Last post was stating that we were going to Orientation...
...And here we are!
We arrived yesterday afternoon along with about 40 other Reserve and National Guard members from the Army and Air Force. We found the two other TPU Reservists, when you think TPU, think about the guys that have their regular civilian job and then are a Reservist also, drilling each month and having annual training during the summers. The other type of Reservist is and AGR, they are employed full time by the Army and are a totally different animal than TPU. I heard that about 6,000 TPU's applied to the War College and we were one of the three lucky ones chosen. Last night at the first meet and greet, the Army Reserve advisor from the War College congratulated all of us and said, "I don't know how ya'll got here, but be thankful. I don't know what makes you any different than the other guys that applied, but you are the ones that won the lottery." Mark & I had a good laugh about that one. We feel so blessed to be here.
We were taken by bus this morning from the hotel to Carlisle Barracks and into one of the rooms that is used for conferencing. Around the room were pictures of 4 star Generals who have passed through these hallowed halls. To see the pictures and the names was such a humbling experience to know that we get to be a part of the history of the War College. Introductions were made and we found that another student is a Army National Guard LTC from Lincoln, Maine. For you non-Mainers, Lincoln is above Bangor, but below Houlton on I 95. Talk about a small world! Another LTC that we met here is also from Maine but has been AGR with the Reserve down in Fort Benning, Georgia. He and Mark served together in the 3-316th when Mark was in college.
The rest of the day consisted of briefings about finance, briefings about forms, briefings about Child and Youth Services, briefings about briefings, okay, that was a joke, but lots of briefings. All good stuff. The opportunities that the kids will have here are beyond what we had expected. Soccer and dodge ball to piano and art lessons, not to mention a youth center that they can visit when they want to hang out with their new friends. Another briefing that we had was on housing. This was one thing that I was familiar with, one website that does have lots of information on it. So I had done my homework and knew where I thought I wanted to be, but open to what ever came up also. Young Hall was one of the last on my list of places I wanted to live. Picture a long brick two story building with 26 units in it. How big could they be anyway and who wants to live in an apartment after always being in a house? Not this girl. Those nice, pretty, new houses across the street with big back yards look nice to me, thank-you-very-much. And just as it goes with most preconceived notions, I was wrong. Young Hall is our #1 pick. It is smack dab in the middle of all the action. It is with in a 5 minute walk to class for Mark, the soccer field abuts the back yard along with a track and a playground. Amazing! We got to tour inside one and it is beautiful! It has 3 big bedrooms, the master being large enough to hold an office space, with a bath and walk-in closet. What more could a girl want? Those nice, pretty, new houses are nice and pretty and new and we would be happy if we got assigned to them, but bring on Young Hall!
Now we are back at the hotel, digesting everything we learned today, filling out some on-line paper work, and trying to set us up for success.
Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings!
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