Hurry up and Wait

My husband has told me that the Marine Corps is all about hurry up and wait. Drill Instructors give recruits "five seconds" to make their racks, only to wait half an hour for the parade deck to be free. Recruits are given two minutes to get over to medical, only to wait an hour in line before their platoon can be seen. I'm learning that it's not just in boot camp that this principle is applied. My husband is in the reserves and twice we've been "unofficially" told that his unit is getting activated. So for a couple of days we run around like crazy arranging power of attorney, updating wills, and prepping gear. My husband and I even missed classes last winter when word came down the chain that they were going to be activated. Of course up to now he hasn't been activated.