Next
up, the actual information overload part of our little briefing. Our briefer brought up a power point
presentation (included in that handy folder she gave us at the beginning) and
dove right in. That power-point print
out was my lifesaver. We went through
those slides relatively quickly and it was all I could do to write down the
more important, pressing information that I would like to call up at a moment’s
notice, if desired, instead of wading through all the slides (63 for those of
you who were curious) just to find my answer.
First, we learned about preparations before departing for our new-found
home. There are many of these
preparations. Good thing we don’t have
to do them all at once, or I might be severely tempted to revert to total
shut-down mode—a mode which my husband would have to gently coax me out of
until I regained my senses and was able to plow through everything. Ok, not really, but still. . . tempting. . .
For starters, they strongly suggest
(meaning you had better, or else) you have 25 copies minimum of your orders, as many steps in the PCS process require
you to have 1 or more copies of your full orders to get anything done. Example:
financial brief requires orders, no-fee passport requires orders, etc. Other preparatory items include obtaining
command sponsorship, physicals, getting an APO mail box at your new station,
finding a sponsor (this differs from command sponsorship in that it is a
soldier who has been stationed in Korea for a while and knows the basics of layout
and how things work there—basically your go-to person with any questions you
may have), making reservations for temp housing, passports, flights out,
etc. There is much more, but I may go
into that pesky shut-down mode if I have to list everything off at once.
What I
found most helpful, aside from what to expect upon arrival, was a dandy list of
things that you should hand carry to your new home away from home. If these items are shipped, chances are you
won’t see them until you unpack that very last box, at which point you will
most likely be at your breaking point, because you need these items to get
checked in and cannot do without them. I’m sure there are more things to
hand carry (like POA and birth and marriage certificates), but that’s the basic short list. J
The
remainder of the brief was on what to expect once you touch down in South
Korea, including everything from what to do as soon as you step off the plane
to what to expect once living in Korea.
I won’t get into any of that now because it’s enough ahead that if I do
too much pondering the risk of going into that comatose, shut-down mode
comes back to haunt me.
As for now, I shall focus on just getting through EFMP screening and waiting for our orders. Once we get our orders, the fun will begin and the seemingly-endless checklist I've been keeping a running tally of in my head will finally begin to dwindle. Maybe I'll be inspired to tackle the rest of the briefing tomorrow after a good night's rest. I tell you what, sleep fixes everything! In the words of Anne Shirley, "Tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet." Goodnight all.
