28 February 2008: Inventory

I didn't remember my team having so much equipment. Our inventory is taking longer than I planned. This is a necessary evil of RIP-TOA. We don't take anything but our personal gear back. All the "tools of our trade" are signed over to the incoming team. The inventory verifies everything is present and that the serial numbers match. My team works with various high-tech items that are specific to the transportation management and tracking community. After all, that's the main thing we do.

For anyone who is wondering, I am feeling a lot better. That doesn't mean I'm not still carrying Warhorse with me. It's still lingering. My voice is a lot stronger now. That meant I could conclude some of the training I had remaining. The replacements are on the eve of their first mission. They've had much better preparation for it than my team had. That I can guarantee.

I've also started the process of packing my hooch. I feel like I've barely lived there. Truth is, I've only seen the LSAA hooch about three weeks total since August. The difference in clearing out this one is that I accumulated some makeshift furniture. That has to be discarded. I also have to part ways with my Ivy Tavern-Baghdad mileage sign. It still adorns the room. I'm not certain what to do with the thing. I definitely can't take it with me.

Anaconda is the same place I remember. The same old announcements and alarms still sound. We still don't react to them. At this point I'm convinced they are only to convince the people who never leave LSAA that they are "toughing it". After this past year FOB-Hopping, I beg to differ.