No Second Round

After the usual OCCP meeting we went to have a look at the second main bridge in Aybak, which was torn down by a flood in March this year. It was totalled, as they say, but the locals had built a narrow footbridge over the remains and were fording the river with Zarangs (the local name for motor rickshaws). As usual, a horde of kids gathered around us. From the river bank, we drove to the other side of town to the headquarters of the IEC (Independent Election Council) to hear what kind of orders and plans their chairman had after the cancellation of the second round. Up until today some of the local authorities have acted as if there was going to be a second round in the elections after all, but now it seems that the information (and reality) has caught up with everyone. The IEC chairman said that the cancellation would make some people angry, but that he was not expecting any trouble.

Our first cook A went on leave, and the second one, T, has not yet arrived from his leave, so we had to prepare lunch ourselves. That's really easy using the combat rations, or "combo" like we call it, which are stored in abundance at the PO. Our kitchen assistant F prepared a salad and some fruit for dessert. Some of the guys switched combos for MRE (Meal Ready-to-Eat, the American version) and tried the German and Croatian delicacies. To everyone's amusement, the German combo contained Cevapici and Gulash, which were both german dishes back in 1943. In the afternoon I thoroughly cleaned my quarters, where the dust had covered most surfaces again. I also wrote a couple of reports and did some other paperwork, and the food delivery truck came. The CO left for his leave, so now I'm once again in charge. It looks like a couple of really busy weeks ahead, but I'm sure that I'll manage somehow.


I found this fellow in the gutter outside the PO's main gate around midnight, when I was walking the DO's round. The guard R told me that it was very poisonous to touch.


Here are the Duty Officer's basic tools. Some are fortunately needed more frequently than others.