What Have You Forgotten to Bring to a Civil Air Patrol Activity?

[TexasCadet]

Let's face it: most of us have forgotten to bring something to at least one CAP activity. I know I did. It was at my basic encampment. I forgot to bring my pillow (luckily the barracks had extra pillows).

What have you forgotten to bring?

[Brad]

Civvies one year, civilian shoes a few years later. Wore my uniforms all week for the former, and stopped at a Wal-Mart in a rush on the way to staff an Encampment for the latter.

[Майор Хаткевич]

Blues Belt + flight cap my basic encampment.

[TexasCadet]

One cadet at my basic encampment forgot not only that stuff, he also forgot the rest of his blues.

[Huey Driver]

I was attending a SAREX a couple of hours away, and was going to sleep over at my CAP friend's house, which was about an hour closer, and we'd go up the next morning. I drive to my friends's house, and realize that I forgot my garment bag with my entire uniform at my house... Needless to say, I wasted a lot of gas and time that night!

There's a few things I wish I had too:
Civil Engineering Academy- A heavy blanket. I never imagined the inside of my tent would be in the 50 degree range... I barely slept cause of how cold it was in there. Also, ANT TRAPS!
Encampment Staffings- Snacks. You can always use more food!

[Phil Hirons, Jr.]

Arrived at the IG College on and discovered I had no uniform pants in my suitcase. Had to go buy some and had bought 1 for the trip!

[EMT-83]

There was the time that I forgot to put my son's blue shirt in my garment bag, when packing for the NER conference. My fault, not his.

We were unable to find a light blue shirt anywhere, so we bought a white one for the banquet, creating the Cadet Corporate Uniform.

[lordmonar]

Not a CAP story.....but I deployed to Italy with out my Personal Bag.

I was stationed in Germany with the First Combat Comm Squadron....gearing up for the Kosovo War.

We loaded our combat, cold weather, and chem bags (A, B, C) the day before along with all the comm equipiment.  We were supposed to build the personal bag pallent just before we left for the Air Terminal.

I was the Facility Chief (FAC CHEIF) for the SATCOM terminal and we got called away for a last minute team chief meeting while we were all standing around waiting for the baggage pallet to arrive.

I told one of my airman to make sure my P-bag got loaded...and ran off the the "30 minute meeting"....two and a half hours later meeting breaks up I got 10 minutes to grab my carry on, hit the latrine and board the bus to go straight to the 130 sitting on the tarmac.

We load the plane....strap down...and the off we go. 

Hit the ground running. Off load, safety brief, and then jobbing the comm site for 36 hours straight before we even think about getting a showing, getting some rest, and putting on clean cloths.......no P-Bag.  Look high, and low, check with all the other deployed squadrons.  Nothing...nada....call back to home base...."is my P-bag there?"  "Oh!  Is that yours, we were wondering why is was just sitting there in the middle of the bay!"

Needless to say....I was not a happy Staff Sergeant! 

Took them 4 days to get it out to me.  I was able to buy underwear and socks....but that's it.

[Panache]

My laptop, with all of our forms and records stored on it.

[Cadet David Derasmo]

2011 Camp Pendlton Encampment. I forgot my blues belt. I was the Group Honor Graduate out of 257... that happened.

[dwb]

I have forgotten everything there is to forget. Headgear is the thing I forget most often.

At this past year's cadet competition, I forgot my flight cap (I had driven down in civvies the night before). Luckily there was one at the HQ I could use.

[BillB]

As an Encampment Commander I always took a box of belts, flight caps (male and female) tie-tabs, and ties along to the activity. Of 300 cadets attending, probably 10 will have forgotten one of the above items. They were issued to cadets and were returned (most of the time) at the end of the Encampment.

[Pulsar]

I don't remember forgetting anything   ...and a good thing too...because I definitely would of heard about it from my staff. 

[Eclipse]

As an Encampment Commander I always took a box of belts, flight caps (male and female) tie-tabs, and ties along to the activity. Of 300 cadets attending, probably 10 will have forgotten one of the above items. They were issued to cadets and were returned (most of the time) at the end of the Encampment.

Ditto - had quite a pile by the time I turned over the reigns.  A belt or a hat is one thing, but never could figure out how
someone could lose the M65 or a new set of boots without mom & dad asking where they were.

I also made a fair number of Photoshopped nametags and nametapes - passable from the stands for blues and
way better then masking or duct tape for BDUs, usually made the cadets feel like someone cared about them, too.

[a2capt]

I also made a fair number of Photoshopped nametags and nametapes - passable from the stands for blues and way better then masking or duct tape for BDUs, usually made the cadets feel like someone cared about them, too.

:clap:

[Al Sayre]

Myself...

[C/Awesomenesss]

I have forgotten my blues belt and shoes for my wing conference a couple years ago

[luv2fly97]

I forgot my flight cap at encampment... and my bdu cover and belt at an AE weekend...

[luv2fly97]

I forgot my tie at an rcls

[AACS Cadet21]

I was attending a SAREX a couple of hours away, and was going to sleep over at my CAP friend's house, which was about an hour closer, and we'd go up the next morning. I drive to my friends's house, and realize that I forgot my garment bag with my entire uniform at my house... Needless to say, I wasted a lot of gas and time that night!

There's a few things I wish I had too:
Civil Engineering Academy- A heavy blanket. I never imagined the inside of my tent would be in the 50 degree range... I barely slept cause of how cold it was in there. Also, ANT TRAPS!
Encampment Staffings- Snacks. You can always use more food!

So cadet cadre can bring food contraband to encampment? I wasn't sure.

[AACS Cadet21]

As an Encampment Commander I always took a box of belts, flight caps (male and female) tie-tabs, and ties along to the activity. Of 300 cadets attending, probably 10 will have forgotten one of the above items. They were issued to cadets and were returned (most of the time) at the end of the Encampment.

Ditto. I'm taking BDU and Blues belts to encampment when I'm staff.

[arajca]

I was attending a SAREX a couple of hours away, and was going to sleep over at my CAP friend's house, which was about an hour closer, and we'd go up the next morning. I drive to my friends's house, and realize that I forgot my garment bag with my entire uniform at my house... Needless to say, I wasted a lot of gas and time that night!

There's a few things I wish I had too:
Civil Engineering Academy- A heavy blanket. I never imagined the inside of my tent would be in the 50 degree range... I barely slept cause of how cold it was in there. Also, ANT TRAPS!
Encampment Staffings- Snacks. You can always use more food!

So cadet cadre can bring food contraband to encampment? I wasn't sure.

Depends on the Encampment Commander. Also, if the staff misbehaves (including staying up past staff lights out), expect it to be the first thing confiscated.

[jimmydeanno]

I forgot to pack my grey slacks for IACE.   I had a "Kevin!" (For those of you old enough to remember Home Alone) moment on the way to DFW.  I had to find a Macy's enroute,  wait for it to open, buy my slacks, then get to the airport on time after having a 35 minute delay from the pants.  Made it to DFW with a minutes to spare...

[tht1gurlflightsarg]

My ID....

[Garibaldi]

There was this one time I went to my mother's house to spend the night prior to an FTX. While I was diligent in packing my uniform and everything I needed for the weekend, I neglected to bring civilian shoes for some reason. It was made all the worse by the fact that my sister had a party that night, and I was running around in shorts and combat boots.

[Cadetter]

I forgot to bring my blues cover to a color guard presentation at our wing conference last year... luckily another cadet who wasn't presenting had one the correct size, so I was lent it. And I got reminded that a TSgt should have personal responsibility down pat.

[MajorM]

Buying tennis shoes because I've forgotten them for an activity has long been my shoe replacement strategy

[AirAux]

How about the biggest boo-boo of all times?  My 17 year old son forgot to check his e-mail account and missed his offer to be Cadet Commander at Blue Beret.  That's one he won't ever do again.  And he won't ever get a re-do on..