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Thursday, November 03, 2005

Spiderman!

Most people passed the Land Nav test, but many struggled. Of course the two lost boys had to retest today (see yesterday's blog). The Instructors decided it would be a good idea to send us off solo again, with a new list of points, to refine our skills.


On the way to my first point, I looked up at the treeline just in time to see an A-10 attack aircraft flying just above it, perhaps 200' above the ground. What a great reminder of my ultimate goal - to become an Army Aviator!

I was already good at Land Nav going in to the Army. By now I could pretty much walk straight to my points. So, I quickly located all of my targets, then settled down next to the last one to soak up the sun and write my fiancee a long letter. Few and far between are the times you have an opportunity to just relax in BCT and AIT. If you learn your job well, you may be able to make a few opportunities for yourself.

Once the sun went down, we received a real treat (by SIT - Soldier in Training - standards anyway). We maintained a fire 24 hours a day since arriving at the training location. The Drill Sergeants felt that it was time for us to celebrate our accomplishments. Up they rolled with the company van, and unloaded boxes of hotdogs, buns, desserts, soda (yes - soda. A rare treat!). We enjoyed a feast, roasting our hotdogs over the bonfire.

We began telling jokes, some quite PC and some most certainly not. One really dumb one somehow stuck with me:

A pirate walks into a bar with a big ship’s wheel down his pants. The bartender says, "Excuse me, sir, do you know you have a ship’s wheel down the front of your pants?" The pirate answers… "Aargh, it’s driving me nuts!!"

Then, suddenly, a disturbance in the brush! A figure was running around our camp, holding what looked like chemical lights. It was running... comically. Literally. The Senior Drill Sergeant instructed some of us to give chase. Our team rushed into the trees. The figure ran off, then turned to run right through our festivities! Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No... it's... Spiderman?!?! That's right, Spiderman came running through our camp. After quite a chase he was brought down, and his mask removed. Spiderman was really ... Wait! Some of my readers are headed off to AIT soon. Better not spoil the suprise :-)

1 Comments:

At 8:36 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Eric,



Hope this finds you well. I stumbled upon your blog while doing some research on both the Army WOFT program and Civil Affairs. Turns out, your blog encompasses both. I've enjoyed reading your entries and found many parallels with where you were, and where I am now. The Army offers a lot that I'm currently not finding in the office world. Like you, I guess I would be considered a non-traditional soldier, I'm in my earlier 30's and would like to experience the military, so I'm weighing my options. Are you still in? Also, did you ever end up getting an aviation spot? It would be cool to chat a bit, I'd definitely like to hear more about your experiences.



Stay well.

 

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