I'm up next.
The short version:
22
18X 20151013
So pumped to meet you all & conquer the suck with you guys.
Humble, confident & here to learn from you men that make what looks like a near death experience sound like another day at the office.
Before I say something that gets me killed, I am truly & humbly speaking from the side of a civilian with an above average civilian - which isn't exceptional - grasp on how the military works & what I expect my path to be.
I like to do my research.
Who &
why are my favorite questions to ask, so I have spent days browsing this site reading & re-reading things I have already learned from other research, asking other GBs, or simply reading the Army regulations attached to my contract. I have read every introduction post here starting from 2015. I've completed plenty other threads start to finish as well, mainly from the perspective of other men somewhere in the SF pipeline. One thing this website provides me with is what I consider an invaluable & truly hard to find inside account on what it's all about. Hence Quiet Professional, I suppose. I have never worm a uniform myself. Those of you who have, not only do I thank you, I'm here to see if I have what it takes to wear the same uniform. Here I am comfortably behind my keyboard - not on the business side of a rifle - I can say I'd fight for the right & lose to no one for just the chance to tryout. My accounts come from very privileged, personal & exclusive experience with true Green Berets, SEALs, Marines, Sailors, Soldiers, Veterans & all those who support each of the men & women in uniform. I've had 12-14 years spent living on base & forever & a day living around military something. The sound of fighter jets rattling the cups on my living room table is a sound I hate living without. When it comes to the Armed Forces, I pay my respects first & a firm handshake follows. It's simply just what I believe in.
The only people who know much about me have asked weeks before I'd consider mentioning much. Why? Recognition, ceremonies, trophies & the like that can be publicly observed bug the hell out of me. I'm the guy who's given away all of my first place trophies or accolades (mostly cause they're all... plastic
) Funny little story: After I signed for 18X, my fellow future soldiers got wind of the news (not even an infants crawl toward the end goal). They started cheering & teasing in good faith, "Oooohh! Special Forces!". I left the office immediately, I wasn't having it. Great guys! Love the brothers & sisters I'll meet with any tab or patch here in the near future.
Any of you tasked with running this site, or blogging your trusted input here, or asking your smart or silly questions so I don't have to, I thank you & salute you.
Forgive me if I missed any formality.
Despite what my forum name suggests, I ain't never been to Nam.
Sunny south side San Diego most my 22 year life & here in 6 days my path will take me to the just as beautiful Ft. Benning, Georgia! (lol)
Bittersweet! 6 days couldn't go any faster as August marked an entire year me working with my recruiter to sign for this contract that I have never NOT been qualified for. 11x, 11x Option 40, 92r, sheesh they offered me everything. I knew I was personally committed to the military as a whole, the Army in particular, but I truly only wanted one opportunity & that's 18x. After reading through pages upon pages of Army & Navy recruiting PDF military or gov files & a general grasp on what these guys were trying to get done, I really was not comfortable taking no for an answer & they were really not comfortable with me doing my homework. I came to the conclusion that they don't like A types. Furthermore, you'd be surprised at what you find in these documents that the recruiters don't already know themselves. They bought me lunch & gave me a shirt to add to my wardrobe. I salute them & I won't forget it. I switched districts instead of just offices, the next business day my new recruiters called me to MEPs for the 18x contract. My girlfriends idea. It's who you know, right? A hiccup got in the way, a week later they called me again for 18x. It became clear to me that this military stuff has the potential to be what you make of it & what time you're truly willing to put into it.
Finishing up about who I am, I make friends very easily while keeping a low profile. Chin up high, hat down low, head on a swivel. Situational awareness is truly an invaluable trait. Those who meet me don't forget me & I like it that way. I feel even better when all of those reviews are good ones. I find it easy to care about anything & I firmly believe in the age old saying, "To each his own." Everyone has a strength & a passion. I'm definitely a people person. I believe most people deserve a chance at happiness & prosperity & evil people deserve the chance to be met with more fierce competition & aggression than their holy book may suggest exists. I think stupid people fight fair & smart people, never unprepared, train in unfair conditions for the fight.
In my intro, I feel the need to say a little more because what intrigues me the most about SF is just
who these guys are &
why these men are selected for such a pivotal role in our military. Also, hopefully to encourage people to say a little bit more about where they come from. I really enjoy finding out who people are. Allow me to explain what I mean by that. I've met SEAL instructors, officers, enlisted men & candidates. All alike - very confident & at face value happy people. I've met Rangers & all the Rangers are like, "RANGER!" I've met Marines. "Rah! Pendleton bro! 29 Palms sucks!" Oh, by the way, 29 Palms sucks. Now, maybe just my luck, every time I've met a Green Beret no two of these men have ever been anything like the other. I'm told that the SF culture is truly one of a kind. They are immensely more driven, structured, insightful & successful than any other group of individuals I've ever met. & between it all I leave each conversation with one of these guys thinking, "What in the actual hell was up with that guy?" It intrigues me to no end. Somewhere, someone or something is breeding some extra ordinary personalities & from the outside looking in, I'd like to think I'll end up right where I need to be among people I can truly enjoy serving with. I'll go ahead & earn my stripes first.
Thanks for having me on the site.