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Sept. 23, 2008
I heard a rumor today that we'll hit white phase as soon as Saturday. I hope. I did find out that graduation is supposed to be the 13th of Nov. There's a Family Day thing the day before. I don't know all the details. My friends back there might know more. Overall, it's not anywhere near as hard as everybody made it seem. Hell, last night one of the Drill Sergeants practiced his amateur comedy routine on us. He's a funny guy.
Our platoon has been making another Drill Sergeant proud lately. He used to call us POGs. (pronounced poge) It stands for People Other Than Grunts. He typically hates non-infantry. Yesterday, we were going through the chow line, and we sounded off REALLY LOUD with our entrance call. It goes like this:
D.S.: Last two spartans secure the door!
All: LAST TWO SPARTANS SECURE THE DOOR!!!
Last two: Cover us while we move!
All: WE GOT YOU COVERED!!! SPARTAAAAANS - BOOM!!! (Spartans - we yell this while they run to the door. Boom - we yell this when they get there.)
Last two: Drill Sgt! Request permission to enter the DFAC, Drill Sgt!
All: DRILL SGT!!! REQUEST PERMISSION TO ENTER THE DFAC, DRILL SGT!!!
D.S.: ENTER!
All: NO MERCY!!! (Hoo! Hoo!) NO PRISONERS!!! (Hoo! Hoo!) EAT HEARTY!!! FOR TONIGHT WE DINE IN HELL!!!
Normally at this part, the last two open the DFAC doors, and the 1st platoon files in. This time, another platoon was in the way. Our Drill Sgt. holds open the door and yells, "Hurry the hell up, you bunch of useless pound puppies! I've got an army of 60 angry hungry spartans out here that need to eat!" Trust me, from this man, that is high praise. The fact that he called us spartans meant he was impressed. He's a sniper, by the way. He said that I shouldn't trust the video system I tested on, but that it shows I have potential. He is going to be the one teaching Basic Rifle Marksmanship. He said he'll teach me everything he can. Also, after the run this morning, during the cooldown walk, he started calling cadences. Another Drill Sgt. noticed and said, "Wow. They must have done well to get him in that good of a mood."
Time seems to be going at a decent clip here. There are a couple of optimistic guys around, so they keep me going.
Spyder
When I get a letter and finish reading it, I get so excited to post it on here for you guys to read. He's already been in Basic for 2 weeks, so the hardest part should be over for him. It seems like he's learning a lot. There had been some talk of suggesting him for sniper back here before he left. It's a difficult position to get. You have to be invited. His superiors can recommend him if he impresses them. The military doesn't care about his grades growing up or if he's ADD or anything. Just what he shows them now counts and he loves that. He's been trying to be responsible and take care of the two of us as much as he can. He's a really good man.
So I just finished a first aid test. Turns out I have homework, as well. (Not nearly as hard as yours, though.) Now I'm pretending to take land-nav notes.
I won't pretend that basic isn't hard, it's just not that hard. There's a lot of soldiers who joined with dreams of glory and grandeur, only to find out how much discipline it takes. The cool thing, though, is that this (my) cycle is the final non-infantry Basic cycle for Ft. Benning. Once I'm done, they will train ONLY infantry. It's actually a historic thing. That, and I found out that Ft. Benning isn't one of the hardest, it's THE hardest. Sure, one guy forgets to end a sentence with "Drill Sgt." and the whole platoon has to run 6 laps, but I don't mind. I just miss you. That's the only painful thing. Everything else to me is just training and inconvenience. 1 less day down until I see you again, you know?
So there are 60 soldiers in my platoon, made up of 4 squads of 15. I have no idea where I was going with that.
I'm sorry I don't get to write much. That should change when we hit white phase. We'll have a little more personal time. Hopefully soon. Anyway, more things I miss than I can mention.
Spyder
There was more mushy stuff that I cut out this time. Mostly he said some of the weird things about me that he misses that I would be embarrassed for you guys to know. Even though this letter was short, it's like I get to take a deep breath when one comes and then I'm holding my breath until the next one comes. I'll let you know when I do.
Sept. 5, 2008
Well, I'm finally here. Reception isn't hard, it's just boring. It's like Satan's checkout counter. And it's only day 2. There's just so much standing around waiting. I found out in Optometry that my glasses are no good. My vision has worsened. Slightly.
They issued me a camelback, though, so that's cool. I've had to be in PT gear the whole time. My clothes and other things are in my bag locked in another part of the facility. Anyway, I have fireguard tonight, so I should go for a bit. I'll write more later.
Sept. 6, 2008
Now it's 4:15 a.m. and I have fireguard again. I should get to sleep through the night tomorrow, though. I don't mind fireguard much. I get along ok with my group. They're good guys. They're all over the place.
My thoughts are everywhere, aren't they? I've heard I get 2 weeks for Christmas, so that'll be good. We'll be together again soon.
Sept. 11, 2008
So, wow. 1st day of Basic Red Phase is over. The "Shark Attack," as they call it, proved too much for some. It's been helpful knowing that they laugh later about it. One of my sergeants back home was a godsend that way. I'll have an address for you soon. For now, I have to sleep.
Sept. 15, 2008
These last few days have been hell. Not really in a bad way. We have 3 main Drill Sergeants. One is our Senior D.S. He's in his 50's, I'd guess, cool, calm disposition. We lucked out there. Another is in his 30's, likes to make us do P.T. Typical D.S. The third is a legend in cruelty. He made us disassemble our 30 bunks and reassemble them downstairs in the formation area. He gave us an hour to do it. So, we did it in 45 min. Yeah, that made him mad. So, he made us break them down and take them back to our bay. He gave us 40 min. And they had to be in order. We did it in 30 min.
We had to do the gas chamber today. Not nearly as bad as everyone said. Well, for me. Come to find out, only 3% of the populace is immune to CS gas, but about 10 % are CS tolerant. I am CS tolerant. Woo! We decided that my platoon would sound off with our platoon name upon exiting the chamber. Everyone else said, "splarplughwppl" or something like that. So, because my lungs cleared almost instantly, I sound off so LOUD so that I made up for the platoon. The D.S. of another platoon was like, "How come you couldn't do that?" to them.
My battle buddy is this pretty cool 20-something kid. He's lived in Germany for 18 years. Speaks German, English, and French fluently. (Can you tell I finally have enough time to write?) I don't have fireguard tonight, so I can finally catch up. So far I've been issued a lot of crap, including vest, helmet, and an M-16 4A.
All in all, I'm doing ok. I need to sleep for now, but I'll send this tomorrow.
Spyder
I was so excited to get this letter today. I edited out the mushy stuff to spare you guys, but if you want to read it too, I can include it. It's such a relief to hear from him at last. As usual, I'll let you guys know when I do.
I got a letter from Private Spyder's Commander today. It's a letter telling me more about what Basic Training will be like for him, so I thought you all would be interested, too.
The letter says that to become a soldier he must complete 9 weeks of extremely rigorous training. The training is so demanding physically, mentally, and emotionally that there will be times he wants to quit. So, he will need letters of encouragement (but no food or bulky items, apparently). When he's done he will have: walked over 100 total miles with full combat gear and pack, had Physical Training 6 times a week, learned about all kinds of weapons, spend over 25 hours of training in hand-to-hand fighting techniques, and hundreds of hours learning other skills. He will also go on a 5 day Field Training Exercise where he will use all of his training. It says that though he is physically away from our family that he is now with a large Army family that is supporting him. He'll have a battle buddy and at least 55 soldiers in his platoon that he'll get to know. His drill sergeants will be there to help him, too. (Trust me, it's not like the movies. This isn't Full Metal Jacket or Forest Gump. Though they do yell.) The drill sergeants have had a lot of training and been in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other combat operations so they really know what they're talking about. They won't ever ask Spyder to do anything they haven't done themselves. He will have a Family Day on November 12th (out there) and on the 13th will be his graduation. I'm going to try to save enough money to go. I checked my school schedules and I'll have two tests on those days, but I'll talk to my professors as soon as I can to see if I would be able to take them another day. My math one I could take on Monday. I could take my Chemistry test on Tuesday and leave later that day, maybe... it will all make more sense as it gets closer. I don't know how much plane tickets cost, so I'll have to see. A couple of his army buddies want to go out there for it, so I guess I would just go with them. One of them had basic at the same place, so he'd know the layout of the place and everything. The letter also sent me Spyder's mailing address, which I will email to as many of you as I can find addresses for.
I know it's really tough for him right now. The letter also said he'll have very limited phone time, so I don't know how much he'll be able to call. I know he'll try to write as much as he can. If anyone can do this, it's him. He's the strongest person I've known. He does his best at everything he does. And it shows.
I'll be writing a lot of letters. I'm sure he'd enjoy hearing from you guys, too, if you want. :)
I got another brief call from Spyder tonight. He's done with reception now and will head to the part of the base where he gets basic training tomorrow. He's gotten checked by doctors and some shots. The penicillen shot had to be in the deriere and he said, "I'm not gonna lie: it hurt." He confessed to making a small noise, but one of the guys was practically yelling. He said the medical examiner looked at the guy and asked, "Seriously?" Our boy is really glad to be done with the reception part, but I could tell he's a little nervous because tomorrow the hard part begins: drill sergeants. The yelling isn't to just to be mean, though. Spydey pointed out that if you can't take someone yelling at you, how are you going to stay focused during a battle? He understands the reasons behind basic training, so he'll do fine. You gotta play the game. It shows them how well you will follow orders under pressure. He'll be able to mail his letters after he gets there and will have a return address. He kept asking how I am. I'd tell him I was good, but he asked me 3 or 4 more times. (He's so cute.) He told me to be strong. (I'm doing my best, but him being gone and having caluclus is not a good combination.) So, we'll hear from him in a few days or a week. It will probably be intense right after he transfers over. He did find out that he might get to come home for a couple of days before AIT and that he'll be here for about 2 weeks at Christmas (though he has to keep in touch with one of his sergeants during that time). That already makes it less difficult for us all than it would have been. Well, you guys, I'll let you know when I do.
Spyder was at last able to call me last night. He's slipped into his West Virginia accent a little bit from being around so many soldiers from the South. He's still in reception right now, getting his paper work through and being issued his new uniform. He said he'd been going to school and getting good grades. The guy on the bunk below him is 37 and his wife and kids are waiting for him at home. It seemed to help Spyder feel better that other guys were homesick, too. He said another guy was asking everyone what they were doing that time last week. Spyder told him that he was avoiding saying goodbye. We couldn't talk very long because the other guys were waiting to use the phone, too. But, he's okay and he's doing well. His return address will change in a few days, so he'll write as soon as he knows what it is. I was just glad to hear something. The first week or so is really busy, according to my dad (he fought in Korea during Vietnam). Things will develop a pattern soon. I'll let you know when I get the first letter.
This is Spyder's wife, Wisp. Once I got him to the hotel to check in, he got very nervous. He always told me he felt like some other part of him would be leaving, and that he was really staying here. It became very real very suddenly. Saying goodbye was excruciating. He should have left for Georgia already and has probably been busy getting his paperwork processed and all of that fun stuff the past few days. He ended up leaving for Georgia one day later than expected, so I'm sure he had a joyful day sitting in the hotel. I will probably be getting a letter soon and I will post some excerpts from each letter I get here for you guys to read so you can keep up to date with his progress. I just wanted you to know that he's out there now having a hell of a time. Updates soon to come.
