He found a promoter who nearly fell off the floor

getting ready for the show-check out those stripes!

Wow! Apparently I haven't posted in almost twenty days! Sorry, all, but I've been terribly busy. In good news (which is one reason I am so busy lately), I got promoted! After putting my packet together in April, submitting it for May, and having to wait until the end of July for the board, my orders finally came through and I was promoted as of September 1. Of course, it means a jump in pay, but it also means a tremendous jump in responsibility. I am now no longer a junior enlisted soldier, but a noncommissioned officer in the Army. We had a nice little ceremony at the Camp Liberty Field House.
There were three soldiers from my company that got promoted, but only two of us went to the ceremony, since the third was on leave. Of course one was me, and the other was good ol' Simmons. You may remember him from earlier in the blog, when we were in Montana. He's a unique character, and fun to have around, sometimes.
At any rate, we actually got "pinned" around the twelfth or so, so we were officially Sergeants, but the active duty Army, in all of it's heraldric glory, likes to mark every occasion with plenty of pomp and circumstance.
The ceremony, as I mentioned before, was at the Camp Liberty Field House. Plenty of big wigs were there, including the brigade Command Sergeant Major, the battalion Commander and Command Sergeant Major, all of the company First Sergeants in the battalion, and lots of guests.
We began the ceremony lined up in formation in the back of the hall, and were inspected as such. The colors were presented, and the national anthem was sung (by no other than the 192nd's own SPC Elliot, who also sang via satellite at the Cleveland Indians home opener this season). We were then marched to the front of the hall, and we took our seats. There was a speech by SGM Joseph, the 15th Sustainment Brigade's CSM, and some small presentations by other soldiers, including a recitation of the NCO Creed and a brief history of NCO induction.
Finally, we were called to our feet by CSM Bennet, the 68th CSSB CSM, and given the NCO Charge, which is akin to an oath of office. After that, we were called by name to cross under a symbolic archway to shake the hands of CSMs Joseph and Bennet, and all four Company First Sergeants, and to sign and receive our certificates. We reformed at the back of the room, cased the colors, and sang the Army Song! Then we got cake. Yaay!

certified inductee!

"top" and I after the ceremony

Well, everybody, it looks as though I'll be home on leave very, very soon. I'll make sure to let everyone know when I'm getting in, and I look forward to seeing you all soon! (and having a nice, tall, cold Guinness!)

Called home, everybody seemed to have moved away.

there's always one dude that won't work

Well, there's always one special day in the Army, and that's moving day. There's a few different types of moving, especially when talking about deployments. The most common type of moving is called "clearing the barracks," where someone who has nothing better to do with his (her) time than nitpick over the absolute cleanliness of giant, concrete bays. Keep in mind that most large-scale barracks (ie North Fort Hood) are mainly cinder block and poured concrete. If there is so much as one minuscule speck of dust, the entire bay has to be re-cleaned. The only good thing about the barracks clearing procedure is actually leaving, and knowing you don't have to do it again any time too soon.
Moving day takes on a whole new meaning when deployed. The process of leaving is called RIP/TOA, which stands for Relief in Place/Transfer of Authority. Basically, it's a fancy term for shift change, except the shift is a year long, and you don't get overtime. RIP/TOA begins, typically, about three to four months out, when talks begin with the replacement unit. About two months out, it gets really exciting, because you begin to pack your connex (twenty foot ISO 6346 standard shipping container) for the trip home. At about three to four weeks out, you move completely out of the trailers and into the transient tents. It's amazing what people collect over the time that they're here, and everyone tries to sell it at the end of their tour. The funny thing is that everyone is selling the same things, so if you're a particularly good haggler, you can get away with some good deals.

stuff for sale!

A buddy of mine got two TVs, a table, a rug, and some other good for next to nothing, and ended up giving most of it away. It's a lot like a big garage sale, except it's Iraq, and we don't have garages.

this guy drew the short straw... it might be pleasant, except it's 120 out

People move everything. Of course, they stack whatever vehicles they can find with bags, and some even try to take all their furniture. It's a real circus.

they load it all



unfortunately, you can't take it all

Anyway, today was one of those such days. The 2nd Infantry division is moving out, and being replaced by the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment. It's always a bit hectic around here when large units RIP/TOA. Most active duty combat units RIP/TOA at a battalion or higher level, so they come in droves. For about the past two weeks it's been near impossible to get lunch due to the iunflux of several thousand more soldiers. Poor Camp Striker wasn't meant to support so many people. Just the other day I had to wait almost forty minutes to get a haircut! A haircut! Once I sat in the chair, I was out the door in under nine minutes. It was well worth it, I guess. Things are starting to normalize again, though.