For the second time in less than a month, I’ve “dodged a bullet.” No not real ones, but the opportunity to be exposed to them has come my way. I’m retiring at the end of May, and I will be released from duty around the second week of May. That means any deployment I go on, I need to be able to return from thirty days before then — to give me adequate time to process off of active duty. I’m in the deployment bucket that runs from January to the end of April.

Because of various reasons, some deployments leave a little before January, and some will leave during the rest of the “window.” What this amounts to is keeping a balance of experienced people serving in the war at all times instead of wholesale changing out the experienced people with inexperienced people. For Air Force people, this window is typically 120 days, but in some career fields that are short-handed, the norm is creeping up to 179 days. There are two of us in this “bucket” or “window” in my organization who are the same rank and from the same career field (communications). I, as you know, am retiring. The other guy is dealing with a serious matter that deploying at this time would make much worse, so we won’t make him go.

Last month, a tasking for 179 days to Afghanistan arrived on our doorstep. He can’t go. I did the math. The 179 days put my return smack dab in the middle of my 30 day window. I can’t go. Some other unit has to take that tasking.

Today, another tasking for 125 days dropped to another fun place. This one has whoever gets it having to be in place Christmas Day (The upside? The month of December is tax free, because whoever gets it will be in a war zone for some part of December). I didn’t trust myself. I had a co-worker do the count. What day is 125 days from December 25? He came up with April 27. Still within the 30 day window. I can’t go.

I don’t mind going, but it really would mess with plans I have as I prepare to retire. It would mess with my landlords who would have to find someone to rent this house at an awkward time of year (because I’m not interested in paying $1200 a month for storage unit for four months — if I don’t live here, that’s what this place becomes, and if I have to go somewhere, I won’t be back here long enough after I get back to make it worthwhile to keep my stuff here). It would mean my stuff would be shipped to Texas earlier than we planned, and we’re not completely ready for it in the house yet (but I keep telling hubby we could make it work). And I’d wind up selling some leave back instead of taking it. But if I have to go anywhere, I really prefer Afghanistan. I’ve never been to that area of the world before, and, while I’m perfectly happy to never leave the US, I prefer there to other fun-filled spots that are available.

We’ll just wait and see. I’m still at a point where the next nine months of my life could change dramatically with a “ding” to my email box, and that’s interesting. Most people in my organization will hear it from their boss, but I’m the deployment manager, so I see them first, and I know I’m the only one who might be able to go on this go-around for this particular type of tasking, so it’s all a matter of the date required in-place and how it meshes with my departure date.