A little background about basic- it is broken up into three phases- Red, White, and Blue appropriately enough! Her first few weeks were Red phase, they do a lot of classroom training, military rules and regulations, etiquette all that stuff. Drill and ceremony, etc. They also went through the gas chamber where they all got a taste of a noxious gas- she said she DID vomit!! If you have been to the facebook pages you saw some of the pictures of them coming out-snot dripping from their noses etc- YUCK!! There were no such unflattering pictures of KT!! I think the only one there was of her was taken right before they entered- shew is second in line- looks pretty calm huh?!This is how she described the gas chamber- " Today was the gas chamber which was horrifying beforehand, but kind of awesome during, and totally hysterical after! They build it up so much for everyone and tell you that you only have 9 seconds to get the mask on....Then it was SO bizarre to be behind the gas mask then take it off and breathe in noxious fumes!"
The letter I received on Friday was a long one, she wrote it over the course of a couple of days, and she is in high spirits and is actually even enjoying it in a strange way!!
She describes it as "having a personal trainer bust your ass for 15 hours a day!" And she is proud that she is not the one in the worst shape!! (I was never really worried about that, she did a lot of work to prepare herself for this!!) A big Army word is HOOAH- soldiers use this to express agreement, enthusiasm, and many other emotions. Katie noted that she HATES that word!! I think this 9 weeks will seem very long for her in that case!!
Katie has the third best mile time among all the girls in her platoon, so she is proud of that accomplishment as well!Katie went into Basic pretty much knowing what to expect, she is taking it all in stride- she said that if you can ignore the people screaming at you, not let it get to you it is fine. We all know that she is used to listening to whiny teenagers, so I am sure she is schooled in the art of "tuning out!"She also said she is sweaty and gross all of the time, they are going everyday all day- up at 4, not stopping til about 9 I guess.
In her letter she said the girls in her platoon are all "mad chill" in the words of one of her bunk mates! She isthe oldest, but there is also a 29 year old who will also be going to Monterey with Katie so that's cool!The First Sergeant in the Company likes to make fun of her because of her age, but that is not getting to her at all!!
Katie's bunk mate is Frankenberg (name change) Katie asked if it was weird that she didn't really know anyone's first name!! I said no get used to it!! But if she starts calling me Saccone we might have a problem!!!:) Anyway, Frankenberg is also Katie's "battle buddy" and she is nice, and more mature than most there because she has raised her younger brother and sister for a couple of years. Seems like a good fit for KT I think! A "battle buddy" is the person you do everything with- you can't go anywhere alone, and they stick together most pf the time, so it is good if you get along!!
IN the letter she also mentions that at lights out there is a lot of whining, grumbling, complaining etc. a lot of the girls are young, pampered spoiled, and my not have been prepared for what they are now getting!! I think being older and wiser is helping Katie!!
They received their weapons a couple of days after arriving in Basic, but had not fired them yet as of the letter I got. I believe last week was BRM which is when they go to the ranges and qualify with those.
Meal times are interesting, they are allowed 10 minutes to eat, but Katie said she never feels rushed, and she always eats a lot!! I am sure it is because she is using so much energy and calories throughout the day!! She says the food isn't BAD, but it may just be that she is so hungry, or eating so fast she doesn't notice!! There is no coffee, sweets, anything like that so she said when I come pick her up for Christmas to bring potato chips and chocolate!! She also mentioned that she hasn't had any side effects from the no smoking or coffee-maybe her body is so pre-occupied with the other stuff she is putting it through it doesn't care!! When she called she said that the MRE's (meals ready to eat) that they eat when they are int he field all have little desserts like a snack size candy bar or something, but they have to put all of those in a bucket and the drill sergeants walk around eating that stuff!!!
AT the end of the letter she just restates that she is still having a good time, and then she speculates in whether one of her Drill Sergeants has a Napoleon complex!!;) She says if you have to keep saying out loud how smart you are she has to wonder who you're trying to convince!! Then she says that she loves the letters, so anyone who has been writing- Please keep it up!!
On Saturday she was allowed her phone for about 20 minutes!! She called me and she sounds happy. I could tell that she is happy with her decision and is not having regrets, she is excited about where she is going!! We talked for a little bit about what was going on, but she mostly wanted to make sure I was coming to get her for Christmas (she is EXCITED!!) and ask me to bring some candy when I come!! It was really great to hear from her, and to know that she is doing well. She also said that the Drill Sergeants are not sending their mail out right now, so there may be a letter on it's way to you soon but it will just depend on when they actually get it to the mail. She is receiving her mail however, so keep sending them- she looks forward to mail call everyday! I remember my husband saying the same thing- he got through the days to get to mail call at night!!
I hope this update satisfies some curiosities, and when I know more I will definitely post another update! Any questions email me or get in touch on facebook!! Hopefully I'll have more soon!!
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