Take a Deep Breath

Copyright © 2015 by David MacGregorAll rights reserved. This book, or any portion within, way not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.For permission requests, write to Tony.b.Wilde. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, organizations, locals, or actual events is entirely coincidental.

Comments

The characters, places, and events in Take a Deep Breath, though fictitious, are influenced by my own experiences.This electronic book will be updated frequently with Tony's (Anthony's) continuing adventures much as some continuing serials in newspapers of yore. Check back and update your download from Amazon (or default your Kindle so that it will automatically download any changes). Leave comments if you want to see more stories about Tony or his friends.David MacGregor physician-anesthetist, traveler.

Preface

Take a Deep Breath by David MacGregorThese are the adventures Dr. Anthony B. Wilde, a peripatetic anesthesiologist, exploring strange countries, seeking out new cultures and new friends – boldly passing gas and wry wit on his way.After a odd call in the middle of the night, Tony leaves his tranquil, verdant, idyllic gentleman's farm on the Otago Peninsula, on the south island of New Zealand – saying bye to the seals, penguins, and albatrosses he calls friends – to head for the premier medical hospital and research center in Saudi Arabia. People from a hundred different countries live on the hospital's compound – a hub for adventurers, life savers, people looking for something and hiding something. A stranger with two buckets, Tony goes to an arid land of sand, gold, free spirits, and veils that hide more than a pretty face.

Up in the Air

Most of these large airports are confusing the first time you visit them. I was discharged in this particular maze by Air New Zealand, and had to find Air Saudia to continue on to Riyadh. I was lost until I spied a group of female flight attendants stylishly covered from head to toe, complete with matching face veils. I followed them to the Air Saudi check-in desk. After checking my passport, the Arabic check-in agent, who spoke with a slight British accent, handed me my boarding pass and wished me a pleasant journey. Two hours later I was seated in business class and on my way.

Business class on Air Saudi was nice; I couldn't imagine what they would have in first class. Free drinks? – Not likely on Air Saudia. I'd usually flown cattle-car before since it's a third the price, but this time King Abdulla Specialist Hospital and Research Center was paying for the trip. The only other time I'd flown business class was on return trip from New Zealand to the US, being upgraded for having tended to an emergency on the way down an hour after leaving Los Angeles. It was too tempting to raise my hand when the flight attendant announced over the speaker, "Is there a doctor on-board?" I beat out two ophthalmologists, a dermatologist, a psychiatrist, and a PhD in history. Ten minutes later, I'd diagnosed an elderly woman as not having a heart attack, but just a little hypoglycemic and anxious after having made a quick connection from the Germany to Los Angeles flight. Some orange juice and half a valium put her safely to sleep. God knows how much it would have cost to turn that 747 around and head back to LA.

You're who?...

I'd been awakened at 2 AM the month before while I was soundly asleep on my two hectare gentleman's farm on the Otago Peninsula."Hello? Dr. Wilde? This is Dr. Samsi at King Abdullah Specialist Hospital in Riyadh."