28 April, 2009

Waiting in Line

My first week here at our MOB site can be summed up with simply "Waiting in Line". That's all we've really done so far. We arrived, stepped off the plane, and got in line to get checked into Ft. Hood. After that we got in line to take our seats for a briefing. After the briefing we got in another line to pee in a cup (gotta love piss tests!). After that we boarded some buses and then got in another line to get our teeth looked at. Finally, after being cleared from the dentist, we were brought to our barracks and allowed to start unpacking.

The next week was a series of more lines. First we had to go to the SRP where you stand in line after line and see medical people, the ID card people, and people who deal with pay. The longest part of SRP is the medical floor. At medical you have to make sure all your shots are up to date, including anthrax, typhoid, and smallpox. After they stick several needles in your skin you're sore but off to complete the rest of the SRP. Other days we stood in line to get different equipment. The best piece of equipment we received has got to be the Improved Outer Tactical Vest or IOTV. This is the replacement for the IBA. Instead of a big, clunky, uncomfortable piece of body armor, we get to wear the new, smaller, lighter, more comfortable vest!

There are always lines to wait in. Wait in line for chow, wait in line for the showers, wait in line to draw weapons. That's about all we do most days is wait in line. Several people have asked me what its like and I ask them to think about the longest line they've ever stood in... then do that all day every day. Soon we're going to start to go to more ranges and what not so hopefully things get a little more exciting. The only thing is that when you're at the ranges, there's always more lines to stand in...

Today, I am a SGT again. I didn't do anything wrong, they just pulled the gun on my promotion a little to early, soon I'll be a SSG again.... I'll let you know when that happens.

-Guardsman

1 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey TJ

It sounds like your doing Okay so far.

Drop me an e-mail if you get a chance, or I will do the same soon.

Thinking about you!

Denise & Mark