Don’t really know where to begin, as usual. I left for Boot Camp on September 17th and graduated November 17th. My division was 434 and we are Hall of Fame Gold. I mean, that’s all I really need to say, right?

But that’d be too easy and not very specific. I could also tell you everything we did each day, what I ate for breakfest, lunch, and dinner, and every single detail, but that would be incredibly dull and boring. So, what the hell did happen to me?

Emotionally, I was terrified. Nervous. People yelling at you for making the tiniest of mistakes. Eventually you would (read: should) stop making the same mistakes over and over again. If you don’t know me by now, I’m not confident in myself. I’m a bit better now, but I still get nervous. Really trying to stop though. I made mistakes (one mistake of mine could have lost our hall of fame status, seriously), but I got through and here I am.

Was it worth it? Yes. Would I go through it again, given the chance? Heck no. The eight weeks I spent there mean more to me than all four years of high school. I’m a much better person now because of what I learned from being around 80 other recruits trying to becoming sailors just like me. Whether they were good examples or bad examples, I still learned from their success/failures. I’ve never been much of a people person, but there are a lot more people I can turn to whenever I need help and I’d do the same for them.

Currently stuck here in Pensacola until the end of Feburary, I believe. I’ll be stopping in Rochester for Christmas. Hope you’re all having fun with college/high school/etc.