I'm so proud of my nephew!!

[sportsmom]

**Before I write this, let me say that I am in no way asking for a political debate. I will offer my opinions if asked, but that is not what this is about!**

I am so proud of my nephew! He graduated Army boot camp last Friday! I'm a proud aunt!

My mom went down to GA to see him graduate and he went home to VA with her for a few days before going home to MI. My oldest brother, who is not nephew's dad took them out to breakfast on Sunday and he told me tonight that nephew wore his camos and while they were in the restaurant an older gentleman stopped them and told nephew "thank you for serving."

Did I mention that I am a proud aunt? My nephew had some difficulties as a child because his mother, who is not my sister, let him get away with murder and didn't make him go to school as a teenager. He got his life together, got his GED and decided to join the army to qualify for the GI bill and to continue to get himself together. He's doing well so far.

He won't have leave over Christmas, so my mom and I are going to meet him at his new duty station after Christmas and spend a few days there with him.

Thank you to all who serve and protect and to their families.

[Greenday]

Whether anyone believes in the war or not, that shouldn't have any effect on someone completely training. Boot camp is in no way easy. As my mom has always taught me, you don't have to support a war but support our soldiers. I whole-heartedly agree with her. Whether they want to be out there fighting or not, they are doing an extemely important job. The things they are put through and the things they go through, they have earned respect.

I wish more people in my generation took schooling more seriously. Being a freshman in college, you see everything. I have friends who take school really seriously, and it goes to the other side of the spectrum with one of my friends who was also taking 14 credits, dropped a 4 credit class, doesn't show up to lab ever so I don't know if she will get that credit, she's doing pretty bad in chem so that's another 3, stats is anyone's guess as he's a really good grader but I know she hasn't done too well there either. She's always out drinking, she keeps getting caught but since her uncle is a cop, she gets away with it. If I was her parents, I'd stop funding her college IMMEDIATELY!

Props to your nephew for going on with his education and everything without being encouraged to do it.

[ArenaBoy]

I wish more people in my generation took schooling more seriously. Being a freshman in college, you see everything. I have friends who take school really seriously, and it goes to the other side of the spectrum. She's always out drinking, she keeps getting caught but since her uncle is a cop, she gets away with it. If I was her parents, I'd stop funding her college IMMEDIATELY!


Sounds like ony of my friends, she is a literal definition of a hippy long hair and very easygoing and VERY open about her drug use. When I say open she talks about drugs like it's normal. On weekends she pretty much goes to the notorious party schools and drinks and there have been days where she doesn't show up for class at all. The problem is she is such a nice and intelligent person who sadly went down the wrong end of the road. I swear her theme song is Sunday Morning by the Velvet Underground. Google thelyrics and you'll see what I mean. End Music Nerd.

EDIT: Congrats on your nephew, that is great that he did that, I have a friend who is in the army and I worry about him every day.

[sportsmom]

I just found out that either my other brother, his father, is an even bigger idiot than I already thought he was or nephew changed his mind. He told us that nephew was going into Diesel Mechanics, but it turns out he is going Air Assault. After his schooling he will be going to either Iraq or Afghanistan most likely. :(

I am still a proud aunt, but not a very happy one at this point. I think I would have preferrred he go into Diesel Mechanics. Now I will have to tell him the story his grandfather always told about when he was in boot camp.

[Cia]

I take it he was at Ft. Benning, GA? Has he told you about the 'wait a minute' vines? My DH did his Officer Candidate Schooling down there and he drove me all over base showing me stuff like the infamous parachute towers where they make people pancakes and etc.

Even if your nephew did go into the Diesel Mechanics he can still be sent to Iraq/Afghanistan. My bestfriend's nephew is a mechanic of some sorts in the Army and he went over there.

[sportsmom]

No, he didn't tell me about the vines, I 'll have to ask him when I see him in a few weeks.

I know he may have ended up there anyway, I just prefer to think he's way back on some base fixing trucks than parachuting into the front.

[Tanasi]

Air Assault is very different from Airborne. Air Assault is infiltrating via helos and usually doesn't involve parachutes (or at least it didn't when I was in), Airborne does involve parachuting. I don't think the 82nd or 101st has had any combat jumps since VietNam. I don't remember if they jumped during Grenada or Panama.
Anyways pretty much anyone in the Army today will do a tour in Iraq or Afghanistan unless them MOS requires them to stay stateside or elsewhere. All combat arms will serve a tour in one sandbox or another. We all need to remember to give thanksl to our Veterans.
Tell your nephew Thanks from an Old Veteran. BTW my oldest daughter completed Basic in August just in time to return to school. This summer she will attend her MOS school and AIT.

[Crosshair]

Good for your nephew. People always ask me if I like the military so much why don't I join. Problem is they won't take me.:cry: I have no depth perception because my eyes do not work together. I don't know what the medical term for this disorder is though. I can only see through one eye at a time, I can switch between what eye I am looking through. (Sounds wierd, doesn't it.)

The neat thing is when I am shooting using a scope, I can have my right eye focused close to look through the scope and keep my left eye focused to look at the target. Comes in handy when I am using a high magnification scope. If I can't find the target thorugh the scope because of the narrow field of view, I look though my left eye to see where the target is compared to what I saw through the scope. A normal person takes a moment for their left eye to refocus to see longer distances.

[Rahmota]

Congratulations! The military can be a great experience for some people. And for a young single person it can be a great foundation to build a future on. My best friend went into the navy and it helped him get his shtuff together.

And yeah its not the soldiers who make the policy they just have to deal with it, so they deserve all the support they can get.