I am too. I have been yelling it for the last few weeks.

Just out of curiosity, when was the Ethos written? I assumed it went back a long time, like the Creed, but perhaps not as far I thought.

Thanks for the welcome! I started reading this blog back in the summer when I decided to enlist and would be more than happy to contribute if you would like a very fresh and new to the organization perspective. I'm sure in the next few months I will have a lot to say about my new job, life, and Coastie family.

Like I said above, I am on leave before reporting to my first unit on Thursday morning. I will be a deck force Seaman on the CGC Aspen based out of San Francisco. Many of my boot camp letters are already posted at http://souzaqueen.livejournal.com/and, time willing, I will try to get more stories of life at Cape May up soon.

Always ready,
Carla

Chief Hawkins, yes, policy has changed. The recruits now stay at TRACEN for all the holidays. A new company will not be flown in and formed the week of Christmas, but those currently there will remain and continue training as normal. On Christmas Day, most of the recruits will be allowed off-base through a Red-Cross organized program called Operation Fireside. Residents of Cape May and the surrounding area volunteer to "adopt" recruits for the day, taking them into their homes for 12 hours and giving them a cozy and relaxed family experience for the holiday. I was in training over Thanksgiving and had a wonderful day. Its not good as seeing your own family, but certainly better on morale than a work detail and recruits are not taken away from training long enough for their military bearing to slip.

Personally, I am envious of Victor company. They get to take a field trip off base to one of the most important and meaningful places in our nation to have the honor of representing the Coast Guard in a huge occasion. We only hold this ceremony once every four years and those recruits can say forever that they were there and a part of it. It won't even be that bad for them to stay in training for another week. Its not like they are repeating the beginning hellish weeks. The last week is the most fun and they get to have two. I just graduated on Friday (yes, three days ago) and if you had asked me if I wanted to stay for another 7 days for an opportunity like the inaugural march, I would have said "hell, yes" in a second.

Congrats to Victor. I know they will make us proud.