Well I arrived, as you obviously know...however, not everything arrived timely as planned. I sent some things to myself as it was encouraged for easier transport to quick flight times and whatnot...both a good and bad idea - now...
I was told my duffels (I sent two of them) would arrive in 5 to 10 days. Well my travels here to Affy actually went quicker than anticipated, so I was hoping/expecting go to no more than a week without my duffels - I had a weeks worth of all needed necessities in my Ruck anyway. No biggie. Well, the evenings got colder than anticipated. All I had was my fleece. That turned into a different fiasco, but based on Battalion SGM (not actual policy or guidelines) you are not allowed to wear your fleece jacket unless it's colder than 40 degrees. Ugh, I'm sorry that I'm small and not super insulated, so I made a deal with my leadership. I'd wear my fleece around the office, but not to the dining facility - so they wouldn't get in trouble and then I wouldn't have to freeze all the time. Ridiculous.
Day seven, one duffel arrived. I was ecstatic. Praying it was my duffel of things I actually needed - like clothes and cold weather gear...I open it up. It included NOTHING that I actually needed. It was all the gear that a social worker prays will never be used...because we have a lot bigger problems if a social worker is using a trenching tool...
Day ten passed. Nothing. Day 14 passed...two weeks, sick of doing laundry in PTs because all my shirts and socks were dirty. Still nothing. Tracking the package only does so good when it goes international, only knowing that it left JERSEY (don't ask me how it got there) days prior...About to give up all hope - I realized we missed a couple days of mail for various reasons...I gave the mail one more day. Pretty sure our medic was hoping to get my duffel more than I was so I would quit asking about it. He knew I had one more day until I gave up all hope, went to the post office and claimed it as lost - and prepared to pay thousands of dollars to the good ole U S of A...
Well, day 22, the morning mail came, I saw him with his arms full and offered to help him carry in all the packages. After three or four trips out to the Gator, he gave me my two packages - but no duffel. I was in shock and really wasn't ready to deal with all that I now had to with not getting my much needed issued clothing and gear. As I walk down the hall 3/4ths devastated, he calls to me and asks where I'm going...the turd had carried my duffel in first and hid it around the corner behind the door so I wouldn't see it. It came in!!! Oh USPS, you never fail to frustrate and amaze me at the same time. Why it took so long for one and a matter of weeks for the other, I'll never know.
But, here I sit, in my comfortable cold weather gear (waffle top and wind breaker), thankful that I did not lose my gear, that I don't have to pay thousands of dollars, and that I can just leave my office and walk to lunch without having to change outta my fleece. I've never been so excited to see or carry a dark green, 60 lb duffel in my life.
Or should I say: Nobody puts Beth in a bunker - to play off of the famous Dirty Dancing quote - which we've come to use quite frequently here - for various reasons - with mine being the most frequent while visiting soldiers out of my regular office (obviously!). 
