I mean, 11B is really the only MOS.  

You'll do fine.  There will be times you love it and times you hate it.  You might do one term you might stay for 20+.   It will always be a part of you and something you should be proud of.   Good luck!

Good on you OP!

Btw, you're going to be shaving everyday and living in an unclean environment. If your face is a legit problem get that script from your doc. Otherwise keep your face clean and take care of your feet.

Lol 30th AG. Ie purgatory. Where time seems to stand still

Do not sign a 6 year contract for no reason...

Do the 3 and reenlist if you want. There will be things you can get from reenlisting at that time.

Ask your recruiter what you can bring, but it's basically nothing. Small basic hygiene stuff and an extra set of civilian clothes. You'll get everything else there. That's just more shit you have to carry anyway.

Congrats, OP.

I went through the Fort Benning School for Wayward Boys back in 1989/90 when OSUT was 13 weeks of sun and fun.

As others have said, try to get a prescription for your acne shit. If you can't get a prescription on such short notice, bring some with you. The worst thing they'll do at reception station is tell you to throw it away. There's equal possibilities, though, that they'll make you toss it into your civilian bag to get back after graduation or let you keep on using it. The Drill Sergeants WANT you washing your funky ass so you don't stink up their beloved barracks and they want you keeping that nasty shit off your face because they're the motherfuckers who have to look at your ugly mug. They don't want to puke every time they see you in formation. If they don't let you keep it, there's no shame in going to sick call for nasty ass acne. If a prescription will take care of it, the docs will write you one and the Army will give it to you for free so as to help the Drill Sergeants keep down their breakfast.

For your apartment lease, The Servicemember's Civil Relief Act is what you need to know. That law is also what allows you to keep the driver's license issued by your Home of Record, maintain residency there while away from military duty, and only pay taxes to your HoR state n your military pay. On the tax note, if you find yourself stationed somewhere where there is no state income tax, such as TN, TX, WA, NV, or AK) you may want to consider going to S-1 and officially changing your Home of Record, as it can save you some money not having to pay taxes to your home state. Be advised, changing your HoR can affect where the Army will pay you to relocate to after you get out.

Unfortunately for you and your fellow trainees, the City of Columbus has pretty much cleaned up Victory (VD) Drive. Gone are the nights spent getting a room at the Days Inn and going to the Traffic Light Lounge when you get a pass (you might get one the whole 22 weeks). Gone are the days of a hooker jumping out of a 1960's VW bug, running across VD Drive, and soliciting you and your 4 buddies. Gone are the days of having a pimp offer his girl to you while waiting in line at McDonald's. (Well, you might still get to experience those last two. It is still VD Drive, after all. And, yes, those are both events in which I was personally involved.)

Since you can't go to VD Drive and partake of the local wildlife, I would suggest you take a taxi and go downtown when you get a pass. The area centered around Broadway, between 10th and 12th Streets, is really nice these days, with a lot of good restaurants, bars, hotels, and entertainment. Woodruff Riverfront Park and the Chattahoochee River are just two blocks west of there (don't get drunk and think you're stronger than the river, though, as you'll almost certainly lose). The National Museum of the Infantry is an excellent place to visit and you'll owe it to yourself to visit and learn what I and the rest of your predecessors have done. (It's a very surreal feeling walking through a museum and seeing multiple exhibits about things in which you were personally involved.)

Do some PT before you leave, but don't do ANYTHING which could cause an injury, as doing so will, at a minimum, delay you leaving and, at worst, kill your career before it starts. That also applies to any drunken debauchery during a send-off party. Handcuffs will fuck you like you don't understand. Also, just because you'll miss her doesn't mean you need to marry her before you leave. Nor do you need to marry her when you come home on leave just because she puts a dab of perfume on a letter or ten. Between reception station, OSUT, Airborne School, and any holdover time you have, you'll be gone for at least 6-7 months. There's a damn good chance she'll be riding another dick by about week four. For me, the bitch was on a date with another dude while I was still in 30th AG (reception station) and didn't write me a letter for 6 or 7 weeks.

Lol.  How old are you and what mos?  Married?  I had my 28th birthday in basic and was the 2nd oldest guy in basic training.  
I got tired of working so I joined the Army to go to flight school and retired last year.  It was fun and way better than working some office job for 20 years.

The pay sucks as junior enlisted, but if you're single your pay is 100% disposable and there's no reason you shouldn't finish your enlistment with a large balance in your TSP.  
If you're not an idiot it'll be easy to make rank fast since the military is hurting for people.  There's also always fun options you can pursue like cool guy stuff, flight school, etc.  

There's a good chance any specific soap you want won't be available at the PX.  If you can get a prescription for it then you can get it free.  Otherwise you'll probably be SOL.

No yes I understand that the training doesn’t mean I’ll get the unit, but it’s all I can ask for is a chance. I wasn’t even considering airborne but when I saw it there I was like fuck it, hope I don’t hurt my back.

This

the Ft Benning Drill SGTs will tell you what to buy.

How do I know? I was one for three years.

Hell yea

Someone has to take a stand

Congrats and well done.

It really was like that for me.

There was already a bottleneck, causing many recruits to have to stay there for several weeks before going to a training batt. I developed appendicitis while there (2 weeks in), and had surgery. After a convalescent leave, I had to work at 30AG on light duty for a month or so before doc cleared me to start training. That was worse than the training!

Because my dad left home to go to prison when I was 12 and I didn’t listen to my mom, had a bunch of criminal role models, flunked out of school when I used to be a gt student, had a few minor brushes with the law, got told by the navy that my juvenile record was a no go when I tried to enlist at 18, got ghosted by the navy again in my late 20s, got told by the marines no one would touch me until 6 months after I signed some document giving up custody of my child which I would of had to do since I had full (she’s in high school now), and finally said fuck it, I have to know for sure, and walked into an Army recruiting office 3 months ago. And now I’ll know for sure, sir.

I joined when I was 24. There was a guy in my BASIC platoon who was 38. I was the third oldest. You'll be fine.

We do, but why listen to your recruiter when you can come ask arfcom?

I go to meps next week to sign, I assume I’ll find out more at that point. Will my recruiter even see me as a priority after I sign? I assume not.

Yeah I’m 33 but in decent shape and one life to live and all.

33, 11x, I’m single and have around 9k credit card debt. Car is paid off. I think I’ll be fine putting my stuff on auto pay until I’m out of basic.

I always laugh with I hear my fathers words about how he got thru it....

"They can do anything they want to me...but they can not stop the clock"

He went into the guard at 17 - two years army - retired with the guard a Full Bird - only saluting the eight Generals....LOL

Red

Yes they’re on the hook until your final ship.

So you have a kid in high school(At least 15ish years old?) and have been working for 9 years?  How old were you when you had a kid and how old are you now?
The most painful part of basic for you might be watching 18 year old kids not knowing which way is up without mommy there to help them.  I remember kids who didn't know how to do laundry, how to shave with a razor, and all sorts of other basic things.

Piss on the navy and AF anyway, you're better off in the Army!  I tried to join the Air Force but was too old to go to flight school and they weren't doing waivers, they told me to piss off.  Tried the Navy and was too old, but they had waivers.  Went through the whole process and showed up to sign on the dotted line and the recruiter says "Bad news, the age waiver is now only for prior enlisted sailors so you're SOL.  Talk to the Army next door and tell them you want to be a warrant officer pilot."  Didn't even need an age waiver for the Army so off I went.  


Fuck yeah!  I had my 28th birthday in basic and was 2nd oldest - the guy older than me was 31 and he was a reservist going to OCS.
Make sure you have your routing/account numbers available when you go.  If you don't have it handy you'll have to get a checking account at some local Columbus bank for your pay and that'll be a big hassle.

YouTube Front Leaning Rest position.  Start doing that now to get used to it.  You will be in that position for at least 8 minutes at times and then you’ll start doing pushups lol.

Just hope you don't get 11C.

They pick

If your recruiter values his career, he'll be concerned about you until you get off the bus in Georgia and become someone else's problem.

His life is all about "making mission," that is, he has to put a certain number of folks into the Army each month and if he fails to do so, his boss will be all up in his ass so much he'll never need a colonoscopy.

If you smoke some weed, get a DUI, break your leg, or do something equally stupid, it means you don't get an all expense paid trip to see a bunch of Georgia pines and he gets to explain to his superiors why he allowed you to get high and crash you car into a bus full of disabled midget nuns. Truth be told, he's going to care more about you for the next couple weeks than your inmate father has his entire life.

Unless you want to do more push ups you put it in the top drawer of your wall locker next to the unopened bar of soap with the tines facing to the left.  

Yeah he will. Unless he doesn’t care if you ship to basic or not and is willing to take that loss 😂😂😂.


But yes, after you go down and actually ENLIST, take the oath of enlistment, you’ll go back to your recruiters office, finish your future soldier packet, get your direct deposit form to fill out, and you should be get explained what to expect that that point till you arrive at basic training,

Don't be surprised if you get orders to Korea.  When I went through EVERYONE on a 3 year contract got sent to Korea.

Hope you like Asian hookers, Korean food, and alcohol....lots and lots of alcohol.

Oh yeah...and plan on having an 18yr old roomate in the barracks.  Because it's a certainty you're probably not getting BAH and being allowed to live off post till you either get married or have full custody of your kid and live with you at least 51% of the year.  Not saying ditch all your furniture and stuff....yet.  But you very well might be.  The fact you have a kid, means you MIGHT be able to swing it - but don't count on it.  Really comes down to your custody agreement with your ex/baby-momma.

My dad is out now, went from doing fed time to working for the VA. He retires this month or next. He’s a really sweet guy. But yeah I’m surprised to hear that about my recruiter. He just called me and said I’m going to meps Monday. Told me since I’m going airborne I’ll have a mini physical that’s 30 mins. I assume some exercises. I’m only worried about the blood pressure check because I know I’ll be nervous lol. Last time at meps they checked my blood pressure the lady had to take it twice and told me to think about the beach. I thought about the bass lake instead.

Yeah, the kid and custody while in the Army-especially in a combat arms job.

If you have any kind of custody, you better start thinking up your family care plan. That is, what are you going to do with the kid if the balloon goes up and she's in your care and custody? Is the plan to send her to live with her mom, your mom, an aunt and uncle, or what? You need to make sure you have airfare set aside at all times if you need to send her away within 24-48 hours, especially if you get assigned somewhere like the 82nd, 101st, or another rapid deployment unit. Unless she's 18, the Army isn't going to be keen on your family care plan being "well, she's got a key, a phone, and a debit card for groceries."

You are a priority until you get to OSUT!

Don't just hope - pray.

If the processing center is still at "Benning" called 30 AG and is the same building I went through there is a very small PX on the first floor where you can get anything you need like soap, shampoo, toothpaste and what not.  Once you get to your training barracks on sand hill you will get walked down to the area px for your first hair cut and will be given like 30 to 45 minutes to get anything you need.

I was 11C! High Angle Hell! Death from Above! Warheads on Foreheads!  Lol.

I did Benning OSUT in 1992.  I have to say I'm a little jealous, OP. It's going to be miserable in the best way possible. Lots of stories and great memories. I'm still in contact with a few folks from way back then. You'll be taken care of, don't worry about the details.  I recall the 30th AG battalion, the "Dirty AG."  I remember the new recruits that got there on a Tuesday calling the dudes that got there on Thursday "Newbs."  Fucking hilarious looking back on it.

Just be cool, act like you give a shit, and take care of your buddies. You'll do fine.  FOLLOW ME!

I am a retired 11B Paratrooper, who was a Drill Sgt at Ft Benning.  You will be spending a lot of time outdoors in the fresh air.  That may help your face right there.  But get your prescription filled and bring it with you.  What the heck is an 11X?  Way back most combat MOS were 11 somethng, i.e.  11b Light Weapons Inf, 11c Indirect Fire Infantry, 11D was a scout now 19d, 11E was Armor, now 19e, 11f was military intelligence now 90something series.  Special Forces was 11B2G or 11B2S.  One was Airborne Ranger and one was SF.  There was another symbolt that was a leg Ranger, but I can't remember that.  My primary MOS was 11B4P with a Secondary of 11C4x????  I think it was that anyways; it was Indirectfire Infantry, Drill Sgt qualified.

Anyhow I joined at 17.  Just do what your told and don't act like a know it all.  Don't and I mean never, correct a Drill Sgt when you even know he is totally wrong.  I was trained wrong on many things in Basic, but that is how it goes.  Some of that stuff was not corrected until I went to Drill Sgt School.  The Infantry Training is tough, it is supposed to be.  We don't want candy butts defending our nation and our way of life.  When you get to Jump School, you will think you are on vacation.  The other non Inf (non combat arms) will be struggling from day one and you will think is this a joke?  The Black Hats will treat you special for being Infantry and being in shape, such as:  "What are you doing roster number so and so?  You will reply standing here paying attention to the instruction.  Then they will say what are you doing standing?  Pay attention in the Leaning Rest."  They want you to get a little tired too.

11x is an enlistment that gets you either 11B or 11C.

All taken care of. I told her yesterday, and was surprised she was so concerned lol. I’m honestly more concerned about my mini schnauzer, she’s been my best friend for the last six years .

11B is what I hope for.

OSUT is 22 weeks?

What are they doing with the extra 9?

Could have been worse, they could have named it Fort Liberty, which is literally the stupidest name ever… That’s a FOB name, or a base on a planet full of bugs.

Don't do that. By enlisting for 6 years you are leaving reenlistment bonuses and options off the table for basically 4 years. Super dumb. Do the 3 and if you want to stay in, re-enlist and get paid or a cool school or something.

This is so true.

11C is a cool job that I did for a couple of years.

11B is where it's at (did it for a decade).


The only permanent party in Korea now is the border unit. No more infantry brigades there. The Army went to regional alignment brigades with rotations to Korea to replace the Infantry ones that were there. Only Area 1 duty station for junior enlisted Infantry. This was as of 2017 when I was last in Korea.

FYI you can guarantee 11B with a Ranger or SF contract. Not sure if you're eligible with your age though.

In all likelihood you'll get 11B regardless.

Option 40 11X isn't a guarantee you'll be 11B.

You're right there's like a 99.9% chance OP will be 11B after OSUT.

I hear you. But as far as bonuses it’s pretty sweet for 6 years. That’s not why I picked it though.

Why did you pick 6 years?

I arrived at the 101st, March 1988, slated for 1/502, but orders were changed at the last minute  as 2/502 had about a dozen guys killed in a nighttime helicopter collision a week before. I showed up at 2/502 a fresh pv1 and moved into a room , and into the bed / wall locker of a dead guy. I had to clean out the dead guys stuff to make room for mine. So I had virgin stupid basic training private combined with hateful glares because I replaced their dead buddy.  Basically this. Made my first 6 months rather colorful to put it lightly.

It will be fine op, within 6 months you will be at your permanent duty station where you will be issued a 350lb wife and your choice of a dodge charger / ford mustang  at 24% apr.

NEW PRIVATE FROM BASIC STARTER PACK

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