New Arrivals

The new crew:  Josh (USAF flight tech), Shawn (the big cheese), Marisa (civilian flight nurse),
Rebecca (pharmacist), Brad (USAF flight surgeon), Jim (USAF flight nurse)
Current condition: Con3 (verging on Con2).  Temp -9ºF (windchill -36ºF), blowing snow.  Population ≈ 564



As expected, this week, the base has more than doubled in size from 250 at our arrival to over 550 now. I find myself resenting the newcomers.  The dining hall is now crowded and noisy, filled with unrecognized faces whereas one week ago, I felt like we were all family.  But the newcomers are an interesting lot. People I've met include a Dartmouth grad, Vermont resident, former teacher now working as a carpenter; a Fairbanks, Alaska school teacher--about my age--whose husband took a sabbatical to work in Tasmania so she decided to work in supply here in Antarctica; a Stanford grad student studying marine biology at Hopkins Marine Research Center in Monterey who is tagging Emperor penguins on the ice and who, parenthetically, can't swim despite his field of research.  The grad student's boss is a PhD with an MD who conducts penguin research six months of the year in Antarctica and works as an anesthesiologist in Santa Cruz the other six months (lecture tomorrow).  It's an interesting crew.

Marisa gets a puppy for her birthday yesterday.  
The clinic, too, has new staff.  Where we had four on Monday, we now have ten.  Added to Dean, Shawn and PT Beth (who is leaving on Monday), are three Air Force flight medicine crew (the flight surgeon, Lt. Col. Brad who looks just like Kevin Bacon, flight nurse, Capt. Jim, and a flight technician, Airman Josh), and three people I trained with in Galveston (pharmacist Rebecca, physical therapist Joe, and flight nurse Marisa).  I love this crew and am so looking forward to working with them.  The place just has a happy vibe to it.  Great senses of humor all around and no one takes himself too seriously.  At the end of work, we had a little happy hour to thank Beth and wish Marisa a happy birthday.   I laughed so hard, I had to gasp for air.

Image result for testosterone pellet
Testosterone pellets; no buttock shot, I'm afraid.
And the highlight of my workday?  I got to extract an extruding testosterone pellet implant from the buttock of a heavily tattooed and pierced would-be he-man.  He then blabbed about it with great excitement to anyone who would listen at dinnertime in the galley.  The job has never-ending novelty.









Comments

Eric said…
From my non-medical male perspective how and why does a person do this to themselves?
October 11, 2019 at 9:30 PM
Anonymous said…
Lt. Col. Brad **does** look just like Kevin Bacon!! Loving your blog posts, reading them out loud to Alex...
October 15, 2019 at 1:33 AM
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