Setteling in

Hey-
Things remain calm for the most part in our sector; nothing major has really happened, which is good. Last night the "fly boys" were having a good time; we heard multiple jets screaming overhead for quite a while. Not sure as to what they were up to, probably trying to suppress mortar teams, but they were certainly making a good display out of it. It would not have been a good idea to be out trying to do something stupid last night; apparently the threat of having a 2,000 lbs bomb dropped on your head is sufficient enough deterrent.
Small groups of Soldiers from the outgoing unit have already begun to leave; they're all ready to get out of here, and they're already making plans to have a beer when they get back together. They're all based out of Germany, so I'm sure they'll be having quite the celebration.
Went out on my first mission today; everything went as planned. The only minor hitch was when they realized they hadn't told the medics they were going to need one of us. So there I am, laying on my bunk reading, and a Lieutenant barges in my aid station; "Doc, we need to you roll out with us, time now," meaning that I was already late for a mission I didn't know about. Oh well; improvise, adapt and overcome. 5 minutes later I'm cramped in the back of a Bradley with my aid bag between my legs, my rifle hooked to my gear, and side arm on my thigh. I have come to realize that my 6' 1" frame is not designed for the Bradley. I barely fit without any gear, but with my helmet on I am forced to cock my head to the side the whole time. Not the most comfortable ride in the world, but 35+ tons of armor certainly makes up for it. We were doing a simple route recon; making sure nothing stupid was being done, and that there was nothing in the road that would go "boom." Not a bad way to start my trips "outside the wire." We've gotten good at preventing them from planting any bombs in/on/near the roads; seems like the current tactics are working well. My only views of the city today were through a tiny porthole-type window about the size of a 3x5 index card, though it doesn't take a panoramic view to tell that this is not a very nice city; trash, rubble and stagnant water are evident in every area of the city. Sanitation is apparently a foreign concept here.
Most of the outgoing Soldiers claim that 3rd ID have brought with us the plague, as nearly everyone has come down with some type of cough or sniffle. We're waiting on resupply for most of the OTC meds we've been giving out; hopefully they arrive with the next convoy in the next couple of days.
Speaking of arriving, we have started to get mail. This is much sooner than most of us have been expecting. We get supplies every 3rd day on our convoy which we call LogPak (logistical package), along with mail, meds, and water. Unloading the LogPak has now taken on a much greater interest.
We were down to two medics today (actually just one when I was out for my mission) as the others were out on 24 hour observation missions. These are generally scattered through the city, watching major roadways and preventing the placement of any ied's. Seems to be working, so we'll be doing a lot of these as we completely take over our sector.
We've only been here for just over a week, and already we're finding ways of combating the boredom. Several of us have taken to playing several games of dominos throughout the day, and usually after dinner as well. Plenty of people play ping pong, there's usually a poker game going on somewhere in the building, and there's always people watching movies. I've been going through our "library" of accumulated books and reading some of the more interesting ones. Most are obscure, though I did find Deception Point by Dan Brown, which was surprising. Also, when all of the medics are actually here, I'm usually teaching a class on something. Our "peripheral nervous systems" class had to be pushed back as we had two short-notice missions come up, both lasting 24 hours.
As the outgoing unit begins to leave, and we have a little more room to expand, we've begun to clean and improve our new home. Most of these improvements are funcional in specific, as there isn't much we can do to make this place more asthetically pleasing. The broken plaster, bullet holes and RPG craters do add a certain ambiance of their own, though. Still, I doubt this place would come close to a 5-star rating in the "real world," but we're just happy to have a solid roof and actual beds to sleep on. I believe plumbing is high on the order to be improved; working showers before the heat of summer hits is a good idea. We shall see...
Thanks for all the emails I've been getting. Its nice to have word from home; I usually check my email first thing in the morning, around 5:45-6:00am. Funny to think that I'm starting the next day as most of you are just ending the previous one.
Ok...back to the aid station for me; I'm sure someone needs something for the sniffles.

Miss you all very much!!!