It was announced by our DCMDR at the last meeting that the National Leadership and Management has considered making the Working Blue uniform obsolete, effective 31 December 2009. What happened to the "as long as serviceable" promise they made when the ODU was adopted? Since the ODU is rapidly dissappearing from stock and we can't get the "untucked" version until the active duty and reserves get theirs do we get to wear CG Aux tee-shirts and Levis?
I've only seen 3 people ever wear working blues in the past 4 years so it's not that big of a deal in our division. Of those 3, all of them have ODU's already so I'm going to guess it's not going to kill them to wear them...
There are several folks here that only wear the WB. I do not own a pair of ODU's. I think this policy, if true, would cause a hardship here.
Personally, I'm not a big fan of the para-military appearance that the ODU's convey. (SWAT team/combat boots look). I'd be happier in dungarees and a T-shirt.
The boots are one option. You can also wear boat shoes, described in AuxMan 10.H.4.e. Shoes as:
quote:
boat shoe (dark brown leather) low cut shoe of moccasin type construction with functional rawhide lacing, brass eyelets, and nonmarking sole may be worn
Yet a third choice is dress shoes described in the same section as:
quote:
Dress oxford (black, lace, plain toe) sole and heel must be same color as the shoe. Heel will be no higher than 1 inch.
do not like the end of life on principle. Aux does not get money for uniforms and have in the past been allowed to keep our old uniforms "as long as serviceable" If we are going to be subject to faster uniforms changes someone should come up with the money (besides the members pocket)to make it happen.
When the "Mall COP" ODU's came out, the edict was we could wear the other uniforms as long as they were serviceable. Our imbecilic, non-boating division captain at the time advised the Sector boss to put the kibosh on that and have ODU's only. To make things worse, the Sector commander ordered "boots only" on the base, which is his perogative. The result was a drastic downturn in the number of patrols performed. Most of us just do the bare minimum to keep out quals. I too, would be a whole lot happier and thus more active with dungerees and a tee shirt, but hey, what do I know?
If you do not want to wear ODUs and boots then don't. The CG Aux. will do just fine without you. I for one try hard to always look sharp so that we Honor the Gold Side. I take the same pride in my Aux uniform as I did in my Marine uniform. I hate it when I see an Aux member not wearing what we should wear. And I take time to tell them. I wish more did too.
Warrant Officers and Officers do not receive any uniform allowance either.
But they do get paid. Most Auxiliarists are retired and living on a fixed income. Uniforms are a significant expense to some of us. God Bless you if $50 or $75 is a drop in the bucket, but for others it matters.
A hint for those Auxiliarists that are "poor" like me. I purchased 90% of my Aux uniforms at "thrift stores" on and off bases. For an example I found a dress blue jacket for $5.00 and a wolly pully for $3.50. One must be patient and visit said store often.
Originally posted by baloo0136: Go buy an operations polo shirt and wear that on your patrols along with your ODU pants and boat shoes.
Baloo, you're making light of a subject that evokes strong feelings in some of us.
In my Dist/Sector you can't wear a polo shirt, etc. If you wear boat shoes with ODUs you must change to boots when coming on station. Consequently there has been a sharp decline in the number of members eating lunch at the station. BTW eating lunch is not just a meal, it is an opportunity to socialize with station personnel and get to know each other. This is to improve "family" relations.
I and some other "old fogeys" wear blues on patrol and for other activities where ODU not trops are the UOD. I only wear ODU when standing watch at the specific request of the OIC.
Some muckety-muck (in sloppy civies) announced at the last division meeting that blues were verboten as of 22DEC09. I could not find any reference to this in the knowledge base. An authoritative update would be appreciated.
Some muckety-muck (in sloppy civies) announced at the last division meeting that blues were verboten as of 22DEC09. I could not find any reference to this in the knowledge base. An authoritative update would be appreciated.
Sardog, even though I'm not "in authority", I tried to find the authority for you and failed miserably. I know I read that they were being phased out by 31 Dec - I believe '10, not '09 - but damned if I could find anything about it on the Natn'l website, the "P" website (they don't even mention uniforms on their website) or in my deleted e-mails from the CHIDRAUX or other bang lists. Whatever the date, that'll be the time that I cease doing OPS.
Oh, and don't bother buying a tuck in ODU top, they're doing away with them soon also..............
Unless something has changed, I remember the directive when the ODU's came out was that Working Blues could be used until they were no longer serviceable.
Unless something has changed, I remember the directive when the ODU's came out was that Working Blues could be used until they were no longer serviceable.
Something HAS changed. Our District Captain informed us today that in Dec 2010, the Working Blue will no longer be authorized.
I haven't seen it in writing, but he just came back from the District Conference. I suspect something was announced there. I'll probe for "the rest of the story."
2010 makes more sense. Our DCMDR has issues with dates, time, stuff like that. Hopefully by December 2010 the new ODU will be available to we volunteers. Likewise, hopefully, the Untucked ODU will come in sizes that fit humans and not look as scruffy as the current uniforms. Until then the "school janitor" togs will last.
