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June 24, 2005
The Red Tape of the Air Force
We arrived at Lackland AFB on Sunday the 12th in the afternoon to move into the Temporary Lodging Facility (TLF). To get a pass to get on base we needed to show photo ID, our car registration and proof of car insurance. We had all of those but unfortunately our proof of insurance had no expiration date. So apparently this was not proof that we were currently insured. So we had to drive to the airport on the other side of town to rent a minivan, paying for the extra insurance policy so we could have proof in hand. We had to transfer a whole van-load of our belongings with 3 hungry and exhausted kids in 95 degrees and the full Texas sun beating down upon us.
We had had little success house-hunting earlier that day so I had scheduled a few appointments over the next couple of days. The problem was that if I left base I had no guarantee I could get back on and into our room. Apparently a visitor's pass was in the works but had not happened yet. Also if I was to remain on base all day I could not get food for the kids because I didn't have a government ID yet and could not shop at the commissary.
It took a couple of days before we got the car issue and my ID straightened out but we are still working on Eric's pay. We are getting something but it's not accurate and we are still not getting pay stubs to see what needs fixing. The bureaucracy is a little overwhelming.
But I do have to say my husband looks like a stud in his BDU's. (camouflage)
Posted by Julee at June 24, 2005 03:36 PM
Comments
Oh Julee,
As a Coast Guard brat growing up I remember some of the problems my mom always had each time we moved which was about every three years. It's great that you can keep a sense of humor about all this as evidenced by your last sentence :) Hope all gets sorted out soon.
Posted by: barb at June 25, 2005 09:44 AM
Mmmmmm.... government beauracracy. Gotta love it. Good luck with the house hunting!
Posted by: Lisa at June 25, 2005 07:38 PM
I agree that humor is the only way to deal with this...there will be more Air Force red tape in the future, take it in stride! Tell Eric that paycheck snafus are the norm. Jason and his whole intern class was told to expect them to get it wrong for the first few checks and to schedule an appointment with finance ahead of time. Great orientation huh?
Welcome to the Air Force!
Posted by: Colleen at June 28, 2005 01:26 PM