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About LinkBacksOh, really? I didn't know that.Originally Posted by Captain America
I didn't even know there were video games. Or soda.
It would be nice to think that maybe he isn't in trouble, and just got too busy to call.
Oh, really? I didn't know that.
I didn't even know there were video games. Or soda.
It would be nice to think that maybe he isn't in trouble, and just got too busy to call.
Stay back! I have a thesaurus, and I'm not afraid to use it!
Well, in my day, it was Pac Man. But Ricky Sunday was mostly spent smoking cigarettes because the "smoking lamp" was lit, or picking guitars with my fellow recruits, or eating junk food, or shopping for necessities, or spit shining my boondockers. The phone bank lines were long and the calls were expensive. Remember, a recruit has no cash. All he has is a "chit" (coupon money.)
But then again, I was in boot over 20 years ago. I'm sure everything has changed.
It's GREAT to be me.
Diplomacy is the art of saying 'nice doggy" until you can find a gun.
That's a big difference between the Army or Navy and the Marine Corps, btw. At Marine Corps Recruit Depot there is none of the above during Basic.
OBL 11/24/02
I think in the Army it depends on the basic training unit and the discretion of your drill sergeants. We didn't have Ricky Sunday in basic training and my basic training was almost ten years. And smoking was banned,this is universal in all army basic training units. It was strip and the floors(some of the basic training recruits weaseled out of some of this by attending church),do your laundry,shine your boots do work details and if you were lucky once in a blue moon you could make a phone call. Every now and then a fatman driving what was called a gut truck came by and sold,pizzas,gator aid and energy bars and what you were allowed to have was at the discretion of the drill sergeants.My drill sergeants most of the time banned our platoon from the gut truck when they did allow us to purchase anything from the gut truck it was gator aid and maybe a energy bar and this was on a day before a pt test. The drill sergeants that ran the other platoon usuakky allowed their recruits to go to the gut truck on days it did come by to purchase pizza,gator aid and energy bars and every now and then watch a movie.
"To preserve liberty it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them."
Richard Henry Lee.
I got to play video games in basic training too.
The MACS (Multipurpose Arcade Combat Simulator) for Super Nintendo - The Gamer Gene
"To preserve liberty it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them."
Richard Henry Lee.
We got our mail only on sundays......
The recruit who got 7 from his mother, were kinda looked on as momma's boys.... I don't know how mail is done in the Army, but if he had 7 letters to read on a sunday, he might not get the time....
كافر
Caith siar é agus ná lig anair á
I was happy to get any kind of letter when I was in Marine basic.
In fact, I wrote several to a girl I knew in High School. But she never wrote me back. But her sister did, and I just wrote back and forth with her sister all during boot camp.
And the irony of this is, I eventually married the girl I tried to write to. And we have been married for going on 24 years now. And over the years, one of her complaints is that when I am deployed, I do not write enough letters (even though she still rarely writes me one back).
A year after I graduated Boot Camp, I put a buddy of mine in the Marines. I told him I would understand he would not have much time, but that I only wanted 3 letters. 1 at the beginning of 1st Phase, to get his address. A second during 2nd Phase, to know he was doing OK. And a third during 3rd Phase, so I could arrange time off with my command to attend his graduation.
Well, I got his address finally from his dad. I wrote him a letter every 2 weeks, always putting them in a regular envelope and useing my dad's address. It was getting close to his graduation date (once again supplied by his dad), and still no letter from him. So I got even.
I spent 4 days writing about 15 pages. I would write while I was on post. I would write about what movie I had seen. I would write about what music was popular on the radio. This is because I knew the DIs were very likely to have the recruits open a letter if it was thick enough to hide contraband.
And for the finishing touch, I took a Playboy centerfold, and wrapped it around the completed letters, so that the first thing visible were the breasts. This was something I knew was definately "contraband".
Then I sealed it in a Marine Corps envelope, and put my military address as the return address. It took 2 stamps to mail it.
Sure enough, when I saw him after his graduation, he told me about getting "The Letter". He said the DI pulled it out, called his name, did a double-take at the envelope, and dropped it on the floor with the directions "Open It!" He saw the envelope, and said he knew it was going to be bad. He pulled it out, and it was obvious to everybody what was wrapped around the outside of the letter.
He spent 15 minutes doing pushups, kissing the exposed part of the centerfold each time. When he was finally allowed to recover, the DI looked at him and said "You were supposed to write him a letter, and did'nt do it, did you?"
So if any of you go to boot camp in the future, write your friends and family back. Because we sure can get at you, even if you think you are safe.
I was at work tonight doing something, and couldn't have my cell phone with me for a brief period of time.
During that time, I missed 2 calls- both from my son's base that he's at.
It's a Thursday night. I thought they were only allowed to call on Sundays (and then, only if they earned it).
There was no message left on my phone, and when I tried to call the number back there was a recording, that said the number was disconnected (payphone, maybe? i don't know. I called it back not ten minutes after i missed the call).
Anyway, i'm really upset. I'm afraid something is wrong. i guess if anything had happened to him and the authorities were trying to call me, they would've left a message, right? I don't know if he's injured, sick, being kicked out, gone AWOL, or what.
Why would he be able to call on a Thurs nite?
Did any of you (in army basic training) ever get to use a payphone any other time besides on Sundays?
Do you know of any instance where a recruit might get to, unless there was something seriously wrong?
Please, tell me some reasons this might not mean anything bad has happened.
I'm tempted to call the red cross so they can find him and tell me if he's okay. I really can't deal with this too much more.
I guess if it was the authorities calling to tell me something's wrong, they'll call back.
I even called his dad to see if he'd recieved a phone call tonight or any news, but he said nobody's called him from there.
I just don't know what to do, I was doing okay until this happened.
Last edited by 1069; 07-30-09 at 10:42 PM.
Stay back! I have a thesaurus, and I'm not afraid to use it!
He called you because the DI had some time to kill and sent the unit to the phones, they can only call collect or by phone card, hence the hangups....
The phones do not accept incoming calls.
Calling the Red Cross over something like this, will make your kid stand out in his unit. Probably not the way one would want either.
كافر
Caith siar é agus ná lig anair á
Don't worry about your Son he is doing fine if there was any problems you would have heard about it by now.
As for what to send him. I know when my Cos. went into the Army two years ago he ask if we could get some snap shots of around the town. This might be something to think about. Also I second the local Newspaper and if you want him to get in good with his Buds send him a care package with all sort of treats.
Don't Worry he will be fine
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