The New Thread About Nothing

[Saya]

Registration starts soon for the fall, and first year students get to register first. I need a language relevant to religious studies, and the one I want to do is Mandarin, but there's only one class, with 30 seats, and its open to first years. And all arts students need second language credits, so I feel like I might be screwed. I'm trying to decide whether, if I can't get in Mandarin, if I should take ancient Greek instead and suffer, or wait until they offer Mandarin or Hebrew again.

[Fruitbat]

Saya How much longer do you have in your degree? I'd register for it and another class, maybe go chat to the lecturer and see how many people drop out of the class in the first few weeks, maybe you can slip into a place.

If you have a few more bites at the Mandarin cherry, I'd hold off doing another languages course, until I had to absolutely choose a languages class. Hold out for Mandarin, then take another class if you absolutely have to.

[Saya]

Originally Posted by Fruitbat

Saya How much longer do you have in your degree? I'd register for it and another class, maybe go chat to the lecturer and see how many people drop out of the class in the first few weeks, maybe you can slip into a place.

If you have a few more bites at the Mandarin cherry, I'd hold off doing another languages course, until I had to absolutely choose a languages class. Hold out for Mandarin, then take another class if you absolutely have to.

I got probably two years left, maybe less. I'm reviewing the demands for the major program and it looks like I don't *have* to take another language (I already did Japanese) but if I go into grad school some schools want you to have a head start on a language. Which sucks, Mandarin and Japanese are the only non European language you can learn at my school and there's only like two semesters to Mandarin. And Mandarin is the only living language connected to Religious Studies, not a whole lot of people speaking biblical Hebrew or ancient Greek anymore.

BUT ideally I'd learn how to read the Bible in its original languages, which would be awesome for internet arguments!

There's also a Muslim student association here that offers free Arabic classes, but I'd have to do it in my spare time on top of my classes. I'll look into it I suppose.

[Fruitbat]

Arabic would be an interesting language to learn. Hope you get in Saya.

I need to find shoes to go with this dress, for a wedding, so the heels will have to be low... sigh I hate shopping.

http://www.jacquie.com.au/asp/wardro...Dresses#532193

[Geoluhread]

Originally Posted by Saya

There's also a Muslim student association here that offers free Arabic classes, but I'd have to do it in my spare time on top of my classes. I'll look into it I suppose.

I'll help you with it if you decide to take it

[Catch]

I don't ever plan on needing to speak any foreign languages. My only plan on traveling is to know swear words and what consists of insulting someone in order to avoid fights.

[Saya]

Originally Posted by Geoluhread

I'll help you with it if you decide to take it

There's a plus! I think I might eventually learn it anyway regardless, so I'll keep it in mind ^_^

HONEYTHORN LOOK LOOK LOOK

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPxDw...layer_embedded

[Fruitbat]

Have got biodynamic roast lamb and home made apricot pie on offer for tea tonight...

yummy..

Saya - that video is so cute... I'm a sucker for ducks.

[honeythorn]

Originally Posted by Saya

HONEYTHORN LOOK LOOK LOOK

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPxDw...layer_embedded

*Inhales* SQUUUEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *Dies*

[Grausamkeit]

Originally Posted by Saya

Registration starts soon for the fall, and first year students get to register first. I need a language relevant to religious studies, and the one I want to do is Mandarin, but there's only one class, with 30 seats, and its open to first years. And all arts students need second language credits, so I feel like I might be screwed. I'm trying to decide whether, if I can't get in Mandarin, if I should take ancient Greek instead and suffer, or wait until they offer Mandarin or Hebrew again.

Oranges never have anything interesting to say, dude. (If that is actually a racist insult somewhere, then I apologize profusely!)

That duckling is cute as hell. Where do you find that shit?


I don't know whether I like college or not, sometimes. It makes huge demands on my internet time and forces me to live in the real world.

What am I saying? Of course I love it!

[Solumina]

Jake is going to meps next Tuesday, this is becoming a real thing. I mean he still won't go anywhere for a while as he will be going dep but things are starting to happen, which is awesome but at the same time I'm kind of freaking out a little bit.

[Renatus]

Originally Posted by Solumina

Jake is going to meps next Tuesday, this is becoming a real thing. I mean he still won't go anywhere for a while as he will be going dep but things are starting to happen, which is awesome but at the same time I'm kind of freaking out a little bit.

Do you have any family in the military? I ask because the military is a big change not only for the solider but the soldier's family as well, so if you don't have any experience with being in anything close to a military family you should ask someone who does. As one who is very well experienced with military family life, I can provide bits of info from my personal experiences.

[Solumina]

I've only dealt with the VA, and even that was pretty much just when everything was going on with my dad, we didn't really take advantage of them when Erik and I were growing up (my parents figured our family was doing fine so why use up resources that could be better used helping others). I have some extended family who were in the military, an uncle and cousin who are both retired, and another cousin who is currently in Iraq, but we don't really talk about it much, I have been talking a bit with the wife of the cousin who is in (but he is an Army reservist so things are a bit different for him). Jake's dad is retired Navy, so he grew up surrounded by the military and sometimes he forgets that I didn't (mainly because when he met me I was dealing with all of the crap from the VA and it took him a while to understand that, even though I had learned all of the ins and outs of my particular situation, I really didn't know much about anything related to being in the military.

It seems kind of strange that the stuff I'm all anxious about isn't really about what he will be doing or the thought of him going off and getting shot at, I'm more anxious about benefits, leave time, deployment schedules, and stuff like that because Jake already knows it so the recruiter isn’t really making it a priority to explain. It isn’t like he isn’t willing to go over it with me, in fact today he went over the loan repayment program with me (something that Jake and I had been looking at as most of he debt is from student loans) and he went over how with our level of debt and what Jake will be doing (his first choice is CTI, judging by the practice tests he seems more than qualified, and his back up is nuke) it really didn’t make sense as the loan repayment program alters potential reenlistment bonuses (which I hadn't seen anywhere, I just knew that you had to pick that or the GI bill). I’m just the type of person that wants to know everything there is to know and I’m still getting tripped up on some of the acronyms and such, it just all makes me feel a out of place.

I’m also freaking out a bit as this is something he has been talking about for a long time but he didn’t really start to pursue it until recently and things are coming together a lot faster than either of us thought it would.

Sorry I kind of rambled a bit there.

[Grausamkeit]

Sol, I don't think the things you're worrying about are trivial. Your brain is probably diverting you from worrying about the other stuff with it. It's still stuff that you need to know and be able to have set up for when Jake(BF, husband?) is gone. You are just being practical and there's nothing wrong with that.

[Solumina]

Thanks, I just feel like everyone is focused on "OMG HE IS GOING TO GET SHOT AND DIE!!!!!!!!!!" or "OMG HE IS GOING TO BE GONE ALL THE TIME!!!!!!!!!" and I feel kind of crappy for going "So if he takes this job what kind of bonuses could he look at?" and "If he is going dep then do we get insurance as soon as he signs up or does that have to wait until he goes to boot?" I feel kind of like I'm being all about what's in it for me when he is the one who is going to be doing the job.

[Versus]

Solumina, does going nuke still have an enlistment bonus? I'm just curious.

[Solumina]

Yeah it does, from what I've been told it has the best enlistment bonus in the Navy, but it tends to involve going in lots of small spaces (and Jake isn't exactly small and nimble) which is why it is Jake's backup.

[Renatus]

Hmm so he's going navy then? Does he know yet when he'll be shipping to training? He'll be comming to my neck of the woods, to the Great Lakes Naval base. I've been there plenty of times myself, it's quite a fun little place as it has several restaurants, a bowling alley, and two arcades to name a few things they have there. However I have no idea how free he would be, if at all, to use those facilities as I have no idea how much the navy isolates their recruits from the outside world during training.

One thing you should check out first off is to get yourself a military dependent ID. Also check out the USO, they help out members of the military and their families. Since you will inevitably(I think) be visiting the Great Lakes Naval base for when he graduates from boot camp, you can kill 2 birds with one stone, and get your dependant ID there, and check out the USO location there, and even check out their location at this own location in Chicago known as Navy Pier. The Navy Pier location is lovely small spot with a nice sized tv, video games, movies, food, and computers which include a webcam for talking to loved ones abroad over. Oh, and TONS OF GIRLSCOUT COOKIES,well at least the last time I was there they had a freezer full of girl scout cookies, but that was years ago and I don't know how often they get more.

To be fair the Navy Pier location is the only permanent USO location I've been to. I say permanent because they many times establish temporary locations, like one I once encountered at midway airport in Chicago which had movies, free cellphones they let you use while you were there, and of course food.

I must warn you however, your husband's taste in food might take a nosedive. My father for example enjoys the taste of the food in army ration packs, despite the fact that in my experience, THEY HAVE NO TASTE!

Also be sure to keep an eye out for free offers out there specifically for members of the military and their families. Here in Wisconsin for example Noah's Ark water park has a day they let military families in for free(I think it was free), at least they used to, I didn't hear about them doing it this year.

Also most military bases have PX(from what I've read the navy calls them NEX) facilities, they're stores for members of the military and their families, and depending on the class of the facility, have a varying variety of items at much cheaper prices than they would be at normally due to the store's tax exempt status due to being instruments of the government. The Great Lakes Naval base has one which has 3 fast food restaurants inside, but I hear there are some with movie theaters even. The Great Lakes Naval base actually has 2 PX facilities from what I remember.

Well that's all I can think of for now, hope this helped.

[Murder.Of.Crows]

I was offered nuke, I have to tell you now, it sucks. It really sucks. I don't think he would want that job. I know the bonus is really almost to nice to pass up, but he'll barely see the light of day off the ship. When we pull into a really cool port, usually MAs and nukes are the ones that stay on the ship and only get to see the port. They also usually get the shitty deployments, about 7 - 9 months a year.

[Grausamkeit]

I like the way MREs taste, too. I'm not a weirdo.

We lived off those after Ike hit. Fortunately, we got the good ones that came with coffee, and tabasco sauce and stuff. They weren't the makeshift ones the redcross did that had spaghetti sauce with no noodles half the time.

[Saya]

Originally Posted by Solumina

Yeah it does, from what I've been told it has the best enlistment bonus in the Navy, but it tends to involve going in lots of small spaces (and Jake isn't exactly small and nimble) which is why it is Jake's backup.

Don't give Versus any ideas!

[Renatus]

Originally Posted by Saya

Don't give Versus any ideas!

Versus is army, by the time his contract expires he'll probably have forgotten about this.

[Saya]

I'm trying to give him ideas of what to do after his contract is up, so he probably wouldn't forget if he thought it was a good idea :P Trying to convince him to be a sexy archaeologist is hard enough.

I'm babysitting mom's dogs for a few days, one is really good and the other one is pretty strong and pulls really hard on the leash, she even got away from my sister this morning. I'm trying the umbilical leash thing so she can't get away, but christ she cuts into my stomach bad. Small dogs are supposed to be dainty XD

[Solumina]

Thanks Ren, and yes we decided on Navy, he talked with recruiters from the Army and Air Force as well but neither of us were impressed with what the Army guy had to say and the Air Force guy kept trying to convince him that he should be a mechanic, which he has no desire to do.

I'm familiar with the NEX, as we used to get stuff there back when Jake was still his dad's dependant, and I knew where he was going for boot but everything else was pretty new info.

We've got a good idea of what nuke entails, as that's what his dad did, the money is awesome (the signing bonus alone is more than we both make in a year), you are pretty much guaranteed an easy time of getting a job when you get out, and he would have a good chance of successfully applying to become an officer (as he has a degree, he just also has a shitty GPA), but there is a reason why, even with all that, it is still a high needs area. The job can royaly blow. Honestly I will be pretty surprised if he doesn't qualify for CTI and I know he, and his recruiter, would be too.

[Valhalla]

Completely unrelated to the current topic, but since I can't PM yet and I can't for the life of me figure out how to leave a visitor message (or whatever that is), I'll throw this into the nothing thread.

I'd like to thank Saya for giving me a heads up about the Unconference yesterday. I didn't speak or anything, but I really enjoyed myself.