I joined the Navy just after my freshman year of college because it just wasn’t for me, at least not at the time. The process was pretty quick I found a recruiter and would be on my way within two weeks time. Actual class photo above.
I had no idea what to expect. The media gives us the depiction of what they want us to believe things are like for people that are fields that are less chosen. In all honesty a lot of what’s portrayed couldn’t be further from the truth. Well at least for now I’m not going to give the entirety of my experience in the military but the first day or so.
The night before you go off to boot camp all of the potential candidates are placed in a hotel near the MEPS (military entrance processing center). After arriving at the hotel (actual hotel above) I go to my room, put my bag in there and go grab a bite to eat. There are dozens of other people there just as myself.
No one knows what to expect but they’re just ready for something different. After finishing my meal I returned to the room and I see a woman in my room going through my backpack. If that wasn’t enough there was a young man who openly welcomes me into the room. I immediately yell at woman and then she tells me she thought it was her bag. I grabbed her before she could move and he tells me it was his girlfriend and he’s joining the Navy as well. I told him I don’t care if its your mother if anything is missing it’s a problem for the both of you. After checking my bag everything was still there as I didn’t bring much and she was on her way.
After the bag incident I didn’t think things could get any stranger but they did. It was getting really late and the other guy was nearly asleep so I turned off the television, as we had to be awake at what I’d like to call dumbass o’clock. Not long after the other guy who I’ll refer to as Jerome says to me “but did you ask Teddy”. I’m thinking what the hell is this guy talking about. Then he says it over and over again….Teddy, Teddy. He says the name Teddy to me at least two more times from his bed and then gets up to grab a stuffed teddy bear on the table. I thought to myself of all the people that I could share a room with they put me with a damn lunatic.
The whole Teddy episode passes and I was finally able to get some sleep as I was both excited and nervous for the day to come. Morning comes and early on things are easy going and then we are moved about MEPS from one room to another. Most of the rooms are for testing (medical and other means), and then there were other stations for general information as well. Nearing the end of that process you’re told what your options are toward the jobs you can or cannot get. I was sold into a position that sounded like fun by the people the same way the average woman is sold into a car they don’t need at the dealership. The photo above is of some people at MEPS taking the oath and pledging their allegiance to the military.
From there various groups were put together and we were put onto buses on our way to bootcamp. There was no longer a crazed Jerome in my vicinity and it was just myself and my thoughts left racing. I’ll never forget the excitement I had thinking oh this is so amazing how long is the flight going to be to Great Lakes. Someone laughed and told me it’s less than an hour drive. Somehow I had the believe that it was in some land far away as most people in Chicago don’t know the Navy’s bootcamp facility is just a short drive away from the city. On the way they popped in a DVD and I’ll never forget, as it was awful. Of all the movies they could have chosen they picked Will Smith’s worst movie Wild, Wild, West. Can’t say I stayed awake for long as I passed out pretty quick. The level of excitement throughout the bus interrupted my sleep as we were then hurried to the side of the bus to grab our belongings.
From there it didn’t get bad as it was much more entertaining. We were taken into a large building and would spend most of the day filling out paperwork and getting to know the absolute basics. If we weren’t in a room filling out paperwork we were in a hallway in a single file line. From time to time a random person would ask a question to terrify someone. One kid didn’t know his social security number so they told him to do push ups.
We were taken into huge rooms, they went through our bags and anything they didn’t think we needed they just confiscated. I had a new deck of playing cards. They took my cards and said you won’t be needing that, slid the rest of my belongings down the line. So much is happening at one time it isn’t even funny. There is someone measuring you, then at the next station someone gives you uniforms. Then the stations to follow you’d get the other accessories such as canteens, what’s known as Birth Control Goggles and other such awesome things. For haircuts girls were given shorter hair and guys were given a quick bald cut (see images below).
From the area in which we received our items we were introduced to our RDCs (recruit division commanders) same as drill sergeants in other branches. They just told us not much was going to happen, as it was too late in the evening. They took us to our living quarters and said that we’d gotten a pass because of the time but tomorrow is going to be something altogether different.
There were at least 100 people that first night in this huge room filled with bunk beds (above image for reference). All of us were just really tired and everyone went to sleep really early on. Just before I went to sleep myself I looked around in this big room full of absolute strangers I’d come to realize not all were strangers. Of all the boot camp companies on base I’d come to realize Jerome was in mine and I'd promptly gone to sleep.
I have no idea as to how many parts this will turn into but stay tuned as there’s more to come.