Patrick Sandys - Army Strong Stories

Korea - Southeast Asia, The East Coast, and the First Successful GCM

Patrick Sandys — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 06:00:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
it would appear I have a routine of writing every two months with frantic updates of the major points in that period of time. I was quite surprised to learn this morning that it has been that long since the last entry, but now reflecting back, a lot has happened. First, my grandmother is still around to read this entry. With that said, I'm going to skip ahead slightly in the timeline. I spoke with her the other morning, just before my first General Court-Martial was set to begin (a...read more

Korea - These Next Entries are for you Grandma

Patrick Sandys — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 15:26:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Its been two months since I last wrote on this site, and until know I wasn't sure I was going to write any more. However, I received some saddening news and I felt I had to start again. I have a very long military tradition in my family, in fact, it can be traced back to the founding of this country, and with little exception I have had a member of my family in every major conflict this country has seen. And with similarly few exceptions, those men (and women) have served in the Army....read more

Korea - Back to Helping the Client and Exploring Asia Beyond Korea

Patrick Sandys — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 15:31:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
February is nearly over, and I think we've had more days off then working, and yet I feel as though I'm as busy as I've ever been. Being at a smaller post like Camp Casey, and 2ID in general, there just aren't that many attorney's to accomplish the myriad of tasks that come up. Given the unique position of being in legal assistance, I am often tasked for random things, and there are always new obligations or "suggestions" handed down from higher that we need to...read more

Korea - Establishing a Routing and Settling In

Patrick Sandys — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 06:53:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
It's been a while since my last entry, and that is mostly because there really hasn't been a lot to report. I have now been in Korea for almost three months, and I feel as though I have finally established a routine that I enjoy and allows for a sense of normalcy. Most of January was spent running around trying to accomplish all kinds of trainings that are necessary to allow me to cover the variety of responsibilities that I may have to take on to supplement my office and fellow...read more

Korea - The Holidays, Traveling, and Tax Training...

Patrick Sandys — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 05:31:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Its been nearly three weeks since I last blogged, and other then my family and my grandmother, I'm sure most everyone hasn't really noticed. But I'm back, and have a lot to catch up on. With much anticipation, and some level of anxiety the Holidays arrived in Korea and with some level of relief and a few great memories they have now passed. To be honest, I wasn't sure how it was going to be, spending the holidays away from my family and friends for the first time, and on...read more

Korea - Settling in, Adventures in Seoul, and my B-day Abroad Under Duress

Patrick Sandys — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 07:44:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Its been about two weeks since in-processing came to an end, and I moved into my Basic Officer Quarters (BOQ). Life has pretty much turned into a standard routine, and it is one that I am starting to enjoy, and I think I'll continue to enjoy. So, as many of your know, I have been assigned to the Camp Casey Legal Center, as a Legal Assistance Attorney. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays I see up to 8 clients a day, for roughly half an hour at a time. These meetings rarely extend beyond...read more

Korea - Exploring and In-Processing

Patrick Sandys — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 02:55:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
So, I've been in country now for three weeks, there's been some serious excitement, mixed with long days of in-processing and moving from one place to another. However, I have finally arrived at Camp Casey, I have moved into my Basic Officer's Quarters (BOQ), and now I'm shadowing a couple legal assistance attorneys before taking over, hopefully next week. Some might wonder, why it takes nearly two weeks to in-process? I was certainly one of those people, but when...read more

Korea - Thanksgiving, the "Attack" and Suspension of Passes

Patrick Sandys — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 05:47:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Well, thanks to the recent attack by North Korea against a small island off the West coast of Seoul, I have plenty of time to sit down and write another entry. The attack occurred sometime in the morning on November 23rd. South Korean military forces were running practice operations near the disputed water border between North and South Korea, when the north opened up with roughly 200 artillery bursts at and onto a nearby island. South Korea responded in kind,...read more

Korea - The Land of the Morning Calm

Patrick Sandys — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 06:48:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Well, it took about a grand total of thirty hours of travel, but I've made it to S. Korea, also known as the Land of the Morning Calm. It was a very easy trek, in that everything moved smoothly and there was really no issues at all. I flew from Seattle to Japan, and then from Japan to Korea. We then had a relatively quick bus ride into Seoul proper. The experience in Korea is uniquely American, as I have not had any time to explore the areas outside the various installations we're...read more

Day One Hundred and Thirty - No Longer A Student: My Final Thoughts (take them for what their worth)

Patrick Sandys — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 21:31:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
So finally, after 130 days of "training" the 182nd has finally completed both its Officer Basic Course and its Direct Commissionee Course and we have scattered to the winds that will take us to our various duty stations (with the exception of Airborne Candidates, who are sticking around Ft. Benning, hoping to get a slot... a continuing drama I will not delve into, because I don't understand it). The last three days have been extremely slow, and can be summarized with the all...read more

Day One Hundred and Twenty-Five - Patroling the Final Days of DCC

Patrick Sandys — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 03:34:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
All right, the final week of DCC is completed, and the vast majority of the class has met all of the "requirements" for graduation and will soon be moving on. All that is left is two full days of out processing, and then a small graduation "ceremony," before we're released to take off for our duty stations. This last week has been trying on the patience, however, the skill of patrolling is something that must be a part of a JA's vocabulary and knowledge base both...read more

Day One Hundred and Eighteen - To Shoot or Not to Shoot (BRM Baby)

Patrick Sandys — Sat, 30 Oct 2010 19:11:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
So I read through the last blog post last night to look for questions and I couldn't believe the amount of typos, so I apologize for that ahead of time, with the limited time afforded to write I guess I don't edit nearly as well as I should. Regardless, this last week went as quickly as the last, probably because we got to play with weapons the vast majority of the time. Monday started with regular PT, minute on minute off workout with some running involved, nothing too difficult....read more

Day One Hundred and Twelve - The Flaming Disaster (When Laywers Fight Nature and LOSE!!!)

Patrick Sandys — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 17:52:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
This week went suprisingly quick for our first full 5-day week of training, and the fact that we were up most of the days before 4am, and in one case before 3am. Monday started without standard morning PT because there are ridiculous smoke floating around the base because of controlled burns that continue to burn night and day. The rest of the day we spent in the Class Room learning how to do Land Navigation. We were introduced to the delicate interplay between the Map, the Compass, The...read more

Day One Hundred and Four - Leading the Fight Against Inanimate Objects... and Winning

Patrick Sandys — Sat, 16 Oct 2010 17:54:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Another week finished (albeit it a short one), and time has seemingly slowed to such a crawl that I feel a month older. Mornings are much earlier here, days seem to last much longer, and similar to C'Ville we continue to be inundated with information. Add to the mix, the responsibility of being the Class Leader, a position I was excited to have, and a stepped up PT regime, and sitting here Saturday morning, I feel spent. Looking back on the last four days, I feel as though I should have...read more

Day Ninety-Nine - First Week of DCC; The Importance of the Chain of Command

Patrick Sandys — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 17:06:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Its hard to believe that tomorrow will be the 100th day of my Army career. Its an ironic statement, because I'm sure I'll look back on this short period and wonder how I could have thought it took so long to traverse, however, after this first week at DCC, I can't imagine time slowing down any further. In the good Army style, DCC began, like most Army experiences thus far, with the good old "hurry up and wait" routine. After an excellent four days "pass,"...read more

Day Eighty-Eight - Leaving C'Ville

Patrick Sandys — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 18:33:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
While I'm sitting around waiting for my ride down to Ft. Benning, I thought I'd write one last blog from C'Ville and get the past couple days out of the way, so I can focus on Ft. Benning and DCC from this point forward. Monday was a very mellow day. We showed up for PT in the morning, to find it raining and cold. We formed up as always, and then broke up into our run groups to conduct some level of PT. Ranger Powell took charge of Run Group 1 and we headed out for our last...read more

Day Eighty-Four - Meeting Course Standards and Final Thoughts

Patrick Sandys — Sun, 26 Sep 2010 19:37:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
And its time for your weekly blog post. I'm surprised that I didn't get any new questions or comments from the last post, but I guess I'll take that as a compliment. It must be because I've answered everyone's questions, that you have none left at this point. Outstanding... Well, lets get back to the Chronology. Monday morning started a little extra early so I could go down and get taped by the 1SG. Having worked out twice a day each day for the last two weeks, and not...read more

Day Seventy-Seven - Making Tape...

Patrick Sandys — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 19:41:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Hello everyone, again, I apologize for such a long time between entries, but the wireless internet has been out at TJAGLCS so I haven't been able to write (which isn't entirely true, because there are plenty of computers available, I'm just too lazy, kind of...) But, now that there is only one week left here is C'Ville I feel as though I should start reflecting back on my spent here, and begin thinking about the transition to Ft. Benning for DCC as well as pieces of advice...read more

Additional Information and Pictures

Patrick Sandys — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 01:18:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
I know I just wrote yesterday, and I promise I'll keep this one super short. However, I forgot to add to my last entry a great blog written by a fellow student and JA. 1LT Ben Smith is a National Guard from Iowa and he's been keep a great blog with a TON of pictures of our experience. Ben is also the Airborne Team Leader and basically totally kicks you-know-what. I was given permission by 1LT Smith to post a link to his blog, so please feel free to check it out for photos and some...read more

Day Seventy-One - This is one Taxing Week...

Patrick Sandys — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 05:17:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Apologies first for being MIA for over a week. To be honest, I don't have a whole lot to report, and even if I did I don't know if I would have had the time or energy to write about it as this new last week has really been a lot of constant busy work to be done after class. It is also writing intensive, so after spending a couple hours on a certain letter or memo, I don't really feel like sitting down and thinking through a blog entry. However, pity party aside, allow me to...read more

Day Sixty-Four - Its all about the Family...

Patrick Sandys — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 21:20:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Its Saturday morning (technically afternoon) and I needed to write an entry now before the weekend (Labor Day) really begins and I forget to write another for a couple extra days. The last couple days have really been fantastic and I have a couple great questions to answer that have been posted so there is plenty to talk about... lets begin. Thursday morning, like the last couple weeks of Tuesday/Thursday PT is squad PT. This morning it was my turn to create the workout, and seeing as my...read more

Day Sixty-One - Another Subject Bites the Dust

Patrick Sandys — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 05:50:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Well, "hump day" is nearly at its end and this morning marked the end of yet another subject, Fiscal/Contract Law, as well as the beginning of our last month in C'Ville. Its hard to imagine that it has only been two months since we arrived at Ft. Lee, it feels (at least to me) that is has been so much longer, and that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think my blogs have reflected just how much fun I am having, and I don't think that is going to change when our time here...read more

Day Fifty-Eight - Another Weekend Not So Off (?)

Patrick Sandys — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 02:47:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Its Sunday, and normally I wouldn't write another blog posting when there is so little "Army Activity" to cover, but there were two really great questions posted on my last entry, so I figured I'd take a moment, get caught up on the chronology and answer those questions while they're fresh. So... Friday is always a good day, for the obvious reason that you know you're going to get to sleep in the next two days and hopefully recover. However, morning PT is always...read more

Day Fifty-Five - Minor Surgeries, Aches and Pains (par for the course)

Patrick Sandys — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 05:30:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
All right, some interesting stuff to get through and update everyone on. If you couldn't guess from the heading, this week is grinding along, and seeing as we're now about to finish the 6th week of our training (?), I think it is fair to say that just about everyone is really feeling the constant use of our muscles in PT and our brains in trying to absorb the fire hose of information. Monday was right back to PT and Advocacy week. This morning was our next installation in ruck...read more

Day Fifty-One - Advocacy Week Continued + a Great Weekend

Patrick Sandys — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 03:11:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Well... I am sorry that it has taken me so long to write again. This site has been having some technical difficulties, and they apparently continue. I have actually already written this entry, but when I tried to post it, the entire entry was erased and now I'm starting all over again. So, if it appears that I am cutting some corners in the re-telling of past events, please understand that it is because I'm frustrated. If you are interested in learning more about something I gloss...read more

Day Forty-Six - Advocacy Week and Setting SLRP Straight

Patrick Sandys — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 04:28:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Ok, so there's been a lot of traffic about the Student Loan Repayment Program in the comment section, and some of the information is correct and some of it isn't. Like always, I appreciate the commentary but in this case people are putting out confusing answers that are slightly contradictory and it would appear that I'll need to clean it up. But first, lets get the experiential portion of the blog out of the way and I'll dedicate the second half to SLRP issues (rest assured...read more

Day Forty-Three - Feeling the Pain

Patrick Sandys — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 21:32:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
I can hardly move this morning after a super long run yesterday and then a second workout, P90X style with my Battle Buddy LT Boggs, so what better thing is there to do then sit down and write a blog entry? I left on Tuesday evening, thus I'll begin with Wednesday morning. This was our second official ruck march with our lovely ALICE packs. You had to have a minimum of 20lbs in the pack, but you could add more if you wanted to. The march was only 2-miles long, but when you have a...read more

Day Thirty-Nine - Sample PT Test And Duty Stations

Patrick Sandys — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 00:30:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
In good Army style, I'm going to place the Bottom Line (of this blog) Up Front. Known by the acronym BLUF, everyone joining the JAG Corps should get used to this style. So, this blog entry will do two things; (1) provide an update about how I just crushed a sample PT Test; AND (2) Discuss Duty Stations. First, today at TAPT we did a "sample PT test" in which we had one minute to do as many push-ups and sit-ups and be critiqued by the 1SG or Chief. I made both my minimums...read more

Day Thirty-Six - A Great End to a Good Week

Patrick Sandys — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 07:35:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
All right, it would appear that it is that time again. I hope the relative infrequency of my blogging isn't frustrating anyone? Please rest assured that I am confident you would be MORE frustrated if I were to write every day and spend more time recounting the specifics of the days lessons, versus this more generalized, 30,000 foot view of my experience. Regardless, the last couple days have been very interesting and a fantastic way to end a good week, particularly after last week's...read more

Day Thirty-two - Life Continues as Outlined

Patrick Sandys — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 06:27:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
All right, so this is the longest delay in writing, and its for good reasons, namely I don't have a lot to report. I'll start off by answering one of the questions from my last entry, that is the slightly sarcastic (and appropriately so) questions regarding just how much "studying" we do over the weekend. The answer is A TON (wink wink)... In all seriousness, "studying" is really not an absolute necessity once you reach Charlottesville, at least not studying in the...read more

Day Twenty-Eight - Out Early

Patrick Sandys — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 21:30:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Sorry for the delay everyone, but its been a busy and very tiring couple of days, and quite frankly I just haven't had the energy. However, due to the poor weather in the Northeast, our professor for the second half of the afternoon was unable to make it back to C'Ville in time for his lecture, so we got the rest of the afternoon off. As most of my entries, before I begin with the chronology, I want to thank everyone who posted supportive "comments" onto my last blog. I...read more

Day Twenty-Five - Being Brutally Honest

Patrick Sandys — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 06:56:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
I decided that I would write for a second day in a row for two basic purposes; First, to talk about a subject I know more then just a couple people will be interested to read about (because I wish I had known more about it before I arrived at Ft. Lee) and two, to essentially vent. I know I don't get particularly personal in my blogs, with the exception of my feelings of pride, excitement, nervousness, etc... But today's blog will be less about the experience in general, and more about...read more

Day Twenty-Four - First Day with Run Groups

Patrick Sandys — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 03:08:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
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...read more

Day Twenty-Two - The Recovery

Patrick Sandys — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 19:09:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
I have to start this entry out with an apology, an apology for failing to update my blog in a timely manner after 0-Day, but I don't think my mind was in the right place at any time yesterday to even attempt to describe the experience. However, before I get into specifics, I need to keep the chronology going, so that necessitates that I begin with the events of Friday. Friday was actually a day off from scholastic classes, and one where we focused on elements of our new job that...read more

Day Nineteen - The APFT

Patrick Sandys — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 01:57:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
So, I'm sure everyone is dying to know whether I "crushed" the APFT as predicted? Well, the answer is a resounding NO, and I am not proud of my performance, with one minor exception I will get to in a minute. The morning began a little earlier this morning, instead of reporting for PT at 0550, those of us testing reported at 0520. We were met by Chief and 1SG who were our only official counters for the event. We were then broken into two smaller groups for the purposes of...read more

Day Eighteen - Death By Creative Power Point?

Patrick Sandys — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 01:48:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
As predicted, with the beginning of classes I am finding that there is not a whole lot to write about that a non-182nd JAOBC class member would find exciting. However, just because it isn't exciting doesn't mean some might not find it interesting, and since everyone in my class continues to "heckle" me about when I'm writing my next blog, I think I'll write one just to spite them (no actual spite expelled, that is saved for morning PT, and in particular my APFT...read more

Day Sixteen - Last Day of In-processing?

Patrick Sandys — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 05:11:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
As predicted, I have found that with the move to C'ville and the start of class there isn't nearly as much to write about, and thus I have missed a day. The last two days have been eventful in their own right, but at the same time, there is still not a whole lot to report. Starting with Sunday... It was another very hot day. Lt. Rosen and myself started with a brisk (but not "all out") two-mile run around our new track. We finished the workout with a pyramid of push-ups...read more

Day Fourteen - A Whole Day Off

Patrick Sandys — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 06:33:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Today was the entire classes first real, full, day off from anything even remotely military related. Thus, you would think that we all slept in, ate like pigs, and did everything opposite of what we've been doing for the past two weeks. However, you would be 100% wrong. For example, I woke up at 0600 this morning and couldn't fall back to sleep. After trying for about an hour, I decided to get up and get my day started. What was the first thing I did after brushing my teeth? If you...read more

Day Thirteen - C'Ville!!!

Patrick Sandys — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 02:23:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
We have arrived in Charlottesville, the regimental home of the JAG Corp, and I have to admit I'm pretty impressed. I have always heard that Charlottesville is a fantastic town, and I believe it certainly lives up to the hype. It doesn't hurt that one of the oldest and most venerated universities in the country also calls this town home. After the short hour and forty-five minute drive, my party bus compatriot, Lt. Santoro, and I drove up the hill to the JAG Legal Center. A very...read more

Day Twelve – Lessons Learned (Don’t abuse the CAC?)

Patrick Sandys — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 00:43:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Today was the last day at Ft. Lee for the 182nd Class, and seeing as we all got the administrative elements completed yesterday, the only thing left for us to do was a little PT in the morning, and an AAR or After Action Report. Today had a couple good one-liners I need to share, then there are a couple shout-outs that should be made, and finally, as promised, MY (emphasis on the first-person possessive) lessons learned. PT this morning was really rather easy, and for some of us, we were...read more

Day Eleven - We're Finally Official

Patrick Sandys — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 06:03:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Today was yet another day of administrative maneuvers, and like many of us, we were expecting another thrilling day of waiting around in long lines, with the potential of being told that we would have to return at a later date. However, our expectations were not to be met, instead, today went exceptionally well with smooth transitions from one element to another. This could have been a product of my luck in being placed in the first group to go to the Soldiers Support Services (SSS) where all...read more

Day Ten - Playing in the Dirt

Patrick Sandys — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 01:25:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
So... Today was RAD. It was essentially the third day of "soldier training" that we've had in the last four days. This morning there was no PT, just a slightly later report time of 0630. The schedule for us all was a "round robin" training session, in which the whole class was to familiarize itself with a variety of tasks. These tasks ranged from Military Intelligence, field medical treatment, Individual Movement Technique (which include the Army crawl, so down and...read more

Day Nine - Hurry up and Wait...

Patrick Sandys — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 23:52:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
I don't have a whole lot to report today. It was easily the most frustrating day so far, as the entire class attempted to get our medical/dental file completed. We arrived at the Medical Clinic at 0545 this morning, and were marched, single file through the various stations; immunizations, eye care, DNA and HIV testing, hearing, and finally dental. The most frustrating part was simply waiting in line. It really wasn't anyones fault at all, rather, we're in the only clinic that...read more

Day Eight - Pain in the Brass

Patrick Sandys — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 05:14:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
First, I have to give a shout out to my fellow 1LT Ramirez-Vazquez for the kind words concerning my blogging. I find writing this blog to be rather cathartic, and if people are finding it enjoyable, it is my pleasure. With that said, today was another LONG day of "soldier training." As always, we had the early wake-up and off to PT. This morning was pretty standard, nothing new or extravagant to report, just a good old ass kicking (can I write ass?). For those who want...read more

Day Seven - Got Gas?

Patrick Sandys — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 04:22:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Today was THE day. For anyone who has been preparing to attend this course and become a Judge Advocate, you have most certainly heard stories about your visit to the GAS CHAMBER. I am definitely one of these people, and instead of dreading the day, I have been looking forward to it. I mean, how many people actually get gassed voluntarily? I know its masochistic, but I was interested to experience the sensation. However, the day started out as normal. we had PT at 0550, and as always 1SG...read more

Day Six - Short Day

Patrick Sandys — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 01:54:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
I don't have a lot to report about today. I do have to use some discretion as the Cadre played a little joke on us today(which by the way, for anyone who doesn't know, "Cadre" refers to the three or more Soldiers that make up the leadership group in charge of my class. In our case, we have a Sergeant First Class, a First Sergeant, a Chief Warrant Officer, and our Commander a Captain.) It wasn't very funny, but it was a joke nevertheless. This morning I did a little...read more

Day Five - JAG Day...

Patrick Sandys — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 03:41:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Today was JAG day... At the beginning of classes you are handed a schedule, most of it is totally unintelligble, unless you've spent some prior time in the military. However, everything on the Calendar for today was quite obviously centered around, the practical operations of being a Judge Advocate. Even the PT was apparently set up to mimic or at least illustrate for us what our lives will be like. This morning, 1SG decided it would be a good idea to introduce us all to the Army...read more

Day Four - Pontification?

Patrick Sandys — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 05:54:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Hooah!!!! And I thought yesterday was a long day, it doesn't even stand a chance against today. Lets jump right in... As most days will from now on, we started with PT. Today, 1SG decided that after the obligatory stretches, that he would teach us a couple new exercises and the commands that accompany them, and with no further ado, get started on kickin our butts. 1SG had told us the day before that he was going to "step up" the training, but I'm not sure many people...read more

Day Three - Finance, Custom's and Courtesies

Patrick Sandys — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 05:35:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Today is by far the longest day thus far (of three days), and I would assume that there will be many like it in the coming months. It all started with the dreaded FIRST PT (physical training). We were ordered to report at 0545, which means everyone has to navigate from off-post to a certain location and be in formation at that time. However, that is harder then it sounds. If First Sergeant (1SG) wants us there at 0545, then our Class Leadership (student run) tells us to be there at 0530. That...read more

Day Two - I Swear By Water...

Patrick Sandys — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 01:56:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Day two is now complete. Still no PT to report on, instead we continued with the basics of being a member of the Army, a number of precautionary instructions, a lecture by a very impressive and interesting Lieutenant Colonel (LTC), who will also be a professor of ours at C'ville, and we were officially sworn in by the Brigadier General (BG) in charge of the JAG Legal School in C'ville. We began the day at a reasonable hour, by getting into formation outside of the lecture hall for...read more

First Day - Lessons and Expectations

Patrick Sandys — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 01:21:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Its official!!! My class and I have now signed our oaths, and we now belong to the United States Army. This also brings with it the honor of carrying the title of First Lieutenant, as well as all of the serious and awesome responsibilities that accompany our position. Beyond that, today's experience was simply an introduction to the Army and what we should expect in the next two weeks, five months, and to some extent the remainder of our service. The quote of the day has to be,...read more

Everything Set That Can Be...

Patrick Sandys — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 20:53:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
It is now July 1st, and the real countdown has begun. As I sit here writing this entry, I am simultaneously forming my beret to my head as I was instructed to do by a good friend of mine and a recently commissioned Second Lieutenant with the US Army National Guard. I spent the whole of yesterday traversing Southern California in a desperate search to acquire all of the apparel I was told I would need when I arrived at Ft. Lee, with minimal success. Apparently, there is a shortage of Short...read more

Orders in Hand, Counting Down the Days

Patrick Sandys — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 20:54:00 GMT

By: Patrick Sandys
Hello Everyone, It would appear that I am the last member of the 182nd JAOBC class to receive his orders. Regardless, I have them in my hand, and the reality that I have been waiting for is only 10 days away. I guess I should begin with an introduction... My name is Patrick Sandys, I'm from Laguna Beach, California. I was excited to read for the first time today that another member of my class has already starting writing on this blog (I hope more will participate), and that...read more