"Where's The Dot?"

Apparently, DCLT involves really early mornings, late nights, and little sleep. My mornings have started around 4:14 every morning, and I get off work anywhere between 6:00 and 8:00 at night. Nights and weekends ARE off, so that's VERY nice. I don't have a car, but the hotel must have been built with military people in mind because there's a computer and fax machine downstairs, breakfast in the morning that consists of fruit juice, bagels, muffins, and toast that's open even at 4:30 in the morning, refrigerators and cabinets in the rooms, and a convenience store in the lobby.

My first day working, I was mostly just observing, so it was really boring. The days after that have been more interactive. So far, they've just been to different ranges the past three days. Yesterday, I was adjusting the rifles for the privates as they grouped and zeroed. Today, even though it's my day off, I'm going in at 12:30 to watch them go through the CS gas chamber and then coming back to the hotel after that.

If I want free meals, I have to eat at the DFAC on base. However, if I get off before the privates eat dinner or if it's the weekend, I have to provide my own food. There are a few cadets I've met who have cars here, and they've offered to drive me to Walmart to stock up on food if I need to.

The drill sergeants make fun of my cadet rank (which is a black dot) and have started calling me "The Dot". The name got so popular that now the company first sergeant has started calling me that as well. One drill sergeant calls me "Lucky Charms" after he compared the cadet rank to something that looks like it came from a box of Lucky Charms. And another drill sergeant will occasionally call me the "Cadot" or the "Cadidiot"... just because he thinks it's clever. I've found that the more the drill sergeants pick at you, the better. And you just have to pick on them right back. I think it's their way of testing you out. You can't be upset at their pranks or nicknames, but you can't seem like you're easy to walk over either.

This morning was my first morning being able to sleep past the ungodly hours of the morning in five weeks. I enjoyed it every much. And by ungodly hours of the morning, I mean 4am or 5am. Hope everyone at home is doing great and having an awesome (if not very hot since it's NC) summer.

Megan