The good news:
- His bronchitis is cleared up (they caught it early, thank God)
- His platoon won Final Drill
- He got his orders
- His orders are complete bull.
We have been being told, for three months, that Danny would find out on t-55 what job school he would be going to and for how long. He enlisted with a contract for Communications, but not for a specific job within that MOS. So we were expecting to get his specific information yesterday.
No Dice!
He called me and told me that the only information he had recieved was what he already knew. Just where and when he was supposed to report after his 10 days of leave.
So I was pretty upset and started bawling. I am not usually a crier, but the pregnancy horomones make me a little irrational. I was just so broken because I hate being in the dark. No one tells me anything and I just want to know where we are going after this.
I really need to work on not being a control freak. Granted, a baby wasn't in the picture when he enlisted, but we did sign for this, literally. When the husband approached me about joining the Marines, he told me that "hurry up and wait" would be the lifestyle. I guess I just didn't fully grasp what that meant.
I am not in control....
I am not in control....
I am not in control....
I am not in control....
Anyways, I called and talked to the recruiter and he explained that in the Communications MOS, everyone goes to the same school for 6 weeks, but could be placed in advanced classed for different jobs, depending on test scores. The way that I understood it was that the husband will be given apptitude tests in the first couple of weeks, and depending on how well he does, will be placed in his specialized Communications Job. However, the school for communications school will be 8 weeks at the max because a lot of the field is on-the-job learning. So the school is short, and they learn their jobs mostly at their PDS. Confusing, I know!
So- Communications Job School= 6-8 weeks.
I guess that isn't so bad. Not as bad as it could be. And I do believe that students get phone privleges, so it wont be as bad as Bootcamp, in terms of separation.
As an aside, if you have no idea what T-55 is, refer to this website for a detailed training matrix for San Diego. It will let you know what your recruit SHOULD be doing everyday. Training can get delayed a couple of days for various reasons, but they usually get back on track.
http://www.usmcgradsandiego.org/links/trainingMatrix.php
Don't forget OPSEC. DO NOT post specific dates on your facebook, twitter, etc. If you know for a fact that your recruit is moving to CP on a certain date, resist the temptation, and dont share online.
Good to see you're back. I been checking in every day for some updates. I've taken a liking to ya'lls story.
ReplyDeleteWhen I joined, I went in just as infantry. I went to SOI (School of Infantry) got assigned to a heavy weapons training group. Then they figured out I could shoot and land navigation wasn't a problem for me, so they switched me over to assualtman stuff. Then the recon guys showed up and asked for volunteers I raised my hand, I went to indoc with them. After SOI, I went on to all my BRC stuff. My point is, don't worry. It'll all sort itself out. Sometimes you know beforehand, sometimes you know and they change it, sometimes you don't know till the day, sometimes you don't know till the day and then they change it, sometimes or already doing it and they change it. haha Take it as it comes. You've got round about dates, that's all you really need. The first year of 1st enlistment for me, I pretty much just showed up where ever on the date and time on my papers. Take it as it comes.
Remember that it's only irritating if you let it be. It kinda sucks for you right now, I understand, but it a lot of fun when you get to the final duty station with your Marine. Me and my wife had a blast after I got through all my Recon schools (about two years for basic to the "end"). What your man's doing is a lot simpler though, and he'll be back driving you crazy before you know it.
Just a suggestion, but make ya'lls home spotless for when he gets back. Make everything have a place. It'll occupy your time, get you prepared to how he'll be for a while, and he'll crack a big old smile when he comes in and sees it.
Sorry if you have some trouble with my words. I'm from Alabama. haha