Phase one ..... scare tactics and opsec ....Day 349+

Ok, so all of you military spouses know this....predeployment brief....aka scare tactics. To my civilian friends, I will preface this with an explanation. Before our spouses deply we are asked to attend what is called a predeployemnt brief. This is where they go over basic information on how long the deployment should be, where the unit is going, the mailing address is given out, communication information is given, and you meet the CO (commanding officer) and your FRO (family readiness officer). The FRO is a paid position and is a person who is stateside and located in the unit offices that deals with the families while the spouse is gone, aka babysitter. Apparently even the military is scared of us spouses when left to our own devices!! LOL

So here is a rundown of what I hear during a brief..keep in mind I am no newbie here. This is what I am told before he leaves... this is why I bring a big bubble to a brief and this is also part of the reason that during phase one of a deployment... that we do not sleep!!!

One of the first things we get told is.....OpSec rules apply. The pre deployment briefing that we get to make sure we give away no secrets. Hello, I am not sure about you, but I have never had secret information nor has my husband shared that much with me. I know they mean non secret information such as  troop movement and numbers etc.... but to be honest, do they really think I listen to my husband that well. He starts in with military speak and I tune him out. I believe I already mentioned my geography skills, I think RI might want to step up their security. I am told very bad people are lurking and stalking my every post, my every word. If, a truly bad person is that desperate that they need to stalk me, lowly me, I seriously doubt they are going to be able to pull off any major event. Good luck with my lack of intelligence terrorist!!!! You might want to grab a map because this girl had no clue where Afghanistan was until I googled it.

That being said, I know what opsec means and as a spouse I am not going to divulge information that may harm my husband, so can you (the military) can just back off. I get it and I think you have bigger fish to worry about and not us spouses and girlfriends. Give us some credit will ya!!!

The next is the scare tactic they provide us in regards to our safety. Safety after our spouse is gone. They provide us with horrific stories that are meant to make us more diligent. They tell us about the boogeyman!! Yep that's right, I have the military to thank for my lack of sleep due to the visuals they provided.  You see, we get told not to put a sticker of our husbands unit on our car, bad guys know what units are gone, therefore they will target you. They tell us about home invasions on those whom fly the blue star flag. They scare the crap out of you.  This is why my bubble gets inflated BIG before a brief. I already received that speech from my parents when I left home about the bad guys of the world. I was taught how to watch my back when leaving a store, how to keep my personal belongings close, how to lock my door and many other tips. Lets be honest, I am not naive enough to think bad people are not out there. I am also not ignorant enough to think that prepared or not, sometimes...bad just happens. I guess I should thank the military for this brief... but at some point I just want to say.... we are adults and maybe some would fair better if you treated them as such. It is time to grow up and not coddle us. I think we can handle it....I sure hope we can.
This is where the importance of the FRO comes in.... now he will be inundated with all the calls from women that are seriously freaked..... well... what did you think would happen after giving us a great pep talk on how unsafe we are!!!


Bill--- I am safe... the boogeyman has left me alone thus far, he has only messed with the frig and the dishwasher. I am hoping that he brings his friend the Easter Bunnny when he comes next.. you know how I can deal with anything as long as there is chocolate!!!
Stay safe--- awaitng confirmation of you wearing all personal protective gear... I am thinking a campaign will be started to send you athletic cups in pkgs so as to truly embarrass you and point out your lack of proper use of your military issued gear!