One week closer. Kids had vacation this past week, so I took a few days off from work and spent some time with the family. Nothing too special, though did take the boys skiing which was a lot of fun. As I was "flying" down the slopes with only a limited semblance of control, I sort of wondered what would happen if I broke a leg. Fortunately, I did not...
I did get in touch with folks in theater and actually have a good idea of who I will be working for, what I will be doing, and where I will be - even received an e-mail from my future boss. If my orders are not changed, it sounds like a great job and a good location. Of course, I know well enough that orders can change and until I am actually in country on the job, I am not going to get too excited just yet. But it is nice to have an idea of my future 'home' and points of contact. With that, am not too worried about the rest - have traveled half way around the world on orders enough to know how to find my way. Had a couple of humorous experiences in Korea trying to communicate with cab drivers who really had no idea where I wanted to go... not a good sign when they stop and ask other cabbies for directions.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
I'm RC1 - The 70th line of defense...
Back from my last 'reserve' weekend in Fort Worth - at least for the near term. Strange how things change in a month - last month I was deeply involved with what was going on and getting ready for the next big fleet exercise, and this weekend I was handing my job over and was pretty much disconnected from the unit as they did preps for the exercise while I prepped for my 'mob'. On the bright side, I did manage to take care of all of the reserve paperwork I need to transition to active duty, so I will not need to trek back to Texas again. I still have some things to do - training courses, power of attorney, etc, but I will fit that in over the next several weeks.
Title of the post refers to my reserve 'mobilization status' code. On a unit's roster, everyone has a code (MAS code, in Reserve lingo...) which indicates their status... examples include 'RC1' (mine) which means person is called up and waiting to start active duty, 'RD2' - which means someone was called up and has returned (and also means you 'in sanctuary' and cannot be called up), and 'RDA' which means you were called up a while back and are now available to be a called again. Lots of folks called up more than once (e.g. Sept 2001 then again for Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003) were RD2, but now find themselves on the hot seat again in 'RDA' status... lucky them. As an aside, there are other codes - 'VOL' - volunteer to be called up (yes, people do that!), blank (available for call up - I used to be there), and also codes which refer to single parents / families where both parents are military. NOTE - single parents and both parents of a child can and will be called up - that status does not protect someone from a callup. People in such situations have to have a plan in place to take care of their child / children should big Navy come calling... it is not an excuse to get out of a mobilization. To a civilian, this policy may sound REALLY harsh, but the fact is if you are serving in the reserves, you are volunteering to be ready to be called. Plenty of cases of that happening, too...
Spent Saturday night (Valentine's Day) with several friends from my unit - we were all stuck away from wives since we were at drill in Texas. Tried one restaraunt for dinner but it was packed, so we figured the local 'Hooters' would not be crowded - did not envision it to be a romantic dining place for couples. Oddly enough, it was packed - with couples and families! (maybe it is a Texas thing...) Anyhow, one of the guys with us is on 'the list' - he is most likely going to be called up in the next year. One little caveat is that people in his status HAVE an option - they can 'transfer to the IRR' - go to a non-pay status and they drop off 'the list' and WILL NOT BE CALLED up. Though they will not get paid and will not get promoted in this status, they can still work towards retirement via correspondence courses. AND, they can come back to paid status in the future, once they are 'clear'. I bumped into a guy from our unit at medical who was doing that - opting to hide rather than do his duty... But, the guy at dinner is NOT going to do that - even though his first child is a few months away and odds are he will be called up in the next few months. Working with guys like him is why I still like serving in the Navy... most of us really don't want to be called up, certainly aren't going to volunteer to go, but will go if their number is called.
Oh, and just in case you are curious, I already have orders in hand so I cannot transfer to the IRR even if I wanted to. But, I wouldn't.
Finally, the title refers to a 1998 Simpsons episode - Homer and his buds join the Navy Reserves and one of the jokes is "The Navy Reserve is the country's seventieth line of defense between the Mississippi National Guard and the League of Women Voters"
Title of the post refers to my reserve 'mobilization status' code. On a unit's roster, everyone has a code (MAS code, in Reserve lingo...) which indicates their status... examples include 'RC1' (mine) which means person is called up and waiting to start active duty, 'RD2' - which means someone was called up and has returned (and also means you 'in sanctuary' and cannot be called up), and 'RDA' which means you were called up a while back and are now available to be a called again. Lots of folks called up more than once (e.g. Sept 2001 then again for Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003) were RD2, but now find themselves on the hot seat again in 'RDA' status... lucky them. As an aside, there are other codes - 'VOL' - volunteer to be called up (yes, people do that!), blank (available for call up - I used to be there), and also codes which refer to single parents / families where both parents are military. NOTE - single parents and both parents of a child can and will be called up - that status does not protect someone from a callup. People in such situations have to have a plan in place to take care of their child / children should big Navy come calling... it is not an excuse to get out of a mobilization. To a civilian, this policy may sound REALLY harsh, but the fact is if you are serving in the reserves, you are volunteering to be ready to be called. Plenty of cases of that happening, too...
Spent Saturday night (Valentine's Day) with several friends from my unit - we were all stuck away from wives since we were at drill in Texas. Tried one restaraunt for dinner but it was packed, so we figured the local 'Hooters' would not be crowded - did not envision it to be a romantic dining place for couples. Oddly enough, it was packed - with couples and families! (maybe it is a Texas thing...) Anyhow, one of the guys with us is on 'the list' - he is most likely going to be called up in the next year. One little caveat is that people in his status HAVE an option - they can 'transfer to the IRR' - go to a non-pay status and they drop off 'the list' and WILL NOT BE CALLED up. Though they will not get paid and will not get promoted in this status, they can still work towards retirement via correspondence courses. AND, they can come back to paid status in the future, once they are 'clear'. I bumped into a guy from our unit at medical who was doing that - opting to hide rather than do his duty... But, the guy at dinner is NOT going to do that - even though his first child is a few months away and odds are he will be called up in the next few months. Working with guys like him is why I still like serving in the Navy... most of us really don't want to be called up, certainly aren't going to volunteer to go, but will go if their number is called.
Oh, and just in case you are curious, I already have orders in hand so I cannot transfer to the IRR even if I wanted to. But, I wouldn't.
Finally, the title refers to a 1998 Simpsons episode - Homer and his buds join the Navy Reserves and one of the jokes is "The Navy Reserve is the country's seventieth line of defense between the Mississippi National Guard and the League of Women Voters"
Monday, February 9, 2009
Disclaimers, Top 5, and Movie Pick
Disclaimer: I received a couple of questions about security - i.e. am I saying anything that I should not. I don't think so - going to NAVCENT is a common destination for Navy types, and am not going to mention my final home until I get there, nor will I get into the details of my travel or anything operational. This blog is more to share the overall experience for those who will not have to experience it.
Good Afghanistan Article
Top 5 Deployment Song List: ( I loved the movie High Fidelity, though John Cusack sort of went into the tank a bit later on - Must Love Dogs? Even Lloyd Dobler would puke...). In honor of that, my top 5 list of deployment songs:
Still thinking, but:
Unchained Melody - Righteous Brothers - I didn't really discover this one until my second deployment, about 2 months in to a 4 month run -but it really resonated with a Navy deployment.
Babe - Styx. Yeah, just a bit cheezy - still recall it playing about every 5 minutes on WLS in Chicago (before they became talk radio) back in the 80s. But the light bulb went on while driving around with girlfriend the night before I headed out for my first Navy cruise - a 2 month sub deployment after freshman year in college.
More to follow...
Movie Pick - not sure if I will watch this before I go, but will definately hit Netflix when I get back. The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) - did not see this one until a few years back. It is a bit schmaltzy as well, but in a nutshell, it tells story of three WWII vets returning to their home town after the war after having been gone for years. The story focuses on their readjustments to their lives. I would not call it a 'chick flick', and though it lacks the staples of modern movies (violence, sex, maybe drugs) it is a great movie.
Good Afghanistan Article
Top 5 Deployment Song List: ( I loved the movie High Fidelity, though John Cusack sort of went into the tank a bit later on - Must Love Dogs? Even Lloyd Dobler would puke...). In honor of that, my top 5 list of deployment songs:
Still thinking, but:
Unchained Melody - Righteous Brothers - I didn't really discover this one until my second deployment, about 2 months in to a 4 month run -but it really resonated with a Navy deployment.
Babe - Styx. Yeah, just a bit cheezy - still recall it playing about every 5 minutes on WLS in Chicago (before they became talk radio) back in the 80s. But the light bulb went on while driving around with girlfriend the night before I headed out for my first Navy cruise - a 2 month sub deployment after freshman year in college.
More to follow...
Movie Pick - not sure if I will watch this before I go, but will definately hit Netflix when I get back. The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) - did not see this one until a few years back. It is a bit schmaltzy as well, but in a nutshell, it tells story of three WWII vets returning to their home town after the war after having been gone for years. The story focuses on their readjustments to their lives. I would not call it a 'chick flick', and though it lacks the staples of modern movies (violence, sex, maybe drugs) it is a great movie.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
There is a process
The next logical question is 'what happens now?'. Not a lot for a while, at least near term. In the next few weeks, I will be focusing on turning my day job over and getting the family prepped for my departure. The Navy's part in this phase is pretty low-key, I have a bunch of web training to knock out (M-16 familiarization, a variety of general military training stuff, anti-terrorism training, etc). That, and sending info to my first Navy stop (clothing sizes, etc). A great improvement over the past, as they gave me more than enough time to get ready - not days or a couple of weeks as they did initially.
My employer has been really good. They are working to replace me in my day job with sufficient time to turnover and give a decent handoff. The process there is pretty easy - I fill out a form and give a copy of my orders, and that's it. They are also supportive on the pay side - they will pay me the difference between my current pay and my military base pay. There are plenty of horror stories of folks who go from good paying jobs to essentially borderline poverty since their employers don't take care of them - not an issue with my company.
My first Navy stop will be NMPS (Navy Mobilization Processing Station) in Gulfport, MS. This will be five days of stuff that could easily be done in a day if the process was optimized, but the typical Navy way is to set the schedule to the least prepared person in the group. So, I expect it will be the stereotypical 'hurry up and wait' Navy exercise. That will be aggravating, as I know I could have spent a couple extra days at home. So be it. This place will transition me from being a civilian back to a full time active Navy officer, and it focuses on medical and paperwork readiness.
Next is three weeks at Ft Jackson in SC for "NARMY" training - the Army trains us how to be quasi-soldiers. I am not sure of all the details, but basically it gets you used to wearing body armor and shooting lots of weapons. If you have never dealt with the Army, the individuals are normally great people but systemically the Army is a bit painful... so I am not looking forward to dealing with that. The weapons stuff sounds like fun, however.
After that, I believe that I hop on the big bird for the Middle East. Again, not sure where I go yet.
My employer has been really good. They are working to replace me in my day job with sufficient time to turnover and give a decent handoff. The process there is pretty easy - I fill out a form and give a copy of my orders, and that's it. They are also supportive on the pay side - they will pay me the difference between my current pay and my military base pay. There are plenty of horror stories of folks who go from good paying jobs to essentially borderline poverty since their employers don't take care of them - not an issue with my company.
My first Navy stop will be NMPS (Navy Mobilization Processing Station) in Gulfport, MS. This will be five days of stuff that could easily be done in a day if the process was optimized, but the typical Navy way is to set the schedule to the least prepared person in the group. So, I expect it will be the stereotypical 'hurry up and wait' Navy exercise. That will be aggravating, as I know I could have spent a couple extra days at home. So be it. This place will transition me from being a civilian back to a full time active Navy officer, and it focuses on medical and paperwork readiness.
Next is three weeks at Ft Jackson in SC for "NARMY" training - the Army trains us how to be quasi-soldiers. I am not sure of all the details, but basically it gets you used to wearing body armor and shooting lots of weapons. If you have never dealt with the Army, the individuals are normally great people but systemically the Army is a bit painful... so I am not looking forward to dealing with that. The weapons stuff sounds like fun, however.
After that, I believe that I hop on the big bird for the Middle East. Again, not sure where I go yet.
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