Joanie:
Aunt Trudy and Kip:
Shannon:
Heather:
Duke:
Jason and Kristy:
Tiffany, Melody, Ryan:
Aunt Josie:

Katrina destroyed my home... My best friends haven't heard from their parents

2005-08-30T15:53:00.000-04:00

For those of you who aren't family and have so graciously followed this blog for the past few weeks I am from Waveland, MS. It's a small town pretty much synonymous with it's sister town of Bay St. Louis. Unfortunately, the major news networks haven't found Slidell, Waveland, Bay St. Louis, nor Pass Christian worthy enough for coverage. Only New Orleans, Biloxi, and Gulfport have gotten aerial views and coverage of the rescues currently taking place. It is a fact that these smaller areas received the brunt of the storm surge at 30+ feet. However, for now, I will give them the benefit of the doubt and say that they have yet to be able to get in the area due to debris and flooding.

Anywhow, for me personally, my family was not in our house when the storm hit. My father works in Kansas City right now, and my brother (22yo) and step-mother are with him there. My other brother (24yo) is about an hour north of the coast in Hattiesburg, MS and last I heard, he was fine as that area did not have to deal with a storm surge. My Grandmother has been staying by herself in the house, but was taken to Pensacola, FL by her daughter and son-in-law. So, my immediate family is okay and accounted for, but more than likely my house and my neighborhood are gone.

However, my two best friends, Parker and Raun, have not heard from their parents since the beginning of the storm's landfall. Parker last spoke with his father and was cut off right after learning that the water was beginning to rise very quickly in their backyard where a creek was. They live in Lacombe, LA which is a spitting distance away from Lake Pontchartrain. My buddy Raun last spoke with his parents also when the storm was making landfall. His mother, father and grandmother were all together in their home and were putting buckets all around the house in Biloxi, MS as their roof was being ripped apart by the winds. Both Parker and Raun's parents were a mere 2 or so miles from the Biloxi beach and Lake Pontchartrain, and neither have heard from their folks. Today, Raun attmepted to drive from Jackson, MS to Biloxi but was denied access by local authorities. Tomorrow he will try again, and this time be accompanied by a doctor who should be able to get both of them through on his Medical credentials in order to help. Parker is still contemplating flying in from Denver to Baton Rouge where he has a sister, and trying to get into the Lacombe area maybe by foot or paddle. His other sister who had planned to visit in from California for her birthday had to obviously cancel her flight, and she is obviously distressed. I too am likely going to try and get down there for this 4 day weekend and meet up with both of them somehow, and help find their folks as well as assess my own neightborhood. It all depends on authorities allowing the major roads to open. worst case scenario is we'll have to walk it in from the nearest point of access.

All in all, I am still trying to swallow the total devastation, and worst of all names keep coming up in my mind. Old friends and neighbors who I grew up with who might have stayed and waited the storm out. I fear that many people died in my hometown as well as the surrounding area. People for some reason have always waited out the worst storms- event the last one, Hurricane Camille. It is apparent that this storm's damage is much worse, and therefore, it is likely the deathtoll will be reciprocated.

Please pray for the people of Waveland, Bay St. Louis, Lakeshore, Clermont Harbor, Pass Chrisitian, Long Beach, which haven't gotten the attention like New Orleans, or Gulfport/Biloxi, but certainly have gotten the same and likely worse beating from Katrina.

For family, I'll be posting updates for everyone as I get them in. Feel free to post your own things as well.

Quote of the Week

2005-08-22T16:10:00.000-04:00

"Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have."

- Ronald Reagan

Docs, Denial, and a Deaf Guy

2005-08-17T22:48:00.000-04:00

Usually, most of my class lectures are conducted by SF Med Sergeants and Former SF Civilian PA's in a matter-of-fact, bottom-line, how-to guide on saving your buddy, while not getting shot, and still shooting the enemy- type of way . So- when an actual Doctor of Medicine (in my case a Colonel) comes to lecture us, I prepare myself with a huge thermos of coffee so I can maintain my concentration when the M.D. gives his abstract and theoretical explanations for what happens to us when we incur trauma, illness, what have you.

Usually, after a long lecture someone will try to mess with the Colonel by asking him crazy, off-the-wall questions that everyone wants to know, but really have no need to know. Things like: Why can't we keep our eyes open when we sneeze? Why do we puke when we run too much? or Why do we fart? Don't misunderstand me- we love learning, we love medicine and we take it very seriously, but we just like messing with the Colonel as its rare that an enlisted guy can do this to an Officer in the Army, especially a Colonel.

Anyhow, someone in the class asked a serious question for a change. "Why do so many people wait so long to go see a doctor when they are sick or hurt? Like the people with obvious advanced tumors, or gangrene, etc etc." The Doc quickly pointed out that 90% of us (SF guys) are guilty of this insanity as well, only when we get injured. Immediately, I knew what he was talking about as two images immediately popped into my head from SFAS (special forces assessment and selection). During our final land navigation exercise, I saw one fellow candidate with a blister so bad on his heel that I swear one could see bone, but instead of going to the medic and being med-dropped from the course, he just the cut off the heel of his boots in order to keep walking. Another guy broke his foot on a bad fall, and literally hopped, limped, and crawled his way back only to finish too late (he later tried out again in the next class and was selected). These are minor, but there are notorious stories out there of soldiers who literally injure themselves right out of the army and into disability. Well, the Colonel gave his answer and it was basically- "Denial. Denial. Denial." Why denial? The Doc didn't have the answer for that, but this brings me to my final observation.

The deaf guy...

Lately, my friends have pointed out a couple of things to me, which I have utterly denied until recently. Some typical conversations went something like these:

Example 1:
Comrade #1: "Rick - did you hear about the (mumble, mumble, mumble)"
Me: Huh! What?
Comrade #1: "Dude that's like the third time I've had to repeat myself"
Me: "Well, quit mumbling."
Comrade #1: "I'm not mumbling, you're just freaking deaf man."
Me: "What did you call me?"

Example 2:
(cell phone rings)
Me: "Hello?"
Comrade on phone: "yada yada yada... etc. etc."
Me: "What's up? yada yada"
Comrade sitting next to me: "Man, do you always yell when you talk on the phone?"
Me: "Hold on a sec, Joe is asking me something- huh?"
Comrade sitting next to me: "And why do you have the volume so loud, I can hear everything he's saying even over you yelling."
Me: "Did I miss something?"

Example 3:
(in my room watching TV)

Roommate walks in... "Damn man, what are you deaf? I could hear that TV down the hall"
Me: "Man, I was actually thinking about getting a sound system with it bc I thought the volume was weak (I always put the volume on max). Wanna go in on it with me?
Roommate: "No man, I don't need more sound, but I think I will invest in some ear plugs."

These are just a few examples, and I didn't even include my everyday "blast my friends away with my stereo upon starting my truck" example. What really got me out of denial was my log. That's right, I started marking on a 3x5 index card how many times in a day I had to ask someone to repeat something, or said "huh?" when spoken to. My little index card was heartbreaking by the end of the day, (and no longer white) thus I came out of denial, and into realization...

The Army has caused me hearing loss. I am going deaf. I would suspect it was the 240B machine gun in Phase II. See below...

Quote of the Week

2005-08-15T07:35:00.000-04:00

"Virtue is harder to be got than knowledge of the world; and if lost in a young man, seldom recovered."

- John Locke

The Beach Beckoned... And I Ran To Her

2005-08-09T22:46:00.000-04:00

Ah yes... sand between my toes, a good book, a crisp breeze, the roar of waves chasing the shore as time crawls at a mere half-step, while I sip on my Sweet Mexican Nectar (Corona w/ Lime).

I haven't been to the beach since Italy in the summer of 2003. Now I know for some of you that's not a big deal, but for a fella that grew up three blocks from the shore, it's a tragedy. So, luckily, a couple of old friends called me up early last week, and invited me to come to one of North Carolina's fine barrier islands, Emerald Isle, thus ridding me of my miniature curse. It was a much needed weekend to say the least.

Some things I took notice of during my getaway...

1) North Carolina really is a great state. Living in an arm-pit, oops, I mean Army-town like Fayetteville blinds one to this fact. I would compare this little illusion to a stunningly beautiful woman with a "beauty" mark, a small but necessary flaw, which if dwelled upon (a mole, freckles, whatever it may be) would render one kind of feeling gross all over at how something like that could actually manifest itself on a human body. Fayetteville is North Carolina's beauty mark. So, it's good to see the rest of this gorgeous piece of American real estate and appreciate the big picture. I live in a supermodel state!

2) Time goes by really really slow on the beach. I got up early, took a run, showered, ate some bacon and eggs, and then sat on the beach for what seemed like 24 hours straight. When I was ready to go in, it was only like 3 o' clock. So I thought to myself, eh, I'll stay out a little longer. I then proceeded to get in the water and perform some rad maneuvers in the surf (only without a board) which was highly entertaining to my friends. I think body surfing will make it to the X- games one day. After this, I had a Sweet Mexican Nectar with a ham and cheese sandwich, and some Sour Cream and onion pringles followed by half a cantaloupe. Still more time. I then turned a few pages in my Backpacker magazine, and fell asleep. When I woke, my head was tilted to one side with druel trapezeing out of my mouth, while my umbrella was apparently playing "let's be a sage brush" tumbling over all the little kids' sand castles, and my once entertained friends apparently thought the show was over, and were nowhere to be found. It was still daylight, and there was lots of it, which was proven by my now Pocahontas-like skin. This was all before sunset, and it only got better that evening.

3) This was the first time I had seen the Atlantic Ocean from the U.S. (previously I had seen it from Senegal, Africa)

4) Apparently the metrosexuals now dictate swimwear as well. The only swim trunks available these days are either speedos, or those surfer ones- you know, the long ones with all the neon or pastel colors, and flowers. Apparently only metro-sexuals go to the beach, or I really am getting old.

5) I have got to buy a kayak soon.

A "Traumatic" Week

2005-07-31T22:50:00.000-04:00

Well, it's Sunday and I've just gotten some time to tell of my latest "rite of passage". As I've stated previously, the Army has a way of taking really cool things and bringing out it's Mr. Hyde to make average Joe hate it. Some examples thus far have included parachuting, and initiating IV therapy on one another until we have no accesible veins. Seriously, if something happened to me I don't think a paramedic could get a viable vein on me right now unless he went for my neck. Every single spot on my arms, feet, hands, and legs have been hit several times. I am a walking hematoma.

Well, this past week we learned how to perform Nasogastric intubation. That is when you take a very thick tube and stick it up your nose, down your throat, and into your stomach so someone can retrieve gastric contents. Yes, we had to do it on one another like little guinea pigs as usual. we've had to do far more embarassing things up to this point that I haven't mentioned, but this was by far the most painful of all.

To my utter misfortune, my partner could not get the tube down my first nostril. That's not a big deal normally, but he seemed to think that if he just banged it harder it would somehow go in. The problem was that he was aiming too high and was just ramming the back of my nasal cavity. Yeah, blood was everywhere. Now, after the instructor finally told him to try the other side, I had to stop the guy to make sure he understood what he did wrong. This (I thought) would avoid both nostrils becoming useless, and having to go to plan B- right down my throat (this stimulates the gag reflex more easily). So, GI Joe starts on my right nostril, and sure enough can't get it. So, what does he do? You got it- banging away, nosebleed #2. Well, now that both of my nostrils are pouring out blood, I am not about to puke all over the place due to having to swallow that tube all the way down, so I grab Joe's hand and guide it in myself. It's in! Well, all that's left to do is put it all the way down to my stomach, listen for sounds when he blows air with a syringe and aspirate the syringe to get some gastric contents. My buddy forgot to listen with his stethoscope, and my instructor gave him a lecture on procedure for like three minutes. Three minutes may not seem like a long time, but when you've got a huge pipe down your nose and throat with a double nose bleed, it can be a little uncomfortable.

Finally, old boy, remembers to use his stethoscope, gets gastric contents, and slowly pulls out the tube. I puked everywhere once it got out, not from the tube but from all the blood which was now irritating my stomach.

The instructor went around and made sure everyone got their turn, and eventually we all recovered, some better than others. I took a total of 50 seconds on my partner to get it in, listen, get gastric contents, and get it out. I wanted so badly to torture him, but I couldn't bring myself to do it, the taste of iron was still too fresh on my tongue.

The class ended with "Welcome to Trauma gentelmen" by our instructor.

The Army's Socialist Dental Care

2005-07-26T12:41:00.000-04:00

So, it's been about 10 months since my last checkup for my choppers and I decide I need to take some action. I've been in the field for extended periods of time during training over the last year without brushing or flossing for days which means, I definitely have some nice tartar build up, and maybe even the beginnings of a couple cavities (unfortunately).

So, I've never had to setup an appointment before here on post, but I figure I can just call and ask for a routine checkup and cleaning just like I used to do when I was a civilian. Here begins the Commie mayhem. First, there are like 6 dental clinics on post assigned to different groups of soldiers. Because I am a student in the Q Course, I don't really have a "group" I belong to. This results in the receptionist getting really confused as to which clinic to send me to. Now remember, this receptionist doesn't receive payment for customer service, nor does must she worry about clientele numbers and generqting income for her boss, the dentist. So, of course she blows me off and tells me to call anothe clinic and ask them. So, I begin calling other clinics and after about the fourth reeptionist that tries to pass the buck to another clinic, I am finally told that the correct clinic is indeed the first one I called (Joel Clinic) HOW IRONIC. I proceed to speak once again with the original receptionist who then tells me that I can't setup an appointment over the phone, I have to come in person and show my ID and verify my unit.

The next day... Now, it's my lunch break, and I go in to setup an appointment for a cleaning and a routine checkup, easy right? Wrong. The receptionist asks, "what seems to be the nature of your problem. I reply, "nothing really I just need a cleaning and check up". She says, "well we don't set up appointments for that, you must come as a walk-in in the afternoon, and you will only be able to do an exam because we don't do cleanings with exams on the same day." I couldn't believe it, but I have become a very patient man so I say, "okay what days and times?" she answers, "Monday thru Friday from 12:00-2:00." Now, I only get an hour lunch break and I can't just take a day off to go to the dentist here in the Army, so how is this supposed to work? I will have to wait in a long line for depending on how many other people need to be seen, and by the time I get in I'll have to leave for work again. Well, I have become quite the patient man in dealing with bureaucracy since being in the Army, and living in socialist Italy for two years so I decide to give it a shot the next day. Guess what happened? I waited in line for an hour and had to leave bc my lunch break was over. I wasn't suprised, it was what I expected. So, I go back to the receptionist, and explain my situation, and ask how is it possible that I can't simply setup an appointment time like I would do at a normal clinic, and she replied "this is the Army son, get in line." I could not help but laugh while leaving. As I was leaving, to my great fortune, a nice, young, and very pretty I might add, hygienist who was watching the drama unfold, pulled me to the side and explained to me a way around the system... Ha Ha!

So, this morning I filled out a "sick call" slip which is what we would use to see a doctor when we are ill. But on the sick call slip I wrote, "toothache" which means I would see the dentist instead. The dentist did a routine examination, and took some xrays, and proceeded to inform me that I have two small cavities, and could use a cleaning. He also says that if the pain doesn't go away soon to come in to sick call again, at which I point I confessed my little white lie to which he laughed and said "Yeah, welcome to Socialist Medical Care".

All of this to say, this Commie medical may be a guarantee, but the service is horrible. My Dentist (for today) was a decent fellow, but what motivates him? He doesn't get paid any more if he does a good job or bad job. He doesn't have to worry about his reputation. I more than likely will be seen by another dentist on the day of my filling and cleaning. Is this the kind of Health Care that the Democrats want? Yes. Is this the kind of health care that U.S. citizens want? I hope not. I know there is a health care crisis in our country, but surely socializing it is not the best solution.

By the way, when I went to set up my follow up appointment, I can only do the cleaning or the filling in one day, and then I have to return for the other. I didn't even bother to ask why. It would make too much sense for the Army Socialist Health System to do them both in the same day.

Supreme Court nominee is a Conservative... Why is the Left surprised?

2005-07-20T12:33:00.000-04:00

So, GW picked a conservative Supreme Court Nominee, why is everyone surprised? Hmm, a conservative President picks a conservative judge. If Bill Clinton were to pick a liberal judge would you be surprised? No, but if Slick Willy had picked a conservative, now that would have been a head turner? Why is it so "controversial" that a President picks a nominee who has the same political values? The Libs say they worry of "judicial activism". They worry so much that they are willing to make a fiasco of the advise and consent process of the President's elected right to appoint Justices to the Supreme Court. I don't think it can get any clearer in the Constitution, nor in our history or tradition.

I am of the opinion that the Libs are just being poor losers. As much as I wish that the Conservatives will hold office forever, I know that sooner or later the Dems will indeed win the White House again one day. When that happens, the dutiful conservatives will certainly not prefer to see a liberal appointee, but they will surely advise and consent, as they have in the past. It's the way it's supposed to work- like the Yin and the Yang.

Can anyone name one conservative Supreme Court Justice who displayed "judicial activism" on a decision? No, it's virtually impossible (unless you consider Sandra Day O'Connor a conservative). You see, in the past 50 years the only "judicial activism" that has taken place, has been done so by liberal Supreme Court Justices. Do you really want me to name all the cases? It is a fact. The liberals have had a bad habit of legislating from the bench rather than allowing elected legislators to do their job. It is amazing that we as a representative government actually allowed this to take place.

The fact is, the Supreme Court is the only place Liberals have managed to get their agenda accomplished, and now it's the only bastion of hope for them remaining. The conservative agenda has been a vision that more (most) Americans want to see take place. If that were not true, then explain to me how both Houses of Congress, and the Administrative branch have had so much success. Please save the "Because he lied!" comments- really.

More later...

The Liberals Blaming everyone but the Suicide Bombers AGAIN!

2005-07-18T11:14:00.000-04:00

It was only a few days ago that I posted my thoughts on the London bombings and how the media coverage can be so insane. In that post, I predicted that eventually the Liberal media (especially in London) would blame someone other than the fanatical, Islamo-Fascist, Suicide Civilian Murderers. Well, is anyone else surprised by the title of this article?

"Blair fights talk Iraq made London terror target"

Basically, the bombings are Blair's fault for taking on the war in Iraq, because it "...boosted recruitment and fund-raising for al Qaeda". How does responsibility shift from the murderers to Blair? The article also goes on to explain that because Britain is allied with the United States, London has in turn become a terror target, well that's a little obvious, we are at War you know. Gee, what are the British to do? "Say, Mr. Islamo-Fascists do you think if we stopped fighting the War on your ideal of taking over Western Civilization maybe you'd leave us alone, and just kill Americans and Jews? Oh, and in the meantime, you can live in our country, enjoy our freedom and prosperity, and at the same time, preach about how evil the West is, and teach your young sons and daughters that if ever the British take a stand against us "Righteous Muslims", to retaliate by blowing yourself up with C4 on a bus, train, or plane. Oh, and make sure you get as many women and children as possible; that would make you extra special to Allah."

I suppose the media and Europeans thinks that our way of life comes without a cost. I don't understand Europeans, they of all should know what passivityand appeasement does- nothing! Do they really believe if we do nothing, and try to negotiate reasonably that it will stop Islamo Fascist terrorism? Was it not the media and the rest of the passive European leaders that figured Germany wasn't really going to try and take over Europe, and they weren't really systematically killing off the Jewish race. Even, our very own FDR stood by, and did nothing (until Pearl Harbor) while Churchill begged him to join in the cause to liberate Europe. I wonder what FDR's not so far off relative Teddy would have done? We know very well what he would have done.

The point of the article is that involvement in Iraq caused the London bombings. I whole-heartedly disagree. I love how Blair's representative responds- "

"The terrorists have struck across the world, in countries allied with the United States, backing the war in Iraq, and in countries which had nothing whatever to do with the war in Iraq," he told reporters in Brussels. "It is the responsibility of people in the civilised world to stand up to that terrorism and not provide them with any excuse whatsoever."

To top it all off, here is some more proof of how biased the media is...

"The arguments add to a handful of similar comments from minor political figures including maverick ex-Labour politician George Galloway and Charles Kennedy, leader of the country's third biggest party, the Liberal Democrats, who opposed the war."

Wow, so if- a) you are a leader in the minority party b) a liberal and c) oppose the war- you are a "MAVERICK". I could have sworn the definition of a maverick was one who went on his own, away from the view of his party. Like my favorite maverick, John McCain.

Hmmm, maybe we should be wary of the distinguished Senator from Arizona who is so often called a "Maverick". Is it because he is a maverick or that he is willing to toe closer to the liberal line of the issue? I've never heard Zell Miller called a Maverick, surely the former Democratic Senator from Georgia would fall easily into this category, but how many times has he been called a "Maverick"? Or how about Mr. Blair? He went against his party's wishes, but I've never heard him called a Maverick.

Isn't it funnny how the media portrays Mr. Blair and Mr. Bush as the evil twins of the West, yet the PEOPLE keep re-electing them. Hmmm, something is just not right, maybe more people really do think this war is worth fighting, and that doing nothing will only allow these Islamo Fascists to instill fear without consequence, and without end.

Thank you Mr. Blair for sticking to what's best for the sake of Western Civilization, and not for your polls and media opinion.

Christina at work...

2005-07-15T18:59:00.000-04:00

This reminds me of one of the reasons I do not miss the civilian world, although the pay would be very nice. Christina- you really should go home early, it is Friday.

I thought this was funny...

2005-07-15T12:38:00.000-04:00

One Liberal has a Crush on Mohammed

2005-07-14T11:44:00.000-04:00

***** The Link to the cover story photo, and article on Huffington's blog is no longer available. I could not find it in the search bar on her site either, and even tried to get the photo from the London paper that published it. However, there is a subscription fee for archive privileges so I passed. If any of you find it or one similar to the phot0 let me know so I can repost it. Thanks, Rick (Edited July 16th)****

On Arianna Huffington's blog today, one heading for the London Bomber story reads...

"London Suspects Were Charming, Athletic, Educated…"

What am I supposed to try to relate to them? Hey I've been known as "Charming, Athletic, and Educated", does that make me like them?

I don't get it! How can liberals always try to make terrorists out to be some kind of "really nice guys who just had a bad day".

The London media in the article of this magazine cover attempts to portray these guys as normal and even likeable young men. Yes, they have personalities, yes, they have friends, but yes- they were evil murderers, yes I used the word evil. I mean these guys bombed innocent civilians which means men, women, and children, indiscriminately. Then they go on to ask what led these sweet, innocent, and regular young men to commit such atrocities. HELLO!!!!

I bet later this week they'll eventually blame the British govt or their favorite, GW Bush and their aggressive posture towards terrorism. Yes, I predict it now- liberals always acknowledge that what terrorists do is wrong, but later (when the emotional smoke clears) say "but it wasn't their fault- it was our policies, or our society's lack of tolerance", or some bunch of crap like that.

Bottom line- there is no being nice to these people, SO STOP! They are not Westerners in their views of Warfare. They are not Westerners in their beliefs about God. These men are fighting an Islamic Jihad, a holy war. We don't understand this because, we have no reference point other than the Crusades hundreds of years ago. We, on the other hand, are fighting a "political" and "ideological" war. And in fighting these wars it doesn't help when the media tries to make the average Joe sitting on his couch playing Xbox or watching TV sympathetic to our enemies.

They are the enemy (not our friend). They want to kill us, not me by the way (the military), but YOU- the average mom, dad, or the little girl holding your hand as you cross a street on your way to a bus station while a "Charming, Athletic, and Educated" young Mohammed Hussein Moussai Al Zar-Qaeda waits in anticipation so he can blow himself up, kill you, and receive his reward of five virgins from Allah once he reaches heaven- because this is the pinnacle of good deeds that he can do while on Earth. (I would think giving up his life to save you from being hit by oncoming traffic would be more appropriate).

And of course, they want to detroy our way of life (we are perverted infidels- remember?).

So, American Liberals- you keep fighting for these guys' so called "rights" at Gitmo, while the British fight for the rights of Radical Islamic clerics to preach hell, fire, and "suicide bombing" of innocent civilians. Yeah keep it up, I'm sure it'll help somehow.

Is there one story out there that portrays these men for what they are?

Stick it to me

2005-07-13T10:35:00.000-04:00

Yeah- we just began the trauma portion of the course, and part of our training includes how to do IV's. We are averaging about two to three sticks a day right now, and all of these sticks come from someone who has never done IV's before, so one can imagine what my arms look like right now (like a heroin addict).
We are not allowed to use the antecubital vein (the main one in the joint of the arm). The cadre say we'll start sticking legs, feet, and hands due to the fact that we are running out of good veins to hit. I have a funny feeling that's going to be a little uncomfortable. All this to say- I hate needles! I haven't gotten an IV in someone else successfully yet, but that should all change today or tomorrow, as I'm getting better.

That's all for now- more on some training later.

The Art of Being Single (according to St. Paul)

2005-07-11T21:18:00.000-04:00

Tommy's Sermon

This link takes you to the sermon I just listened to... WOW. The pastor from Denton Bible Church, Tommy Nelson, takes you through I Corinthians 7:25-35 and really focuses on two things: 1) taking advantage of our time as singles to serve the Lord, and 2) not succumbing to the popular belief that once we are married, service to God must end. Distractions, distractions, I have them, but I can only imagine what it must be like for married couples and families.

This sermon is great for the bachelor or bachelorette, the newlyweds, and even the all stars who are into their golden years of that sacred covenant.

Challenging, insightful, thought provoking, and as always... extremely witty. Listen for yourself.

4th Navy SEAL body found

2005-07-11T12:08:00.000-04:00

Navy SEAL is found...

In response to this article, I say thank you Lord that we were able to recover the body of the fourth SEAL, and bring closure for the family. My fellow Spec Op Medic classmates (which includes us, SEALS, and Marine Recon guys) and I have been following this story closely. Our greatest concern was if this operator was still evading, and surviving, or if he had indeed been captured. If captured, we were concerned if another barbaric, and cowardly beheading had taken place as was claimed by one of those "Al Qaeda spokesman on the web".

Have any of you actually seen one of these beheadings? I wouldn't encourage the faint of heart to take a look, but it certainly sheds some new light on who or better- what we are fighting against. We as Westerners would never consider beheading a prisoner. Here is the link to Mike Savage's website which has past beheadings of innocent civilians-

I wonder what would happen if the Western and Arab media gave half the coverage on how Western prisoners are treated as they gave on Gitmo. Hey Dan Rather, why don't you do a special one hour story on the comparison between A) beheadings, and B) 3 meals a day with a little interrogation, and some free time- I bet it would be quite the interesting story, it might even win you a Pulitzer or better yet, win back some credibility...

Heck, we might as well make the Gitmo prisoners citizens! We've already given them more privileges than a regular State Pen. prisoner would have.

A presto ragazzi!- Rick

Just another day at the office...

2005-07-11T12:03:00.000-04:00

This jump was on July 6th. I can't say I enjoy jumping yet, as Mother Army has a very funny way of turning fun, civilian recreational activities (like parachuting) into something miserable, in this case, "Airborne Operations".

My first trip to the Blue Ridge Mountains

2005-07-09T22:15:00.000-04:00

This is a pic of me at the end of my 3 day trek of the Linville Gorge Wilderness Trail in the Blue Ridge Parkway in Western North Carolina during the 2005 Fourth of July weekend. As you can see, I am soaking wet (I was rained on the entire time) but it was still a blast to be able to get away from Fort Bragg for a few days and spend some time alone to "recharge". The fly fishing was great, and the terrain was strenuous- definitely not for the novice. I walked 10 miles out and 10 miles back in with a full rucksac. I didn't see nor speak to anyone for the first two days on the trail, which was kind of strange... what's the longest you've been without talking to someone?

2005-07-09T22:09:00.001-04:00

bird's eye view of Linville Gorge

2005-07-09T22:08:00.001-04:00

I am a Cubs Fan indeed

2005-07-09T22:08:00.000-04:00

A humble campsite...

He leads me beside quiet waters... He restores my soul...

2005-07-09T22:00:00.000-04:00