Thursday at 6AM I started my shift on kaf-kaf. Kaf-kaf is a 24 hour shift where 6 of us are on call for basically anything and everything. We are the first response for terrorists, fire, ambulance and everything in between. In addition to doing everything like a normal day with the tzevet, the 6 of us have to stay together the entire time and fully dressed including the appx. 25 pound vest the entire shift. We also took turns wearing the stretcher. We got to sleep at 930, but got woken up at 11PM by one of the guys yelling kaf kaf. I jumped from the bed and started the almost 3 minute sprint across the base to the war room. I did not mentally wake up until I got there and the samelet started talking to us and telling us to open the stretcher.Until then it was a full on adrenaline rush. As part of the test we had to put one of the guys on the stretcher and run him about 200 meters to where the ambulance is. After that ordeal I was not able to go back to bed and stayed up all night waiting for the next test call which never came.
5 of us on kaf-kaf: david, me, anton, edgar and anatoli
After the drill I had my first shift of guard duty. The shifts are 2 hours long - and you get shifts at ALL obscene hours of the day. Some blaces have 2 people guarding, while others only have one. In theory guarding is pretty easy - the things you are allowed to do are:
1. Guard
2. Stand
3. Drink water or hot tea
4. Sit for 10 minutes in the middle of your shift.
5. If something happens, call it in on the radio.
Things you aren't allowed to do is EVERYTHING else including but not limited to eating, listening to music, reading, praying, writing, using your phone, going to the bathroom, sleeping, etc.
My first shift was 4-6PM at the front gate of the base. There was a guy that works there and does all the work, so I just had to stand there. During the shift 3 cars almost pulled up to the gate, but turn around - I think I scared them away :-) Shift highlight: There was a shift switch of the guy that works at the gate for my last 10 minutes, and the new guy put on music (he can do whatever he wants).
For the holiday we had a nice sit down dinner minus food trays, timed meals, and self service. The tables were set, and the food was much much better than what we normally get. It was a full meal with salads, soup, chicken, brisket, potatoes, and desert. All the meals were like that.
The next shift was from 2-4AM. Luckily I had someone with me to talk to so it helped to pass the time. Shift highlight: someone at a differetn guard post saw a dog and felt it was necessary to tell everyone a number of times over the radio.
Shift 12-2PM on saturday: I had to run from shul to get there. The worst part was that I ran past the lunch room while everyone was lined up to go eat. This was the most boring 2 hours of my life - exhausted and hungry with nobody to talk to. Shift highlight: a bee chased me around for 5 minutes.
After about an hour nap I got woken up for a relatively unnecessary head count. To make sure everyone was still around and hadn't gone missing from the base. One would say that this is pretty stupid - who is going to walk off the base, but what do you know some moron walked off the base on Sunday to buy a pack of smokes. Just after the head count it started to rain! It was awesome to finally see some rain. I hadn't seen rain since the beginning of May in Toronto. It hung out in the rain for a bit as it was nice and refreshing - especially because Israel needs all the rain it can get. My next guard shift was from 12-2AM and boy did it pour. A transformer blew just as I started my shift so there wree no lights - luckily my guard partner hada flashlight. We also managed to find shelter and stay dry for the most part. Usually for Rosh Hashana what I do is go to shul, eat and sleep. However this time the sleep was swapped with guarding.
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