I can not say that I am experienced with the typical 9-5 job. Wake up, get ready for work, head to the office, sit in a cublicle, lunch, cubicle time, then leave work around 5. I am not going to say my life is better than a typical 9-5 job, but it is very different. I come from a family that works for Boeing. I talk to my sister and she usually talks about her day which involves her work. She loves her job, but then she will talk about the fact that she has to take sick time if she has to take her car to the shop or if she has any other appointment. On top of that, she has only two weeks of sick leave she can use. I ask her with questions like, "what if your dog got sick" or "what if you really had the flu?" All those days are taken from her two weeks of allowed sick days . When I have a docor's appointment or if there is something wrong with my car or dog I get to take care of it. I don't have sick days. I also do not always have weekends, or mornings, or evenings of my own. Sometimes I am expected to be at work at 5 in the morning with the same intense motivation as if it were 12 in the afternoon.
I have spent the last two weeks in Fort Gordon which is in Augusta, Georgia. I spent my days in a classroom with my peers to learn about equipment that we may have seen or not before. A lot of the training is transferable to the civilian world. We were trained on satellite communication, networks, Cisco Call Manager, and software that supports managing Information Technology networks. The great thing about the military is that the Army is supportive in sending their soldiers to schools. Some schools are focused on jumping out of airplanes, first aid, how to set up a network, or how to be a stronger planner. The Army sends us to schools, sometimes near home or far away. I love Army training because I get to meet so many different people that I usually run into throughout my career.
Last weekend the Army purchased a plane ticket for me to go back to my hometown for two days. I grew up in Seattle, Washington. The purpose of this trip was to film me with my family to advertise my normal upbringing and show the world what the military offers and the benefits I have received. Traditionally, an Army Reservist works one weekend a month and two weeks within the year. Events that took place after 9/11 have made it easy for Reservists to work on Active Duty orders called Mobilizations. I have been Mobilized since 2005. Everyday I go to work in my Army uniform and I get the same benefits as a traditional Active Duty soldier. The difference is I get to choose where I live and where I want to work, but my job isn't 100% secure.
I am not writing this article to try to recruit anyone into the military. I love the fact that I am part of an all volunteer service. The Army is definatly not for everyone. I love getting trained on the latest technology. I love getting paid to jump out of airplanes. I enjoy being paid to keep myself in shape. I also love that even though I am far away from my family the military gives me the opportunity to go back home. I don't have a 9-5 job. I am proud to say that I have a life of an American soldier.
This article appears in May 13-19, 2009.