A Good First Day

First of all, I should explain the picture to the left...I just wanted to update anyone who was wondering what has become of Saddam Hussein! I got this in one of my classes today. I think it reminds us of why we're doing our work in Iraq. This man will murder no one else, and no more mass graves will be created by him.

Anyway, it's been a good first day. I was up early this morning and we headed out to Darby Field. We new students then marched over to Company Headquarters for the weigh in. I passed. They measured me at 6’, and 192 pounds. I lost about 10 or 12 pounds in the last month in preparation for camp. I think I’ll feel better running and marching at this weight.

After that, PT (Physical Training) and then we headed back to change and have breakfast. Those of us who are new spent the morning in-processing, and receiving our TA-50 gear, which includes a rucksack (metal frame backpack), canteens, Kevlar helmet, flak vest, and a variety of other equipment for the field. Tomorrow morning, at 0445, we will be out for a road march. We will have all of our gear on, including helmet, flak vest, ruck sack filled with clothing and various equipment, and go for a 4 mile road march. I am just guessing, but it’s probably about 50-60 pounds of gear?

Tomorrow will be a relatively short day. After the march we will clean up, change uniforms, and go to worship. There is class work all day, but our platoon (2nd) will have the afternoon off because of a particular training schedule rotation.

Just as I mentioned in this morning’s post, it takes a mental/spiritual shift to give up control of my schedule and time. For a type-A personality like mine, it’s a good thing to give up some control.

Here is a quote that was included from class this afternoon that I thought was good:

“The enemies we are likely to face through the rest of the decade and beyond, will not be ‘soldiers,’ with the disciplined modernity the term conveys, but ‘warriors’ – erratic primitives of shifting allegiance, habituated to violence, with no stake in civil order.”
LTC Ralph Peters (ret.)