I’m tremendously amused at how my first day off work turned out. I did manage to sleep in, which was nice, but I had to be on base in the afternoon to attend a briefing about deploying. I managed to–made record time from my house to the meeting, too, which was good because I’d really cut it too close!
As it turned out, the meeting was completely useless to me. It was the normal round of “things to be aware of when you’re deploying” which I really didn’t need because 1) I just did this a year and a half ago and 2) since I don’t have dependents, there is a lot less that I need to worry about. But heck, it got three signatures on my deployment checklist, which they handed out there. I find it really interesting how, on the front end, it all sounds like it’s life-or-death that you get everything completed and perfect and have everything in order before you go… and once you get to the place where you’re deployed, no one asks about it or needs to see anything that’s in your formidable stack of papers. Well, with the exception of your security clearance paperwork, so you can get access to your office and start a computer account.
It’s funny being an “expert” on the deployment thing, too–4 of my coworkers from the office are being deployed a month after me, and they’ve had a bunch of questions like what to take, what it will be like to get there, what to expect, and so on. I remember, hearing them, how confused and in the dark I was about my first deployment… I hardly knew what to ask but felt like there were so many unanswered questions…
Now I just have a few anxiety-catalysts. First and foremost is the fact that I don’t have any points of contact in the office that I’m supposed to be working in. Since my position is a new requirement, this is to be expected, but I’m having nightmares–literally–about getting there and no one knowing that I was coming nor what I’m supposed to do. I hope I can find at least one person who works there before I go. Even having the office address would be nice, since I’m going to need to forward my mail there. (This also factored into the nightmares.)
After I sat through that briefing, turned in some paperwork and got signatures in the right places on my checklist, I went to lunch with my aforementioned coworkers, then headed back on base to try on uniforms and see which sizes I need to order for my deployment. For the first time with the Airman Battle Uniform, the Air Force has made women’s sizes in a utility uniform. But as with other women-sized uniform items, they did it all wrong. I don’t know who thinks that women typically have 19″ waists and 40″ hips, but no one I know does. And those pants REALLY don’t fit me. I tried on a couple sizes before deciding to go with the tried and true path: men’s sizes and a little bigger than I really need. That’s what I did for my old desert uniforms and it worked well.
I’m concerned about these new uniforms: in the interest of making them wash-and-wear, the fabric is as dense and heavy as a pair of jeans. And who wants to wear a full suit of jeans and denim jacket in the scorching desert summer? I foresee some uncomfortable moments in my future (I’m heading over there in late July/early August, so it will definitely be hot). Apparently the Air Force is working on changing this problem, but it’ll be too late for me. All things considered, though, it would really be TOO humiliating to die of heatstroke when you’re in a rough town like Baghdad! (Just kidding…)
So, that done, I headed in to my office to launch an email to my deployment manager with my uniform sizes. And in my email I discovered that the helpful Personnel Center has decided to send me to SOS–again. Apparently going one time is not enough for me. I must need remedial reblueing! I resurrected a few files and sent a few notes out to people saying, “While it was a useful experience, I’d actually prefer to stick with only going to SOS once, if you don’t mind: and here’s proof that I attended–and graduated!–in February.” I hope that will convince them…
So after I’d done all that, I headed home–right at the end of the day when I would have left anyway. So I spent basically half of the workday at work–while I was on leave! Oh well. I don’t mind it at all because I don’t have to go in tomorrow… (Or so I think now!)
Posted by Kjirstin 
