I'm not sure if there is a whole lot for me to report regarding the last two days, but I had a number of questions on my prior blogs, so I figured I'd chronicle the last two days, and then take a moment to fully answer the questions asked.

Sunday was yet another day of recovery from 0-Day. This time, a large number of us went tubing down the James River. It was a beautiful afternoon, and we all got our fair share of sun. The whole trip latest about 4 hours, and miraculously, the entire group (about 20 of us in all) were able to stick together the entire time. Apparently, the day before our expedition, an individual succumb to the James River somewhere around the length that we were floating down, but no such incident occurred with us. To be honest, the river could have used an additional foot or two of water, we spent a good portion of the day simply avoiding nearly exposed rocks as we slowly ping-ponged down the river.

After our float, a group of us went for some small town BBQ and Pee-Wee's BBQ, which was awesome. We then made the meandering drive through the very rural, very beautiful landscape from the James back to C'ville. I'm pretty sure no one did much of anything the rest of the evening, except maybe finish up the homework we had been assigned over the past week.

Today (Monday) we were back to school as usual. And of course, that means morning PT. This morning marked the beginning of Student lead PT, and the first run we got with our "run groups." The student lead PT is exactly what the name describes. Each morning, a single soldier from each platoon, leads there platoon during the strength portions of the PT (namely push-ups and abs). I'm pretty sure they get some level of direction from the Cadre. Our student leader did a great job, he decided to work the push-up, and having some lingering aches and pains from Saturday morning made the experience interesting. After that portion of the PT, I split off to join my Run Group 1. Within about 10 minutes of our run, it was quite apparent that I was the wildebeest (yes that's how you spell it) among the herd of gazelles. Our first run was measured at just over 4 miles, and with the exception of the two times my shoelace came untied, I was able to basically keep up with my group. I am going to have to be a little more consistent next time, but I'm sure I can do it.

Today's classes were broken into smaller sections, with the exception of the first block, which was the completion of "Standards of Conduct" which, if you recall, is essentially Army Ethics. After that lecture, we broke away into small "seminar groups" and went through two blocks, one focused on the application of the Standards of Conduct we had just finished learning about, and the second regarding MWRs (morale, welfare and recreation activities/organizations) and NAFIs (Nonappropriated Fund Instrumentalities). I don't want to really get into what these are, suffice it to say, if you're going to have any fun on any Army installation, it will be because of one of these organizations.

After lunch my section moved to a two hour block on Army writing, where we focused mainly on email correspondences and office memos. It was entertaining and a good chance to throw ideas around on how best to articulate oneself in writing.

The day finished with a briefing from the schools Commander, as well as his Senior NCO and Chief Warrant Officer. It was a quick briefing, which allowed all three of these very experienced individuals to give us their take on the different rolls and responsibilities of those Enlisted and Warrant Officer personnel that are crucial for the smooth running of any Judge Advocate's Office.

Now that I have finished with the chronology, lets get to the questions. However, I should first thank everyone who is commenting on my blog with words of encouragement. Though this process has yet to really frustrate me or make me question my decision, such positive reinforcement will never go unappreciated...

"DGH" I am not an expert regarding your ability to drill with the reserve component that has commissioned you. However, from talking with many of my classmates who are Army Reservists, I would imagine you are certainly welcome to contact your reserve unit and request the chance to conduct PT with them. I don't see why they wouldn't let you train with them.

As to your question regarding timing of commission and attendance at JAOBC, I'm pretty sure there is no time limit. There are a number of classmates of mine who have been commissioned officers for quite some time before coming to JAOBC. There are quite a few who have been practicing with either their National Guard or Reserve Units as well before attending this school. I don't believe there is any statutory principle that applies either, however, without doing more research, I cannot provide an unequivocal answer.

To speak to your concern about the length of time you'll have to wait before attending (the earliest being NEXT July), I do not think that is abnormal. If I remember a briefing we received a couple weeks ago, we were informed that every class through the 185th JAOBC is already accounted for, and the 186th is now being filled. Do not get discouraged with the wait, it is well worth the experience and you should be proud for just being accepted.

The question about your family is a well founded one, and I'm glad you asked. When you are at Ft. Lee, you're family is able to accompany you but the Army will not pay for their travel or accommodations (only yours), you will be gone for the vast majority of the day, AND you are going to want to bond with your new classmates. Thus, I wouldn't recommend that they come to Ft. Lee. As for Charlottesville, the Army is amazing when it comes to accommodating the families of those in the class. Your family is essentially invited to come, and your hotel accommodations will more then likely meet that need. For most of my classmates they're families are either visiting off and on during the 10-week period at C'ville, and some are staying the entire time. As for traveling away from C'Ville you are a little more limited. You can travel NO MORE 250 miles from C'ville on a given weekend. That is the limit and that is a BRIGHT red line. If you and your family live within that 250 mile radius you are more then welcome, with the timely processing of the correct paperwork, to go home and see them all weekend, as long as you are back for PT at 0550 Monday morning.

To answer the question from Jack regarding 0-Day. There were 36 (maybe 35) of us who started 0-Day, 26 survived it (that doesn't include the amazing student leadership who were just there to show off, I mean encourage the rest of us.) On top of that, ANYONE who has not already gone through airborne or air assault training may try out assuming they meet the criteria to get the chance. There were a number of prior military individuals who had gone to air assault and were trying for air borne and visa-versa. That brings up a good point that is hit on by "David Mac," namely that just because you may not qualify for airborne or air assault during JAOBC doesn't mean you wont have the chance to do it in the future, quite to the contrary. It is not uncommon, assuming you remain in shape and have the desire to do so, that your unit will send you to those schools to allow you a better understanding of the soldiers that you are representing.

Again, thank you to everyone who is reading, and as always keep the questions coming, I'll do my best to give you my opinions...