just wanted to say hey. They’re letting us take leave from Army Basic Training for 2 weeks, so I’ll be posting until the first of January.
For those who are curious, we just started BRM, or Basic Rifle Marksmanship; we use M16’s in the foxhole position and prone unsupported. It takes getting used to; the prone unsupported can be extremely uncomfortable, especially for a cross-eyed shooter such as myself. When I go back to Basic, we’ll be qualifying with the M16, and then we get to use the fun weapons, like the grenade launchers. Then I graduate in February.
If any of ya’ll have any questions regarding Basic, feel free to ask; I’ll answer to the best of my ability, and tell a crapload of stories in the process.
No, it’s just that you have no personal time whatsoever except on Sundays, and people who arent’ letter writers like myself don’t want to spend that time writing.
I’ve written 3 letters, all to my parents. And those were when I was on fireguard, when technically we’re not supposed to write letters. on Sundays, I take advantage of the time to trim the strings off my uniform, do laundry, shine boots an extra time, cleaning up my area of the bay, and memorizing stuff from the smart book- the book that has everything we need to know in basic training. The rest of Sunday I save for church.
I was used to hanging out with older people with an Army, clean-cut outlook. Coming home for Exodus, the idea of hanging out with people who are my actual peers, who don’t know what I’ve experienced and what kind of sacrifices I am making and will make just to protect them, if nothing else, doesn’t have any appeal at first. It’s also the fact that I don’t want to put myself in a situation that could possibly ruin my career.
So, no, it’s not that you forget people, it’s just that the Army leaves no room for anything but itself- at least, that’s the impression that I have so far. Am I disappointed? No. Am I disillusioned? You bet. But I will always be glad that I chose to serve my country in this manner.
It wasn’t even the letter-writing. I understood that. I just wish you had let me know straight up that you were “changed” or whatever when you got home. Would’ve saved me a lot of toil and upset.
And for the record…To us lowly “civilians,” that post was upsettingly arrogant. I was proud of you for your high ambitions and your discipline to army regulations, but you completely negated all that by belittling me, and any of your other “peers.” Sorry we can’t all be as good as the clean-cut army crowd, but I wasn’t aware that was such a bad thing.
…It’s not worth holding a grudge over, but I thought you were better than that. I never saw you as self-righteous or arrogant, and somehow you’ve come home the embodiment of both.
I have to say I agree with JAG. It’s nice to know where you stand now Tep, don’t you think our friendship is worth something? Give us a chance with the “new” you, you’re not the only one here doing something new and different and changing. Talk to us, we want to stay friends with you because we care about you. How is getting together to talk (not just so you can go buy something) going to jeopardize your career? Why don’t you Jedi and I go out for lunch or dinner and talk? Give us a chance, we want to be your friends no matter what you do or how you change.
arrogance was not the intent. I can see how you can interpret it that way, so I guess a rewrite is necessary.
I’m not saying civilians are beneath me; far from it, actually. thinks. Alright, how about this for an example: lets say you’ve bungee jumped, and for the past month that’s all you’ve been doing, and you have a set group of people you do this with. * Bear with me, this will make sense*. You go back into the ‘real world’ and it will take a few days to get used to being around people who weren’t with you, who’ve never bungee jumped, or not to the extent you have with the seclusion you’ve had. It’s not that you’re better than them, it’s that, at least for a few days, you feel as if you can’t relate to them. And you’re a different person for it, especially if this has been your first time away from home, and your fellow bungee jumpers are all older and therefore more mature than you. After a few days of staying at home, you feel more adjusted and socially compatable, and, given time, you probably will be almost the same exact person you were before, unless the change was maturity wise. Problem is, my family is really close, so I wanted and still do want to spend my leave time with them.
Is that put better? Please tell me if you’re still offended.
Right now I feel like I’m being seen as the teenager who has experienced something for the first time and acts like an expert, pissing everyone off. In other words, an ass, which, again, was not the intent. The last thing I wanted when I came home, and when I posted this thread, was to start petty issues such as this. I did not want this to be a forum for personal problems with me, as this message board isn’t my personal message board. Due to the above, I request that the administrators remove this thread.
If I’ve lowered anyone’s opinion of me, I apologize.
I’m sorry for causing the whole thing to blow up like this. It’s my fault for posting like that when I was already upset about other things. Tep, i understand where you are coming from and I apologize for being so childish. Yes, you did come off as arrogant, but I shouldn’t have taken it so personally. I think I was just upset, because I wanted so bad for the situation to be different from what it is. For you to be home with everyone so you could keep your old relationships close and maybe expand on some new ones. I know this thread has taken a horribly personal note to it, and I’m sorry…again…all my fault. Good Luck Tep…Like I said before, best wishes.
I know this thread has taken a horribly personal note to it, and I’m sorry…again…all my fault. Good Luck Tep…Like I said before, best wishes.