DEC 19 "Striking a Pose"

I'm home for the holidays. It feels so slow here back at the mountains. I'm not even sure what to do outside of my training. I love everyone here but I'm almost ready to get back to the high-speed stuff I'm used to. I saw SSG Walker today, what a hell of a guy he is. I remember before I went to basic training SSG Walker told me that since I made him run around so much for my paperwork that 3 referrals would make us even or something like that. Well I got him so busy this month I think he had to give away a couple guys to the other recruiter SSG Warren. SSG Warren is also a really good guy. He gave me a ride home from MEPS once and I can tell he's a high-speed soldier and he LOVES the Army.. My kind of guy.. I got to say I love my new life and things keep getting better as they go along. I can't say anything bad about the people I've met so far and the way people treat me. PT scores are going up and people are starting to call me Zero to Hero and that makes my family and friends very proud. Nobody will even fight me in the ring because I am becoming such a beast. THE LAW, THIS IS OUR DOMAIN. ARE WE NOT MEN? NO WE ARE NOT MEN. WE ARE BEASTS, FOR YOU HAVE MADE US BEASTS! THIS IS OUR DOMAIN!! HOOAH!!!

December 2, 2007

Staff Sargent Walker(my Recruiter) is standing in the middle of this picture.

PVT Yebba,
As your Recruiter and fellow Soldier, I am very proud of you. I have read your journal and it brought back memories of me going through the same training. I never wrote a journal about my experiences, I wish I had. You will remember this training for the rest of your life. You will have good and bad days. Stay motivated and never forget why you're there and why you joined the most powerful military in the world. Always remember to look after your soldiers first. If they fall, help pick them up and motivate them. When you fall, they will be there for you. Always remember, "Army Strong".

Thomas E. Walker
SSG,USA
Blue Ridge Recruiting Station
Blue Ridge, Georgia 30513
Office 706-632-2017
Cell 678-523-9208
UNCLASSIFIED

November 27, 2007

Training has been making the days pass quickly. So quickly that I often forget to write my journal entries. A couple of days ago we had to go to the shooting range during rain and fog that lasted all morning into the mid-afternoon. It was so bad we were laying in mud puddles shooting pop-up targets, wearing body armor and helmets to boot! Today we had a 6 mile road march that started at 5AM this morning and didn't end until we got back at 7AM. Most people get blisters, however I am one of the lucky ones that doesn't have to worry about that. Drill sgt. "C" always makes myself and the other tall guys march at the back of the line. The bad part of being in the back is, during a road march the people in the front get strung out and spaced, then the drill sgts yell so the guys will close the gaps and those of us in the back end up running half the time! Oh, the reason they put tall guys in the back is because we have a longer stride and won't leave the short guys behind if we are setting the pace. During road marches we are miserable because we are loaded with 60 lbs. of gear and we're at the mercy of the weather outside. This morning was not bad, other than all the residual water everywhere. We have a specialist in our platoon named "H". "H" is a 28 year old with a ton of wit and a great sense of humor! He is inspiring because he went to college, had a good pencil pushing job making decent money and still chose to serve in the Army. He's here for a lot of the same reasons I am. However, he hurt his balls during GFT, and now he's missing a lot of training this week. It's funny as hell though every time he gets back from the doctor, he gets everyone around the fire guard desk in a semi-circle and pulls out his GIANT, BLUE nuts just to hear us groan and turn away. Nobody here is bashful anymore around each other. I guess when you are forced to shit, shower and shave together, one begins to forget about bashfulness. Well, it's about time for lights out and I have already written an essay tonight, so I'm going to hang up the pen for the night. I love you all at home and I miss you. 16MORE DAYS!!!!!! I'm coming home!!!
Anthony

November 24, 2007

I am craving a cup of coffee sooooo bad right now! Outside it is cloudy, cold and windy. I don't mind the cold and cloudy, but the windy part SUCKS! Today all we had to do was GFT, which is "Ground Fighting Tactics". It's like wrestling with a bunch of mud and martial arts added in! It's funny in here, because the same shitbags that used to sell drugs, now sell candies and chocolates to the rest of the platoon. Most people change in the military, but there will always be those that refuse!

November 23, 2007

This morning had a hell of a bite to it! We had a group 3 mile run at 0500 and I was frozen until we finally started running. So the first hour of PT this morning was warm-up and all I did was wonder where my balls went! Well, it is beautiful out now so I'm not going to complain anymore. Today we got 3 new guys in our platoon. All 3 of them are prior service so they bring a lot of knowledge and wisdom that we need badly. I seriously cannot wait to get home. Today they have been playing a lot of Christmas music on the radio. I love you all and I will see you in just a few weeks...Love , Anthony

The End of Thanksgiving Day 2007

I'm just sitting here in the laundry room with thoughts in no particular direction. I am dying to see Atlanta play Indianapolis. Maybe we will watch it if we are lucky. Yesterday we got a new guy in our platoon. The new guy's name is "L" and he was recycled back because of injuries. "L" seems cool and insightful. Our platoon is in desperate need of some insight. Everyone in the civilian world would die laughing if they watched all of us try to get up at 0400 in the morning or try to be in formation by 0445. All we need is a little more discipline and we will all make it through basic with no problems. Yesterday at the shooting range, everyone got their sights aligned or what they call "zeroed" here. I LOVE to shoot and just from the past 2 days I've realized I'm proficient at it. We have weights and a radio in our bay (barracks)now so when I stop running my mouth I can go lift weights!

Thanksgiving Day 2007

What a week so far! This week we have begun shooting our M-16 rifles. The drill sargents have been taking it easy to keep the stress off us so we can qualify for the basic rifle marksmanship testing that we have in a couple weeks. Lately I have been thinking a lot about being home for Christmas and how so many soldiers don't have that luxury. I can't begin to understand what they must be feeling today while their families pray and feast thousands of miles away. I say prayers for those soldiers more than I've said prayers for anything else. I'm beginning to believe this experience is equally spiritual to many people. In my platoon there are quite a few people from Georgia. In my squad alone there are 3 people that live in Georgia! One guy's name is "S" and he lives in Macon. "S" and I went through processing for 5 or 6 days here at Ft. Benning before we made it here to basic. He constantly competes with me as hard as he can. The kid is mentally tough for the young age of 19 and I have a fair amount of respect for him. Another guy in my squad that lives in Georgia is "W" who is a country boy..drill sgt. "C" calls him "Walker Texas Ranger". I know you have seen King of the Hill, so compare "W" with Bobby at the age of 22. Our squad is growing tighter here of late. We are lead by a Bolivian guy named "R". We are still sleeping in body armor, pistol belts, helmets and rucksacks. If you don't know , rucksacks are backpacks with metal frames made for long distance travel. Talk about waking up STIFF! We also have 2 guys named "T" and "M" that cause a lot of shit for us. "T" is 17 and "suicidal" so when he sleeps we need at least 4 people watching him and "M" has already gone AWOL once, so we need 4 more people watching him when we sleep. Finally, we figured out that by putting them on the same bunk would save all of us sleep so the same 4 people could watch them both! Also, a lot of people have gotten sick and injured. I have been fortunate not to get injured. If there is one thing I miss most when it comes to luxuries, it's SLEEP. Spread out, dreaming, uninterrupted....SLEEP. Since today is Thanksgiving, the drill sargents serve US today at chow. I hope they wear those little sailor caps like the rest of the kitchen staff. That will give me a good, hardy laugh. I received the pictures you sent Mom and they really make me feel like I'm home when I have my wall locker open. During my birthday and Christmas dinners I am not going to be picky on food, so just make everything! Lastly, I love and miss you all...Happy Thanksgiving.
Sincerely,
Anthony

November 11, During Church

Right now the Chaplain just finished talking about his experience at airborne school. He's goofy and is making everyone laugh. (This writing is keeping me awake by the way) I'm looking around me and everyone within a 15 yard radius is falling asleep. The Chaplain is talking about when he was in basic training in 1973. They had smokes and beer by the third week and they played football on Saturdays. He said our basic training is very difficult and I agree with him! Since it's Sunday I have plenty of personal time so I am going to send these letters out today....so this is my shout-out to my family, friends and everyone reading this..I love you all and you hold a special place in my heart and soul for when I come back home. I feel stronger every day because you all support our cause. We are the infantry and these are war times.....FOLLOW ME!

November 11, Midday

I just finished marching to church. The church is not that far away and it's a beautiful path here. We cross a lot where I think we will graduate from, then off the the west side we march along a winding path beside a pond that points into a small inlet where the land looks like it is breaking apart like chunks of an iceberg. Here in Columbus the autumn leaves stay on the trees for weeks. The colors are spectacular! I hope I never miss another sunrise as long as I live....I woke up this morning and truly became inspired by nature. I decided I will cherish my days here for they are numbered and military life is all about attitude. Before I came here I taped up all my pictures from home in my locker and once again realized how much I miss everyone at home. I have also dreamed about "J" a few times. I miss her very much. Everyone that I love gives me so much heart that I cannot be broken.

November 11, 2007

It's about 5 in the morning right now. I just got ready for fire guard which is basically barracks security. It's Sunday, so today we don't have to be up until 6AM. I never would have thought that I would be relieved to wake up at 6AM! Anyway, I was considering going to sick bay today because of this nasty cough that I have, but I don't think I am going to. Yesterday we went to the PX to get haircuts. Looking around, everyone was drinking milkshakes and sodas while my mouth was watering!! The first 2 weeks have been really difficult, but we have learned some cool "stuff". For example, yesterday we learned a lot about ground fighting techniques and the day before yesterday we learned how to give each other IVs. I hated the needle part, but I passed on the first try. Also, we have been learning a lot about first aid during combat by running drills. We had another "quitter" yesterday. His name is "O" and he's from where Uncle Carmen lives in Florida. After the first sgt. found out about that, he told our whole platoon that we need to help him because he IS going to graduate. If he quits again, first sgt. "M" is going to smoke us until we need our gas masks!!! The first sgt. is fair but he's also terrible when he's having a bad day or someone makes him angry. Oh, back to "O"...he's a really good guy, but he's slow and has a hard time dealing with all this stress. He gets singled out by the drill sgts. all day long, everyday! It wouldn't be so bad if he had more awareness about his appearance and could keep his gear organized. I have decided to coach him along since I am usually one of the first one's done when it comes to having my shit ready in the mornings! I can't imagine how fast and prepared I would be if only I could drink some damn coffee every morning! Anyway, I am going to study a little bit and maybe fill out a sick call form so I can get some cough medicine.

November 8, 2007

I am sitting in the woods right now during our land nav course. We already found the points we were looking for. I LOVE it here and this has been fun! We have been making fun of our drill sgts. Talk to you later.......
So now I am sitting here doing laundry after a relatively easy day. Things are getting easier, mainly because people are getting used to doing all the crazy shit. I can't wait to tell everyone at home about some of the funny stuff a couple of my drill sgts have done. They always pick on this one guy named "S". One night during my desk watch, outside the barracks, drill sgt. "R" got ME good...we have to carry a radio around in case we see anything suspicious. Around 4AM sgt. "R" got on the radio and kept ordering me to do push-ups and then move to the front of the desk after each set. I looked around for a while, then he started yelling!! I figured he was inside the building, but he was actually in our barracks looking out the window while everyone else was looking and laughing. It was HILARIOUS! Well, time to close, I love you all at home...good night.

November 7, 2007

So tired! I'm so tired today. Last night we had to do guard duty in full battle gear which consists of body armor, a load bearing belt, a kevlar helmet and a frickin' gas mask. I'm a little sad that "Preacher H" quit yesterday, he refused to train. His wife had a mental breakdown or something. Other then "Preacher H" and my PT scores, I'm adjusting well. So far we have repelled off towers, climbed ropes, and completed strange obstacle courses, searched for hidden bombs, learned how to place land mines and we're learning land navigation today also. My sit-ups and push-up scores still aren't up to par and I don't think they will be for awhile. The drill sgt. threatened me with a restart yesterday after my PT test so I am nervous and stressed about that. Only a few of us are having problems doing PT. I HATE this feeling of not being able to truly compete. Time to double my dose of exercise I guess. I love and miss everyone!!!

November 6, 2007

I have learned to lose all expectations about basic training! This is the most AWFUL shit ever! I went to church yesterday and couldn't even keep my eyes open to learn anything! I've done nothing but think about home today. It's really sad...this self-pity. Right now I am sitting on my bunk listening to all the platoons marching and sounding-off at chow call. I've had only 5 minutes phone time in over 12 days that I've been here and that really bothers me. I miss everyone at home SO bad and I sometimes actually dream of going AWOL , getting a chocolate milkshake and hitchhiking to the north GA mountains.

November 5, 2007

I'm in the middle of weapons guard right now and the rest of the platoon is down eating chow. My battle buddy and I got busted for not shaving today, but it was only because we had orders to clear the Drill Sgt.'s rec room this morning. It's Sunday so I will go to church and see the Chaplain for a little spiritual guidance. Speaking of spiritual guidance, the other guard with me is a guy I call "Preacher H". He's from Iowa and is about my age. "Preacher H" aspires to be a preacher which everyone around here respects. My running is getting better everyday, but I still struggle with push-ups and sit-ups. I hope my PT test at the end of red phase (2 weeks left) doesn't hold me back or get me recycled back into week 1 again. So much pressure, so little time. We're on day 10 and it literally feels like we have been here a month. I can hear my platoon getting smoked right now as I watch their weapons for them. Well time to finish my letter to Mom.

November 4, 2007

Here I am again at a desk after midnight. It's another breezy autumn night. It's the kind of night that if the right gust of wind catches your face a certain way, it reminds you of the many other autumns one has lived to see. Yesterday we went on our first road march to the land mine fields to get some explosive training. Some people would cry if they saw the "corrective training" all of us have to go through the first 3 weeks. Some examples are as follows: Carrying a 5 gallon water jug full of water almost 2 miles during a march and getting a loud speaker and coming into the bay where we sleep and blowing it loudly then "smoking" us for 3 hours straight instead of letting us sleep. "Smoking" is just another word for physical training or what they call "corrective training" in the White House. I can't wait to eat some good home-cooked food during our break for Christmas. The thought of being with my family gives me strength everyday and helps me endure these cold nights on guard duty. I miss everyone at home and I can't wait to eat a big piece of cheescake and top it off with double moose tracks ice cream!!!

November 2, 2007 22.41

I am exactly where I don't want to be right now, behind a desk. This is my first entry since I started my basic training on Oct 26. I am at Ft. Benning, GA and it is a brisk night with a slight breeze, and this pen is the only thing keeping my mind focused on something other than sleep, junk food, sex and cigarettes. I find myself daydreaming about the simple pleasures in life more than anything during my nights here. So far, training has had it's ups and downs. For the physical stuff, I am at the back of the pack and watching the front fly by me. I battle with muscle failure everyday and it's a major struggle. Today I went through the gas chamber and it was exciting enough not to think about my aching body. However, choking, coughing and blowing dust on your "battle buddy" sucks so bad, I'd rather have some muscle failure any day! Well, if I had to explain all this in one word it would be STRUGGLE. There is so much I could write down, but my guard duty is almost over and I just read this entry that's loaded with fragments....oh well! I'll get it back eventually. It's been since our house burned that I have written in a journal ...... Goodnight to all, Anthony

Family Bonfire Party...

October 20, 2007

Family is important to me and I enjoyed the time together before I left for basic training.