What a week!

I thought this was a great picture to show how I have been feeling this week....(thanks Mike).

I have been feeling lousy for the past couple of weeks and it was really bad over the last few days. I will spare you all the bathroom stories, but the other usual symptoms such as stomach ache, nausea, loss of appetite and of course my personal favourite, weight loss.

So two nights ago after another night of waking up at 2:00 am and soaked in sweat, I decided I had to go to the Doctor. In the morning I headed off to the clinic and explained my symptoms to the Doctor. She took some blood samples, returned several minutes later and stated "you have malaria". I asked "are you sure?", she said "yes", I said "really?" she said "yes". I paused for effect and asked her again "are you sure?". She also paused for effect and said "I have been treating patients in Afghanistan for 16 years and I am sure". She prescribed some meds and off I went...in disbelief.

You can imagine how quickly I shipped off the result back to Ottawa for our Health Services to take a look at. I also mentioned that I was going to go to another clinic for a second opinion, which they supported as well as asking for additional testing.

So this morning I went to the German Clinic and gave blood and was asked to return with a stool sample (I'm not talking about a small chair) which I did later in the day. After all my various body samples were tested, the Doctor informed me in a rather shrill loud German voice "I can't confirm the malaria, but you are full of parasites"

My bathroom vanity looks like a Pharmasave Drug Store and I am trying to keep my meds straight...not forgetting to take my daily vitamin pill of course. Heavens only knows what would happen if I stopped taking that.

I feel like the rooster....what a week!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

First off....I would like to thank everyone for the comments on the last post. It was really great to see all the kind words from literally across the world.

We had our Thanksgiving dinner last night at the Embassy and usually the dining hall is open for a couple of hours for dinner, but last night we had just one seating. This was the first time I had actually sat down with everyone for dinner and it was quite nice. We had turkey, ham and of course pumpkin pie....or at least some kind of pie made from an orange gourd.

When I got back to Afghanistan from leave, I headed down south right away. I spent several days visiting our folks and meeting with the various military commanders. I made it to KAF, CNS, FOB Walton, PHQ headquarters and Police Sub Station 1#.

The group picture above is of me, our Advisory NCO Wendall Ackerson and C/Supt Bob Goodall who we have placed into EUPOL. Also in the photo is the police deputy commander from PSS 1#. I went out with the guys to complete an assessment of the station and meet with the commander. When we arrived first thing in the morning, he was still asleep. Now at first glance you might think this odd...but in Afghanistan, most of the police live right at the police station. They not only get paid to be a police officer, but they also get food and lodging. Not to mention that from a security point of view, they don't tend to go home. After we got him up and were interviewing him in his office, I noticed that he only had one sock on. I thought to myself "at least he could have got dressed properly..." Then during our subsequent conversation I mentioned how brave he and his men are, given all the attacks. At that point his lifted his leg (the one with a sock on it) and put it on his desk and banged his fist against it! He explained how he had lost his leg during an attack on his police station.....shame on me.

One night while I was at CNS I was busy at a meeting when one of our crew came rushing in and asked for my room key. Apparently something was inside my room and crashing around making an awful noise that could be heard outside. Turns out the culprit was a tiny kitten that must have snuck in when I went to close the door to my room. Needless to say, the kitten starting screaming for it's momma once it realized it was locked in....kids!

The last picture is some of our crew down at CNS with hockey legend Guy Lafleur. He was at CNS along with a couple of Ministers and our folks provided a briefing to the group on the training we do at the camp. These are truly outstanding people who are doing a great job...can't you just tell by the smiles on their faces!

Happy Anniversary!

To my beautiful wife:



For it was not into my ear you whispered, but into my heart.
It was not my lips you kissed, but my soul...

(Judy Garland)


Happy 28th anniversary Debra!

I know when I was in Vancouver on our anniversary last year I said it would be the last one I would be away for.....whoops!

Thanks for all the great years together and I look forward to many, many more.

All my love,
Dave

New York Trip

Good evening all!

Alas...I must report that my trip home has come and gone in a blink of an eye. I simply can't believe how fast the time went by and more importantly, how much our family crammed into a couple of weeks.

As you can no doubt tell from the pictures I have included, we took a trip down to New York City while I was home. Debra and I have been to NYC several times, however the girls have not and we decided to take advantage of my time home to do a "family trip". Given there is a wedding in the near future (not to mention grandchildren at some point) we thought it would be fun for the four of us to do a road trip. It has been quite some time since the four of us travelled together and we had a blast.

We drove down to Syracuse NY where we spent one night and then jumped onto a train the next morning to NYC where we spent three nights at the Roosevelt Hotel right in Manhattan. The hotel was within walking distance to all the major tourist attractions and we were able to take in as many as possible. We took the girls to see sights such as Central Park, Empire State Building, Rockefeller Centre, Times Square, Statue of Liberty, Chinatown, and of course take in a Broadway Show (Chicago).

After New York we headed back to Ottawa and spent the next two days wedding dress shopping. I can't even begin to put into words what I felt when I saw Jennifer standing before me in a wedding dress...needless to say, it brought a tear to my eye. Unfortunately Jennifer's time was short and she had to fly back to Calgary to return to work, however a dress has been selected and an order been placed.

The remainder of my time in Ottawa was spent working on the house and enjoying Debra's superb home cooked meals....I should mention that during my time in Afghanistan I have lost some weight. I didn't realize how much until Debra hugged me at the airport and then had me weigh myself. Turns out that I had lost 16 pounds.....which as most of you know is not something I can afford to loose at the best of times. I did manage to put 9 pounds back on during the short time due completely to my wonderful wife.

Before I sign off for the evening, I must share that my return to Afghanistan was a much different arrival than my initial one. Being familiar with the country, environment, the job and of course the people, makes all the difference in the world. It felt "good" to return to Kabul and get back to work. That being said, I cannot overstate the immediate and complete sadness I felt when I said goodbye to Debra, Jennifer and Sarah.

I know this is very difficult for them and I have been truly blessed with such a loving and supportive family....

First Trip Home

I will be heading out very shortly for my first trip home. I can't tell you how much I am looking forward to it...something about heading home, always makes a person feel great. I am really looking forward to taking our dog for a walk....taking my gun off....and hugging my wife.

I will be "out of theatre" for about three weeks and will continue to publish posts while I am away. I want the blog to capture the entire year of the Mission and I think the trips home and holidays are all part of the experience. I wouldn't be doing one without the other. During this trip home, Debra and I are taking the girls to New York City for a couple of days where we will take in all the sights, go to a Broadway show, etc. Debra and I have been to NYC a couple of times previously but the girls have not. There is just something about the vibrance NYC has and I have no doubt in my mind there may be some window shopping for a wedding dress.

The picture above was taken during a dinner to say farewell to S/Sgt. Dennis O'Byrne. Dennis (in the red shirt) has finished his year in Mission and is on his way back to BC. Dennis was our Advisory NCO and without a doubt, is the most efficient and organized person I have ever met. We are really, really going to miss him....just a super guy.

Cpl. Brian Pinksen

I just attended my fourth "ramp ceremony" since my arrival here in Afghanistan. Cpl. Pinksen is the 152nd Canadian to loose his life trying to make Afghanistan, Canada and the world a safer place.

At the ceremony tonight, the General spoke about how Brian wanted to be here and how much it meant to him to be part of the Infantry. Brian had said many times how the infantry was the backbone of the army. The worse the conditions, the more Brian liked it and the more he felt the need to participate.

He was severely injured while patrolling a small village as he walked down a narrow alley. They had to be out on foot, as the alley was too narrow for the armoured vehicles. The villagers needed protection and Brian was part of the team answering the call for help. An IED exploded causing injuries which ended his life several days later and stole him from his family and friends back home. He was only 21 years old...who knows what else he may have accomplished had his life not been cut so short.

My heart goes out to his parents in Newfoundland. I simply cannot imagine the grief they must feeling right now.

A Lasting Tribute

The Embassy recently held a tribute for one of our Gurkhan guards. It was a moving tribute not only in the sense the Ambassador planted a tree in the guard's honour, but also in the tragic way the guard's life ended.

The guard we held a tribute for, had taken his own life. He was experiencing financial problems back home and felt he simply could not return home and face his family. What a tragedy for someone to be so despondent that choosing to end their life, is the only solution they feel they have left.

It is amazing to me how many layers of complexity there are to life in Afghanistan. The Gurkhan guards the Embassy uses to provide security for our staff, come from Nepal or India. Most have a background in the army or policing and come to Afghanistan for the steady employment and good pay. They are extremely proud and take their responsibility of protecting the Embassy staff very seriously. I spoke to one recently and he has been in Afghanistan for almost five years. He works for 11 months straight and goes home for one month. When I asked him why he would be away from his family for such long periods of time, his responded simply "to send money home and give my family a better life".

In a country so filled with violence, misery and despair, this one incident will pass by barely noticed, except perhaps for the lasting tribute of an apple tree which hopefully will stand for generations to come and maybe one day can be admired by people strolling down a street without barricades, blast walls and barbwire.