06-27-2003, 03:34 PM
1. Pain is merely weakness leaving the body.
2. Boot camp will be a place for you to dig down deep and give everything you have.
3. Harassment, like conver and concealment, must be continuous to be effective. Boot Camp includes a harassment package. :o
4. Every Marine is, first, a rifleman. So, even if you want to be a cook, be the best shot you can be. Used to be those who qualified expert got extra pay. Give it a whirl. The story of Jessica Lynch reminds us all of why the Marines are so anal about the rifleman thing: even rear echelon folks can get into a firefight, and they have to be ready when it happens to shoot back. (Hackworth recently did a rather pointed piece on the subject.) In modernwarfare, the fifth column movement, guerillas, what have you, can strike anywhere, be ready and be good.
5. There are not ex Marines, save those tossed out, there are only former Marines.
6. Make good food, and your fellow Marines will be friends for life.
7. If you find yourself motivated to choose a different MOS, the sky is the limit.
8. 99 ASVAB? WOW! Well done!
9. The Marines simply have the Best uniforms. Period. Lookin' good is a good thing in and of itself.
10. There will be days when your BS tolerance will be tested. Persevere, BS is survivable, believe me, experience has taught me at least that.
11. The team, the team, the team: don't be the weak link in the chain, always have a hand for your compadres, now and again you will need their help as well.
A Marine I served with some years ago used to have a sign up in his office. I saved a copy of the quote in a word file. Now and then, I refer to it, even though I am not a Marine.
Here it is:
"I will persist until I succeed. I was not delivered into this world in defeat, nor does failure coarse through my veins. I am not a sheep waiting to be prodded by my superiors. I am a Marine, and I refuse to talk, to walk, or to sleep with the sheep. The slaughterhouse of failure is not my destiny. I will persist until I succeed."
The old saying about persistence, attributed to Calvin Coolidge, may be a bit more eloquent, but this one may be more helpful during the occasional frustration in your future. Heck, getting a tricky recipe right also takes persistence. :D
Best of luck to you in your journey under the Eagle, Globe and Anchor. Give us a line when you finish Boot Camp, for then you will be A Marine. :)
2. Boot camp will be a place for you to dig down deep and give everything you have.
3. Harassment, like conver and concealment, must be continuous to be effective. Boot Camp includes a harassment package. :o
4. Every Marine is, first, a rifleman. So, even if you want to be a cook, be the best shot you can be. Used to be those who qualified expert got extra pay. Give it a whirl. The story of Jessica Lynch reminds us all of why the Marines are so anal about the rifleman thing: even rear echelon folks can get into a firefight, and they have to be ready when it happens to shoot back. (Hackworth recently did a rather pointed piece on the subject.) In modernwarfare, the fifth column movement, guerillas, what have you, can strike anywhere, be ready and be good.
5. There are not ex Marines, save those tossed out, there are only former Marines.
6. Make good food, and your fellow Marines will be friends for life.
7. If you find yourself motivated to choose a different MOS, the sky is the limit.
8. 99 ASVAB? WOW! Well done!
9. The Marines simply have the Best uniforms. Period. Lookin' good is a good thing in and of itself.
10. There will be days when your BS tolerance will be tested. Persevere, BS is survivable, believe me, experience has taught me at least that.
11. The team, the team, the team: don't be the weak link in the chain, always have a hand for your compadres, now and again you will need their help as well.
A Marine I served with some years ago used to have a sign up in his office. I saved a copy of the quote in a word file. Now and then, I refer to it, even though I am not a Marine.
Here it is:
"I will persist until I succeed. I was not delivered into this world in defeat, nor does failure coarse through my veins. I am not a sheep waiting to be prodded by my superiors. I am a Marine, and I refuse to talk, to walk, or to sleep with the sheep. The slaughterhouse of failure is not my destiny. I will persist until I succeed."
The old saying about persistence, attributed to Calvin Coolidge, may be a bit more eloquent, but this one may be more helpful during the occasional frustration in your future. Heck, getting a tricky recipe right also takes persistence. :D
Best of luck to you in your journey under the Eagle, Globe and Anchor. Give us a line when you finish Boot Camp, for then you will be A Marine. :)
Cry 'Havoc' and let slip the Men 'O War!
In War, the outcome is never final. --Carl von Clausewitz--
Igitur qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum
John 11:35 - consider why.
In Memory of Pete
In War, the outcome is never final. --Carl von Clausewitz--
Igitur qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum
John 11:35 - consider why.
In Memory of Pete