we love you, we’re pulling for you…but when that blast rips through your bunker and gives everyone serious TBI just so we can watch your cell phone vid on Insta….its not worth it.

i’ll have the veggie burger MRE with a side of CRAM

Title says it all. Meeting with my recruiter again in 12 days.

I lost the weight and waist circumference that I needed to. MEPS for medical is next (asvab, cyber, and personality test done).

Any and all opinions welcome.

Edit: Graduated college in May. Putting in a packet isn't on the table rn.

7 years in the guard. Been fun. Did what was asked and got what I needed. Celebrating with a bit of my favorite whiskey.

A review was also posted to Hots and Cots, which /u/Rbevans will sure have feelings about. Rob has been working with congressional members on an amendment that would have health ratings on post be accessible online, like any other restaurant off post.

This is another example of why. My understanding is that breakfast was served this morning.

Not great

When I was in, the DFACS and barracks were never going to get top Yelp reviews. Menus sucked and options limited, they were a bit worn down, the occasional plumbing problem, broken laundry machines, idiot privates treating the place like crap, etc. But they were livable. Like below average apartments and cafeterias. Still, livable.

But I've been following this for a bit now, and to see the photos and posts from Hots&Cots and others on social media, it blows my mind. The mold, the flooding and sewage, the rats and maggots, no DFAC open for miles, Fyrefestival grade food.

Things in the Army are never gonna be luxury, but this is just fucking awful. In my day those conditions would have gotten people relieved of command.

How did it get so bad?

***Edit*** Ah, so contractors electrocuting soldiers in the desert with shower trailers was just the start of them taking over and making everything worse.

I want to tell everyone in this group, if you’re down bad, reach out. My career path was paramedic, combat medic, paramedic, nurse, and now farmer. But I’ve talked to a lot of Joe’s during and after my service. All you have to do is reach out. I’ll post my number straight out on this page if anyone wants it. You call me and I’ll be there for each and every damn one of you.

Just wanna hear some stories

Anyone you know that had some crazy success post-ETS? Bonus points if it wasn't expected. I'd love to hear stories of some SPC that became a CEO or something.

National Guard O here. For three years the Guard fucked up not only my FedRec but also the backpay for it. Three years of no action and no help.

On 7/16 my Congressional rep contacted the Guard. I logged into IPPSA this morning (7/22) to see that not only am I getting backpay, but that the Army owes me $367.53 more than I expected. Three business days was all it took for finance to do their goddamn job. How is that when I'm the one asking y'all have no clue how much money you owe me, but the moment a swinging political dick comes your way you're perfectly capable of doing basic arithmetic?

Fuck you finance. I hope you all get separated from the Army and can't hold a job because you're so incompetent. I hope you try to go to school and can't afford it because you have no idea how to do the GI Bill paperwork you worthless twits. I have no idea why you insist on fucking up soldier's pay.

I'll take a extra fucking large frosty with four shots of Jameson and a Quadruple Baconator with a side of Pepto Bismol.

Fuck you finance.

I'm sure you're just like me. Brimming with good stories from ranger school and surrounded by peers that can't stand to hear another one. So go ahead, regale me with your tales.

So there I was, deep in the shit in the Darby recycle barracks. Day 3 of random details had left us bored and unenthused. Even with 3 meals a day we still felt like we were starving from the three weeks prior, and wouldn't you know it, they kept our lunch MREs in the janitors closet INSIDE our barracks.

We were one locked door away from a caloric surplus. So I and a friend did what any of you would do: got every paperclip and old credit card we could source and tried to jimmy the lock. We drew a small crowd of hungry recycles, desperate to see us succeed. It took 20 minutes of finesse but we actually got the door open. Before us was easily 100 boxes of MREs. It was perfect. We could crack a few boxes and bury the trash among the pile, it wouldn't be discovered for at least a month and they'd have no proof it was us.

Until our barracks manager shows up, the only one of us to have done 2 Darby's and was waiting for his third shot. He flips out, convinced we'd get caught, and threatens to tattle if we don't shut the door immediately. Defeated by the enemy within, we shut the door.

Side story- We would also steal ice cream from the DFAC on our way out every day. When presented with the problem of disposing of the evidence, someone had the excellent idea of smashing a hole in the drywall, where we all stuffed our ice cream sandwich wrappers, and just taped over it. Somehow, nobody ever noticed that the ice cream freezer went from full to empty in 72 hours.

So we re-insert into our second Darby, or in our friend's case, his third, and things are going much better for me this time. We get into our second FTX and our friend is doing not good. He gets his second look, an actions-on PSG look, and he is drowning. In the midst of hitting our objective, with casualties piling, he turns to me (his RTO), and just says "I'm done." Walks to the road, takes his helmet off, and sits down. Quits on the spot.

So not only did he prevent us from having a few extra meals during our recycle period, he went through all the trouble of 3 Darby's just to quit at the 11th hour. I don't remember your name, but if you're reading this, I hope you got bullied when you got home without a tab

I know FEED was discussed in a recent article, but I thought this took a broader look at the state of the dining facilities on Stewart

They closed their main and most convenient dining facility in April 2025 in preparation for campus style dining.

I believe this is the first time they are publicly acknowledging that there has been a delay for campus style dining and that Stewart will not see it until sometime in 2027

The initial contract said that all of these would be online after four months. So far only 2 of 5 materialized.

I’m sure like both bases I’ve been at, you guys all have anonymous Facebook pages on your base too. However, ours has gotten pretty bad over the last 6 months. Someone was outed as gay, people have had their pictures posted about sleeping with a bunch of people in the field (one I know for a fact wasn’t true because she was in my section and she was at ALC at the time this “supposedly happened”. We’ve had people post about higher leadership getting people pregnant (no one in the unit ever turned out to be pregnant). Then just making fun of people (posting pictures of Soldiers and their spouses criticizing their looks or bodies. It’s just sad that we’re supposed to care about mental health and be there for each other but when no one is looking, so many Soldiers just think it’s funny to hurt people.

Just a small vent, because it’s just so crappy the way we treat each other when you can be anonymous. To add, I’m not in my local group because I think it’s horrible, but we get screenshots posted in our group chat all of the time. What prompted this post was someone posting a picture of my Soldier’s wife talking about how ugly she is. I genuinely wish you couldn’t post anonymously. Then everyone once in awhile someone will post about suicide and the same people who come on and laugh at people try to act like heroes like “oh please reach out I’m happy to be there” or “how can I help”. Just performative BS in my opinion.

ANYWAY- just curious what yalls thoughts are on these groups

Recently finished my correspondence hours and compiled a list for my squad. Felt like sharing it here to help others that might want a neat checklist to go off of.

Obviously, I know. I gotta embrace the suck. But how do you all deal with details on the weekend man?? I feel so upset and stressed that the only time I have to unwind is going to be wasted by standing on a road all day doing road guard for an event. What makes it worse is that I had plans for that weekend and now they’re ruined. I feel so stressed just knowing I’m going back to my barracks on a Saturday and Sunday only to sleep and then back to work. But I’m a soldier 24/7 so I can’t complain and should embrace the suck even if it leaves me feeling mentally drained.

Need to vent for a minute because I don’t really have anyone in my life right now who’d understand what I’m talking about. Before anyone gets the wrong idea, I don’t miss getting shot at. I don’t miss the heat, the shitty food, or wondering if something was about to kick off. What I miss is everything else. Back then everyday has a purpose. You woke up knowing exactly where you needed to be and what needed to get done. The people around you would’ve dragged your dumb ass home if they had to and even when everyone was bitching, you were all bitching together.

Now it’s been about 10 months since I’m back in civilian life, and I feel more stressed that I ever did over there. My wife, our two kids, and I have been living with her parents ever since I got out of service because we could no longer afford the rent in our previous apartment. Things got so tense between my wife and I had to move outand since then I have been staying around cheap motels when I can afford them, sleeping in my truck when I cannot. I’ve been picking extra shifts just to keep my head above water, and even then it still feels like I’m one bad moth away from being screwed. I’m technically homeless noe and it’s still weird to even write out that sentence. I’m employed, I do not do drugs. I did not gamble it all away.

I sometimes think that I’d rather be back in Afghanistan and then immediately feel like an asshole for even thinking about it. I’m not missing the war. It’s the mission and the feeling like what I did everyday meant something. I don’t know… maybe my brain just never adjusted after getting out. Or maybe civilian life really is this damn hard now.

How did you pick yourself up? How long did it take until you had your life figured out? Sorry for dumping all this here. I just figured if anyone would understand it’d be you guys.

Edit: Forgot to mention that I stayed in for a few years after my deployment to Afghanistan before I finally got out. When I think back on my time in, that’s always the first thing my mind goes to.

Those who have attended sapper school, what are some things yall recommend being proficient at before leaving. Like what should my 5 mile time be, demo shit, etc. My LT trynna send me and I think a sapper tab as a PFC would be sick.

So I spent 3 years at West Point (including 1 year at prep school), got kicked out and decided to enlist. I don’t have to pay anything back. But when I went to MEPS to sign my contract as a 35F I was told I won’t have to go to Basic. My orders say I go straight to AIT and start 2 weeks after arrival. I’m reaching out to see if anyone can help me understand this situation. My recruiter has done little to nothing since I signed and I’m just trying to figure out if they’re going to make me do basic once I get to AIT.

Thank you guys for all of responses. Also I’m not trying to seem like I’m complaining. My apologies if that’s the impression you received. I’m simply trying to have a better understanding of what I should expect. I appreciate everyone that took time out of their day to help me out.

Hey everyone,

I’m 27 years old and I’ve been working toward becoming an Army officer through OCS.

Last year I was focused on getting into the best shape possible. I lost body fat, gained muscle, and got my 4-mile run down to about 29 minutes. Unfortunately, while playing soccer, I suffered a broken ankle that required surgery. I currently have a plate, screws, and a TightRope fixation.

My orthopedic surgeon told me that once the fracture is completely healed, he recommends removing all of the hardware. His reasoning is that applying without any retained hardware may reduce the chances of needing a medical waiver.

For those of you who have gone through the medical process or have experience with waivers:
Would you remove all the hardware first and then apply?
Or would you apply with the hardware still in place and go through the waiver process?

I’m also trying to figure out which OCS path usually has the fastest selection timeline.

From your experience, which one generally gives applicants a decision sooner?

Active Duty OCS
Army National Guard OCS
Army Reserve OCS

I’m mainly looking for whichever route gets an answer the quickest. I know I’m only 27, but I’d rather not lose a year or more if I can avoid it.
I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who’s been through a similar situation. Thanks in advance!

I was AD back in the late 80s. "Back in the Nam" was a common smart ass line -- a gentle poke at some of the [then] old guys who were a little too quick to share their opinions. Not to their faces, of course. There were lots of NCOs and officers who HAD been in the Nam, and we respected them. I'm wondering if the term survived. And if not what is the current equiv (?)