Caught up

"Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe."  -Abraham Lincoln

I wondered if/when it would happen, and it finally did...I got sick. In Iraq, spending a lot of time with the Iraqis, eating their food, and drinking their chai, I got moderately under the weather pretty regularly. Usually not too seriously, just gastrointestinal issues leading to repeated trips to the outhouse/ditches. I had some of the same issues in SE Asia and Latin America from time to time. Surprisingly, given how much Afghan food and boiled river water I've drank since I've been here I hadn't had the problem at all till the other day. Well, the sickness finally came and it got me good. Being 100 meters from the nearest bathroom when you're in such a state isn't much fun. Not even watching the "Training Montage" from Rocky IV was much help in getting me going. That video reminds me I've still yet to fully reach manhood since I've yet to chop down a large tree.

On the plus side, the schedule the last few days has allowed me to catch up on my sleep, and since I haven't really been eating I've inadvertently managed to knock off those last few pounds of baby fat that the heat in recent months hadn't already melted off my body. Carrying around extra weight when it's 105 degrees and moderately humid doesn't make much sense. The trick will be keep those pounds off till we're almost ready to go home and then bring them back in a more solid state to get ready for the beach in Hawaii. At any rate, I'm feeling fine now.

Drago!