First Impressions

Nov. 21


I had meant to write about my swearing in ceremony, but proceeded to get far too drunk that night to do any such thing. Last night was dedicated to "packing", which was really procrastinating until it was technically morning and then packing.

And now? Well, now I am too tired. I have a feeling that will become a common refrain around here. Traveling was uninteresting, meeting people was good, sleep will be better! I should have some free time tomorrow morning (breakfast at 6, then nothing until noon) so I shall attempt to write some more then.

Till then:

- having a room to myself is good
- sharing a single bathroom with 5 others is not
- living on the 8th floor is tiring
- trying to remember people's first AND last names is trying
- the instructors like to swear a lot in every description
- unfortunately it's not very creative swearing
- but maybe they're just tired
- like me
- goodnight.

Apparently the Interwebz are not omnipresent

Oh My Gosh. I'm back from the Void that is the INDOCTRINATION PERIOD. (Make sure to say that with lots of echo, eh?) Actually I've been back for a bit, but Christmas was here and he's the kind of houseguest that takes up ALL your time. Not that I'm complaining. He's entertaining and brings lots of presents, I mean, everybody together.

So now I'll stop with the excuses and make with the updates. I've been keeping paper notes for the blog (...wait, isn't that a journal?) and will post them in order, possibly with extra added bonus commentary. Okay so it's not bonus, just more blather but I'd rather make it more interesting for myself than just copying it all out! =)

Final Countdown!

Less than a week until I leave! I got about a foot of hair chopped off last night so now I'm feeling ready to go. Now, to pack.

There are an amazing number of random things I need and hopefully they will all fit in my luggage. There's the usual toiletries of course, but now I need a matching toothbrush case and soap dish. I also bought small refillable bottles for things like moisturizer, which is apparently very necessary. Also Q-tips. Both of those are for gun cleaning (the hand cream for recovering!) I never thought moisturizer would be one of the top recommended things to take to basic training. It's not on the official list of course, but it comes up all the time from people who have already been.

Swiffer wipes for cleaning the top of the closet door, which they apparently check. 9X14 pad of paper, ziploc bags, a small notebook to help actually remember all the things you're supposed to, hair clips and gel...the list goes on.

And of course Vaseline and Duct Tape. They're the only REAL necessities. I could take over the world with those, so I should get through basic training okay.

I get sworn in on Thursday, and then I'll find out my travel plans for Saturday. Apparently I'm in the navy now, not the air force, because they want me posted to Victoria. (The forces are amalgamated, and the bands are simply part of whichever base they are based at. Esquimalt is navy, so that's what I'll be!) Definitely going out for a good meal somewhere before I go. I had Korean BBQ on Sunday, Sushi yesterday...mmm, all that lovely west coast food that I will not see for a while. I think I'll go have breakfast now!

Hello, World.

If you've made it this far, chances are you know what this is all about. I'm a musician who won a job with the band in the Canadian Forces. I set out for basic training on November 21st and will be sharing my experiences here. At least the ones I find interesting/amusing enough. If I'm allowed internet time.

A lot of people ask me what it's going to be like and right now, I honestly only have a vague idea. Yes I will be getting up early in the morning and working out. Yes I will learn to shoot a gun. No wait, I'm not supposed to call it a gun. It's an ASSAULT RIFLE. Yeah, that's way cooler. There will be a lot of classroom work. What that will be, I have no idea.

The only thing I'm pretty sure if is that I will be getting made fun of. I'm technically part of the Air Force because of the band I will be playing in and apparently the army/navy sections tend to think the AF are weenies. Or something. That's even before taking into consideration I'll probably be the only musician in a wackload of gung-hosers. Did I mention I play the bassoon? *sigh* ...

Okay that's probably not a very nice way of starting things off. I'm sure I'll meet some great people, and some I like rather less - just like anywhere else. Honestly. I mean, they can't all be crazies and asshats. Other than the instructors of course! ;)