“I think there is one higher office than president and I would call that patriot.” -Gary Hart

To all those that have served or are currently serving, THANK YOU for your dedication and service from the  granddaughter of a Marine and a Soldier, daughter of a Seaman and proud wife of an Airman. We are only free because of the brave and all too often, we take that freedom for granted. Some are around to share their stories, some have died in battle and some are sacrificing on this very day. We all need to rise up and shout our appreciation, not only on this day but always.

And an extra big THANK YOU to my Veteran. Thank you for everything you do to keep us safe and free. We love you!

Yesterday, I went in search of a past “love letter” from Bryan for a project. Of course, as per the norm when I pull out that shoebox with all of our letters from basic and tech school, I get teary eyed reading them and spend way more time then anticipated. One though, stands out and Bryan gave his blessing to post it ( good luck deciphering it though :). This was what you could call, the start of “us”. I remember getting this letter and being ecstatic and sad at the same time. Ecstatic to say yes, sad that I couldn’t call him and tell him yes (he was still in basic).

Do you keep things like this and ever take trips down memory lane? I am an EXTREME minimalist, but these are one of the few things, that I could never part with.

No matter what.

This is not a fun topic, but one that may help someone out there.

At the end of this year, we will lose our AIP (assignment incentive pay). I sat down today, to redo our budget spreadsheet and remove the AIP from our “fun money”. After sitting there for a sec, I realized I had no clue whether it was taxed or not. I know base pay and flight pay are taxed and BAH and BAS are not but AIP was throwing me. I did a little research and found this gem.

“A helpful rule of thumb is that if the entitlement contains the word “pay” in the title, i.e. Basic Pay, it is considered taxable income unless the service member is serving in a designated tax-free combat zone. If the entitlement contains the word “allowance” in the title, i.e. Basic Allowance for Housing, it usually is non-taxable.”

Of course this is not a 100% rule, but close enough. I’ve been a military spouse for 12 years and never thought about it in those terms. Of course, up until the last 18 months or so, we never had anything in our regular non-TDY/deployment paychecks other than base pay, BAS and BAH.

This applies to every branch (Air Force, Army, Marines, Navy, Coast Guard) and active duty, National Guard and Reserves.

So, for example (this list is not complete as I do not know of every miltary pay out there)….

Taxable (unless in a tax free combat zone, where every entitlement is tax free)

• Base Pay
• Flight Pay (Aviation Career Incentive Pay for Officers or Career Enlisted Flyer Incentive Pay)
• AIP (assignment incentive pay)
• Hazardous Duty Incentive Pay
• Dive Pay
• Sea Pay
• Submarine Pay
• Drill Pay
• Foreign Language Proficiency Pay
• Special Pay for Medical and Dental Officers
• Special Duty Assignment Pay
• Hardship Duty Pay
• Hostile Fire and Imminent Danger Pay (this one is in the gray area, since it is usually only for locations that are already tax free combat zones anyway)
• Stop-Loss Pay
• Enlistment and Reenlistment Bonuses (this is an exception to the “pay” rule of thumb)

Non-Taxable

• FSA (family separation allowance)
• BAH (basic allowance for housing)
• BAS (basic allowance for subsistence)
• DLA (dislocation allowance)
• Clothing Allowance
• COLA (cost of living allowance)
• OHA (overseas housing allowance)
• Per Diem (this is an exception to the “allowance” rule of thumb)

If you are looking at an LES and say “I know we get special pay but I don’t know what kind”, take heart. The military has a knack for lumping them all together under a label of  “Save Pay” which is taxable. If you want the breakdown of what they are, I’ll pray for you while you take a trip to finance or brave the DFAS phone lines :)!

*I’ve seen this floating around the internet lately, so I have no clue where it originated to credit it properly. I thought it was a cute way to get OPSEC (operations security) across though. I changed a few words to make it more applicable to the Air Force.*

I am Sam.

Sam I am.

Do you like OPSEC and ham?

I do not get it, Sam I am.

I do not get OPSEC and ham.

We must use it here and there.

We must use it everywhere.

You CAN share it in a car.

But you CANNOT in a bar.

You CANNOT share it in a text.

You CANNOT share it at the BX.

You CAN say it in your house.

But should NOT tell a random spouse.

You CAN say it in the shower.

But do NOT go sharing at happy hour.

DON’T make the Key Spouse sweat.

DON’T post it on the internet.

You CANNOT share it in a tweet.

That would not be very sweet.

Beware of Facebook and Google+ too.

It’s tempting to let your feelings through.

You Cannot tell it to a friend.

NOT even at the very end.

It is a privilege to know a date.

DON’T tell ANYONE or they may be late!

Oh, I get it, Sam I am

Now I get OPSEC and ham!

I will not tell anyone. I will keep hushed until they’re done!

I will not tell him or her. I will not tell my dog with fur.

I will not tell my child’s teacher. I will not tell any creature.

Thank you, THANK YOU, Sam I am.

Thank you for clearing up OPSEC and Ham!

12 years ago today, at a little courthouse in Wichita Falls, Tx, I made a promise to love, honor and cherish for better or for worse. While life has not always been easy, there is no one I would rather ride the roller coaster with. Happy anniversary to my very best friend! I love you!

“The United States flag does not fly because the wind moves past it. The United States flag flies from the last breath of each military member who has died protecting it. American soldiers don’t fight because they hate what’s in front of them…they fight because they love what’s behind them.”  -Author Unknown

Those of you in the Air Force realms most likely know that today at 8AM CST was a very important announcement. Today, AFPC released the selections for technical sergeant or for the non-AF types, E-6. 263 people from Nellis/Creech made it and guess who was one of them….

I am SO proud of him!

Bryan had already left for work this morning since the list was released at 6AM our time, so I got to see the results first. I called him while he was driving and simply said, “Congrats Tech Sgt Select Buchorn”. At first it was total silence and then came the ecstatic laugh. At this point, I wondered if giving him news like that over the phone while he was driving was the safest idea. I sure hope he can keep his mind on the mission today and not the good news. The celebrating will have to wait till tonight.

The last few years trying to make tech have been really rough on Bryan’s self confidence. In 2009, he missed it by 0.06. Yes, less than one-tenth of a point and he was THE first non-selectee in his career field. In 2010 he would have made it by a landslide in his old career field, but because he left for retraining before 31 Dec 09 and his new career field does not have SKT’s yet, he was lumped with all the new career field eligibles. People that had maxed out decorations points from flying hours and actual time to study (Bryan was knee deep in retraining when he tested). He still didn’t have a lot of faith for this year but, as we know it is all in God’s timing.

Next up….master!

Madingly American Cemetery, Cambridge, United Kingdom, Memorial Day 2003
(please excuse the quality of the picture, it was taken with film, scanned in at low res years ago and I can’t find the original)

“…they did not volunteer to die; they volunteered to defend values for which men have always been willing to die if need be… let us pledge that their lives, their sacrifices, their valor shall be justified and remembered…” Ronald Reagan, 1982 Memorial Day speech at Arlington

12 years ago today, this was Bryan. Young, maybe a little scared, ready to do something different and make a change with his life.

This is him now (well, maybe not exactly now, a year ago:). Older, wiser, more confident and in love with his job. The last 12 years have been a definite adventure, but I couldn’t be more proud of him and who he has become.

Here’s to another 8+ more!

… it goes on and on my friends.

Sing it with me…you know you want to now that I have placed that annoying song in your mind.

This is the TDY that neeeeeeeeever ends… it goes on and on my friends.

(Title idea lovingly lifted from Delta…have I ever said how much I would love to meet her in person?! She’s just seems like a fun soul and is an AF wife, too.)

I know,I know, I shouldn’t complain. When we first got these TDY orders, Bryan wasn’t due to be home until July 17th and it is just now July 1st. But, when we were told about halfway through that he would get to come home early my whole mindset changed. If no one had ever told me, I would have been just fine. Instead now, I keep getting my hopes up daily that these mission will get accomplished and he can book tickets home.

As of when I was in New Mexico with him a couple weeks ago, he was on schedule to be home by Saturday (June 26). That would have been prime, since that was the only day Jacey was home before camp and he would have gotten to see her. Then last week brought fuel contamination issues and then a change of command that halted all flying for an entire day (the commander must think he is important or something…ppffttt;-). This week Bryan actually got a mission accomplished on Monday but Tuesday and Wednesday were no go’s due to weather. Today marks the third attempt for his CO-3 ride. We shall see, if he can fly today and tomorrow, he can come home Saturday but I am not holding my breath at this point.

He is SO ready to be home and I am SO ready for him to be home. We are at 67 days and counting….sigh.

I am trying to figure out if the worst part is that we are so close and yet just can’t seem to get there (he only has CO-3 and an Eval flight to be done) or if it is the fact that we are in a day by day holding pattern. That is one part of the flying world I was not prepared for.

Curse this plane that can’t fly in clouds…LOL!