Being a Contractor, or Missing the Rib Burn Off

There's an automatic stigma associated with the idea of the military contractor. I suppose that's due to the fact that the main reason you hear about military contractors in the news is when there's some sort of controversy or scandal relating to them. Within the military that stigma is magnified. It definitely has something to do with the inflated salaries and the idea that contractors are in war zones at-will whereas soldiers are there at command...

I find this stigma directed towards me from time to time, but it's not as bad as I expected. Here is a quote from a veteran contractor I met in Germany while doing training, "My friend is at Kandahar and he says the contractors are realllllyyy looked down on from the 10 Mt Div.  They are treated like scum."

I'm definitely not treated like scum - the email had a lot of other predictions that didn't come true. I will get some looks every once in a while, though - probably less often than I think considering some of those are probably imagined. Maybe having a beard (see future post) puts me a bit under the radar because most people don't assume I'm from the States, but from either Afghanistan or some other Middle Eastern country.

The stigma is definitely reduced at work. The soldiers that come in clearly know we're here to help them, and to help them along in a process that's essentially getting them what they are due - their military benefits.

Most people have an image in their heads of the standard contractor - some early-middle-aged man who's here for the extremely inflated salary that they do not deserve in order to take advantage of the money that's being freely given away for such menial tasks as who even knows what? I don't think I fit that profile.

In other news: today is the Gross Schechter Totally Kosher Rib Burn Off. If you are reading this at the time of this posting, and are within a 1000 mile proximity to Cleveland, Ohio, YOU CAN STILL MAKE IT! I mean it when I say it's my favorite day of the year. This is because a lot of people I like show up to one place and schmooze while eating all of my favorite foods. If this doesn't convince you here are some pictures I pulled from the RBO album from Schechter's website:

Look how happy everyone is eating ribs!

They couldn't be happier!

My dad made it into the album!

I haven't missed a rib burn off since it became an annual event in 1993, when I was 5 years old. In the past, I've taunted friends who were away at college when I was on a quarter system and had no problem making it because school hadn't started by Labor Day. Now my comeuppance has arrived. I went so far as to write a letter to the editor to the Cleveland Jewish News about how much I'd be missing this great event - which they forgot to include in this week's issue - but it's on the website.

Instead of being there, I find myself laboring my normal hours on Labor Day. As a small consolation the DFACs make an effort to make meals special for holidays so that's something to look forward to.

I'll leave you with this song that always makes me think of the Rib Burn Off: