Moving, of course, this is a PITA. Though, this process has proven itself to be much less of an issue than I had anticipated. When I was here last August, living conditions where deplorable. We were packing 20 men into 20 man tents. While this doesn't sound like a big deal, these 20 man tents are great for sleeping but provide very little storage space when packed 20 men to a tent. Envision 20 men in 10 bunk beds and each with an array of A, B, C and carry-on bags. We were also the "invading group", so we didn't get an opportunity to get bottom bunks and we were not very well treated by our hosts. Also, it was here that I had some of my personal equipment stolen. Being apprehensive about coming to live here again is putting it generously.
So, moving to Camp Marmal seemed very overwhelming and oppressive thing to have to do. Getting here was a pain, but that was to be expected. I had to pack up all of my worldly possessions to prepare to relocate. In the process of packing, I was able to leave two very full bags behind (ruck sack and duffle bag). These contained winter or other gear that I will not need for the rest of the deployment and were left in my team connex.
I still have left behind three boxes, a medium sized black footlocker, small green footlocker, and my monitor. I'm not sure how my footlockers are going to rejoin me, though; I think they both weight less than 70lbs each so the guys on DDII could use the army mail system and move them for me for free. But the monitor will travel with a set of equipment that I have packed and ready to return to their owner. I'm most certainly looking forward to taking receipt of my monitor so I can setup my game system again.
I moved with a large green footlocker, backpack, and my mammoth bag. You should have seen me trying to get this stuff on the bird. Especially the footlocker, it was not something that someone could move by ones self. Even now, with it partially unpacked, it is a beast to move around.
Once I get my other boxes in hand, I will have to start the chess/tetris game. We're only permitted to carry so much stuff home. From what we've heard, only 4 bags each. This includes our carry-on item. Anything else will have to be packed into a connex or mailed home at our own expense. Therefore, I will get to start managing what equipment will go into what container and what will stay to the end and what goes home early. My medium sized black footlocker is already packed for home. However, I will have to swap the contents of that box with my largest footlocker or reorganize things drastically. Here is the rub. Anything mailed home has a maximum weight of 70 pounds. I understand the 'why' for the restriction; I just get frustrated when that weight limit leaves huge gobs of space open in my box. Additionally, the large footlocker we were issued here is not permitted to go into a connex and not likely on the plane home. Therefore, I'll certainly have to mail that one home and likely first.
I realize that I was going to have to ship some things, like my monitor, out of my own pocket. However, I wasn't expecting to have to foot the bill for anything of the equipment I came with. Oh well, at least I can claim the mail expenses on my travel voucher and get the money back later.
So, now that I'm back here, I seemed to luckily score myself the cream of the crop of living conditions. I've got a bottom bunk and a back corner. The rear corner bunks are the most coveted because they provide the most privacy and you only need to have 2 walls to create that privacy. The reality of the situation is that by walls, I really mean curtains. I'm currently using my poncho liner as my primary curtain. The rest of the space is covered by a towel at one end and a wall locker at the other. Don't get me wrong, this is a great setup, though, it doesn't compare to what I had kicking when I was at DDII. I have a feeling that as time goes on, I'm going to acquire more materials so that I can improve my living space. So, it seems that the next few months are not going to be the as much torture as I had previously anticipated.
For those of you that are interested, my new address is the same as my first address. I will be sending out an e-mail with this address, just in case it has been misplaced. If you do not receive this message, ping me through some means and request it. I'm sure if you want my address that you know a way to find me.
