Tying up some loose ends....

Ok so I've realized that in my last post I left out some important information like am I enlisted or going in as an officer with my degree? Or you know like....where am I going???

So....I am going in as an enlisted soldier, not an officer. There are a couple of reasons for this.

1) For me to get a spot in OCS (officer candidate school) I would have to wait around a year. This was way too long for me

2) Since I am going into the Infantry and I have absolutely ZERO combat experience, I didn't want my inexperience being the reason why someone's Son didn't come home. I don't think I could live with that decision for the rest of my life. The best example that I have is a restaurant. Would you want a GM or Manager that had no restaurant experience coming in and telling you what to do? Or would you prefer a GM or Manager that started out as a busboy and moved their way up?

3) I'm a big believer that in order to do a job to the best of your ability, you need to understand all the components/knowledge of what you do. So starting off low and moving my way up I think is the best way.

Since I have a college degree I am going in as an Enlisted E-4(pay grade). My rank will be Specialist, which puts me one promotion away from Sergeant and being a NCO (non-commissioned officer).

So where am I going?

Ft. Benning, Georgia for 14 weeks. 9 weeks of Basic and then about 5 weeks of AIT (advanced individual training). Normally you go to Basic and then move on to another base where you do AIT which ranges in duration based upon your job. At Ft. Benning they combine my Basic and AIT into OSUT (one station unit training). I think a couple weeks before graduation or that week leading up, I will be told where I will be stationed. I'm not going to graduate and then have them ship me out to Iraq or Afghanistan. I will at least be stationed at another base where I will conduct more training before I'm sent overseas.

If I've done the math right and nothing happens to me(sick/injured/knock on wood please) I should graduate around September 24th. This is just a rough estimate though.

I will get my address within the first 2 weeks of Basic. So if you're wondering what's going on, it may be a little before you hear from me.

Here's a list of what you can send

-Letters(and send lots of them)
-Cards
-Pictures(I need to double-check this)

Here's a list of what NOT to send
-Care packages of any sort. No cookies/brownies/etc.

The Army has a motto that goes something like this...."If we wanted you to have it, we would have issued it to you."

However, care packages CAN be sent once I am DONE with Basic Training.

Hope this cleared some things up. If you have any more questions, just ask