Today has been a pretty good day for me so far We woke up around 04:30 and had to do our first PT test. It wasn't a full PT test however. Just one minute of sit ups, one minute of push ups and a one mile run. I did very well today actually. I did 42 push ups ( the most in my platoon,) 31 sit ups and ran my mile in 7:10 seconds. I was surprised at how easy it all was, and I have my dad to thank for that. He pushed me to workout and run as much as possible, and it all really paid off! I am in a pretty good mood because of it too.
After wards we were given a 5 min. breakfast and then we walked a mile and a half...excuse me we MARCHED, not walked, to some supply building here on base. We were then issued a shit load of gear, almost $3,500 dollars worth that I am responsible for. We had to sign for it and then put it ALL on. This included 40 lb bullet proof vest and ruck sack, and a shit load of other gear. We had to march back to the barracks with it all rush it upstairs then sit down for lunch.
Right now we have an hour to clean the bay and I already did my part. I make beds and help others do theirs. I'm a pro at folding and making beds military style. So I'm currently hiding near my wall locker acting like I'm arranging stuff, and I'm writing this letter. We are supposed to have a class in a little while or something, but I don't know what.
Things here are okay, but I've gotten myself smoked a few times already for cracking jokes. Today while all 60 of us were marching I took it upon myself to start singing, "There she goes just a walkin down the street singin do ah diddy diddy dum diddy do!" I got about 3/4 of the platoon to join in on the chorus, so it was well worth it. I'd always wanted to to that after I saw Bill Murray do it in that one movie he did when he was in the Army. My drill Sergeants hand a cow and make me do 100 push ups when we arrived, but I know they found it funny because I heard them talking about it with other drill sergeants. I try to joke around as much as possible, in my time away from the drill sergeants, because if I don't, I will go crazy. They treat us like complete shit and they are really mean. I'm starting to get tired of being talked down to 24/7 and treated like a piece of shit. For the most part, I just let it slide off my back and ignore it. A few of the guys had their lockers tossed today and they were messy, so now they have to pack everything they own into their duffel bag and carry it around with them everywhere they go for an entire week. It is safe to say that my locker is perfect. I don't want to have to carry around that shit. I found out that I will have a family day in about 7 weeks or so. I am really looking forward to it. During that time period I am not authorized to change out of my military uniform, and into civilian clothing . I will have 36 hours off of base and will have to wear my class A uniform, and when I'm sleeping I have to wear my PT uniform. Oh well, at least I get to see some family!
Speaking of PT uniform, I have almost 70 bucks left on that cash advancement card that has to be spent or it goes bad. I'm going to buy my dad and official set of Army PT's so that he can wear them at his football practice. (he is a coach, not a player). But I think he will like them for sure.
My "Battle Buddy" is a complete dumb ass. He is an 18 ear old Mexican kid, and he reminds me of Gomer Pile from Full Medal Jacket. He is 100% clueless about almost everything and I have to teach him and show him everything step by step everyday. It gets annoying
My eyesight situation is also shitty. Since I have astigmatism in both eyes, my glasses (BCG'S) had to be sent off base to be made. I'm not authorized to wear my contact's, and all I have are these glasses from 7 th grade that are all scratched to hell. So I can barely see, and these army glasses can not get here soon enough.
For some of my friends who were joking with me about how I won't be able to shave my body as much as I usually do, thing again. I've found time, and it's not pleasant either. I've started getting used to dry shaving. It hurts, but it gets the job done and I don't look like a hairy monster.
The food here is pretty good, granted we only get 5 mins. or so to eat it, but it is by far my all time favorite part of the day, other than bedtime. I eat everything on my tray and have also started eating salad and broccoli, mainly because I have no choice.
Okay, I just got back from that meeting I was talking about earlier. It was about mail, so apparently we will now be allowed to receive letters and stuff now. After that meeting we had and hour and a half break until the Battalion commander, or what ever came to talk to us. Instead of letting us go arrange our shit, they decided to call us all to "Attention", for and hour and a half. Meanwhile they called us all out and made us do PT aka smoked us for the entire time, FML! Bed time, actual training tomorrow.
PFC Zaleuke
Thursday, July 9, 2009
July 5 th, 2009
Wow. They are barely letting me write at all!! They gave me five minutes to write tonight! Also, they let us call home for the first time. I got to read a one paragraph note written by the Army, which stated that I was okay and that I would write home soon. The end of the letter said, "Bye". We had to read the letter word for word and any change we made, such as an " I love you", would be severely punished. If we had a parent on the phone we were instructed to read the paragraph, and then hang up. This even meant not letting the parent speak at all. It was real fucked up, and a lot of the guys started crying. Luckily for me, I got my dad's voicemail which I was praying for. I didn't think I could handle hanging up on him when all I want to do is hear his voice and words of encouragement. Besides that, this shit is honestly all mental and some physical. I've been smoked by my drill sergeant almost 30 or so times since I got here (my platoon, not just me). It's not that bad really, it just gets frustrating. Some of the shit is cool though. We are going to start doing the fun stuff this week. Yesterday I was issued an M-4 rifle which I named "One-Two". It is Bad Ass, I can't wait to fire it. We were issued our gas masks today as well; we have the gas chamber this Saturday! Sweet!! Also they told us we will be issued the rest of our gear tomorrow after our first PT test know as a "1-1-1". I'm not worried about it at all, I've prepared well for it. I will write Much more about stuff and go into greater detail about things when I have time, but they are honestly keeping us on a short leash for the moment. I have so many things on my mind that I'd love to get off my chest, and when I get the chance to, I will. Bed time now...
PFC_Zaleuke
PFC_Zaleuke
July 2nd, 2009
Today was another god-awful day at reception. Drill Sergeant allowed us to go to bed at 10:oo pm and wake up at 3:30 am. While in bed attempting to sleep, we were woken up, had to get dressed and report downstairs because one new recruit misplaced his bags and we had to be lectured about not being "Fucking Idiots" So once we got to bed, and had to wake up, I only got about 3 hours and 30 minutes of sleep. As much as it sucks, I'm getting used to not sleeping at all. Apparently, this reception station at Ft. Benning only ships recruits down range on Fridays, so we were scheduled to ship off to BCT tomorrow, but we still had so much to accomplish before that could happen. We were all stressing out because we did NOT want to spend another week in this hell-hole. We spent all day getting things done, things which would normally seem easy. But somehow, getting issued boots took 7 hours. We waited in line the entire time, skipping lunch or "chow" as they call it. We also had to finish getting our shots, and our follow up dentist appointment. I was kind of happy to be there because we were allowed to watch "The Dark Knight" while we waited. Turns out I have one cavity, but they said it won't affect my basic training, and they will fix it when I graduate. We also got our "ranks" today which was one of the last things we needed. The are Velcro patches that display my rank, that I will wear on my ACU's. Lastly we got our dog tags. I really like these, along with all of my issued things that have my name on them. It makes me proud to be a Zaleuke, that is for sure.
When everything was said and done, we accomplished everything and got cleared to leave this God awful place. I am SO excited! Tomorrow starts day 1 of basic training, and we are all nervous as hell. I've made a lot of good friends here, and they are one of the only reason's my days don't completely suck. The best part of my day though was getting our "personal bags" back which had every one's cell phones and ipods in them . I got a chance to sit down and really talk to my father, and it really made me feel as good as new. He gave me some words of encouragement, which I will keep in my mind while I am getting smoked by drill sergeants, and losing hope. No one will stop me from graduating! I can do this and I will do it. It is time to man up and get this shit over and done with. I'm real thankful I got to talk to my dad. It made everything good again. Things here in the barracks are pretty wild at the moment. We are all packing all of our things into our small bags. One kid just got engaged over the telephone, and to top it off: I locked all of my ACU's (uniforms) in my locker, with the keys in them. So I had to go bug my "on call" drill sergeant and barrow some bolt cutters to cut the lock off. Now I'm going to stick to the combo locks my dad bought me so this won't happen again.
Now, it is bed time and I'm going to call my dad once more because it will be a long time before I get to talk to him again. I'm going to put on my ipod and fall asleep listening to some music. Tomorrow they take all of this stuff away from us once more. Good day today, and even better night. Tomorrow is going to suck but we are ready for it. I'll let you know how it goes.
PFC Zaleuke
When everything was said and done, we accomplished everything and got cleared to leave this God awful place. I am SO excited! Tomorrow starts day 1 of basic training, and we are all nervous as hell. I've made a lot of good friends here, and they are one of the only reason's my days don't completely suck. The best part of my day though was getting our "personal bags" back which had every one's cell phones and ipods in them . I got a chance to sit down and really talk to my father, and it really made me feel as good as new. He gave me some words of encouragement, which I will keep in my mind while I am getting smoked by drill sergeants, and losing hope. No one will stop me from graduating! I can do this and I will do it. It is time to man up and get this shit over and done with. I'm real thankful I got to talk to my dad. It made everything good again. Things here in the barracks are pretty wild at the moment. We are all packing all of our things into our small bags. One kid just got engaged over the telephone, and to top it off: I locked all of my ACU's (uniforms) in my locker, with the keys in them. So I had to go bug my "on call" drill sergeant and barrow some bolt cutters to cut the lock off. Now I'm going to stick to the combo locks my dad bought me so this won't happen again.
Now, it is bed time and I'm going to call my dad once more because it will be a long time before I get to talk to him again. I'm going to put on my ipod and fall asleep listening to some music. Tomorrow they take all of this stuff away from us once more. Good day today, and even better night. Tomorrow is going to suck but we are ready for it. I'll let you know how it goes.
PFC Zaleuke
July 1st, 2009
Today was a long, long day. We accomplished absolutely nothing in the process. Last night, after I thought I was done for the night, I was told I had fire guard duty from 12am to 1am. I went to bed at 9pm and woke up at midnight. went back to bed at 1:00am and woke back up for the day at 3am.
From 3:00 am this morning until now at 8:30 pm, we stood in formation for almost 1/2 of the day in the sun. It really hot here, and we are wearing full ACU's and standing heel to toe with people in front and back of us. 100% miserable. One thing we did today that my parents will particularly enjoy are my military photographs. I got to see my picture and I really like it. I also pre-ordered a DVD, a picture disk, group photo, and a yearbook for my family. Other than that, we got our government ID's, shots, and that is about it. My feet and legs are killing me from standing in place all day, but for the most part, my moral is up and I feel good. I have made some serious friends here in the past few days, and we are becoming pretty close. It feels a little like being back on the football team.
While I was writing this letter, we were called downstairs by the night-time drill sergeant to lecture us for about an hour about how easy we have it, and basically, he took an hour of sleep from us. From what it looks like, we will be shipping down range on Friday, July 3rd. Hopefully, tomorrow will be my last day in this hell-hole. I have heard reception is bad, but good lord, this is horrible. I just want basic traing to start so I can be done with it already. I don't mind working out, running, or even getting yelled at. I just hate standing and being bored ALL day. People here in general don't have the ability to listen, and we get in trouble for stupid shit.
Tomorrow is going to be another long day. I'm going to be given my dog tags, sweet-ass glasses, boots, and prepare to ship-off to basic training. As for now, I still do not have an address, but I will be given one very soon. I miss my bed. The one I sleep on now is god-awful, and I sleep on the covers so that I dont have to make my bed every morning. I am starting to get comfortable with being un-comfortable for the next two months. I already can't wait until family day. I miss my Dad alot right now. It's about time for bed now, lights were out 5 minutes ago. I am writing by flashlight.
I will write more tomorrow.
PFC Zaleuke
From 3:00 am this morning until now at 8:30 pm, we stood in formation for almost 1/2 of the day in the sun. It really hot here, and we are wearing full ACU's and standing heel to toe with people in front and back of us. 100% miserable. One thing we did today that my parents will particularly enjoy are my military photographs. I got to see my picture and I really like it. I also pre-ordered a DVD, a picture disk, group photo, and a yearbook for my family. Other than that, we got our government ID's, shots, and that is about it. My feet and legs are killing me from standing in place all day, but for the most part, my moral is up and I feel good. I have made some serious friends here in the past few days, and we are becoming pretty close. It feels a little like being back on the football team.
While I was writing this letter, we were called downstairs by the night-time drill sergeant to lecture us for about an hour about how easy we have it, and basically, he took an hour of sleep from us. From what it looks like, we will be shipping down range on Friday, July 3rd. Hopefully, tomorrow will be my last day in this hell-hole. I have heard reception is bad, but good lord, this is horrible. I just want basic traing to start so I can be done with it already. I don't mind working out, running, or even getting yelled at. I just hate standing and being bored ALL day. People here in general don't have the ability to listen, and we get in trouble for stupid shit.
Tomorrow is going to be another long day. I'm going to be given my dog tags, sweet-ass glasses, boots, and prepare to ship-off to basic training. As for now, I still do not have an address, but I will be given one very soon. I miss my bed. The one I sleep on now is god-awful, and I sleep on the covers so that I dont have to make my bed every morning. I am starting to get comfortable with being un-comfortable for the next two months. I already can't wait until family day. I miss my Dad alot right now. It's about time for bed now, lights were out 5 minutes ago. I am writing by flashlight.
I will write more tomorrow.
PFC Zaleuke
Monday, July 6, 2009
June 30, 2009
Wow. I don't know where to even start. We arrived to Ft. Benning 30th Adjuvtant (sic) General Battalion ( Reception) last night at 2100. I was basically kicked in the balls from the beginning. All they do is yell and give you 10 step directions all at once, as fast as they can, and then jump your ass when you are confused. We were issued PT uniforms, duffel bags, and some of our gear. By the time that was all done, it was 01:00. We went to bed on the world's most uncomfortable beds, and had wake up at 0430. We rushed down stairs after I did a dry shave to conserve time. and we stood in formation for an hour. Apparently when standing at ease, we aren't supposed to lock our legs, but rather keep them slightly bent. The reason for this, because when you lock your legs out, it cuts off the circulation and makes you lose conciousness and pass out. We had a few people pass out in formation this morning- obviously I laughed. Also during chow they give us two types of juice, and make us drink it all! This has led some of us to believe that we are drinking stuff that keeps your from getting a Woody, but who knows.
My first day was about what I expected: Long, Stressful, and tiring. Most of us are scared to death to talk, including myself. I find the less I say, the better off I am. It's 0710 and we are all sitting being quiet, and waiting to get our haircuts and issued our ACU's. I know we are all excited to get those. (Dad, your going to love our PT uniforms.) We sort of picked our temporary battle buddies last night, and I got paired up with this guy named Green. He's pretty legit, and currently the only person I care to speak to. We were given these camel backs last night which holds about a half a gallon of water which we carry on our backs 24/7. It's gross. A drill Sergeant over heard me saying that I was going to fill mine with milk, as a result I got a death stare which lasted about 5 ackward seconds. That ended my joking for the day. All in all it's been decent so far. I would hope so considering this is supposed to be cake compared to BCT. That will start in about four days from now, I think.
On a side note, I am terribly upset and saddened by the loss of one of my hero's and one of America's finest Icons: Billy Mays. I haven't heard much about the situation , but I overheard some Drill Sergeants joking about it and I had to do all I could to keep from laughing. So, my one request is that someone write me with some infor on Billy Mayes. I know my mother is deeply saddened by this, she was a big fan. Alright, I'm going to take a break, more later.
We just got our heads shaved. I look like Edward Norton from the movie "American History X". Especially with all of my tattoos. I feel like a skin head. I'm in a good mood oddly. I'm ready to get started with Basic training already. I just want to warn you that this letter is going to be long/longer than usual (maybe) but a lot is going on currently and we are just sitting down on the benches, so tho keep from extreme boredom i'm going to write, it's actually putting me in a good mood. Going to take a break again. Drill Sergeants are takin gus to get more uniforms now.
It is now 1316 and we have been standing ourside in the sun for hours at parade rest. I am sick of standing! My ankles are swollen, FML! Oh well, Just a little while longer and I'm all done for the day.
PFC Zaleuke
Moving on: I am so beat down already and it is only the first day of reception! We have had to stand in formation today for hours (literally). I have so much issued supplies to keep control of such as:
13 pairs of socks (green, white, black)
7 pairs underwear
7 shirts
4 PT shirts
4 PT shorts
1 PT jacket
4 PT wind breaker
4 issues of ACU's
2 pairs boots
extra running shoes
1 ACU winter jacket
1 ACU belt
2 ACU hats
The list continues on and on. We were issued one military duffel bag, similar the the one dad used for hunting, except mine is olive green. Also I have a big laundry bag. But with all of our stuff, I don't know how I will fit it all in. I haven't slept in well over two days, and I found out I have fire guard duty tonight from 12:00 am to 1:00 am. Lights are out at 9 and we have to wake up at 3 am, so it will be another full night of little sleep. Thankfully the drill sergeants have been fairly nice, but we are constantly being told to shut the fuck up by civilian employees and they are generally abusive, but apparently it's not going to be anything compared to the Drill Sergeants during BCT. We are scheduled to ship down range on Friday, so that will technically be considered day 1 for us. (You should see how I look. I am wearing my dogtags, head shaved, sitting on my bead comparing tattoo's with all of the other guys.) We have 2 1/2 to 3 weeks of "Red Phase" AKA: "Fuck me in the ass until I bleed phase." Once that is over, It should be smooth sailing . I dont talk very much, so I haven't been singled out yet... except only to help out the drill sergeants.
PFC Zaleuke
My first day was about what I expected: Long, Stressful, and tiring. Most of us are scared to death to talk, including myself. I find the less I say, the better off I am. It's 0710 and we are all sitting being quiet, and waiting to get our haircuts and issued our ACU's. I know we are all excited to get those. (Dad, your going to love our PT uniforms.) We sort of picked our temporary battle buddies last night, and I got paired up with this guy named Green. He's pretty legit, and currently the only person I care to speak to. We were given these camel backs last night which holds about a half a gallon of water which we carry on our backs 24/7. It's gross. A drill Sergeant over heard me saying that I was going to fill mine with milk, as a result I got a death stare which lasted about 5 ackward seconds. That ended my joking for the day. All in all it's been decent so far. I would hope so considering this is supposed to be cake compared to BCT. That will start in about four days from now, I think.
On a side note, I am terribly upset and saddened by the loss of one of my hero's and one of America's finest Icons: Billy Mays. I haven't heard much about the situation , but I overheard some Drill Sergeants joking about it and I had to do all I could to keep from laughing. So, my one request is that someone write me with some infor on Billy Mayes. I know my mother is deeply saddened by this, she was a big fan. Alright, I'm going to take a break, more later.
We just got our heads shaved. I look like Edward Norton from the movie "American History X". Especially with all of my tattoos. I feel like a skin head. I'm in a good mood oddly. I'm ready to get started with Basic training already. I just want to warn you that this letter is going to be long/longer than usual (maybe) but a lot is going on currently and we are just sitting down on the benches, so tho keep from extreme boredom i'm going to write, it's actually putting me in a good mood. Going to take a break again. Drill Sergeants are takin gus to get more uniforms now.
It is now 1316 and we have been standing ourside in the sun for hours at parade rest. I am sick of standing! My ankles are swollen, FML! Oh well, Just a little while longer and I'm all done for the day.
PFC Zaleuke
Moving on: I am so beat down already and it is only the first day of reception! We have had to stand in formation today for hours (literally). I have so much issued supplies to keep control of such as:
13 pairs of socks (green, white, black)
7 pairs underwear
7 shirts
4 PT shirts
4 PT shorts
1 PT jacket
4 PT wind breaker
4 issues of ACU's
2 pairs boots
extra running shoes
1 ACU winter jacket
1 ACU belt
2 ACU hats
The list continues on and on. We were issued one military duffel bag, similar the the one dad used for hunting, except mine is olive green. Also I have a big laundry bag. But with all of our stuff, I don't know how I will fit it all in. I haven't slept in well over two days, and I found out I have fire guard duty tonight from 12:00 am to 1:00 am. Lights are out at 9 and we have to wake up at 3 am, so it will be another full night of little sleep. Thankfully the drill sergeants have been fairly nice, but we are constantly being told to shut the fuck up by civilian employees and they are generally abusive, but apparently it's not going to be anything compared to the Drill Sergeants during BCT. We are scheduled to ship down range on Friday, so that will technically be considered day 1 for us. (You should see how I look. I am wearing my dogtags, head shaved, sitting on my bead comparing tattoo's with all of the other guys.) We have 2 1/2 to 3 weeks of "Red Phase" AKA: "Fuck me in the ass until I bleed phase." Once that is over, It should be smooth sailing . I dont talk very much, so I haven't been singled out yet... except only to help out the drill sergeants.
PFC Zaleuke
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Hey to Everyone,
This is Dad again. This will be very short. I still do not have an address for Mike; in fact, I still have not received a letter from him either. However, we had a very short conversation a few days ago.
I know this much: Tomorrow (Monday) I should receive a letter. This letter WILL NOT have his address; however, I will post everything he has written, I should receive another letter on Wednesday and I will post Mike's address then.
Next posting will be Mike's words.
GZ
This is Dad again. This will be very short. I still do not have an address for Mike; in fact, I still have not received a letter from him either. However, we had a very short conversation a few days ago.
I know this much: Tomorrow (Monday) I should receive a letter. This letter WILL NOT have his address; however, I will post everything he has written, I should receive another letter on Wednesday and I will post Mike's address then.
Next posting will be Mike's words.
GZ
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