Day 0, August 15

So I carried my duffel bag, my large backpack, a small backpack, and a garment bag about a quarter mile over to E Co in the blazing heat. I was drenched in sweat by the time I arrived, but this was not the first time I'd been completely soaked in sweat since I'd arrived here so I was becoming accustomed to the feeling.

We sat outside until our cadre came outside briefly to address us: a typical 1SG speech ensued for about 10 minutes before a torrential rain began to pound down on us. We were told to get our stuff inside so we grabbed it all (I'm supposing my stuff weighed over 100 pounds) and we all ran for the one door we were allowed to utilize. Of course, with 182 people all carrying their 100 pounds of gear through one door tends to produce a bottleneck. I stood in line for 15 minutes in a warm downpour which would have been completely refreshing if my stuff hadn't have been getting soaked.

I found out about a week later that my Army Officers Guide got a bit wet. I had stored it inside a bag, but apparently it leaked just a little and since I didn't get a chance to unpack for about a week, it molded and swelled up.

Well the rain finally ceased and the air felt pretty decent without humidity for about 10 minutes. Then it was right back. The ground was barely damp within 15 minutes of the rain ceasing. The sandy soil here absorbs all of the water almost instantaneously. I was standing in the soil listening to my cadre introduce themselves and wasn't caking my boots with mud.

The cadre, Sergeant First Class White and Captain Glushenko, seem fair. They explained that OCS in Echo Company was not a good-ole-boy system, and they didn't have a quota of people to eliminate from the course. Their only concern is that they want to put out good officers who will not put soldiers into harms way stupidly. They explained that there is a standard and we will be commissioned if we surpass that standard. The standard, they explained, is found in the OCS SOP (pronounced Oxsop) of which they gave each of us a copy. We are to have them on our person at all times, and it is an inspectable item. I was glad to hear this because its a meritocracy.

Finally, the cadre told us our schedule for the next morning, issued us linens, and sent us to our rooms telling us they were temporary and not to unpack too much. I was sundrained and so I went straight to bed.