One of My Top Ten Military Stories

 In the late 1980s...I was stationed at a base in the SW of the US, and a big eval-inspection was scheduled (known for six months).

The team was supposed to arrive on Sunday, and stay through Wednesday of the next week. 

Our base chow hall was run by a E-8 NCO.  He had been on some fast-track for two years (on the base) and needed some 'hype' to get this special duty assignment.  So he devised a fantastic chow-hall menu plan for the 10-day period.

I should note....at this time....military budgets ran from 1 October to 30 September of the next year.  The chow-hall had a quarterly budget.  

Sarge (the chow hall boss) scheduled on day one (Monday) of this inspection....a fantastic lunch, with grilled steaks (something people had never seen before).  Monday evening followed with higher than average dinners.  

Tuesday?  Seafood and shrimp.

To be honest, everyone was shocked over the expanded and terrific menu plan.  Normally, I might have eaten there once a month....I probably ate 3 lunches over that 10-day period at the chow hall.

No shocks....the inspection team gave the 'boss' extraordinary high marks.  Around two weeks after they left....Sarge got his dream assignment and about four weeks later.....he left the base (end of April).  

New Sarge arrives in early May.  He sits down and views the budget and funds left for the final quarter of the year (July-August-September).  He's short on money.  Old Sarge had spent almost an entire quarter of the budget in ten days.  

New Sarge goes to the Wing Commander to beg funds.  Everyone is shocked, and admitting there just isn't that kind of money (going up into the half-million range).  Wing Commander finds some cash, but nothing to the extent required.

New Sarge now develops a bare-bones lunch-dinner plan for June-July-August-September.  New rule started: if you aren't a barracks-dweller.....you can't use the chow hall.  

Deserts?  They mostly go to jello options only.

Chicken?  Most all dinners center on some chicken dish.  

Customer use on weekends?  Most people agreed that half the normal customers simply skipped the chow-hall because of the crappy food situation.  

Punishment or disciplinary action on old Sarge?  Nothing.  Oddly, this became one of the topics you couldn't discuss in front of the Wing Commander because of the misuse of funds.