CGAMOM2012

Daughter's boss (prior enlisted Army) asks why she just doesn't pick another Reporting Day (since only 2 1/2 weeks between her HS graduation and R Day at CGA) so she can get some time off. "They do boot camp every month" he says....

fencersmother

Yeah, cgamom, and she should bring her tv, micro, and futon with her too.

FWDAD

My son at West Point told me that several cadets were wearing their winter uniforms in New York City one afternoon when someone tossed them the keys to their car. The man yelled back to the puzzled cadet that he was checking in and wouldn't need the car for a couple of days. (The man thought they were bell hops!).

PackMom

When the youth minister at our church heard that S was accepting a NROTC scholarship, she asked me "Isn't S really smart? I would have thought he would want to be a Dr. or lawyer".....basically implying that the Navy would be a waste of his talents!

flalaw97

PackMom: I was NROTC at MIT and now I am a lawyer. Tell your youth minister that NROTC is a way to pay for college which is the first step towards becoming a lawyer or doctor. I will tell you without a doubt that the Navy was excellent preparation for law school. I was way more focused than those who went straight from undergrad to law school.

Best of luck to your son - Go Navy.

usna09mom

...or the driver was a Navy grad!

GO NAVY! BEAT ARMY!

raimius

I was going through airport security in my USAFA service dress, last year. The TSA screener gave me this funny look and said, "Are you aircrew?......oh, wait, you're military." I think the "US" on the collar, the funny looking rank, and the ribbon might have given it away. Still, I guess it beats getting confused with a bell hop!

PackMom

LOl,flalaw97, S is in his third yr. of NROTC and law school has never entered his mind, nor med school either. It's just not where his interests lie. Amazing that people think military service is some sort of second choice or fallback option. It's the only option my S ever considered.

fencersmother

Last night at the gym my boys work out in:

25 year old man to S: So, you're going to the Air Force Academy? couldn't you get into college?

I'm going back to the sinners alley to find some new alcoholic beverages.

requiem

I got this yesterday-
"You're going to the United States Military Academy? But I thought you were going to West Point! Isn't West Point better?"

momoftwins

requiem,

That's a great one!!

fencersmother

requiem, that one made me laugh out loud!

haroldg48

We live on the Outer Banks of NC, so everyone is familiar with the Coast Guard, but...when my son says he's gotten an appointment to the Coast Guard Academy, 1/2 of the people say, "Oh why enlist, you're so smart?" and the other 1/2 say, "That's in New York, isn't it?"

Maybe someday people will understand that young folks devoting their lives to serve as leaders in the military services, and foregoing 4 years of "college fun" for 4 years of education and training to lead is a good thing.

Maybe a major paper or magazine owes us an article on the service academies!?!

fencersmother

I think it so very odd, not to say discouraging, that the general population feels that our enlisted men and women are somehow... NOT smart. I guess there are a few of the dimmer bulbs in every organization, but from those folks I have met, they are very good at their jobs, and most juggle a military career, school, spouse & kids, travel, and possible deployment with superb skill and aplomb. That's smart in my book.

requiem

Yesterday, I was sitting in my ap economics class and the teacher asked everyone where they were going to college. When I said USMA, the ENTIRE class, including the teacher, started firing questions such as "Why do you want to kill people?" "You guys are killing kids in iraq!" and "But you got into berkeley, why not go there and get a better education?" at me. I was unpleasantly surprised at this reaction to say the least. This i guess is the general southern california opinion of the military, sadly.