Letters to Staci

LETTERS TO STACI


Dear Staci                                                                                          July 23, 1991
         
         Hi huney how are you? I saw you last just six hours ago, but it already seems like an eternity. First it was the long trip on that bus to get here to the MEPS station with a lot of other people. Everyone is in the same boat we are all leaving home for the first time, towards an unknown future. At least I have you to write to, think about and come home to when it is over.
         I got here at seven in the morning and got breakfast. At least it was good people always say that army food is bad, I have no idea what they were talking about. I had a fresh omelet, bacon and home fries and it was great at least I wont starve. Since I went through the physical and found a MOS (Army job) I thought it would just be get here to catch a plane to Fort Sill to start basic training. Well it is not quite like that I have already filled out even more paperwork and taken another pee test. It is so hard to pee in a bottle with some one staring at you. So lets some up the what I did since I got off the bus, stood in line. Stood inline for breakfast, stood in line to pee stood in line to review my contract and stood in line to get into this waiting room. Now I cant leave till I go to the plane who knows when that will be, at least I can go out on the balcony to smoke. Soon I will be quitting because once I get off the plane my training will start and there will be no smoking for eight weeks.
         I am going to stop here for now hopefully I will be continuing this on the plane.


          Well guess what I did after pausing in my writing? Yup stood in line, this time to get put into a travel group and get tickets. There are four of us going to Fort Sill from NH Greg (he got selected to be the group leader. So he gets to keep track of us and make sure we all make the connecting flight in OH), Ryan, Tom and me.
         At least I am on the plane now, and I am a little nervous. It is the first time I have been on a plane but we have been sitting here for 2 hours and I am having a nic-fit when will this stupid plane take off? I wish they would let me off for a minute to smoke but they said I couldn’t when I asked they are fixing something and once it is we are taking off. There is the seat belt sign we are taking off.

         That was not too bad taking off was like being pushed back in the seat like stomping on the gas in the car. Then the stomach drops as we leave the ground. The only thing is I find it irritating have my ears pop, pop and pop again. Lets hope landing is as smooth.
         Well they are starting a movie I will finish this up when we land and mail it out my first chance tonight.

         Well guess what since we took off 2 hours late we missed the connecting flight. The airline is taking care of the hotel for us and we had a great supper and it should be a good breakfast. Lets look at the bright side, I have another 24 hours to smoke and this is a nice room which came with a fully stocked mini bar.
         I need to finish this up so I can mail it tonight then catch a little buzz and get some sleep so sweet dreams I know mine will be, all of them will be you and our last glorious night together.
Love you always
And 4-eva
Rick






Dear Staci                                                                                          25 July 1991
         Hi hun, how are you? I finally made it to Fort Sill we got off the bus and no one was here since we were a day late and we should have been in the other group. So we ended up just waiting for a couple hours before we started the in processing and I had to throw out half a pack of smokes. Oh well I knew it was coming. We filled out a lot more paperwork and got 5 brown t shirts. Oh ya and now I am hairless, right after filling out the paperwork they threw a pack of t shirts at each of us and marched us over to the barber shop and every one walked out with a shaved head. It will be easier to take care of I guess. Then they kept us busy all day yesterday  cleaning the barracks (a big room filled with a hundred beds). The sergeant has not yelled except when he first came in and yelled at everyone to go shave all the hair off their faces. And it was a go shave even if you thought you did not need to. Then he showed us how to make a bed. (that is make a bed the military way). What a pain I finished mine he checked it said no, not tight enough and grabbed the sheets and pulled so I could do it right. I finally got it done again he checked it and said good enough. Then pulled it off so I could practice some more. A lot of people went through the same or even worse. But he never really yelled at us and it was an easy day. When he finally said lights out the lights went out and we all had to be quite. So with out light I put off writing to you till this morning.
          The food is not all that good I think they just slap stuff together and call it edible I guess it is but there is no real flavor. They must have just made real food for us while we were at MEPS, so we did not change our minds and just go home.
         So far this morning we were marched to breakfast, and back to the barracks. The sergeant left when we got back and has not been back since. He put  Specialist Bates in charge and told him to march everyone to lunch at eleven. So it has been a real easy day I think the real stuff starts tomorrow with medical inprocessing and probably more lines. I am going to end this here so I can mail it when we go to lunch.
Bye for now I will write again when I can.
Love you always
And 4-eva
Rick



Dear Staci,                                                                                          26 July 1991
         Hi hun I am really missing you now. It is Friday and we have gone out every Friday since we started dating. Tonight though I am stuck in a room with 60 guys and not with the woman I love.
         Before I get depressed let me tell you about my day. Like I guessed there was nothing but lines All day. First there was the chow line and when I finally got to sit there was the drill sergeant yelling for everyone to hurry up and get out side, When I got out side Iwait in formation with everyone else till we all were done. Well a couple of people felt so rushed they threw out half their breakfast, the Drill saw this and marched every one to a nice big piece of lawn and made us do push ups forever because people wasted food. Now after the first person threw up. He marched us back to the Gym Where the medics were all set up. We stood in line some more slowly working our way around the basket ball court answering lots of questions and being turned into a pin cushion. There was even one right in the ass and after that one they had us all go sit down on the floor. You cant even imagine the pain. I think I have been vacinated for everything twice.
         The moment we were done we were then marched to lunch. It was just like breakfast but this time we got smoked (doing exerccise till some one pukes) because some one got short order. That is all the good food cheese burgers, pizza french fries and other things depending on the day. What fun I think they are going to spend the next 8 weeks looking for reasons to smoke us.
         Oh ya after lunch we went over and got our uniforms. This is were we walk down the line they measure you then start throwing stuff at you. the only time you try on anything is when they think you might not fit in what they have (which is not often). I think I was lucky everything seems ok. we got changed there so now everyone looks the same (or close to it). Then we marched over and got our pictures taken for our id. It was another stand in line then sit flash move. It was the fastest line I have been in yet.
         All that took for ever once we were in the barracks Drill had us take everything we brought with us and he told us what we would not need. So my civilian clothes, books, walkman all went into the bag I brought and was locked up so we could not use any of it. The kept all the comic books you got me, he says I will get them back after he reads them.
         When everything was locked up Drill had bates march us to chow, and left. It was great we did not have anyone yelling at us and we did not get smoked after eating. I just unpacked quick and sat down to write this to you. Tomorrow is the first day of PT (Physical Training) we will be getting up way to early (before the sun is even up) and do exercise.

         So I need to end here so I can get some sleep.

Love you always
And 4-eva
Rick


Dear Staci,