Embrace the Suck!

The unofficial motto of NIACT is 'embrace the suck' and up until this point there hadn't really been much suck.  Sure, I'm sleeping in barracks and have noisy snorers on either side of my that make it hard to sleep, and there have been boring powerpoint presentations that make it hard to stay awake but those things aren't too bad.  And there's been good things.  I've met a good group of guys that will be with me for the next year,  the food isn't too bad and I'm probably eating healthier, and I've been issued some cool gear like a Leatherman and a Camelbak.  We've also been issue an M-4 rifle and M-9 pistol!

Unfortunately, we were also issued our 'battle rattle'- a 50lb vest with ballistic plating, a helmet, elbow and knee pads, and gloves.  Today was the first day to wear that gear and oh my god is it heavy.

If you get it set up right, you don't carry all of the weight on your shoulders but everyone is slamming "vitamin M" and the end of the day for a sore back and shoulders.

We've been lucky with unseasonably cool weather in South Carolina and I can only hope that it lasts the next two weeks because it would be miserable in hot weather.  The next two weeks we'll probably never be comfortable, so we just make it as comfortable as possible and embrace the suck that remains.