I got underway on the 47’ today! Myself and another nonrate got a chance to practice some drills and do some boat handling. It was awesome.

Alright guys. So I’m here at my new unit in Boston. Everything is pretty cool so far. I’m currently working on getting qualified for communications watchstander which is kind of difficult at first but simple once you get the concept. I have two weeks to get qualified and then I can move out of the barracks, live on the economy and get put in a duty rotation.

I kind of miss home but I guess I’ll feel better once I get a place of my own and settle in. I’ll fill you all in later once I get more free time or if something exciting happens.

I graduated from basic training today and it was amazing! The feeling of accomplishment was nothing like I’ve ever felt before and I’m the proudest I’ve ever been. My time spent at TraCen Cape May is definitely an experience I’ll never forget.

I’m currently back home on leave until the 24th, which is when I’ll be reporting to my new unit!

When I get the chance I will get into more detail about what took place, but for now I’ll keep it short. Feel free to message me if you have any questions about anything!

Just a quick update. I’m on off base liberty right now and will be graduating on Friday May 18th! See you all soon.

Well, almost. I’m on my way to my recruiter’s office right now. I’ll be staying overnight at a hotel near MEPS and then ship out early tomorrow morning!

See you all in 8 weeks!

I’m really excited but slightly nervous at the same time. I’ll mostly be spending these last two weeks with friends and family and just enjoying my time as a civilian.

I definitely haven’t been working out as much as I should be but I’d say I’m in moderately good shape. Hopefully I won’t be regretting being lazy when those CC’s are destroying me, haha.

Anyway, I probably won’t be posting anything further until I get back, so in the meantime if anyone has any questions about anything feel free to send them my way.

- Future Coastie

The Physical

The alarm on my phone woke me up at 3:50am. I slowly crawled out of my warm bed, got dressed, and went downstairs to return my card key to the man at the front desk. We exchanged hellos and he wished me luck at my physical. I walked back to the dining hall where we had dinner the previous night and was welcomed with the aroma of food. There were eggs, hash browns, sausages, pancakes, waffles, and yogurt. I didn’t have much of an appetite that early in the morning so I just grabbed a sausage, eggs, and a yogurt. I found an empty table and sat down. Across the room I spotted the group of guys from the previous night stuffing their faces as if they’d never seen food before. I laughed to myself and stared at my plate. Maybe water would be better instead.

Everyone went on two school buses and we were driven back to MEPS. We were split into separate lines for people getting full physicals, partial physicals, and those shipping out. We went through the metal detectors and then put our belongings into a room. The people at the Control Desk called us up by branch, confirmed our social security number and gave us a folder that we carried around for the remainder of the day.

• Paperwork

We were given a quick briefing and were told to look over a paper which informed us of the exams we’d be going through for the day. We also filled out a short questionnaire of our mental history.

• Blood Pressure

A few people had to redo this portion because their heart rate was too fast, so just calm down and relax and everything will be okay. ;)

• Hearing Test

Another guy and I were put into this tiny soundproof room where we were given headphones and a clicker and were instructed to press it anytime we heard a beep. I found this part of the test to be kind of difficult since we were in such close proximity to one another and it was hard to determine whether the beeps were coming from his headphones or mine. Nonetheless, it all went well.

• Eye Exam

The eye exam consisted of an Ishihara test for color-blindness, depth perception test, and your typical eye chart.

• More Paperwork/Breathalyzer

At this point we basically went over the same forms that were previously filled out during the pre-screening with my recruiter. We checked to make sure that everything was accurate and if anything changed we were instructed to correct it. The man called us up one by one to do the breathalyzer test which was pretty simple and then we were on to the next station.

• Urinalysis

Guys and girls were split here for obvious reasons. The bathroom where we did the urine test had two stalls with no doors. The nurse went into a room on the other side with a window to make sure we didn’t tamper with anything. My advice would be to drink a lot of water at breakfast. Some of the guys couldn’t go when the time came and had to wait around.

As far as I know, we were tested for pregnancy, STD’s, and drugs.

• Blood Work

About three of us went into a room and the doctor drew blood from each of us. Plain and simple.

• One on One Physical
  

This part wasn’t as bad as you might imagine. You’ll go into a room with the doctor and get a quick interview where they’ll ask you about your mental history and if you’ve ever smoked any illegal substances. After that begins the examination. They’ll perform a quick breast exam, and then take a quick glance at your genitals and rear for any abnormalities. They’ll also take a look inside your ears and throat and check for flat feet.

• Underwear Olympics/Duck Walk
  

After everyone finished their one on one with the doctor we remained in our bras and underwear and lined up in two rows of five. We all performed a series of movements while the doctor walked around and made sure that all of our joints were properly functioning.

• Fingerprinting

One of the civilian workers there did my fingerprints on this electronic machine which I thought was pretty cool and then sent me over to the Coast Guard liaison.

• Liaison

Super nice lady. I handed her the folder with all my information in it, she looked it over, and said I was good to go.

After I saw the liaison I went to the little cafeteria area and sat with a couple people I met that day. MEPS will provide lunch for you which will most likely consist of a sandwich, fruit, cookie, and a canned beverage. While I was eating I received an email from my recruiter on my phone. He told me that I had scored well on the ASVAB and he included a link to the e-QIP which is an extremely lengthy background check.

And that was it! There was a lot of waiting throughout the day but I was out of there by 2pm. Get to know some of the people who will hopefully be serving with you in the future and the time will go by before you know it.