Things have been very hectic, but good. My unit is almost ready to leave. All my soldiers are gone and now its just me, the platoon sergeant, and the officer in charge of our shop. 3 people is really nice honestly. I really missed being the one doing the majority of the work. Getting soldiers under me really made me lazy this deployment. Its been refreshing doing all the computer work for the battalion again. Great thing is, I leave in less than a week! I'll be home for Christmas this year, and I really can't wait to see my wife and my family. I'm getting out of the army when I get back from leave and I'll be in the Reserves for about 2 years before getting out completely. I get complete Stateside stabilization in the Reserves for 24 months. Normally, when you enlist the Army, (it might be the same way for the other branches, I'm not sure) you have an 8 year obligation. If you sign up for 2 years, you have 6 years of inactive reserve time to do, if you sign for 4 years, you have 4 years of IR. Theres a program that if I sign up for the regular reserves and do my time one weekend a month, mine will be shortened to 2 years stateside since I've been deployed twice in my career and was extended past my end of term of service date. So I'll be doing that so they don't call me back up from the IR and stick me in some random unit doing some random job. So I get to be a civilian and stay in the army for awhile as a Sergeant at the same time. If I get really hard up for a job later on down the line, I'll just get a job as a civilian contractor working for the military doing some sort of computer or communications job. I'm more than qualified for it and it pays decently and I won't have to completely give up my freedoms and sign my life over to a military branch.
Look out, I'm coming home!