June 23
Today was a busy day. I was made platoon guide which basically means the drill sergeants tell me what they want done and I have to get the platoon to do it. I also have to march the platoon around and all that crap. On top of it all I still feel kind of sick and I think I strained my quads running yesterday. So like I said a long day.
I just got your letter and birthday card. The card was perfect and the picture is beautiful. Tomorrow is the warrior tower which is rappelling and Saturday is a PT test and combatives so it's going to be a busy couple of days. The days are definitely going by faster now that we are doing so much more. The drill sergeants haven't really eased up on us but we are figuring them out a little more every day so we aren't always in trouble like it used to be. Every day we get a little better at working together. A crazy thing happened today. One of the females went to the hospital because she was having back problems. Before they gave her an x-ray they gave her a pregnancy test just in case. Turns out she is pregnant and didn't know. So now they are sending her home. She's pretty upset about the whole thing. Other than that things were business as usual. Let me know as soon as you know about graduation and what will happen with my other training after OCS. I hope we can drive to Georgia because I need as much time with you as possible.
June 24
I just got your letter with the smallest print ever. I wasn't sure I was going to be able to read it at first. It's always great to hear from you! First of all when you call the unit ask for Amanda Sager. Tell her who I am and she will be able to help you. I'm sorry my check is messed up but I'm sure you'll fix it. Today we had our PT test and it sucked so bad. They are so strict on form here! It'll be good for me in the long run. I'm going to finish this up so I can get it in the mail in the morning. I love you so much and thank you for all the letters and support, it really helps! Give my little angel a kiss for me and tell her I love her. I love you too and think about you all the time.
All my love,
Callen
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Sunday Email
Kellie,
I love Sunday! It's so good to come to church and hear from you. I try to write as often as possible but, it is getting more difficult with the extra responsability they gave me. I explained that ina letter but, don't know if you've got it yet. I hope Capt. Pittard is helping you. He is a good guy. things here are going well. The days are busier but, that helps them go by faster. We have been shooting in the simulator and going to combatives so some of it has bee fun. I hope I can call soon! I love you and Brooklyn so much and am so grateful for your support! All my LOVE!
I love Sunday! It's so good to come to church and hear from you. I try to write as often as possible but, it is getting more difficult with the extra responsability they gave me. I explained that ina letter but, don't know if you've got it yet. I hope Capt. Pittard is helping you. He is a good guy. things here are going well. The days are busier but, that helps them go by faster. We have been shooting in the simulator and going to combatives so some of it has bee fun. I hope I can call soon! I love you and Brooklyn so much and am so grateful for your support! All my LOVE!
Saturday, June 25, 2011
21 and 22nd June
June 21
Today was the gas chamber... I was pretty excited about it until it happened. They marched us out to the gas chamber and gave us a briefing on what would happen. They told us to put our gas masks on and then we stood outside in the heat waiting to go in. Let me just say that gas masks aren't very comfortable and they make you sweat a whole lot. When it was finally my turn they took us in in a group of about 12 people. At first it wasn't that bad, my hands and neck were just burning a little. But after a second they made us to some jumping jacks and after that it felt like my skin was on fire. After that we had to grab the shoulder of the person in front of us and take off our masks. I tried to hold my breath at first but they made us recite the soldier's creed and as soon as I took my first breath it felt like my lungs were on fire. My eyes were burning and I couldn't do anything but cough. Without exaggeration there was a period of about 10 seconds I seriously thought I was going to die. Immediately after that I thought about pushing the drill sergeant by the door and getting out of there. I don't think I've ever gone through something so miserable. Once they finally opened the door I felt like I couldn't get out fast enough. Once I felt the fresh air it was a little better but I still couldn't breath very well. I had snot all over my face and my eyes were bright red and watering. I'm sure I looked good. Looking back on it it was a cool experience but it sucked and I never want to do it again. It was the worst. After everyone got done they two volunteers from each group to go back in and see who could last the longest. The two from our platoon won with almost 5 minutes so we get some kind of reward. But we don't know what it is yet. Hopefully I get to call you!
June 22
Happy birthday to me! I got your mom's card today. She said everyone was headed to Disneyland and for the life of me I can't remember if you decided to go or not. Either way I hope you're safe and happy. I'm so happy your cancer is gone! I know it was painful but I'm glad we got it taken care of. I'm pray8ing that the other places will be ok, too. It's a good thing you're tough. Ever since the gas chamber I've felt like I'm getting a cold. I hope it gets better soon. Today was a pretty mellow day until someone fell asleep during one of our classes and we got smoked hard for about 30 minutes. It's annoying when we all suffer for one person but at the same time there's no sense in getting mad about it because we all mess up. Oh by the way I did treat myself to an ice cream sandwich and the platoon sang happy birthday to me so it was kind of a party. Except we had to do pushups right after. I hope that makes you happy. Well babe, I need to get some sleep. I love you and miss you both tons!
Today was the gas chamber... I was pretty excited about it until it happened. They marched us out to the gas chamber and gave us a briefing on what would happen. They told us to put our gas masks on and then we stood outside in the heat waiting to go in. Let me just say that gas masks aren't very comfortable and they make you sweat a whole lot. When it was finally my turn they took us in in a group of about 12 people. At first it wasn't that bad, my hands and neck were just burning a little. But after a second they made us to some jumping jacks and after that it felt like my skin was on fire. After that we had to grab the shoulder of the person in front of us and take off our masks. I tried to hold my breath at first but they made us recite the soldier's creed and as soon as I took my first breath it felt like my lungs were on fire. My eyes were burning and I couldn't do anything but cough. Without exaggeration there was a period of about 10 seconds I seriously thought I was going to die. Immediately after that I thought about pushing the drill sergeant by the door and getting out of there. I don't think I've ever gone through something so miserable. Once they finally opened the door I felt like I couldn't get out fast enough. Once I felt the fresh air it was a little better but I still couldn't breath very well. I had snot all over my face and my eyes were bright red and watering. I'm sure I looked good. Looking back on it it was a cool experience but it sucked and I never want to do it again. It was the worst. After everyone got done they two volunteers from each group to go back in and see who could last the longest. The two from our platoon won with almost 5 minutes so we get some kind of reward. But we don't know what it is yet. Hopefully I get to call you!
June 22
Happy birthday to me! I got your mom's card today. She said everyone was headed to Disneyland and for the life of me I can't remember if you decided to go or not. Either way I hope you're safe and happy. I'm so happy your cancer is gone! I know it was painful but I'm glad we got it taken care of. I'm pray8ing that the other places will be ok, too. It's a good thing you're tough. Ever since the gas chamber I've felt like I'm getting a cold. I hope it gets better soon. Today was a pretty mellow day until someone fell asleep during one of our classes and we got smoked hard for about 30 minutes. It's annoying when we all suffer for one person but at the same time there's no sense in getting mad about it because we all mess up. Oh by the way I did treat myself to an ice cream sandwich and the platoon sang happy birthday to me so it was kind of a party. Except we had to do pushups right after. I hope that makes you happy. Well babe, I need to get some sleep. I love you and miss you both tons!
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Monday June 20
Hey baby,
I feel kind of spoiled because I got to talk to you yesterday and I got your letters and and card today. I can't even explain how good it was to hear your voice and Brooklyn's too. We are all teary after our calls. I was worried you weren't going to answer but I've never been happier to hear your voice. The pictures were perfect! And I loved the card with your perfect voices! Thank you so much.
You said you wanted to know a little about what I do day to day. This morning we woke up at 4 am so we would be ready for morning PT by 4:30. We had to do our warm up drills and then we broke up into our run groups and went on a 2 mile run. I wasn't that bad but not all that great either. There were some pretty good size hills that made it tough. After the run we had time to shower and change then we had breakfast. I'm getting pretty good at eating a lot of food really fast. After breakfast we had the second half of our combat life saver class. It was pretty fun because we got to practice a lot of the stuff. We had to practice carrying people on different types of stretchers. It was so hot though while we were hauling people around. We also got to practice a bunch of stuff like sealing chest wounds and we got to put these hose things down each others' noses in order to secure the airway. It felt pretty weird going in but even worse coming out. That class took up most of the day but I think it was some of the most important stuff I've learning so far. When we got back to the barracks we got a little surprise. One of the guys left his wall locker unlocked so the drill sergeants threw all his stuff out on the floor. He also sprayed his shaving cream all over the floor and flipped all our beds. There was toilet paper everywhere. It was a mess. Then we got 30 minutes to clean it all up and when it wasn't done in time we got smoked hard. When I say "smoked" that means we had to do pushups and stuff like that. It was tons of fun! On top of it all, the drill sergeants found a letter one of the females left out of her locker and it talked about how the drill sergeant was an (a-word) and how she called her boyfriend instead of her dad on Father's Day. So not only is he mad about what she called him but also she didn't follow the rules about the phones so we probably won't get to use them again for awhile (I could kill her!) Sorry, but that's how it is. It sucks getting punished for other people's mistakes but that's just the way it is. The worst part is the drill sergeants aren't bad people at all. They are really smart and know their stuff. They just get mad because we can't follow simple instructions or don't show proper respect. They might not always be polite but they don't need to be. It's us that need to change in order to make life easier on us.
And now I'm laying in bed with a flashlight because I'm supposed to be asleep. I hope you are well and loving on Brooklyn right now. I love you both.
Callen
I feel kind of spoiled because I got to talk to you yesterday and I got your letters and and card today. I can't even explain how good it was to hear your voice and Brooklyn's too. We are all teary after our calls. I was worried you weren't going to answer but I've never been happier to hear your voice. The pictures were perfect! And I loved the card with your perfect voices! Thank you so much.
You said you wanted to know a little about what I do day to day. This morning we woke up at 4 am so we would be ready for morning PT by 4:30. We had to do our warm up drills and then we broke up into our run groups and went on a 2 mile run. I wasn't that bad but not all that great either. There were some pretty good size hills that made it tough. After the run we had time to shower and change then we had breakfast. I'm getting pretty good at eating a lot of food really fast. After breakfast we had the second half of our combat life saver class. It was pretty fun because we got to practice a lot of the stuff. We had to practice carrying people on different types of stretchers. It was so hot though while we were hauling people around. We also got to practice a bunch of stuff like sealing chest wounds and we got to put these hose things down each others' noses in order to secure the airway. It felt pretty weird going in but even worse coming out. That class took up most of the day but I think it was some of the most important stuff I've learning so far. When we got back to the barracks we got a little surprise. One of the guys left his wall locker unlocked so the drill sergeants threw all his stuff out on the floor. He also sprayed his shaving cream all over the floor and flipped all our beds. There was toilet paper everywhere. It was a mess. Then we got 30 minutes to clean it all up and when it wasn't done in time we got smoked hard. When I say "smoked" that means we had to do pushups and stuff like that. It was tons of fun! On top of it all, the drill sergeants found a letter one of the females left out of her locker and it talked about how the drill sergeant was an (a-word) and how she called her boyfriend instead of her dad on Father's Day. So not only is he mad about what she called him but also she didn't follow the rules about the phones so we probably won't get to use them again for awhile (I could kill her!) Sorry, but that's how it is. It sucks getting punished for other people's mistakes but that's just the way it is. The worst part is the drill sergeants aren't bad people at all. They are really smart and know their stuff. They just get mad because we can't follow simple instructions or don't show proper respect. They might not always be polite but they don't need to be. It's us that need to change in order to make life easier on us.
And now I'm laying in bed with a flashlight because I'm supposed to be asleep. I hope you are well and loving on Brooklyn right now. I love you both.
Callen
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
18 June 2011
It feels so good to know I'll have two drill sergeant free hours at church tomorrow. I don't know if I've ever been so exited for church! I got really excited today when they drill came in with a huge stack of letters, but my heart was broken... (I promise I've sent a letter every day since I got the address last Friday. He should have gotten three letters on Monday). I'm sure there's one in the mail though. The last few days here have been pretty good. We had our combat lifesaver class, which was pretty interesting. But it's so hard to stay awake when you've been up since 4. We had a really humbling experience yesterday. There was a soldier from here who was killed in combat and all the soldiers from the base and in the area lined both sides of the road from the airport to the post. It was pretty cool to stand there and see the respect everyone paid him and get to salute him. I wish he could have come home in different circumstances but I'm glad he received the respect he deserves.
I hope you are celebrating Father's Day tomorrow and I hope you call my dad for me. Even if it's late I know he would appreciate it. This coming Wednesday is the gas chamber and I'm actually kind of looking forward to it. I'm sure it's gonna suck at the time but I'll be able to say I've done it. We also have the warrior tower this week. That'll be cool just to watch all the people who are afraid of heights freak out. It's finally starting to get a little more fun now that we are actually doing stuff instead of boring classes.
Well babe, I hope you and Brooklyn are doing well. I miss you like crazy! Thank you for your support and prayers. I love you!
I hope you are celebrating Father's Day tomorrow and I hope you call my dad for me. Even if it's late I know he would appreciate it. This coming Wednesday is the gas chamber and I'm actually kind of looking forward to it. I'm sure it's gonna suck at the time but I'll be able to say I've done it. We also have the warrior tower this week. That'll be cool just to watch all the people who are afraid of heights freak out. It's finally starting to get a little more fun now that we are actually doing stuff instead of boring classes.
Well babe, I hope you and Brooklyn are doing well. I miss you like crazy! Thank you for your support and prayers. I love you!
Monday, June 20, 2011
16 June 2011
I can't wait to start getting your letters! Hint hint...
Anyway, today was a pretty good day. We did the warrior leadership course, which is pretty much a ropes course. It was fun to finally be working as a team and accomplishing something. It was so hot though! I drank a whole camel back in about 2 hours. I was also made a squad leader and I'm not sure if that's good or not. But at the same time I'll be the first to get in trouble when we mess something up. I'm catching on pretty quick to most of the stuff. But it's actually pretty simple as long as you listen and pay attention to detail. Unfortunately there are a lot of 17 year old kids who can't pay attention to anything and there isn't enough time to help them all.
It's almost lights out again but I hope I hear from you soon. Don't forget to answer all the calls on your phone just in case. I don't know when I'll be able to call but I can't wait to talk to you! I love you! Be safe and don't forget me. I hope you are both well. I love you both so much!
Anyway, today was a pretty good day. We did the warrior leadership course, which is pretty much a ropes course. It was fun to finally be working as a team and accomplishing something. It was so hot though! I drank a whole camel back in about 2 hours. I was also made a squad leader and I'm not sure if that's good or not. But at the same time I'll be the first to get in trouble when we mess something up. I'm catching on pretty quick to most of the stuff. But it's actually pretty simple as long as you listen and pay attention to detail. Unfortunately there are a lot of 17 year old kids who can't pay attention to anything and there isn't enough time to help them all.
It's almost lights out again but I hope I hear from you soon. Don't forget to answer all the calls on your phone just in case. I don't know when I'll be able to call but I can't wait to talk to you! I love you! Be safe and don't forget me. I hope you are both well. I love you both so much!
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Sunday Email
It was such a relief to finally hear from you and to know that you and Brooklyn are doing well. I've been writing you a letter about every other day and I'll keep trying but sometimes it gets too busy. It seems like I can't come to church anymore without crying. But, I'm happy today because of your email. It is kind of cool to go from such a harsh environment with the Drill Sergeants to the peace of Sacrament meeting. I'm glad you have such a good attitude about your new calling. I'm sure it will bless you. Just remember that I love you and think of you always. Don't let Brooklyn forget me! I love you both. By the way, Enjoy your tunafish sandwich and thanks for making me such a happy husband and father.
Please send responses to emails to this e-mail address (flw_branch@hotmail.com). PUT YOUR SOLDIER'S FULL NAME IN THE SUBJECT LINE!!! (NO NICKNAMES PLEASE) When you respond please keep messageses to ONE PAGE. Do not send any attachments such as pictures, newspaper articles, etc., we do not have the ability to print large emails. Keep all emails G rated, if there is any profanity your emails will not be delivered. ALL EMAILS MUST BE RECEIVED BY 12 NOON CENTRAL STANDARD TIME ON SATURDAY!!! These e-mails are typed by the staff at the Branch and responses are delivered to the soldier on Sunday mornings before services.
Please send responses to emails to this e-mail address (flw_branch@hotmail.com). PUT YOUR SOLDIER'S FULL NAME IN THE SUBJECT LINE!!! (NO NICKNAMES PLEASE) When you respond please keep messageses to ONE PAGE. Do not send any attachments such as pictures, newspaper articles, etc., we do not have the ability to print large emails. Keep all emails G rated, if there is any profanity your emails will not be delivered. ALL EMAILS MUST BE RECEIVED BY 12 NOON CENTRAL STANDARD TIME ON SATURDAY!!! These e-mails are typed by the staff at the Branch and responses are delivered to the soldier on Sunday mornings before services.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Fort Leonard Wood Branch Letter
I was so glad when I got to church to see that the people cared enough to let us write home. I'm glad that I'm here and I'm already learning a lot. But I miss you and Brooklyn so much. I hope you are giving Brooklyn all the kisses I would if I were there and telling her how much I love her. Also, if you could please call my mom and dad and let them know that I love them and I'm safe. We have some good guys in our platoon and some that need help, but so far it's been good. The drill sergeants have already singled out all of the OCS (Officer Candidates) so I'm sure it's going to be fun.
Make sure when you write me to put the address exactly how I did (as I explained below), including 2nd Platoon on the back and only use white envelopes.
This letter came from Callen's new military Branch. Included was a letter from the Branch President. I'll highlight a few things:
Dear Family and Friends:
This letter is to let you know that your Soldier has arrived at Fort Leonard Wood safely and has attended a church service with us, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He or she is doing fine. While attending basic training your Soldier is given an opportunity to attend church services as long as your Soldier can find a Battle Buddy to come with them. Our church services are from 1000 - 1200 each Sunday in the Leiber Heights Chapel on Indiana Avenue on Fort Leonard Wood. If you are in the area and would like to worship with your Soldier, all are welcome. Enclosed you will find a letter and picture of your Soldier. Enjoy.
When a new recruit arrives on Fort Leonard Wood, it takes several days to a week before they receive their assignment to the Basic Training unit. Once they have received their assignment, they will be given that unit's mailing address where you may write your Soldier. Letters from home are great moral boosters. However, you should be aware that the mail is sometimes very slow until all the units are settled and training begins. As a service to your Soldier, we provide an e-mail service so that they may communicate with you on a weekly basis. We do ask that they keep the emails "G" rated. They may send that email to multiple addresses. Please respond to your Soldier's email no later than 1200 CST on Saturday afternoon. This allows us time to download all the emails, sort them according to names, and have them ready by Sunday morning for your Soldier. Generally, we send out about 125-150 emails a week and expect about that many in return. This email service is only for those Soldiers who attend the Branch's Sunday services. You may send your email to flw_branch@hotmail.com and please ensure that your Soldier's name is in the Subject line of the email.
We ask that you DO NOT send attachments such as articles and photos as we do not have the capacity to print them. We will happily print the email but CANNOT print attachments. Thank you for your cooperation.
The Fort Leonard Wood webpage, www.wood.army.mil, has information about the training your Soldier is involved in and the graduation date of his or her unit. We encourage you to take advantage of this resource. The training link, located below the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence (MSCoE) logo, will take you to information about basic training.
As a note of information, each Soldier writes out their email and members of the Branch type them in for them. This is a free service that the Branch provides for your Soldier.
We look forward to hearing from you. May the Lord bless you and your Soldier!
Sincerely,
President Jim Bogle
The Fort Leonard Wood MIlitary Branch
Callen's birthday is this Wednesday, so although it's too late to send an email that would get to him in time, you could mail him a letter on Monday and it should get to him in time!
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Two Letters in One Day!
6 June 2011
Hey babe! I don't have too much time and the mail is going out in the morning. Yesterday was our first day out of reception and our first day with our training drill sergeants. It was quite an experience! They loaded us on busses and as soon as the doors opened all hell broke loose! Looking from the outside I'm sure it was pretty funny to watch but at the time it was nothing but confusion and disorientation. I was only about 5 feet off the bus and the guy right in front of me fell down and I had to jump over him. I know that doesn't sound impressive, but considering I had my full duffle bag over my head and drill sergeants in both ears, I think it was pretty impressive. They worked us pretty hard for an hour or two and then they dumped our bags to inventory everything. Honestly the whole experience can't really be explained. After the inventory it when I got to call you.
It's almost lights out so I need to go. I love you so much and miss you! I love and miss Brooklyn too so make sure you love and kiss her for me! Pray for me!
I love you!
PS I've never heard so much cursing in such a short time! EVER!!!
There was also a letter included from First Lieutenant Mycal Brown, the Company Commander of Comanche Company, 2nd Battalion of the 417th Infantry Regimen (try saying that 5 times fast). Callen's graduation is scheduled for August 18th at 9:00 am. He will be given an on-post pass on Weds the 17th from 1:00-8:00 pm and then on Thurs from 10:30 am-8:00 pm he'll get an Off-post pass. Brooklyn and I are definitely planning on going. We would welcome anyone that would want to come along! It says that if anyone is going anywhere else after they will ship out first thing Friday morning, so I'm assuming that means he'll go to OCS that morning, but I'll let you know if anything changes on that.
13 June 2011
Hey baby! I hope you got the email I wrote you on Sunday (I didn't). I was pretty emotional the whole time because I had so much time to just sit and think about you and Brooklyn. I did get a blessing and it was really cool because I felt like the guys giving it knew what I was going through so they were really supportive. Anyway, I wanted to tell you about some of the funny stuff that has happened so far. Our first night here the drill sergeants turned the thermostat down to 50 degrees just to mess with us. It was so cold! The worst was when I had to get up for my turn for fire watch and walk around the barracks in really short shorts and a t-shirt because the pt uniform is the fire guard uniform. It was horrible. Then the next day a different drill sergeant was in our barracks so we asked him if we could adjust the thermostat and explained how cold it was the night before. He about died laughing he thought it was so funny. At the time it sucked, but it is pretty funny looking back on it. Most of the time so far has been spent doing pretty easy stuff, but it has to be done perfectly so we have to do most things several times. The frustrating part of everything is having to teach and reteach the people who don't pay attention to detail. Yesterday we were outside in formation and the drill sergeant came out and said he made out beds for us. I immediately knew our beds had been flipped. Sure enough everything was all messed up, and it turns out it was because one person messed their pillow case. If you thought I was anal about stuff being organized and clean before it'll be way worse when I get back. The drill sergeants are so good at making fun of people and making them feel stupid. The most amazing thing is how they manage not to lose their voices. For some reason it just hit me that I've only been here a little more than a week but it feels so much longer. The days are so long and at times kind of boring. I'm sure that will change though once we get some of the basic stuff down and move on to other things. I guess you have to crawl before you walk and run. They are literally having to teach us how to do everything the army way. From the way to eat, the way to make a bed, down to the way to hang up your clothes. There's the right way, the wrong way, and the army way. Anyway, I feel like I don't know anything that is going on in the outside world except that the Mavericks won the title. I'm really looking forward to hearing from you and anyone else for that matter so please put the address and instructions on the blog. Well babe I have to get to bed. 4 am comes pretty fast. Remember I love you and Brooklyn. Be sure to give her a kiss from me and take one for yourself too. Please be careful and pray for me.
I love you!
The instructions he referenced came from the same letter from his Lieutenant:
Mail from you is always a morale booster for your Soldier; however, please do not send edible items, tobacco, alcohol, or pictures that contain nudity. If you wish to send an item and have questions about its acceptability please contact us first. Your Soldier will open all packages under a Drill Sergeant's supervision and any unauthorized items will be surrendered at that time. All surrendered items are placed in storage and is returned when your Soldier leaves the unit.
Your Soldier's mailing address is:
FRONT OF ENVELOPE
SPC Bagley, Russell
CM Company, 2/417th Infantry Battalion, 2nd Platoon
495 Iowa Avenue, 3rd CHEM BDE
Fort Leonard Wood, MIssouri 65473
BACK OF ENVELOPE
2nd Platoon
Please write him as often as you can!
Hey babe! I don't have too much time and the mail is going out in the morning. Yesterday was our first day out of reception and our first day with our training drill sergeants. It was quite an experience! They loaded us on busses and as soon as the doors opened all hell broke loose! Looking from the outside I'm sure it was pretty funny to watch but at the time it was nothing but confusion and disorientation. I was only about 5 feet off the bus and the guy right in front of me fell down and I had to jump over him. I know that doesn't sound impressive, but considering I had my full duffle bag over my head and drill sergeants in both ears, I think it was pretty impressive. They worked us pretty hard for an hour or two and then they dumped our bags to inventory everything. Honestly the whole experience can't really be explained. After the inventory it when I got to call you.
It's almost lights out so I need to go. I love you so much and miss you! I love and miss Brooklyn too so make sure you love and kiss her for me! Pray for me!
I love you!
PS I've never heard so much cursing in such a short time! EVER!!!
There was also a letter included from First Lieutenant Mycal Brown, the Company Commander of Comanche Company, 2nd Battalion of the 417th Infantry Regimen (try saying that 5 times fast). Callen's graduation is scheduled for August 18th at 9:00 am. He will be given an on-post pass on Weds the 17th from 1:00-8:00 pm and then on Thurs from 10:30 am-8:00 pm he'll get an Off-post pass. Brooklyn and I are definitely planning on going. We would welcome anyone that would want to come along! It says that if anyone is going anywhere else after they will ship out first thing Friday morning, so I'm assuming that means he'll go to OCS that morning, but I'll let you know if anything changes on that.
13 June 2011
Hey baby! I hope you got the email I wrote you on Sunday (I didn't). I was pretty emotional the whole time because I had so much time to just sit and think about you and Brooklyn. I did get a blessing and it was really cool because I felt like the guys giving it knew what I was going through so they were really supportive. Anyway, I wanted to tell you about some of the funny stuff that has happened so far. Our first night here the drill sergeants turned the thermostat down to 50 degrees just to mess with us. It was so cold! The worst was when I had to get up for my turn for fire watch and walk around the barracks in really short shorts and a t-shirt because the pt uniform is the fire guard uniform. It was horrible. Then the next day a different drill sergeant was in our barracks so we asked him if we could adjust the thermostat and explained how cold it was the night before. He about died laughing he thought it was so funny. At the time it sucked, but it is pretty funny looking back on it. Most of the time so far has been spent doing pretty easy stuff, but it has to be done perfectly so we have to do most things several times. The frustrating part of everything is having to teach and reteach the people who don't pay attention to detail. Yesterday we were outside in formation and the drill sergeant came out and said he made out beds for us. I immediately knew our beds had been flipped. Sure enough everything was all messed up, and it turns out it was because one person messed their pillow case. If you thought I was anal about stuff being organized and clean before it'll be way worse when I get back. The drill sergeants are so good at making fun of people and making them feel stupid. The most amazing thing is how they manage not to lose their voices. For some reason it just hit me that I've only been here a little more than a week but it feels so much longer. The days are so long and at times kind of boring. I'm sure that will change though once we get some of the basic stuff down and move on to other things. I guess you have to crawl before you walk and run. They are literally having to teach us how to do everything the army way. From the way to eat, the way to make a bed, down to the way to hang up your clothes. There's the right way, the wrong way, and the army way. Anyway, I feel like I don't know anything that is going on in the outside world except that the Mavericks won the title. I'm really looking forward to hearing from you and anyone else for that matter so please put the address and instructions on the blog. Well babe I have to get to bed. 4 am comes pretty fast. Remember I love you and Brooklyn. Be sure to give her a kiss from me and take one for yourself too. Please be careful and pray for me.
I love you!
The instructions he referenced came from the same letter from his Lieutenant:
Mail from you is always a morale booster for your Soldier; however, please do not send edible items, tobacco, alcohol, or pictures that contain nudity. If you wish to send an item and have questions about its acceptability please contact us first. Your Soldier will open all packages under a Drill Sergeant's supervision and any unauthorized items will be surrendered at that time. All surrendered items are placed in storage and is returned when your Soldier leaves the unit.
Your Soldier's mailing address is:
FRONT OF ENVELOPE
SPC Bagley, Russell
CM Company, 2/417th Infantry Battalion, 2nd Platoon
495 Iowa Avenue, 3rd CHEM BDE
Fort Leonard Wood, MIssouri 65473
BACK OF ENVELOPE
2nd Platoon
Please write him as often as you can!
Monday, June 13, 2011
June 7th and 8th
June 7
It's only 7 pm here but it feels much later and it feels like it has been a lot longer since we said goodbye. So far things have gone well and surprisingly things aren't that much different than I imagined. I knew this first week was going to be a lot of hurry up and wait and I knew the days would be long, but everything so far has been more extreme than I thought. I never would have imagined how much time it would take to do seemingly simple things and I couldn't have guessed at how lost I would feel. I'm not a big fan of not being in the loop on things but I'm learning pretty fast to just do exactly what I'm told and not worrying about the rest.
So far I've met a few other guys who are going to OCS after. They all seem like pretty good guys so far. I think it'll be kind of good to get to know some of these guys here so we can help each other more when it gets really rough at OCS. It might be kind of bad to say but after talking to a couple of these guys I feel a lot more confidence in the running and stuff I did to prepare.
So far there really isn't too much to say though unless you want to hear about standing in lines. By the way, 4:30 am comes early when you don't get to bed until 2:00 am.
June 8
Some of these people are so loud! It is starting to drive me crazy! Maybe I'll start wearing the earplugs they gave me.... I was actually thinking about how much this reminds me of the MTC sometimes.
So I just heard that one of the guys in another company had his baby die back home and it made me sick to my stomach. I think having something like that happen back home is everyone's worst nightmare, I know it's mine. Tomorrow is supposed to be our last full day at reception and then it'll be the real thing with the mean drill sergeants. I'm excited to get out of here and get to work. But I'm pretty nervous as well. Well, it's almost lights out but I love you and I'm thinking about you and Brooklyn too.
(He didn't sign it... guess he ran out of time. :) )
It's only 7 pm here but it feels much later and it feels like it has been a lot longer since we said goodbye. So far things have gone well and surprisingly things aren't that much different than I imagined. I knew this first week was going to be a lot of hurry up and wait and I knew the days would be long, but everything so far has been more extreme than I thought. I never would have imagined how much time it would take to do seemingly simple things and I couldn't have guessed at how lost I would feel. I'm not a big fan of not being in the loop on things but I'm learning pretty fast to just do exactly what I'm told and not worrying about the rest.
So far I've met a few other guys who are going to OCS after. They all seem like pretty good guys so far. I think it'll be kind of good to get to know some of these guys here so we can help each other more when it gets really rough at OCS. It might be kind of bad to say but after talking to a couple of these guys I feel a lot more confidence in the running and stuff I did to prepare.
So far there really isn't too much to say though unless you want to hear about standing in lines. By the way, 4:30 am comes early when you don't get to bed until 2:00 am.
June 8
Some of these people are so loud! It is starting to drive me crazy! Maybe I'll start wearing the earplugs they gave me.... I was actually thinking about how much this reminds me of the MTC sometimes.
So I just heard that one of the guys in another company had his baby die back home and it made me sick to my stomach. I think having something like that happen back home is everyone's worst nightmare, I know it's mine. Tomorrow is supposed to be our last full day at reception and then it'll be the real thing with the mean drill sergeants. I'm excited to get out of here and get to work. But I'm pretty nervous as well. Well, it's almost lights out but I love you and I'm thinking about you and Brooklyn too.
(He didn't sign it... guess he ran out of time. :) )
Friday, June 10, 2011
Postcard and Second Phone Call
Callen called again this afternoon to let us know he made it to Fort Leonard Wood. It wasn't so scripted, but just as brief. As he was going to hang up, I heard a drill sergeant yelling at "_____ Bagley". I didn't understand the word they called him, probably Recruit Bagley or something.
I also got a postcard today from him. Also a form letter that was sent to everyone, but here it is:
Dear Kellie,
I have arrived safely at Fort Leonard Wood, MIssouri. I am undergoing my initial processing at 43d AG Bn (RCPT) prior to being assigned to a unit for training. I will only be 4 or 5 days, and then I will ship to a training company. Do not write me at the address on this card or to the 43d AG Bn (RCPT). I will send you my mailing address within the next week when I am assigned to a training company. Also, I will inform you as to the date that I am graduating. For more information on my stay at For Leonard Wood, go to www.wood.army.mil/grad.
If I should be needed at home because of serious illness or death of a member of our immediate family.... (you don't need that part.)
Callen Bagley
I also got a postcard today from him. Also a form letter that was sent to everyone, but here it is:
Dear Kellie,
I have arrived safely at Fort Leonard Wood, MIssouri. I am undergoing my initial processing at 43d AG Bn (RCPT) prior to being assigned to a unit for training. I will only be 4 or 5 days, and then I will ship to a training company. Do not write me at the address on this card or to the 43d AG Bn (RCPT). I will send you my mailing address within the next week when I am assigned to a training company. Also, I will inform you as to the date that I am graduating. For more information on my stay at For Leonard Wood, go to www.wood.army.mil/grad.
If I should be needed at home because of serious illness or death of a member of our immediate family.... (you don't need that part.)
Callen Bagley
First Phone Call
Callen called this morning around 6:30 am to let me know he's leaving reception and heading to Boot Camp this week. He said it has been pretty much a redo of all the stuff he did at MEPS (which I'm not exactly sure what that is, other than things like physicals and a psych evaluation). He got his shots, one he said was as thick as peanut butter and hurt like heck. Nothing physical yet, Callen iHe said they have been yelled at in lines, some guys are just running their mouths and they shouldn't be. Callen knew what to expect and how to handle it, so I think he's managed to fly under the radar so far. And according to any experienced guy, your number one goal in basic is to not get noticed. So so far he seems to be okay. He sent his first letter today, so hopefully by Monday or Tuesday I'll have more to report! Keep him in your prayers!
Monday, June 6, 2011
Day 1
Callen made it. As I was warned, I got a 6 second phone call that I am pretty sure he read off a card:
ME: Hi honey!
Callen: I made it to Ft. Lennerwood. I am safe. I will call you when I can. I love you.
Dial tone.
It has begun!
ME: Hi honey!
Callen: I made it to Ft. Lennerwood. I am safe. I will call you when I can. I love you.
Dial tone.
It has begun!
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Here We Go
Callen leaves on Monday. And I figured the easiest way to spread Callen's letters would be to post them on this blog. So anyone interested in hearing how Callen is doing can just check them blog! And I wanted him to see it so I decided to start it now. When I get his address, I'll post that so anyone/everyone can send him mail!
PS I'm trying to get him to pose in his uniform so I can take a picture, but he's refusing, so I guess if I can get him to do it, we'll be able to tell how much he loves me. (He won't know how to erase this, so now he HAS to pose for me!)
PS I'm trying to get him to pose in his uniform so I can take a picture, but he's refusing, so I guess if I can get him to do it, we'll be able to tell how much he loves me. (He won't know how to erase this, so now he HAS to pose for me!)
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