Summer Life

I know it's been a while, but I don't really have that much going on. The only reason I'm posting is because I feel obligated to pronounce my continued existence. That and I've finally accumulated enough to write a small amount about halfway through the summer.

The main thing I'm doing in College Station is Physics. Electricity and Magnetism isn't that bad so far, but it does happen to be one of the most failed courses at A&M. I also prefer to do well in it, but even with that wish, there's really no Corps activities to speak of, and I'm only taking one class, so I keep finding stuff to do in my spare time. After an extended period of about a week trying to not be bored by playing video games with friends, I've discovered that the library has a respectable collection of Orson Scott Card books. Specifically, I've been reading the Ender's Game series. Unfortunately for me, they don't have all of them, so I'm going to have to find another place to read, but they do have 3/4 of the major storyline, as well as all of the minor storyline and a few unrelated books of the same universe. I've found that I can get through one 200-300 page book in about four or five hours, if I decide to string it out, or 3-4 if I'm in a hurry.

The Ender's Game book mostly deals with the early life of a boy, who, having been trained all of his life for war, kills what is thought to be an entire alien civilization, thinking that the final battle was merely a simulation. The rest of the series deals with the finding of another potentially deadly alien civilization and the various philisophical, familial, moral, and theological problems that it presents. Much of it (especially in the third book) revolves around what kind of alien life it is acceptable to destroy, and how to tell which is which. It's actually a quite entertaining discussion, and not terribly hard to follow most of the time. I expect that these books may become required reading if we ever decide to send a colony to a potentially livable planet. I know for a fact that the reading of the first book, dealing with Ender's development as a leader and strategist is strongly encouraged, if not required, among some of the military institutions in this country.

In addition to reading and physics, I've had the opportunity to help recruit for the Corps. It's mostly been small, behind the scenes jobs, but I've done a bit up front too. There is no possible way to describe how wierd it is to be introduced to someone who will probably be your fish next year. It's something like a combination of "who do you think you are, hot shot?" and "you have no idea what you're getting in to". Some of them have attitudes that can be annoying, until I realize that that's where I was a year ago, thinking almost exactly the same thoughts. I've also been talking to a lot of non-regs, and have found that there really is no way to comprehend what the Corps is without experiencing it.

On that note, I've noticed that the Corps has quite the public relations problem. It doesn't take a genius to notice that Corps enrollment isn't increasing the way the university is. It's not so much that everyone hates us, it's just that no one really understands us. Even when the Air Force paid to have a Chief Master Sergeant (an E-9, the highest pay grade for an enlisted person) from the Air Force Academy talk to us about leadership, it was clear he had no idea what makes us tick. And this guy's been lecturing to people like us for decades. I'm only beginning to see the start of what holds us all together myself. It's not just an internal thing to my outfit, I can meet pretty much anyone in the Corps and already know, based on my experiences, a certain amount of their prejdudices, priorities, preferences, and some of what they've gone through. Very few non-regs see past the march-ins every home game, the constant PT we're doing, the constant yelling on the Quad to see the things that make the Corps what it is. It's not so much the march-in, it's the pride in the Corps and the whole-hearted support for the university. It's not so much the PT, it's the learning from the mistakes, the bonding with your buddies, the unity within the outfit. It's not so much the yelling, it's the whip-out, the introduction between a fish and those who will train him, and the respect that must exist without which there could be no leadership.

On a lighter note, I'm having quite a bit of fun here. Between the physics, recruiting, and the library, it's hard to stay bored, despite the relative nonexistence of summer life in Aggieland. It really is amazing to walk around on a Saturday afternoon and see no one for ten minutes at a time. Additionally, with the reduced workload, I'm available to respond to comments and emails if you wish to send them, at least until fall comes around.