Day the 2nd at Fort McCoy

[aadler]

 

Thunderstorms continue.

Desert boots aren’t really designed to keep out water.

Back where we left off yesterday, it took the people processing us a little while to regain access to the necessary database. Once they were back in and things began moving again, I progressed through the stations. It was quickly established that 1) I needed a certificate showing completion of the previous-phase course, and 2) my travel itinerary had me leaving a day too soon.

The latter was familiar to me: the same thing had happened to me during the previous-phase course. Don’t these people coordinate with each other at all? As it worked out, changing my departure flight to the following day took all of five minutes on my cell phone. And, if I can find the right Internet source on an official computer, I should be able to print off a digital copy of the needed certificate.

By afternoon it was sunny and warm again, and during a break I crossed to my barracks (no, I won’t have to relocate, so I can start unpacking) and changed into dry boots and socks. Everything felt nicer after that.

Today was mostly introduction, once the in-processing left over from yesterday had been completed. Actual classwork begins tomorrow. And since — aside from hands-on demonstration of some of the things we’re supposed to know by this point — it’s basically all classwork, I don’t anticipate much trouble. (Hunger, but no trouble. I still have weight to lose, and eight days remaining in which to do it.)

We have to get up about 4:00 tomorrow morning. And may continue doing so for the duration of my stay, I don’t know yet. I’ve lived through worse.