Sitting here working CQ on a Friday night.  A lot has happened since I got here.  There is way to much stuff to cover so I will just hit the highs and lows as best as possible.  Time here is a weird thing.  You can be doing something and be exhausted and feel very tired and then all of a sudden you look up and 4 hours have gone by and you’ve been truckin' ever since.  You will hear when you get here that Time Management is the key to success.  I hate to jump on the bandwagon but it’s true.  You must learn to effectively do your stuff in minimal time.  Some folks here will say prioritize, but seriously, if you got here, you know what is important, and you’ll know what to do.

            A little more about the environment here.  Trust me, trust me, trust me……your first few weeks here will suck.  No two ways about it.  You will really hate it.  I did.  The first 3 weeks are considered “Military Indoctrination”, and basically everything goes wrong and is long and difficult.   After about the 2 & ½ week, things begin to become clear, you know what is expected of you and you know how to do most of it or how to ask for help.  Another thing about this place, everyone makes EVERYTHING seem like it is THE MOST IMPORTANT thing in the world and if you don’t do it 150%, you will die.  Two things to clarify, first, they can’t touch you here and you can’t be made to do anything physical for screw-ups (ie pushups).  Second, the only truly important things that you’ll find here are things that can get you kicked out or recycled into a later class.  Both of which you do NOT want to do.  Being here for 11 & ½ weeks will be more than enough for every single person.  If you feel okay here, you’ll miss your family.  If you don’t miss your family, you’ll hate it here.  Basically, something here for each and every person will test your patience.  For me personally, it has been missing my gal.  I know I know, laugh all you want, but there is nothing that I feel that I cannot do if I set my mind to it, but being apart from someone you love is truly a test of your ability to put up with BS. Each and everyday that I wake up I realize that I could just say  “I quit” and then I would be in the arms of my woman (“my” not in the owning sense).   That may be the toughest thing here. 

            Okay, so here is what’s been going on with me.   Apparently I have made a good impression (by asking lots of questions and adapting quickly) because I have been selected for all kinds of things.  First, when the upper-class went to Vigilant Warrior for 4 days, I was selected as interim squadron commander (basically in charge of the squadron, there are 6 total squadrons, mine is the Cobras), and then I was selected for OT Most Outstanding of the week (award), and then to top it all off, we went before the Squadron boards (to decide what jobs we get) and I get selected to go before the wing boards (a big honor) in order to be considered for Wing Commander (basically the person in charge of all 500 officer trainees, and this is me, a non-prior service reserve dude…big big honor apparently).  So now I am sitting here working CQ and we still have not gotten word on what wing job we got, but you can bet that it will be a ton of extra work for me.  Grrrreat! Also, I scored a 100% on my first CWT (consolidated written exam) and I scored a 293 on my first PFT (physical fitness test) I did 66 situps, 47 pushups (15 were taken away), and then ran 2 miles in 15:01.  A note that might help your training.  Start training doing all of these together.  You wouldn’t believe how much doing sit-ups affects your push-ups, affects your run, etc etc.   Also, you have 2 minutes to do your sit-ups, then a 2 minute rest, then 2 minutes to do your push-ups, then 3 minutes rest, then run 2 miles.  I am hoping to break the 400 barrier on the next pft, but we will see. 

            Some words about the way things are here.  First, you have a reporting procedure for everything, so get ready to screw things up.  Your room must be in perfect order according to the room O.I. (Operating Instructions).  You cannot be in the dorms during the duty day, unless your FTO says so or you are working CQ.  You must pass to the right of the American Flag.  You must salute basically everyone, according to the rules here.  Chow is good taste-wise, but you have about 6 minutes to eat as much as you can AND drink 4 glasses of water (ugh).  Have a good attitude here and you’ll do fine.  Your FTO will approve or disprove everything here (cups, bathmats, pizza, etc).  You will not talk during any meal during your 1^st 3 weeks here.  You cannot talk in the halls.  Best to just shut up for a month.  You will carry your “Talon” (little book), everywhere all the time, and its not fun to read cause you get the gist about 40 minute into reading it.  Hopefully your upper-class will be nice to you.  When people correct you for doing something wrong, fix it and move on, they aren’t doing it to mess with you, they are trying to save you a butt chewing from the FTO’s and commissioned staff.  Thank them. Have your relatives send cookies (enough for 16-18 people), even if you don’t like sweet stuff, you will, because you cant have it here.  Bring some cd’s to play on your computer, by the way, if you don’t bring a computer, you are screwed, simple, go buy one or bring one, with Microsoft Word on it.  Get ready to study SOB’s, little cards with test questions on them, they will help you for the test.  Get ready for Major Wilson to give you demerits.  He will, a lot.  Oh and don’t apologize to him for screwing up, he hates it.  Again, plan on the first month pretty much sucking.  You cannot go anywhere alone here, and you cant even march yourselves around until you get your “drivers license” about the end of the 2^nd week.  Get ready for up at 5am everyday and to bed about 10:30 every night.  Weekends, there is no class, but you are busy trying to get ready for the upcoming week or catch up from the past week, so basically you have no time then either.  Don’t try to piss off anyone else in your class. They will help you immensely.  Above all else, DO NOT come here with an attitude, the adjustment process for some cocky OT’s here is rough. Save yourself the trouble, be smart, you’re here to graduate not to be right.  Be polite and enthusiastic and the days will roll on by.

That will be all