Exploring My New Home
I’ve been getting used to the rhythm of life here at my station in Newport. I’d say I’m settling in, but I’m still living at the station while I wait for my housing stuff to go through, so there’s still some time before I truly settle in. I did get a chance to explore a bit over the holiday weekend, which I had the pleasure of doing with my husband, who came up to visit me. Our travels took us along Broadway, America’s Cup Ave., and Thames Street. The whole area is very beautiful. We found plenty of good restaurants to try, and so many ice cream parlors, bakeries, and other goodie shops that we’ll probably both gain some weight this summer from them all.
By far the best discoveries of the weekend were Cold Fusion Gelato on Thames Street and the Newport Segway dealer, who also sells Dahon bikes, my preferred kind.. Both Eric and I love gelato, and the handmade gelato at Cold Fusion is incredibly delicious. I foresee many trips there throughout the summer. As for the Segway dealer, aside from my desire to rent a Segway just so I can experience it once, the fact that the place is also a Dahon dealership makes me incredibly happy. My little fixed-gear Dahon Boardwalk got me around Somerville quite well. Sometime during my stay here in Newport I’ll have to get a slightly better one so that I can take it over some of the terrain in the state parks around here.
I was also able to get some of Eric’s paperwork taken care of while he was here. He’s now got his own I.D. card and is officially my dependent. He’s signed up for my health insurance plan, and our housing paperwork is submitted. Hopefully in a week or two I’ll be able to move us into our housing for the next couple years.
I think that both Eric and I will be improving our photography skills while we are here. Newport is a very photogenic area, and we both have been taking note of places that would make for beautiful photographs. Once I have a way to go out and explore more, I’ll start sharing them with all of you. I count myself extremely lucky to have been stationed here in Newport. I’m excited to get settled in and really get to know my new home.
Surviving USCG Basic Training: Required Knowledge
While I’m sure this isn’t the first thing most people would ask about related to basic training, it is a huge part of making your 8 week stay in Cape May a bit more bearable. Required knowledge is exactly what it sounds like: the things you absolutely MUST learn during basic. The sooner you know them the better. Company Commanders can start asking you required knowledge questions in the second week of training. If you don’t know the answers, you are only going to make things tougher on yourself because you will need to write performance trackers and get your share of Incentive Training (IT), neither of which are enjoyable.
Life After Basic
Well, it has been a little over a week since I graduated from Coast Guard Basic Training as part of Xray-184. While a post or series of posts describing that experience is on the way, it’s not quite ready yet. The week after basic was very busy and eventful. Despite getting plenty of sleep for the last couple nights, the events of this week have still managed to leave me completely exhausted.
It Begins
Well, by now I’ll be in Cape May getting yelled at by Company Commanders as we start our processing week at Basic Training. I got some stuffed pack for the move afterwards, and will finish packing during my 5 days of liberty. Eric will take care of the rest. Eric and I also got our marriage license before I left on Monday, and he will take care of setting up the day and getting us an officiant for our quick civil ceremony during liberty. I picked out my wedding band before leaving, and am looking very forward to marrying him when I get back.
For anyone who wants to keep up with what’s going on with my company, there is actually a website that posts weekly summaries of each camp going through basic training. I expect to be Company W184, but won’t know that for sure until I get there. I do know my graduation date is set for May 13, 2011, so use that to find my company. Posts happen at the end of each week, but you may not get the first update until the end of the 2nd week. The first week is really just about us getting settled, getting our gear, and making sure we are up to snuff medically. The real fun begins on the first full week: Week 2. If you’d like to follow my company’s progress, you can find us at the Training Center Cape May Blog.
This will be the last post I make at least until basic is over. I’ll save the large summary of basic until after I get to my first unit. But don’t worry, I’ll check in with you all when I’m finished so you know I survived!
Almost There
Final Preparations
This may well be the last real update I can give you all before I leave. I’ll try to leave a quick note on Monday before I head up to NYC. But here I am, in my last weekend at home before 8 weeks of basic training. It will be a busy weekend. Tomorrow I’ll be dropping off my car at my parents, who will keep it healthy and get it inspected while I am away. Outside of that, I need to do a little bit of laundry to get the last of the few clothes I need to bring clean, and a lot of packing.
