My last active duty day in the military was September 30th, 1998. That was the day I retired. Quickly approaching 10 years later, I still find myself reacting to various stimuli as if I was still in the military. I blame it on the constant repetitiveness of military customs, traditions and routines. Doing the same things, day in and day out for 20 years, can do that to a person regardless of whether it's military-related or not.
In the mornings, nearing 8 am, I catch myself looking at my watch. On military installations, flags are raised at 8 am. Getting caught outdoors at that time means standing at attention, facing the flag, and saluting (if in uniform). A person could get stuck in that position for several minutes, long enough for the right arm to start sagging from the weight. On some military installations, they play the national anthem, followed by the Marine Corps and Navy hymns. I used to make sure I was indoors at 8 am. I still seem to make sure I'm indoors at 8 am.
There were so many things that I endured that were tied to specific hours of the day. I'm always catching myself looking at my watch around those hours. I wonder how many more years it'll take for me to break myself of that habit? Or just getting rid of those mental cues? I'm not saying that EVERYTHING I've learned and that every habit I obtained from service in the military is bad. There are some things that I've gained that the average Joe Citizen will never understand or appreciate.
I joined the military under the delayed entry program (DEP) for the United States Marine Corps (USMC) on January 17th, 1978. I didn't actually start basic training, my first active duty day, until September 26th of the same year. Because I joined before our beloved Congress changed the rules around the beginning of fiscal year 1985, that DEP period counts as reserve service for me.
I didn't really retire in 1998. It's that horse of a different color you've heard so much about. I was released from active duty and I'm drawing a military pension, but I'm still in the Fleet Marine Corps Reserve (FMCR) and will remain there until I've completed 30 years of obligated service (active and reserve). My final discharge date will be either January 16th, 2008 or September 25th, 2008. I have no idea which one it will be. I'll scan and display the certificate on my blog when I receive it. Knowing the mail in the Philippines, I'll probably receive it three months after it's sent to me.
Other bloggers with military service:
DragonLady's World - An all-American southern geek's view of the world.
Ramblings from the Marginalized - It’s all in the luck of the dice.
Internet Marketing with Josh Spaulding - Making money through ethical marketing.
OpTempo - A Fast Paced Internet Magazine
Are We There Yet - (A former U.S. Air Force member)
Sarge Charlie - A place of learning of useful and useless information that is the sum total of my (his) life experience.
If you were ever in the United States military, or still are, send me a message. I'd love to link to your website on this page, if you have one. For those of you that I haven't linked to yet, I have CRS disease (can't remember shiitake) and I'll get to it as soon as I can remember to do so.
