Yesterday was a big day. I know I haven’t written for a while but for a good reason, or good reasons. I’ve been busy with finishing up with schoolwork, served my Article 15 sentence, sending off Xmas presents and what not. Plus it’s been picking up with Xmas season at the post office.
Today we found out we’re going to Djibouti. At or around 2000 hrs, CPT Eng told us in about 2 weeks we’re taking off. Well, that’s all fine and dandy except the chiropractor here was going to help me with my TMJ problems which can only be helped/fixed with consistent and prolonged examination and follow ups. That was the only bad news for me. But other than that it’s been all good news. I can’t wait to get there. My buddies will be back with me in one tent like it was before and we’ll be away from headquarters and people we don’t want to deal with. Plus the workload is going to be real light; they have 9 people stationed there, and they’re requesting only 7. But the entire platoon is going, all 13 of us. Too bad the mechanics can’t join us, although I think they’re comfortable with where they’re at now.
A couple weeks ago, Roberson got busted down to PFC. We never really say this, but we all know he has a good history of stealing and not feeling real sorry for it or anything. But that day, he got caught stealing a movie. Well, so he paid a 200 dollar fine, and a company grade Article 15 and got busted down to PFC. They were real easy on him, because he could have gone to jail for that. But he still worked with us… for a week. Then one day out of the blue, they decided to take him away, and I can never forget his face. I know he wanted to cry, but he is too much of a man now to even know how to cry. He missed us, the only family he and we knew for the past year, and now because of one stupid mistake he couldn’t be with his family. Now I know SFC Mettler had something to do with it. I like her because she works hard, but I don’t because she is aggressive at times at insisting she’s right. She got some complaint against 3rd Perscom, and since COL Kennedy is the head of that, he said he can work anywhere but the post office. Well, I’m thinking if you’re saying he can’t be trusted with mail, what makes you think he’s trustworthy with wherever he works? I mean, stealing from the PX is one thing, but stealing from people is another. Well, we were all pretty upset about that and Contreras wanted me to write up something about it, and so I did but nothing happened. But now we’re going to Djibouti, so he should be able to join us.
A week ago, couple things happened. The Article 15s with Roberson and my names on it were posted for some crazy order by COL Kennedy. I don’t know why he ordered that, and I’m guessing he never did, but supposedly it was a vocal order. Well, it came up missing the very next morning. No one knows who took it, and people are saying our names and social security numbers were not crossed off. Well, that’s not very good news for me or Roberson, and I suppose I could do something about it, but I know it won’t amount to anything. So we had formations at 8, 9 and 10 on my day off for something that should have been prevented by the CPT. We managed to get something out of it and do secret Santa, but CPT Eng is freaken cheap with all the money he’s making and so he was the only non participant.
Then someone apparently broke into the HQ office somehow and set BIOS passwords on all the computers there. I have no idea who did it, nor why in the world anyone would want to, but they did, and so we couldn’t listen to music for about 3 or 4 days. To this day it’s still amazing to me how they think someone came through the ceiling and just decided to do something stupid like that. What were they trying to prove anywa? The guards during night guard are getting punished for it, they’re doing some patrols around the perimeter now.
About 5 days ago, Nielson bumped his head on the keyhole part of the gate that sticks out. He says he was setting a box down and was in a hurry to get up and didn’t realize that the gate had been slowly opening for some reason. Well, he got up with so much force now he has 3 staples on his head he can’t get rid of for at least another week or even two. He keeps scratching every part of his head but it, and we keep joking we should be wearing helmets when working in the cage.