#78 - Red STX continues

It is Saturday morning, and I am writing this in the dark. It is cold and raining. We have mostly packed up our gear and are waiting in our hooches for further instructions.

I continue to argue with White over just about everything. Sometimes I just give up and do things her way because I'm tired of arguing. Earlier she was rolling up her sleeping bag outside the tent in the rain, and then complaining because it was wet. She then walked off to go and talk with someone else in the platoon, and left her bag sitting in the rain. Such events make me scratch my head and wonder.

We were supposed to do rifle PT this morning, but there is the possibility that it may be cancelled due to the weather. The Drill Sergeants always say, "If it ain't raining, we ain't training" though sometimes it isn't true. I won't be too disappointed if it is cancelled, as rifle PT is about as much fun as it sounds like.

We had guard duty in rotating shifts last night in the dark, walking around the perimeter of our little encampment. We weren't allowed to use flashlights. At first it is difficult to see in the dark, but after awhile you begin to develop a bit of night vision. The males are on one side, and the females on another (our guarding was restricted to the side of our gender only, lest we see something in someone else's hooch that we shouldn't). My battle buddy didn't understand what we were supposed to be doing on guard duty, and insisted that she roam about in the middle of the encampment. She spent much of the time walking around the Drill Sergeant's tent at the control point, while I stayed guard on the outside of the perimeter like we were instructed to.

My sinuses were cleared up by the visit to the gas chamber, but the cold is back again. Everyone here is sick. I have been coughing ever since I got to Reception on January 17th. I would not be surprised if it continued for the duration of basic training.