Early morning...

Well, I’m awake – relatively early for a Saturday, I must add. Normally, I’m awakened by the breathing of my three year-old daughter as she stands wordlessly next to the bed, waiting for my wife or I to open our eyes and commence with the daily routine. Not that she’s a loud ‘ol mouth breather or anything, but I guess I’m really sensitive to the sound.

Anyway, I’m awake early today, rising at a little after 7. It’s probably the result of my “sleep aid” last night, which consisted of 5 bottles of Heineken, consumed within 90 minutes. Yes, sir, for a night of fitful sleep, this newsman recommends stopping by your local AAFES Shoppette and picking up a sixer of Heinies!

So, what to do with a long day that is allegedly destined to be one of Georgia’s hottest days (96 expected to be the high, 105 with the heat index) of the year? Well, the first thing to do is to promise oneself that nothing is more important than staying in the AC!

Actually, it’s good that rolled out of the sack early. I’m prepping to “go to the field,” as we say in Army-speak, from Monday through Thursday afternoon. It’s the culminating event at Drill Sergeant School, widely considered the final milestone before graduating. Rumors had been flying that it was going to be shorter, going to be longer, cancelled altogether, etc, but I guess the rumor mill got this one wrong. So, as we get ready to go the field in what is widely believed to be one of the hottest weeks on record coming up, I’m got to get everything ready to “suck it up” for the next several days.

I began with treating my uniforms with an insect repellent spray containing Permethrin. This is the stuff you spray on clothing – even if you wash them in hot water after it
dries – will repel mosquitoes and ticks for up to six weeks. I had a colleague who sprayed this stuff on his uniform and then went to South America – he mentioned walking though swarms of insects and just watching them dive-bomb away. EXACTLY what I’m looking for.

As I said, this is the big one. When we return on Thursday, we are expected to receive our issue of Drill Sergeant campaign hats. I’ll have some uniforms at the cleaners with the Drill Sergeant identification badge sewed on already – and from that point, it’s the slow countdown to the next Thursday when we graduate and are officially called “Drill Sergeant.”

I have to be honest – I am a bit nervous about this upcoming shift in mindset, in duties, in responsibilities. Anyone who’s ever done live TV has dealt with anxiety/nervousness, but I’m really feeling the pressure on this one. Keep in mind that I’m going into an environment where I’m expected to take Joe Snuffy off the street or off the couch and turn him into a Soldier. I will be the first impression he has of the United States Army. If I do a good job, he could be a future General or Command Sergeant Major – a real leader. If I do a crappy job, he could be a liability to someone else and get one of his buddies killed in a combat zone somewhere. So, no pressure there, right?

All class long we’ve heard the stories of our Drill Sergeant Leaders, regaling us with the tales of “downrange,” imparting upon us the hard-learned lessons of two, sometimes three years under the hat. I often wondered, mid-tale, whether or not I’d make the same decisions, good and bad, or if I’d completely screw the pooch and find myself getting relieved, fired, or in serious trouble – landing, in direct contravention of our instructors directives, on the front cover of the Army Times.

I think this is much the same way I felt before I went to Afghanistan the first time. I’d never deployed before, and there I was, carrying tens of thousands of dollars in camera and satellite gear into a war zone, and responsible for the young Specialist accompanying me. Once I did my first patrol, my first live TV, and got home without losing anything or anyone, I was much more comfortable for a return trip.

Here’s hoping it’ll be the same way for Drill Sergeant duty.