You're In the Army Now

So, I am still not quite officially in the Army. That happens when I take the oath of office, which should be taking place sometime tomorrow. Preferably early in the day, since I am supposed to show up tomorrow in my uniform, with my Lieutentant's bars on it and everything. Officially, I think wearing my uniform in public without having taken the oath of office could be considered impersonating an officer, but I am not sure about that.

Anyway, tomorrow things really get rolling. Dana and I got back from our cruise this morning, raced across Texas, getting only one speeding ticket for our troubles (seriously). The first thing I did when I got here was go through in-processing, which was essentially walking from station to station in a hotel lobby, picking up various forms, filling them out, getting measured and weighed, etc. Really basic stuff. After that was all done, which took little over an hour, Dana and I said our tearful goodbyes and she headed off to her hotel for the night.

The unexpected twist was that I headed off to my rooms, which were in the same hotel. The San Antonio Airport Holiday Inn, to be precise. Pretty swanky, in fact. I got a room on the 10th floor, nice cushy bed and even a selection of soft or firm pillows. Hardly what anyone would expect from boot camp. On the other hand, we have to assemble in the parking lot at 0400 tomorrow, which is more or less precisely what I would have expected from boot camp.

There are a lot of people here. More than I expected, and I have only seen the group that is at the hotel. There are more of us on base, as well. I have been assigned to 5th Battalion of Alpha Company, which was determined alphabetically, as far as I can tell. I have already had a chance to meet and talk with some of my classmates, and most of them seem to be pretty classy.

The best spin yet is my roommate. He comes from Idaho, seems like a really decent sort, and best of all, he is LDS too, which of course eliminates the dreaded explaining of the magic underwear or questions about polygamy. He was in the National Guard prior to coming to Basic Officer Leadership Course, so I hope he can be a patient source of info and answers to all my hopelessly green rookie questions.

Well, 0400 comes early, so I am off to bed.