02 December 2007

2 DEC 2007 Balad Sunday

2 DEC 2007 Balad Sunday
I slept late today. Even though Sunday is a little different than other days, since we don’t have morning report and the OR starts a little later, it hasn’t been very different for me. For the last four Sundays, I have been on call, backup, or post call, so they have pretty much been the same schedule. Today, I am not on call or post call, so I have no duties, unless there is a mass casualty, (touch wood). I slept until I could sleep no more. I’m not sure what forced me off my mattress first, gas pains from too many baked beans last night, or obsessive compulsive nightmares about military outprocessing paperwork.

Last night, the hospital held a holiday party behind the CASF. It was a chilly night, but that didn’t stop just about every troop who wasn’t on duty from showing up. We had a barbecue in a half barrel with bratwurst from Germany and burgers from the DFAC. The party planning committee also ordered Pizzas from Pizza hut. The tables were decorated with sheets for table cloths, and lots of Christmas trinkets. We had set up speakers and the karaoke machine. There was cake and foosball in back.

The Chief called out numbers for the door prizes. The door prizes were stacked along the CASF. They had put together so many door prizes that there were more prizes than guests. We were shivering, but kept returning to the grill for more to eat while the music played. There was a “pimp my litter” contest. The ward had entered “Casino Balad” decorated with colored lights and a blackjack game while the OR had put in a stretcher decorated with a shiny Mercedes emblem and a sacked out rider. The prize went to the ER for their combat litter, complete with sniper netting and gun turret. One Airman hid in the pillbox for over an hour just to pop out at the right moment during the exhibition.

After dinner, carolers who had been practicing since November favored us with Silent Night and Gloria. Silent Night was particularly delightful when Chief punctuated the refrain with verse numbers in her strongest parade drill voice. Two singers performed a Balad version of “Santa Baby” including lines like “hurry down the flight line to me” and “put me on the chalk tonight.” Long after the cold had forced most back into the hospital, a few die-hards warmed the night with karaoke versions of “I’m like a bird” and “Lady Marmalade.”

The rains have finally come. Last night, in the wee hours the rain “beat like bullets on the roof” as it does in the Cadbury poem “Nature”. Soon the Balad dust will be whipped into ankle deep mud the thickness of peanut butter. As the morning lightens, I hear occasional far-off small arms fire in between the roar of F-16s leaping skyward. It’s time to wander into the hospital to see what’s on.

7 comments:

Bag Blog said...

Sounds like a great time was had by all, except for those who ate the baked beans. I would love to have heard the singing especially Santa Baby.

make mine trauma said...

Thank goodness you got a day to relax. As much as I love the OR, I'm not sure how I would hold up mentally with the incessant casualties (especially the bad guys) and what sounds like a grueling schedule complete with miltary action happening all around. It does conjure up images of M.A.S.H.

HollyB said...

Sounds like a fun party, just wish it could have been in my back yard!

I'm glad you got a day of rest, too. The way you've been workin' this week, you needed some down time.

Take care.

Anonymous said...

Glad to hear you had some fun and rest. You deserve it.
Next time keep the beans to a minimum. LOL

Have a great day!

Chris said...

Dear BagBlog, MakeMineTrauma, Holly, and Lainy,

Food is always an adventure here! You never know what you're gonna get. I just had a stuffed pepper that was surprisingly good! Hope I don't pay for it later! It's good to relax, but you can never count on it. I was just about to climb my sandbags onto my roof when I got called in for emergency surgery. It wasn't any big deal to go, but in just had to come when I was about to stretch out! I'm already thinking about how to best party when I get home!
Take care,
Chris

ChefSara said...

I'm glad you hear you're able to celebrate over there...just go easy on the baked beans next time ;-)

EE said...

Sounds like fun!

Hope your day is going well!