In the past few weeks Paul has been receiving more information about his future in the Marine Corps and where/what we will be doing. As of two weeks ago, we didn't know where we would be living after May 13.
Paul is officially an 0302 - a Ground Intelligence Officer! This was his first choice and we were thrilled that he received it. Out of 300 other TBS students and MOS (Military Occupation Specialty) slots, there were only 9 Ground Intelligence positions. His exact job for the next four years isn't set in stone yet. There is a possibility he could be a sniper platoon commander, reconnaissance platoon commander, or an infantry platoon commander. There are some other options in there as well, but he won't receive his official billet until probably December. I can sum it up as his job is Jason Bourne + James Bond (minus the women) + the guy off of Shooter. :)
Here is what our forecasted schedule entails as far as we can see:
May 13 - TBS graduation
After six months of school, which is equivalent to a Masters degree program, he is finally done! Well, at least with this section!
May 14 - 23 LEAVE!!! :D
We are spending time with family in DC and then going on a vacation to PA and NY.
May 24 - June 27 Pre-Infantry Officer Course (IOC)
There is a rumor that they will be in 29 Palms, CA for this entire time for pre-training. This is one of those things not set in stone yet. We are just planning on him being there for that.
June 28 - Sept ? Infantry Officer Course (IOC)
Training 1/3 of the time in class so he will be able to come home in the evenings. The rest of the time will be spent in the field. He will also be in 29 Palms, CA for about three weeks. This is kind of a mystery school because they don't want anyone selling information to Korea - you know us...
Oct ? - Feb ? 2011 Ground Intelligence Officer Course (GIOC)
This is in Damneck, VA which is really close to Virginia Beach. We are supposed to find out where our Duty Station will be and Paul's billet 2/3 of the way through this school. So Paul and I have been joking that this Christmas all we want is to know where we will be living! :D
Paul found out that this is a top secret school to the point that you cannot take any materials out of the building with you! And we thought Infantry School was mysterious...
This course is unaccompanied and Paul will be living in the Bachelor Officer Quarters (BOQ). I guess he has the room to himself and it has a kitchenette so we got told by some instructors last night at a informative meeting that he can have "guests" in there. No one checks how long the guests stay so technically I could be there the entire time if I wanted to. One problem, they don't allow dogs! We are still mulling over what we are going to do...
Feb ? - ? Sniper Platoon Commanders School
This is back in Quantico for just a few weeks. A short one! :D
??? After this we have no idea as he could go to Jump School, Dive School, SEARS School, Language School...they are all schools that Ground Intel Officers go to but are entirely dependent on their MOS.
So recap:
*Paul goes to a lot of schools
*I don't know where I am living after August
*Paul is pretty much awesome!
*We are praying and seeking God's will for our future
