A Glimpse Into Our Day

I was thinking tonight that while I have shared some of what our days are like here at Camp Dodge, I have not actually shared much about an average day here. So here it is:

0530 (A.K.A. O’dark-thirty) - Wake Up. This consists of the lights turning on in our squad bay and movement from under our covers slowly starting.

0600 - P.T. (Physical Training). Depending on the day of the week we either perform calisthenics, exercise to muscle failure, or go for a run. The goal is to improve our over-all physical fitness which not only helps on the battle field, but also our daily job as truck drivers, and aids in keeping us healthy and happy. After P.T. we are given time to shower, clean up, and get ready for breakfast.

After PT - Chow (Breakfast). The breakfasts here are pretty good, although not a Perkins steak and eggs with hash browns with cheese sauce by any means…OK, now I’m hungry. Usual meal items include eggs, pancakes or French toast, potatoes, fruits, cereal, milk, and OJ. Coffee is on tap pretty much 24/7.

Post Breakfast - Depending on the platoon (in this case the one I am in) we have our morning formation where our leaders check that we all have the required uniforms and equipment for the day and inform us of any change in the day’s plan that may have occurred since the night before. Shortly after this we usually load the buses to go to where our training will be for the morning.

0900 (if not sooner). We usually start our first class or training activity.

Sometime around Noon - Lunch break. The meal is what-ever MRE (Meals Ready to Eat) ration we happened to pick up at breakfast. Myself, I usually snag an extra box of cereal (Note to my parents: I need Co-Co Puffs) to eat as either a snack during the morning or along with my lunch. It’s my goal to someday find one of the McRib-style pork rib MREs. Our lunch break usually lasts about 30 minutes or so.

Post Lunch - Resume training for the afternoon.

1700 - Chow (Dinner). I have to admit they feed us quite well down here. The first week the portions were a bit on the small side even for me (and I barely weigh a buck twenty-five soaking wet). This week however things are sized more appropriately.

Post Dinner - Depending on the day we may have further training, or we may have some down time. This is usually when we clean our weapons, prepare our gear for the next day, or just relax and play cards or watch some movies. We also have a nightly Platoon Meeting in which we receive information about the next day’s schedule, a look at things to come about three or more days in advance, or various other topics.

Post Meeting - This is “our” time. Movies are watched, phone calls made, email (if the internet is available) is checked, showers taken, books read. In general, we relax and unwind from the day.

2230 - Lights Out. Quite literally the lights are turned off for the night and everyone is in their bunks. Some of us may not be going to sleep right away (if even still awake at this time), but everyone is required to at least be in their bunks. Some of us may still be typing away in the dark due to their writing muse whispering in their ear, some might stay up a bit to finish a chapter or two in the book they are reading. For all practical intents and purposes this is the end of our day…which for me, has gone by blissfully quick.

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