Now
that we have lived here almost two weeks, and I have a full work week (+2 days)
under my belt, I thought I'd write about a few things that I have learned since
moving here.
- I think that I will
always get butterflies every time I go onto base. I have always loved working
on base, and every time I arrive at the gate, I get a little wave of excitement…
I hope this feeling never goes away.
- It is absolutely
unheard of that, at the age of 26 and 23, Mitchell and I are not married yet.
Regardless of me never wearing a ring, and no matter how many time I remind
people that Mitchell is my boyfriend, he is still referred to as my husband pretty
much 100% of the time. Mostly because military families marry very young.
- Anyone who knows me
knows that I have been trying to get a job with the military for about 5 years
now. I was always turned down, even when I had interviews for jobs that I was
overqualified for. This is likely because preference is given to veterans,
military spouses, ect. The case is the same here – meaning I’m constantly
being asked if my “husband” (see last bullet ;) )is active duty, or if I used to be active
duty. Almost everyone I work with is associated with the military somehow and I
can’t begin to tell you how many strange looks I have gotten when people ask me
why I came here. I use that as a daily reminder of how lucky I am to have
gotten the job of my dreams.
- There are people here
from every single state. This means you can be in a room full of people and
hear about 5 different accents within a 5 minute conversation. It also means
that some people are very welcoming, while others are not. The first day I met
my boss, the first thing she asked me was what I knew about the military. I
explained that while I had never been active duty, that I was involved with
Camp Adventure, where I'd had the opportunity to live on several different
military bases and engage with a lot of active duty personnel. She laughed at
me and told me I knew nothing. I asked another co-worker a question about the
schedule, and after answering my question, she asked me if I had “any other pressing
questions?” I don’t think that these people were trying to be mean – they just
don’t sugar coat anything, and it has been quite an adjustment! Others aren’t
quite so harsh, thankfully!
- Having people from
every different state means that you have drivers from every different
state. Our 5th night here, we were in a drive through and someone literally
backed right up and hit us. While we were waiting for the police officer to
show up, we witnessed an accident at the intersection. I can about guarantee
that the car I drove here won't be the one that I'll be driving back home when
we decide to move back.
- When you are more tied
to the military, you find yourself a lot more attached to issues that face this
country. After only one week, I already find myself reading more news articles,
paying more attention to politics, and just paying more attention. Especially
when American Sniper is such a big movie right now.
- One of the managers
asked me what brought me here. When I explained that I've always wanted to work
with the military, he asked me why. The military is entirely a world of its own
- from the first time I set foot on base in Key West, I knew I loved it. When I
explained this to him, he told me that his son has a way of describing it. It's
kind of like college where you are parallel to the real world. Sometimes you
enter the real world, but all in all, you aren't really a part of it. It really
is hard to describe, and that statement might not make any sense, but it is so
true.
I still feel so lucky
for the opportunity to be here, in North Carolina, working a job that I have
always wanted. One that I wasn’t sure I’d ever get. Sometimes I have to pinch
myself to remind me it’s real :)
