A First Lieutenant (1LT) No More

Well it's official......

It was close but I have pinned (actually it is velcroed on these days) on as a Captain or CPT as they abbreviate it in the Army. It was pretty cool being able to have a guy with two stars on his uniform and more to come I am sure pin/velcroe me on last night. He offered a trade of his stars for my bars. I kindly declined, especially after seeing what he has to put up with on a daily basis. What also is cool about this promotion is that I did it in a combat zone. I am big on top 10/likes and dislikes lists and this entry will be no exception. I have come up with a list of likes and dislikes about being a 1LT.

Dislikes:

Hearing the joke, you can't spell lost without LT.
Hearing a senior enlisted guy say "LT I have more leave time than you have in the Army."
Hearing a Private First Class, (an enlisted E-3 ) after saluting you and your CPT friends, say "Good morning Sirs" only to turn directly to you say "Mornin' LT."
Having to salute almost every officer in the Army. It always seems to happen outside the DFAC(dining facility for those still tracking the military alaphabet.)
Getting blank and sometimes sympathetic looks from my active duty Judge Advocate Counter parts who pin on CPT within 6 months of joining the Army.
Doing CPT level work and getting paid as a 1LT

Likes:
Being able to utilize the excuse and or explaination that "Oh I am just LT."
Having your boss say "Oh he is just a 1LT he did not know that you weren't supposed to wave to the General and say "what's up?"
Being able to make a "1LT mistake." From what I hear if you make a mistake as a Captain they cut off your hands.
Having very little bling (ribbons and the like) on your uniform. Ribbons get very expensive after a while and its difficult to remember where they go. (See my next like below)
Having an NCO, shake their head, laugh at you and say "Sir you might not want to do it that way." and then help you. Or better yet, they say "Sir I will take care of that for you." I give a shout out to SFC Baker and SFC Sato on this one. Officers always take care of your senior enlisted and Non-commissioned Officers. They truly run the show. :)

Seriously though, this is a great point in my career. I want to really thank my family and close friends for all of their support not only during this deployment but during my military career. I would also like to thank all of those senior to me, both enlisted and officer for their mentorship. In the Army you have to put up with a lot of BS. I am very thankful to those who have been in longer than me for their assistance in guiding me through and often times yanking me out of the BS. I have been very lucky and blessed to have co-workers, friends and supervisors who have given me valuable life and leadership lessons.