Bobbing for Apples (Pt One)

If you are just following my blog this week, I am doing a boot camp edition to celebrate 6 years since I went to the Marine Corps. Feel free to click the link at the top of my blog "My Marine Corps days" to catch up! :)

The first night...

So after we formed our very first formation, we filed it into the depot, and what happened that night is merely a blur. I remember sitting in these desks and were told to put our heads down until further instruction. By now, I was adapting to the booming voices, and my nerves weren't so shot. Next, all the recruits and I filed quickly into a huge classroom and had our "effects" searched through. Not really thinking - maybe nerves or sleep deprivation from being up since 3:30 the morning before- but, I managed to throw away my SSN card. Somehow I knew that this was foreshadowing that my brain relocated and stayed home for the next 13 weeks. I don't remember much with the classroom, except maybe being told to put our heads down a lot. Which was bad news because we were all exhausted and just wanted to snooze- which was lethal for us to do.

I believe at some point we were all told to file up to these rows of telephones and were demanded to call family. It definitely wasn't going to be a leisure call with drill instructors breathing over our shoulder and you had only seconds to speak rehearsed lines to them. I, unfortunately didn't get a hold of my family because my mother's phone didn't accept collect calls, and my dad's phone was a cell phone. The drill instructor told me to try again, and I did disappointingly. (Ironically, my mother was upset that I hadn't "called" her. I told her that she shouldn't had her phone block collect calls.)

Then, the male and female recruits were separated - the males had to get their heads shaved. When we saw them again, it was quite a change from the guys that were on the bus. We were then told to grab cammies, boots, and covers. We also had to be fitted for "tennirunners" (running shoes). It was a mad rush, and you hoped that the Marines were giving you the correct size. After this, we (females only) were escorted to a large squad bay. Males were taken to another one.. We were told to put on a set of cammies and have our new runners on. Our civilian attire was to be put into a brown bag and stored away until we graduated. 

Next came our no longer civilian hair. I had to grab my long, blonde lock and tie it back into a bun and slather gel and hairspray into it. I was soo terrible at it at first! Rolling up sleeves for the first time.. we all looked like a hot mess. There was a pure distinction that we looked like "lost childs"... because we were! We were brand new recruits, exhausted, and clueless.

(Part two will come later this afternoon- I have to get to class! :) Stay tuned!)