Change of Mission

Be careful what you ask for....

About a week ago I changed my status on my Facebook account to "ready for a change of mission".
Little did I know how close I was to exactly that!

It's been the plan for some time now that after I finished my command at the Salerno Hospital I would move too Qalat, Afghanistan to serve as a liaison to the Jordanian Field Hospital. I was planning to do that on or about 3 January 2008. Well, late on 12 December I got a call from my boss, "I need you in Qalat on 14 Dec!" For anyone who has served here, getting from point A to point B is rarely easy, and never quick.

So, after a whirlwind 3 days getting my personal and professional affairs in order I departed from FOB Salerno on 16 December, heading to Bagram to catch a flight to Kandahar to catch another flight to Qalat. But, Bagram is always backed up with personnel trying to get to places throughout Afghanistan, and at this time of year the mail has priority over most passengers, so everyone can get their Christmas packages on time! So, here I sit in Bagram, waiting for a flight...

I'll keep up the blog from Qalat, and I'll see if there is someone who will keep up the blog for the Salerno Hospital from FOB Salerno.

I'll post more when I get settled, in Kandahar or Qalat, or wherever the next mission takes me.

Phillips, out.