All the Pertinent Info
So I finally did it. I am officially in the Army Reserve/Delayed Entry Program. All the valid info will follow...please do not email me or comment unless you have read the entire page, because I hate redundancy and do not wish to answer the same question 50 times in a day until I leave. So....
What job did I get?
I will be going in as a Linguist, which could involve two different types of MOS's. This information will be determined after I'm already in school, so I don't know which of the specifics I'll be doing.
What language did I get?
I will not know that until I get to school. It is based on what the Army needs and how high my test scores were. For those that care, I got a 138 out of 145 (very high!) on the DLAB.
When do I leave?
I'm leaving for basic training on October 25th, which means that by the 24th I will already be in route. My AIT (school for those who don't know military terms) will be starting on February 12th.
How long will I be gone?
My basic training will last 11 weeks, because we apparently get a break for Christmas Holiday, which is why it lasts longer than other people's standard of 9 weeks. AIT will last anywhere from 3 weeks (yeah right) to a year (more likely) depending on which language I get to learn.
So don't expect to see me back in the area for quite some time as, in all likelihood I will be gone for at least a year and 2 months, and I do not plan on getting stationed at Fort Campbell, so I might not be back at all, unless just to visit.
What else did I get in my contract?
I got a $10,000 enlistment bonus, partially for having so many college credit hours and partially for the job assignment. I'm also getting college loan repayment up to $65,000...however my loans actually only total about 17,000. I also got a 401K matching plan, which is new for the Army (it works like a standard 401K matching program).
How long does my first contract last?
I signed up for 5 years in the Army, which is the minimum number of years required for the job I chose since the school is so long.
Why am I joining the Army?
This is a long answer, so for those who don't really care...feel free to skip over this part, as I'm not going to give the standard excuses here. Instead, I will be detailing the exact reason, so again if you don't care...then, I joined because I finally lost my mind/I wanted to serve my country/I wanted to get shot at for a while. Those are the joking excuses you can expect to come out of my mouth for the next few months until I leave.
However, the actual reason has many parts. I am joining the Army because of a crushing loss of faith in myself and those I cared about to be able to take care of me. I had a very bad day at work about 4 months ago, and I realized that something had to give, and that it couldn't be my sanity, so as crazy as it may sound, I'm joining the Army to get my sanity back...lol. I was upset because my life was stagnating, and I began to feel as if all I were doing was treading water, barely keeping my head above the drowning point...and that's a very dangerous position in which to be. I was/am 25 years old with no direction, working a job I hated, but that I couldn't afford to quit, and all I really wanted to do was get a better job and thus, a better life, but there were hitches in that plan. In order to get a better job, I would have needed to finish my degree, both of which (yes I would have 2) combined would require about 33 more credit hours to complete which is a full year of taking a full course load to complete; impossible to do and still keep a full-time job. I couldn't afford to take days off from work to go to classes, and even if I could afford the days off, I couldn't have handled my homework in addition to it all. I know this because I already tried to do it all several years ago, and not being able to handle doing it all, no matter how hard I tried, was what led me to stop going in the first place. I was frustrated, lonely, a bit depressed, and saw no future way of getting out of my situation. Then later, on that really bad day, I realized that there was a way of having the things I wanted...time to finish school, a job that would let me do it--and pay for it, I might add, and a way to get a future plan...something better to look forward to on the horizon. I could get a job that my promotions and pay raises would be based on merit, and hard work instead of on who I knew, and what other jobs I had already worked: The Military.
I had not resigned myself to joining on the first day...but I did go down and talk with several different recruiters that day. And, I was right. This would be a job, willing to pay for my school, willing to pay for my loans, give me the opportunities to advance if I really wanted them. I knew most of these things going in...and, at first I thought I would only be happy going in as an officer, but in the end my recruiter at the Army brought up a point that hadn't entered my brain up to that point. He said, "I know you want to finish college first, but we can help you do that in the Army, and you said you have a year left...but....if you feel like you're just barely treading water now, how are you going to keep doing it for another year?" And I didn't have an answer for that.
In high school, I was always the only person who could shut down any recruiter's every argument...I grew up as a military brat, I already knew almost all of what they had to say, and even when they came up with new stuff, I still found logical ways to shut them down and leave me alone. My feat over the Marine recruiter my senior year was my crowning achievement though, since I managed to leave him speechless with no further arguments or facts to present.
Thus, the fact that a recruiter brought up something that I couldn't answer was disturbing. I thought about it all that night and the next day, I went back into the Army office and told him I was ready...and we talked about all the options I had once I was actually "in" and I left feeling great! For the first time in months, I was happy with a decision I had made. For the first time in years and years, I actually felt like I had a concrete direction and a plan for my future, and it was a plan I liked!
Misc. info? (i.e. the place to come back to reading if you didn't care about the real reason)
I realize that many people will not understand my choice, and some people might even be flat-out opposed to it, but I'm happy with it. If you are my real friends, you will be happy for me too. And while I understand that the Army has a lot of tricks to deceive and retain its soldiers, I'm willing to take the chance. I know many of my Army friends are not happy with the Army, and maybe someday soon, they will all be able to tell me "I told you so", but I'm willing to accept that too. If it turns out I made a mistake, I can get out after my first tour and go on to doing something else. I have no problem with admitting to being wrong.
Any further questions?
Email me, if you have my email address...or leave me a comment.
What job did I get?
I will be going in as a Linguist, which could involve two different types of MOS's. This information will be determined after I'm already in school, so I don't know which of the specifics I'll be doing.
What language did I get?
I will not know that until I get to school. It is based on what the Army needs and how high my test scores were. For those that care, I got a 138 out of 145 (very high!) on the DLAB.
When do I leave?
I'm leaving for basic training on October 25th, which means that by the 24th I will already be in route. My AIT (school for those who don't know military terms) will be starting on February 12th.
How long will I be gone?
My basic training will last 11 weeks, because we apparently get a break for Christmas Holiday, which is why it lasts longer than other people's standard of 9 weeks. AIT will last anywhere from 3 weeks (yeah right) to a year (more likely) depending on which language I get to learn.
So don't expect to see me back in the area for quite some time as, in all likelihood I will be gone for at least a year and 2 months, and I do not plan on getting stationed at Fort Campbell, so I might not be back at all, unless just to visit.
What else did I get in my contract?
I got a $10,000 enlistment bonus, partially for having so many college credit hours and partially for the job assignment. I'm also getting college loan repayment up to $65,000...however my loans actually only total about 17,000. I also got a 401K matching plan, which is new for the Army (it works like a standard 401K matching program).
How long does my first contract last?
I signed up for 5 years in the Army, which is the minimum number of years required for the job I chose since the school is so long.
Why am I joining the Army?
This is a long answer, so for those who don't really care...feel free to skip over this part, as I'm not going to give the standard excuses here. Instead, I will be detailing the exact reason, so again if you don't care...then, I joined because I finally lost my mind/I wanted to serve my country/I wanted to get shot at for a while. Those are the joking excuses you can expect to come out of my mouth for the next few months until I leave.
However, the actual reason has many parts. I am joining the Army because of a crushing loss of faith in myself and those I cared about to be able to take care of me. I had a very bad day at work about 4 months ago, and I realized that something had to give, and that it couldn't be my sanity, so as crazy as it may sound, I'm joining the Army to get my sanity back...lol. I was upset because my life was stagnating, and I began to feel as if all I were doing was treading water, barely keeping my head above the drowning point...and that's a very dangerous position in which to be. I was/am 25 years old with no direction, working a job I hated, but that I couldn't afford to quit, and all I really wanted to do was get a better job and thus, a better life, but there were hitches in that plan. In order to get a better job, I would have needed to finish my degree, both of which (yes I would have 2) combined would require about 33 more credit hours to complete which is a full year of taking a full course load to complete; impossible to do and still keep a full-time job. I couldn't afford to take days off from work to go to classes, and even if I could afford the days off, I couldn't have handled my homework in addition to it all. I know this because I already tried to do it all several years ago, and not being able to handle doing it all, no matter how hard I tried, was what led me to stop going in the first place. I was frustrated, lonely, a bit depressed, and saw no future way of getting out of my situation. Then later, on that really bad day, I realized that there was a way of having the things I wanted...time to finish school, a job that would let me do it--and pay for it, I might add, and a way to get a future plan...something better to look forward to on the horizon. I could get a job that my promotions and pay raises would be based on merit, and hard work instead of on who I knew, and what other jobs I had already worked: The Military.
I had not resigned myself to joining on the first day...but I did go down and talk with several different recruiters that day. And, I was right. This would be a job, willing to pay for my school, willing to pay for my loans, give me the opportunities to advance if I really wanted them. I knew most of these things going in...and, at first I thought I would only be happy going in as an officer, but in the end my recruiter at the Army brought up a point that hadn't entered my brain up to that point. He said, "I know you want to finish college first, but we can help you do that in the Army, and you said you have a year left...but....if you feel like you're just barely treading water now, how are you going to keep doing it for another year?" And I didn't have an answer for that.
In high school, I was always the only person who could shut down any recruiter's every argument...I grew up as a military brat, I already knew almost all of what they had to say, and even when they came up with new stuff, I still found logical ways to shut them down and leave me alone. My feat over the Marine recruiter my senior year was my crowning achievement though, since I managed to leave him speechless with no further arguments or facts to present.
Thus, the fact that a recruiter brought up something that I couldn't answer was disturbing. I thought about it all that night and the next day, I went back into the Army office and told him I was ready...and we talked about all the options I had once I was actually "in" and I left feeling great! For the first time in months, I was happy with a decision I had made. For the first time in years and years, I actually felt like I had a concrete direction and a plan for my future, and it was a plan I liked!
Misc. info? (i.e. the place to come back to reading if you didn't care about the real reason)
I realize that many people will not understand my choice, and some people might even be flat-out opposed to it, but I'm happy with it. If you are my real friends, you will be happy for me too. And while I understand that the Army has a lot of tricks to deceive and retain its soldiers, I'm willing to take the chance. I know many of my Army friends are not happy with the Army, and maybe someday soon, they will all be able to tell me "I told you so", but I'm willing to accept that too. If it turns out I made a mistake, I can get out after my first tour and go on to doing something else. I have no problem with admitting to being wrong.
Any further questions?
Email me, if you have my email address...or leave me a comment.
posted by AeroAangel at 06:40
2 Comments:
I somehow stumbled upon your blog today. You are quite angelic as your name suggests. I think you're the closest to heaven that I've ever been. Keith T, Enfied, CT.
uh...ok...way to give me a way to get back in touch with ya...lol
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