A Bit of This 'n' That

Things have been moving along their own unpredictable path since my last post. (Actually, since long before my last post, but I had to have some sort of lead-in line, didn't I?) We have some rather large organizational changes that are supposed to happen on April 1st. That's one week away, and you would think that we would know what those changes would be by now. You would be wrong. We are probably sending a lot of our contractors home by then, but maybe not. A large part of my branch's mission might shift to another organization on base. Or maybe back to a group in the States. Or maybe it won't be done at all. Or maybe we'll continue to do it after all. My guess is that they might get around to making a decision, oh, late on the 31st. Or maybe not.

So what do we do, when faced with organizational indecision? Compare notes, share the latest rumor (which will be completely contradicted by the next rumor), and continue to plug away.

Long time readers (all 3 of you) may remember that we went through a similar drill last August and September. It was not fun. I spent my days madly writing and re-writing PowerPoint briefs to educate the decision-makers on requirements, options, and recommendations. Most of that input was ignored. This time, at least, I've not been involved in those discussions at all. Which is fine with me: those who are making the decisions will have to live with the consequences. They've been clearly told what those consequences will be, but I guess they don't believe it. What can you do?

Last Sunday, a few of us went to a new sandwich place here on base. It's run by Iraqis and had just opened up. I had a really delicious sandwich, but it gave me a stomach virus that has, shall we say, left me a few pounds lighter than normal. Quick: where's that scale? Maybe the dreaded DFAC isn't so bad after all!

The weather here is gradually warming and drying. We've had a cool spell, with temperatures in the 70's. At least it's been dry. But now we're looking at some rain and even cooler temperatures over the next three days. Aack! Rain means at least five days of mud. I can do without that ... but it ain't my choice, is it?

I saw an article last night about a Sikh who was just commissioned as an Army dentist. Very cool! Sikhism is a monotheistic religion from the Punjab region of northern India. It isn't Muslim nor Hindu, it's completely different. For the past 26 years or so, no Sikhs have been accepted into the services because, for religious reasons, they do not shave nor cut their hair, and they wear turbans. Finally, the Army has gone out on a limb and accepted two Sikhs into their ranks as doctors. I think this is a very positive step and wish these two men, and the Army, all the best in the world.