A Couple Days Later, Reflection.

So a few days have passed, and the pure euphoric feeling has lessened at least enough that I can start blogging again. It has been a pretty amazing couple of days. After getting off the phone with the computer and writing that first blog, I immediately called all my immediate family members to let them know. I'm pretty sure they were glad I finally found out one way or another, as they were getting pretty bored of hearing me whine. As I'm sure everyone was. It's a feeling of relief like no other.

Throughout the last couple days I've been sharing the news with everyone who would listen, although most didn't actually know what OTS was, or how long I'd been making myself crazy over the wait. It's actually quite interesting, I keep hearing about people I know of my parent's generation who actually attempted to join the Air Force as a pilot or navigator or so forth, and were "shot down" due to medical problems, eyesight deficiencies, and various other disqualifying aspects. I consider myself very lucky that I've managed to fit the mold they're looking for, and am going to have the opportunity to have the job that a whole lot of people would die to do.

Many people have asked "so what happens now" so I'll briefly outline the future. Potential graduation (hey I don't take anything as a sure thing but it would require great negative effort on my part for this not to happen) is on June 15th. After I complete a bit more red tape, about a month or so down the road I should get a class letter stating when I go to OTS. By all predictions my class should be the one named 03-08, the last of the military fiscal year 03, which starts July 1. This means somewhere a couple days before that date I'll be packing up my new car (which will have been purchased shortly prior) and driving out to Montgomery, Alabama for the 10 weeks of OTS training. Gradutation from OTS is scheduled for September 19th, although there are some different activities involving the bar pinning ceremony and whatnot the day before. Upon successful graduation there is a lull between that and the start of my JSUNT class as they call it, which is Joint Specialized Undergraduate Navigator Training. If I get the track I'm shooting for, I'll be heading to train for Fighters in Pensacola, Florida. Pensacola is actually in the panhandle of Florida, so it's almost due South from Montgomery, not exactly Miami or anything, but I can live. After the different phases of training there, which take a little over a year total, I'll receive my wings and head off to wherever I'm ordered, my first actual AFB and missions and so forth. I saw on a sheet somewhere that the three bases that focus on F-15's are in North Carolina, Idaho, and Alaska. For all I know that sheet was way out of date though, but I can't say I'm really going to mind living anywhere. No matter where you go you'll be surrounded with people in similar situations to yourself, and obviously people living the same lifestyle, so making friends and meeting people shouldn't be too difficult.

So in a nutshell, that's the plan. Graduate at 22, graduate OTS later that year, receive my wings at 23, start serving my 8 year required period, reach the decision point at 31, either head out into the civilian world or as case may be, continue on in the military, potentially retiring after 20 years at age 43, and pocket half my salary for the rest of my life, possibly while even getting a second paycheck somewhere else. Or I could even stay in longer and pocket all the bonuses you get for agreeing to add years. Who knows. I don't pretend to know what I'm going to do in 20 years. :)

For now, I'll just stay focused on the goal. Had a good run this morning, it managed to basically stop raining completely for the period I was out. Had a quick breakfast and bolted off to class, which was of course upwind from my dorm, and with 30mph gusts that was pretty interesting. Got there just in time to see a bunch of people coming out, as someone had noticed a sign on the door saying class was cancelled today and Friday. Funny how he didn't know to tell us on Monday, yet was able to figure it out in time to post the sign so that we could see it after sloshing through the rain at 8am. No worries for me though, it's good to be up early regularly.

I should have much more to talk about from now on, now that I'm not sitting here staring at the clock and the phone intermittently.