A Transfer's Insight: Linda's Blog

I had such a great taste of some genuine Salsa, dancing that is, this past weekend. I have been to this dance club before, but I was not as shy this last time, which made my time very enjoyable and fulfilling. Spending a month in Colombia, South America a couple years ago, I never dreamed I would Salsa again anytime soon in the U.S., but through some friends, I have discovered such a unique and lively place to dance!

In Columbia, SC, there are many bars and typical dance clubs, but that isn't really my ideal social scene. This Salsa club, called "Salsa Cabana" is very authentic with many regulars from all over Latin America. It would be a shame to go and feel too embarrassed to dance being that there are many skillful dancers. I was shy at first, but it truly is a very relaxed atmosphere with people there just to have a good time and let loose.

It is a great place to meet new people, and I have really had great practice with speaking Spanish there, being that most of the dancers are Hispanic. Although it is not a place I have been to many times, I definitely prefer it to a typical bar or club. I don't go out very much, but I enjoy the cultural experience I am guaranteed to get at Salsa Cabana. And it is just so flattering, sometimes, because this is a place where the guys are not shy to ask you to dance and are patient to us not-so-skillful Salsa dancers.

I feel much better about telling my mother that I went Salsa-dancing the night before rather than doing keg-stands and passing out, which is the case for very many students. So although it may take a little effort in exploring Columbia for different social experiences, it is definitely worth-while and makes the weekends a lot more interesting and enjoyable. For me, it's all about NOT doing the same thing every weekend and exploring beyond the usual bounds. There is so much to see and do here, and that is typically not the first impression of Columbia! Trust me on this.

Posted by Linda at 11:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm sorry!! I am back from being a hermit. I have been extremely busy with exams and Army stuff. I gave my Army presentation on Monday, which I stayed up really late preparing. Yesterday, I had my FINAL APFT (Army Physical Fitness Test). I did so much better than I thought I did.

I woke up at 4:45 a.m. yesterday morning and biked down to the track. We were allowed to stretch out on our own, and then waited in line for the first event, the push-ups. Before each event, the cadets are read the rules about correct form, etc. and are given demonstrations, which can get kind of old because we take these tests every single month. The only thing different about this particular one is that it goes on record. Only two PT tests throughout the year go on record, the last ones taken at the end of each semester. The other tests in between the final ones are only diagnostic, but are conducted in the same way.

I was slightly disappointed with my push-ups. I didn't really improve from the beginning of the year, and actually decreased my score from last year's final APFT. We are given 2 minutes to do as many push-ups as we can, and I did most of mine in the first 30 seconds. It is not required that we take up the full 2 minutes given. I did 45 push-ups, down from 52 last year.

The sit-ups. Hands interlocked behind the head, and must go all the way up and down. We are also given 2 minutes for this event. With a little misunderstanding from the timer and my grader, I started off a little late and missed a few seconds, but I tried my best to make up for lost time, although I again went down from last year. I was able to pull off 80 sit-ups, down from 86 sit-ups last year.

And for my favorite event (NOT), the 2-mile run. 2 miles isn't so bad, but when running as fast as you possibly can, it takes everything out of you; every last bit of energy. This is the event I am always most fearful of. And I absolutely hate running 8 laps around the track; it is so tedious. But an advantage is that I am better able to judge my time when running laps. I always pick a good female runner from the battalion who runs in the same ability group as I do. I keep her at a distance and use her as my pacer. That method really helped me out yesterday, especially when it came to the last stretch, the final sprint. I was able to pull off a time of 15:20 for the 2 mile run, only 3 seconds slower from last year.

I know I should have significantly improved in all of the events instead of going down, but I was still able to max out. Here is a little run-down on how the APFT is graded. Just to pass (ages 17 to 21), the required scores are: Push-ups: Male - 42, Female - 19. Sit-ups: Male - 53, Female - 53. 2-mile run: Male - 15:54, Female - 18:54.

Now to max on the APFT, which adds up to a perfect score of 100 points in each event (300 points overall), the scores are: Push-ups: Male - 71, Female - 42. Sit-ups: Male - 78, Female - 78. 2-mile run: Male - 13:00, Female - 15:36.

So, my goal is to usually try and max on the PT test, but I only have twice this year. And luckily, one of those times was the final test, which I really needed since I'm going to Airborne School this summer, which I'll talk about later on.

Enough about this; it's just making me tired!! I'll be back later to tell you more about my life. Just 1 full week of school remains!! I am so excited.

Keep praying for Virginia Tech. God bless.

Posted by Linda at 12:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by Linda at 11:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by Linda at 10:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It is a habit for me to turn my cell phone to silence each time I enter a class room. Well, today I thought my phone died on me, so I didn't bother to turn it off. During my English class, however, it decided to ring. But luckily we were doing group work, so it wasn't a big distraction.

My professor happened to be helping my group as it was ringing, and since he is a goofball, he wanted to answer my phone for me. He asked, "Is it your mom?", but no, it was my BOSS! I had a job interview at a nursing home over spring break to work over the summer, and here my boss is calling me to ask about my hours of availability. So here's my professor telling my boss that I am unavailable, and she probably thought that it was just some random guy answering my phone, which it was.

He took a message, and handed me back my phone. So after class, my boss called back, and I told her that she was speaking to my professor earlier. She definitely got a kick out of it and laughed for a few moments. So that was my funny for the day.

My professor reminded me that at the beginning of the semester he told us that if our phones rang during class, he was going to answer for us. So I guess he kept his word! He was disappointed that it wasn't one of my parents because he wanted to embarrass me, but he kept his decency since it was my boss.

But my job is still safe, and I am in no trouble in my English class. It just shows you how funny some college professors are, and there is no reason to flip out over a cell phone ringing, although it can be distracting a lot of the time, especially during exams! NEVER forget to silence your phone during exams; that is so disturbing!

With the exception of a few humorous professors, a lot of them won't hesitate to shoot you a dirty look if your cell phone rings during a lecture. Oh boy, you don't want to be one of those people! It is never fun to get a mean look from a professor; I did last semester. It was the first day of class, and I still wasn't familiar with the campus. I was late for my first Nursing class, and the auditorium was full of students. I walked in about 10 minutes late, and the professor just stopped and stared at me like I just committed a crime. One of the students I sat next to then told me that I walked in right as she was lecturing on being late and absent to class and how it was "unacceptable". So by making an example, she told me that she wanted to see me after class, and she just gave me her speech all over again. I was never late for that class again.

So, be prepared for a wide variety of professors when you get to college. Some are fun, and some are serious. But most that I have had were passionate about what they were teaching. It is really fun to examine all the different professors you will encounter throughout college. The first day is always the best; you will definitely get interesting first-impressions.

Anyway, I'm off to Myrtle Beach for the weekend with my roommate although it is so COLD! I hope everyone has a happy and enjoyable Easter!

Posted by Linda at 01:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yes, spending this past weekend in the field basically learning about and experiencing what it would be like in battle situations was excellent training, but boy did drain me! So much was included in 3 days, and only about 4 hours was given Friday through Sunday for sleep. It was so hard, yet I feel like I gained so much.

The first night was so cold that it was impossible to sleep because I had no sleeping bag, and I was trying so hard to keep my body warm. After training all day Saturday, no rest was given to us as we continued all throughout the night marching through the woods, and it was so hard to see! When it hit about 5 a.m., I was actually falling asleep while walking with my rifle and about 40 lbs of equipment on my back.  One of the soldiers in my squad actually fell right over after falling asleep on a march.

The cadre tried to make it as realistic as possible. During the night, I could hear mortars and random artillery fire going off in the distance. It was also nice that they gave us blank rounds to fire with our rifles, which took about 4 hours to clean when we finished on Sunday. Cleaning weapons is definitely my least favorite part about training.

I don't ever remember being as dirty as I was this weekend, not being able to take a shower and wearing the same clothes for three days. When I got back to my dorm, I actually took two showers in a row. And then the next thing I did was go out to eat; I was starving. Although we get MRE's (meals ready to eat), no set time is given for meals; just eat when there's a few minutes of down time. Then I went to bed at about 6:30 and slept until 7:30 a.m. the next day, the longest nap I have ever had.

My highlight of the weekend was probably getting to fly in a Black Hawk helicopter. That was very exciting for me because everything is so fast-paced. We had to run with all our equipment to the helicopter, and it was difficult with all the sand and dirt flying all around. Then we dropped our rucksacks and rushed on to the "bird". After the flight, we were to unstrap our belts as fast as possible and hit the ground on our stomachs and wait for the chopper to take off. It was quite exhilarating. I'll post pictures when I get them developed.

Although I will most likely not engage in any type of combat as a future Army Nurse, field training is still essential for anyone in the Army. I am very thankful for everyone in the Gamecock Army Battalion for putting so much time and effort into making this such a great and rewarding training experience

Posted by Linda at 09:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)