Whoa Nellie

Nellie was waiting patiently for us today, even though it took us about half an hour to get ready. We put on our gowns and gloves and pants and shoe covers and hair covers and face masks and a few students put on eye shields. Personally, I stuck with my bikini under the paper gown, hair and shoe cover, and no mask. I figured that the smell wouldn't bother me and it would be easier to breathe, anyway. (See facebook for the pictures!)
We unwrapped her slowly, as if it was a well-rehearsed ritual, tucking the plastic sheets under the table. They were covered in slime and body fluid. Some other medical students had worked on her abdomen and part of a leg before us, and since Nellie had previously been stuck in non-air conditioned Antiguan customs for a month, mold had started to grow on her feet and face. There were maggots crawling out of her eye sockets and Brendon, still clean-gloved, splashed Chlorox all over the mold and maggots. We wrapped her face back up for another day and started on her legs.
Dr. Rust, cool as anything, got her scalpel and started cutting away layers of skin and fat tissue, explaining things as she went. We all took scalpels and forceps and joined in, except for Nikki who, despite her full body equipment, wouldn't go near Nellie.
"Let's see if we can uncover the rectus femorus first." Dr. Rust said, directing us where to cut. Poor Nellie had definately seen better days. Under her pallid skin, now stiff like wax, lay an uneven layer of globular yellow fat tissue. Still farther under that was the pinkish-gray of her muscles. Once in a while we'd cut into a vein or an artery with some blood still left in it, and it would ooze out. Because of the heat, and because of her decomposition, some of the fat cells were melting and soon our gloved hands became oily.
Vem started to cut upwards and Dr. Rust stopped him quickly from across the table.
"Ya'll be careful with that. I'm on the 'flick' side of the table." She moved around to the other side.
"I'm not going to feel like eating after this." Someone said.
"Oh, I am." Dr. Rust said in her Texan drawl. "In fact, I think I'll have Barbeque tonight. I sure love grilling. Barbequed steak, yup, that's what I'll have."
We uncovered most of the major muscles of the thigh and discussed them, quizzing each other and peppering Dr. Rust with questions about Nellie and her body and what we were seeing.
"Clean up the fat layer a bit." Dr. Rust directed us, "So we can see the muscle underneath."
She took the scalpel from one of us and dove in energetically, demonstrating how to pull up the fat layer more efficiently.
Suddenly there was a popping sound and whizzing across the table came this globular chunk of yellow fat from Nellie's thigh which landed "splat!" on something. I didn't see where it had landed because I'd tried to duck, and when I looked back to face the group they were staring at me in horror.
"Did it land on me?" I squeaked out.
"Yup!" Dr. Rust said matter-of-factly. "It's right between your eyes."
"Nikki!" I shouted. She was the only one with clean gloves and she came running with a paper towel and delicately lifted Nellie's fat off of my face. Suddenly I understood what it meant to be on the 'flick' side of the table. And I also knew why people wore face shields for this kind of work.
We were with Nellie for a few hours and then we wrapped her back up again and scrubbed our hands and stripped off our lab clothes outside the door. It was near dinner time, but none of us felt like eating. We went for a run around the soccer field and then showered, and by then, we'd worked up an appetite.
I assume Dr. Rust had her steak that night. Vem was the only one among us who ate meat that night. Nikki couldn't stomach the sight of her chicken. And me, I just ate green peppers and tomatoes.