what I miss; quotes

So I've been here almost a month and I am settling into routine. On the upside, this is good because I can anticipate my schedule a bit and know the fastest ways to get things done (get food, shower, go to the bathroom, etc.) On the downside, it means I am becoming used to my environment and I've stopped noticing as many of the little details that you pick up when you are new to a place.

I was talking with my sensor on the way home from work today and he mentioned how things like helicopters flying by, controlled detonations going off, fighters streaking over, general aircraft noise and of course the occasional mortar attack were no longer waking him up or even keeping him up at night. (Of course, being exhausted also helps.) One thing I definitely miss is peace and quiet. Beyond the things mentioned above, there is always significant background noise here...the humming air conditioner, one or more generators, or just the chatter of voices in the chow hall.

On the topic of things I miss...besides the obvious (family, my own room, freedom, etc.), sometimes it's the small things that are the most vexing: Normal commercials (Most of them replaced with crappy AFN spots). A lack of dust on any given horizontal surface. Metal silverware. Diversity in the people here: There are, of course, no old people, no children, and not many women here. I'm writing a much longer entry on women, more on that later.

A lot of our services here (laundry, housing) are provided by KBR. A lot of the folks in the chow hall wear name tags that say they work for Tamimi Global.

Humorous quote from a few days ago: I was getting ready to go to work, and at the time my roommate and I were on shifts only an hour apart, so we would be getting up at about the same time. I was walking out the door and JP said, "See you at work, have fun storming the castle." Well timed movie quotes are a constant source of entertainment while on rote. (For the youngsters out there reading this, the castle quote come from The Princess Bride.)