I HATED TA-50!!!!

In processing is a lot of paperwork. I guess in civilian terms it's like your first day on a job going through the HR process only in the case of the Army, its more like a 1-2 week process.

I had to get my TA-50. Oh gracious me, I HATED TA-50!!!! I still hate TA-50. I get post traumatic syndrome symptoms just thinking about it. NO TA-50 experience for me has ever been good. In fact, I'm starting to shake just typing it. Here's what you need to know about TA-50. You go to this huge warehouse with an empty duffle bag and you leave with a full duffle bag. It might not be so in every location but my experience had been, the civilians (many of them military spouses or retired military) that worked there were crabby and mean. I think they hated TA-50 too.

Okay, what is TA-50? I think the acronym literally stand for Table of Allowance but what is consists of is field gear; rain coat & boots, poncho, canteen, pistol belt, bed roll, ammo pouch -- and I'm going to be honest with you, I didn't even know what some of it was nor did I have any desire to find out. I think in basic training I had learned and/or used about all the TA-50 gear but I'm pretty sure the experience was so traumatic I blocked it all out.

In addition to being assigned gear, I had to go to the arms room to get a weapon assigned to me. Ah, my M16A1 rifle! I hated that thing as much as I hated TA-50. Wait --what I REALLY hated was my NBC gear, gas mask and such. You see, I wasn't really in the Army so much for the soldiering aspect of it. I really wasn't concerned with learning how to fight a war. Hello! I'm not an 11 Bravo! I'm JAG, that's right say it out loud and with attitude, JAG! Okay no, not like the stupid TV show. JAG stand for the Judge Advocate General Corps --basically, the legal aspect of the Army. I was a JAG specialist which can sort of translate to a paralegal in civilian terms. There were only two things I needed to arm myself with --a buffer and a typewriter.

I also had to attend a 2 week headstart course which was a crash course on the German language and culture and some other overseas pertinent training. This was actually very valuable training for me because I was in class with soldiers that had already done a term or two in Germany. I listened and learned as much as I could. I was attentive both in and out of the classroom. Like a sponge, I absorbed every word I heard and filed it away for later use. I was already miserable so I wanted every tip and nugget of wisdom I could get to help me get through this next 12 months. There were two E-5's that were particularly helpful. They both told me over and over, "If you're not going to have a POV (privately owned vehicle), then DON'T get a USAEUR license --you'll just become a driver." I didn't fully understand what or why they were telling me that but I took it to heart. It proved to be some of the best advice I was ever given.

Every day after I did the required in processing work, I'd go back to the JAG office and my NCOIC would ask me how things were going. I told him I wasn't liking my living situation. He asked me what I meant so I explained to him the make-shift room I had been put in. I don't think he believed me because he grabbed his hat and said, "Let's go. Show me where you're staying."

We went to my barracks room and he stood there looking around. I could tell he wasn't too happy but I couldn't discern if it was me that was the one in trouble. Yeah, I always had a guilt complex even if I didn't do anything wrong. Well, much of the time I DID do things wrong but honestly, it was unknowingly. Like the one time I walked across the range during a live-fire exercise. Okay well, I'll tell you that story some other time but let's just say the drill sergeants were very very unhappy with me.

My NCOIC told me to go back to the JAG office and he had a little business to do. Later when he returned to JAG, he told me to go back to the barracks and report the the First Sergeant's office. Again, I thought I was in trouble but turns out, with a little persuasion from my NCOIC, they found me a room in the barracks. I was to go move my stuff into my new room.

Turns out, I WAS staying right here at division. Oh, I forgot to mention, there was another JAG private that had arrived shortly after me. We were not in processing together but our paths crossed a lot during the process. He was given a room right away because they had much more room for males than females and things seemed to be going a lot smoother for him --and this will later become an important piece of the story and has something to do with that POV business.