The Sketch Newtonian

We have taken to calling it our 75 day reunion.

Sometimes I wonder if the Air Force realizes that I, a lowly lieutenant, even exist.  They keep sending me a paycheck, however, and I almost find this more confusing.  When I arrived at Columbus AFB in Mississippi, my duties were made quite clear to me.  I was to sign a roster off every weekday by 10 am, so that my unit knew I had not died, and be sure to work out at least three times a week.  My job is not exactly difficult.

Then they sent me to Maxwell AFB in Montgomery, AL, to take the Air and Space Basic Course (ASBC).  This is a course all about being a lieutenant.  Now if you, the reader, do not already find the preceding statement humorous, please refer to the previous paragraph.  Being a lieutenant is not rocket science.* The funny thing is, because ASBC is a special duty, I am getting paid a bonus for being here.

I do not presume to declare ASBC anything less than a worthwhile program.  I think I could get in trouble for that.  While we do have plenty of time draining lectures in the big blue bedroom they call our auditorium, and we have to play a variation of dodgeball that applies airpower doctrine (except I am not kidding, it is called Icarus), ASBC has plenty of pros to balance out the cons.  I have already mentioned the bonus pay, but vicinity is also a benefit.  While I am here in Montgomery, I get to be significantly closer to so much more.  Pamela and I are much closer than we ever were while I was in Colorado, and I am also within 3 hours driving time from my hometown, Fort Walton Beach, FL, a fact which both my parents and I enjoy.  Also, of the 700 students at ASBC, about 550 of them are my recent classmates from USAFA (Please refer to the opening statement).

In summary, it is nearly impossible to avoid at least intermittent boredom at the hands of the Air Force, but despite their best efforts I am having a good time out here.  Considering I am almost halfway done, I do not have such a bad lot in life. 

To those still reading, I hope my ramblings amused you at least slightly. 

*It should be noted that some lieutenants are working in labs as rocket scientists.  This statement is not meant to discredit their works.

Posted by Sketch Newton at 03:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

options

No one will ever accuse the Air Force of being too efficient. 

I got to my new base at Columbus, MS on Friday, but because it was after duty hours, I didn't have to be anywhere until Monday.  I met up with some friends.  We enjoyed the area, and even got invited to party at MSU, all in all a fun weekend.

When Monday rolled around, however, I was running around like decapitated poultry.  I was 20 minutes inside of inprocessing when I was asked to volunteer to sit the duty desk at some squadron across base during lunch.  Before lunch, though, I was getting kicked out of my room on base because too many people were showing up at the same time (Who would have guessed all the Academy guys would show up on the same week?  It's not like that was on our orders).  I was also told that I needed to get a new ID card before I could do anything, but the Personnel Office told me that I needed to come back another time because the centralized system in Washington, DC had been shut down. 

Housing told me not to worry about getting a dorm because I would be losing BAH if I got one now, and the TMO would cover any storage space I had to buy.  The TMO, however, negated this statement, and pointed out all of the things I did not know about DITY moving and the extra reimbursements that I could have gotten IF I HAD RECEIPTS.  When I did get settled in, I was given a packet of memos for new LTs which told me over and over again to make sure I did so many of these heartache causing activities IN ADVANCE so that my inprocessing would go smoothly.  Like so many things in life, I suppose the Air Force must have its fair share of things "you're just supposed to know."

Despite all the hectic time spent, however, moving into Columbus was much easier than any time at the Academy, and I am very excited to be here. 

Next week, I get shipped off to Montgomery, AL for the LT's course at Maxwell AFB.  Close to 700 of my graduating class from USAFA will be there with me.  I'm hoping they are a little more ready for us than Columbus was, but I suppose hoping is all I can do.  Now I just need to find a place that I can put my stuff so that I don't have to move to Alabama as well (I'm still living out of my car).  I have a few days until then, and, considering I am staying at the Hampton Inn with no real responsibilities, I think I will spend the time enjoying myself.

PS - Most people know the Hampton has complimentary cookies, but this one has complimentary pizza and beer as well.  I won't mention this when I hand the Air Force the bill, though.

Posted by Sketch Newton at 12:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

options