I managed to spend seven years in the military without ever having to sleep outdoors. Looking back now it seems ridiculously improbable for anyone to accomplish. This simply demonstrates how easy my time actually was. Occasionally I feel like I missed out on a few good experiences but I also know I avoided a few bad ones. Good or bad this is how it all worked out.

I went through Basic Training in 1999 when it was a requirement to spend one night in a tent as a part of the Field Training Exercise. The purpose of this two day extravaganza was to expose us to the “extreme” conditions of the field. By late afternoon of the first day we began gearing up for the highly anticipated war game between the recruits and the instructors. Several of us were busy applying camouflage paint to our faces and hands in highly detailed patterns which we all knew served no real purpose. That was just routine. Others were discussing strategy on how to defend the camp, even though we stood no chance at victory. It was all rigged to not be in our favor. Regardless, we were all pumped up for the festivities, and then a freak thunderstorm popped up out of no where. Training rules strictly forbid any outdoor activities when there is lightning within five miles. Instead of playing war games and sleeping outside, we enjoyed hot showers and nice cool beds. In the morning we had a nice cozy breakfast in the dining hall and then bused back to finish the exercise. I didn’t realize at the time, but this did in fact fully prepare me for any extreme conditions I would ever see in the Air Force.

You also have to sleep outdoors during deployments and they happen quit frequently in the Air Force. I unknowingly managed to pick a job that deployed less than average. My luck extended further when I was assigned to a unit in a test wing. Test wings do not deploy as a group unlike the typical fighter wings which are always on a scheduled deployment rotation. However, there are chances to be pulled out individually to augment a fighter wing on their rotation, especially if you are trained on any special equipment. Eventually an assingnment came down for someone trained on the Sampling Waveform Digitizing System, a part of our automated testing equipment. Of course, this was something I had some experience with, but was not officially trained on. It was one of the pieces of equipment that everyone avoided like the plague, mainly because this vital piece was highly sensitive and easily broken. Basically by default my name was picked for the job and I proceeded to get officially certified on the equipment. This was quite an ordeal in itself; a certain rank and skill level, which I didn’t have, was required to be able to sign off on any repair. This was remedied by a waiver presented to me by the group commander which allowed me to complete the training and certification.

The scramble to get me up to speed lost momentum after the legality of it was finished. The hardest part now was keeping my trainers on task. I spent the remaining time teaching myself what I thought I needed to know and hoped for the best. Then, out of nowhere, my trainer volunteered to take my place. He never openly shared why he decided to go instead. Several rumors went around the shop on his motives, one was he needed the extra money, another was he wanted to get in shape. It didn’t matter to me I was simply relieved because I never felt qualified enough to fill this specialized duty.

My closest call came in the beginning of 2003. I had recently been transferred to a new base and a new unit. This unit never deployed either. In fact, for my career field, there were only three non-deploying units to be assigned to. I never did push my luck to try and get the third. Somehow, I kept ending up in the cake assignments, the ones everyone else begged and pleaded for. Everywhere I went I was told “this isn’t the real Air Force”. I jokingly mentioned that in front of my new commander, he didn’t appreciate the humor. He did however ensure me that I would soon get my chance.

Within a couple months, my unit was required to send one person to the Middle East. The 90 day assignment was a really crappy escort duty scheduled for some time in the spring. This time no one volunteered and my name was at the top of the list. I wondered if that joke did me in? I was displeased with the thought of being "voluntold" to go, but it seemed inevitable, so I stepped up. This went against my firm conviction to never volunteer for anything.

Unfortunately, Baghdad was a likely destination for this deployment, and things were really heating up over there. Soon after I volunteered my tour was increased to 120 days. Tensions kept building and in early March they informed me it would be more like 180 days. On March 20th we invaded Iraq, and all I could think was “son of a…”. However, April came and I hadn’t heard anything except “just be ready”. In May I was told the same. In June I started asking around and the only answer they gave me was “they probably only want essential personnel over there right now”. That was a sufficent answer for me, so I never asked again.

I really like your story. I tried to replace the word tasking so it appealed to a more general audience.

- Yes there was a definite consensus that "tasking" in that context made no sense to anyone else! Thanks