for those few (read none) of you who look forward to my each post with great anticipation i am announcing i will be taking a hiatus, if you will. read here, if interested

here's to hoping you don't get sent anywhere anytime soon.

He is likely to miss the whole war. Basic training is 3 months? And then another 6 weeks or so of job training?

Of course, a whole lot of people were afraid of missing a different war in 1861. You never know, but it doesn't look like the Iraqis have much hope of holding out long.

-Biscuits

Customsex, cheer up. You're just starting out in life; in 5 years, the problems you face now will no longer even concern you. There is nothing wrong with a little temporary depression. I imagine almost everybody you know has gone through some particularly rough times and managed to pull through.

You are a valued member of this board. Good luck on your military service.

tomorrow, monday, i head out to basic. youve all been awesome company and i feel priveleged to be accepted among you. thank you.
(also, the link above is dead, its mirrored here

Good luck man, best wishes. When you can put up a post so we can all see how you are doing.

Take care.

Mmm.. well, stick with it, I suppose -- making it through those first six weeks should make a heck of a difference in anyone's life.

Did you ever take the faceplate off of your player to see if the nipple was broken?

-ml

Good luck!

Good luck.

I'm sure that this will have a very positive effect on your life. It will teach you self-motivation and discipline, whilst providing you with opportunites for travel and excitement. And, of course, don't forget the ladies who love a guy in uniform! By the time you're done, you won't even remember where that rut you left behind was.

Have fun.

...and you'll get to play with some really cool toys that we all pay for

tomorrow, monday, i head out to basic.

Some random, last-minute thoughts/advice:

- I'm guessing that the Air Force has fewer folks in their basic training companies who have been sent there by a judge. That's good.
- If you have a good sense of humor, keep it under wraps for 6 weeks. Drill instructors home in on wiseasses.
- Do what you can to become invisible...blend in.
- Remember that basic is carefully tuned to have at least 95 percent of people get through it.
- Some morning at 3AM when they flip on the lights and start screaming about a stolen bayonet/goggles/whatever, well, that's bullshit. Nobody stole a bayonet. It's just an excuse to turn everything inside out.
- Act gullible. Practice saying stuff like: "Damn, I wonder which [censored] stole the bayonet?"
- If you experience a brief period of increased alienation-- like when you just got your head shaved and they seat you on an airplane next to a beautiful woman-- well, that's normal.
- Notice how much more polite the drill sergeants are on the firing range!

Good luck and take care.

Oh, and don't forget teamwork, teamwork, teamwork.

I talked to a guy from the S. African military, who said the only way to get through barracks inspections in basic was to divvy the work up between everyone -- one guy makes all the beds, one guy folds all the socks and underwear, one guy does the floors, etc. He said that just when they figured out all the tricks, the inspectors would pull out something new -- checking the top of the lightbulbs for dust, sliding an index card in the crack between the baseboards and the floorboards to see if there's any dirt. At the beginning, with everyone making their own bed, folding their own socks, etc, there was no way they could get everything done.

All I can say is good luck. I don't think I could make it through -- I seem to get attitude when I'm yelled at and told what to do.

thanks for the kind words, and the advice. ill be sure to poke my head in once i get a chance. will prolly be in tech school sometime. and yeah, the nipple is definitely broken.

And, of course, don't forget the ladies who love a guy in uniform!

especially those dress uniforms.

> like when you just got your head shaved

I think if I ever joined the armed forces, I would shave my head before I went in. Just that much less trauma to deal with.

> Notice how much more polite the drill sergeants are on the firing range!

Hehe. "This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine."

If you going to have a unifrom have a swanky one

Gopher! How are Cpt. Stubing and Doc?

Hehe. "This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine."

More like "This is my rifle...and for the next 8 hours I have real bullets!"

This is my rifle, and this is my gun. This one is for shooting, and this one is for fun.