Day 6

Day 0 of BCT

      Today was our first day to wear our ACU's! (Army Combat Uniform). And of course, no one showed up to first formation on time and we spent a long time standing in the cold. After chow we had immunizations. First, we took pills, which are supposed to be a chest cold anti-virus. We, then walked through a room and received about 6 shots. Apparently, I'm old enough that the Hepatitis shots I received as a kid were no longer effective when they tested my blood.
      After shots, we formed up with our bags and prepared to ship out. When the buses came to get us and our future Drill Sergeants came in full ASU (Army Service Uniform, aka dress uniform), it started to feel really real! Carrying my duffel was a nightmare. With 4 pairs of shoes, and literally everything I brought and was issued inside, it probably weighed 50 pounds. After loading our bags, they moved us onto the buses. A Drill Sergeant rode with us. He was very polite and just told us when we arrive that there would be Drill Sergeants (DS's) telling us where to form up. We drove about 10 minutes across the post and arrived at a compound of large trailers.
      We then had our "short attack" where they yelled at us to exit quickly and if you looked funny or couldn't hold your personal bag, they yelled in your face. It wasn't anything near as scary as I had anticipated, and there were no pushups required for mistakes. After an introduction by the Company First Sergeant and the Company Commander, they told us our platoon. It was alphabetical. We ended up with 55 soldiers in our platoon. The cool thing was that I ended up with the one male from my RSP unit that I shipped with. Unfortunately, my travel buddy ( the prior service Air Force guy) made it out of Reception early and is in a different company. We should still graduate together; but I probably won't ever see him until then.
     We then meant our DS's. My platoon, 3rd PLT, or the Outlaws, has a male Senior DS and a female DS. This is only her second cycle, so she's a bit of a newbie at this. My first impression is that I would like them both okay.
      We then got our duffel bags and began the shakedown. I ended up on the front row, and somehow my female DS learned I was an O9S (officer candidate), so that's what I'm called now. I was able to keep everything I brought, except tweezers.
      We were then taken to our bay  and assigned a bunk and a locker. I claimed the bottom bunk! After Reception, I knew I did not want a top bunk! We basically only had time to throw our stuff in and lock the door. Of course, my lock was apparently a bad one, and I ended up having to cut it off later.
      We then went to our platoon bay and started our first briefings. We were slammed with more paperwork, lots of rules, and expectations, and it was made clear that our free time would be extremely limited. Basically, every minute of our day is planned out. Luckily, they are required to give us 8 hours of uninterrupted time each night for sleep, unless you have fireguard duty. Since we have 39 females in our company  (we are all in the same bay), we only have to pull fireguard once every three nights.
     We had our first march to chow for lunch and again for dinner. Our DFAC (Dining Facility) is actually quite a ways away. Maybe a half mile of more? And the path is not flat and smooth. One more way to get in shape! We have a very specify way to go through the chow time. And of course there are DS yelling at you the whole time to hurry up or if you make a mistake. The food is pretty good and we usually get about 5 minutes to eat once we sit down. So far, I haven't been hungry between meals, and I try to eat plenty of protein, carbs, vegetables, and fruit when I can so I get good nutrients.
     We then learned about Hydration Formation. This is the last formation of the the day. They make sure we drink water and ensure everyone is accounted for. We all have a 2-quart canteen that we wear all the time slung over our shoulder. There are tanks of water outside for us to refill them. We also have to wear a small set of beads on our uniform and move them up as we drink a 2-quart full of water. The goal is to drink 12-quart a day. Not sure I can drink that much with as few bathroom breaks as we get, but I try to drink as much as possible.
       Hydration Formation is also where  we get instructions for the next day. Since tomorrow is a Sunday, we don't have to form up until 6 a.m. and no PT, which will be nice. And lucky me, no fireguard tonight!