MEPS Adventure Part I - 20130109
Entry posted by RSBDavid
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So today I went to MEPS as part of the process for enlisting into the Air Force. Let me go ahead and start off from the night before when I went to the motel.
So I arrive the night before after taking a bus from where my recruiter's office is to the MEPS contracted hotel. It was about a 2 hour trip after picking up a few more people along the way. One of the people on the bus had the same last name as me and we didn't find out until later. After we got the motel, we got briefed over how the next 24 hours will be and we sent to do whatever. It was about 5:00PM by this time. Knowing we had to wake up at 4, I had planned to go to sleep by 8:30 as the next day will be long and tiring. Between 5 and 8, we all chilled in this MEPS lobby place where they had several PS3 consoles and XBOX 360 consoles setup. Out of the 25 people there, all but 3 were playing COD or BF3. During this time, we had a meal card where we could go to the fancy restaurant they had to get a meal for free. I got this grilled chicken pasta dish as I knew it would be filling, but have nutrients to get me through the day. At around 8 is when I went to the room and watched the History Channel until I fell asleep.
The next day started at 4:00AM with a wake-up call and all possible alarms I could use in my room. I normally go to bed at 4:00AM so it was a challenge to get up. A cold shower and a quick breakfast later and I am in the lobby waiting to catch a bus to the MEPS building. About 5:45 is when it arrived and we were at MEPS by 6:00. We were greeted by a SSGT from the Marine Corps and he had us line up to go through security. This 4'9 pissed off security guard yelled at to get in such an order and move such a way. After going through the security gates, it was time to check-in and get started with medical. After getting my blood drawn, eyes checked for not only how blind or not I was but color and depth perception, pissing in a cup with 4 other guys shoulder-to-shoulder, doing exercises in my boxers with 20 other guys, and finally getting kinky with the chief medical officer, I thought I was ready to go.
When I was a kid, there was a slight excess if some nutrient in my blood which requires a wavier with the Air Force. So after the CMO advised me of this, I had to take my paperwork to the USAF Liaison and he advised me I will have to wait for my blood to be shipped out of state to Texas or somewhere for additional analysis. So he said that the process will take a week, but it could take up to 30-45 days to get the wavier as it has to go up through the medical ranks and be signed off by the surgeon general.
So I just got home about an hour ago, sort of bummed about not being able to swear in today, but hopefully next time. If they deny my wavier request, I will try and get a federal job as I have a security clearance. I am probably going to pop open a beer and chillax tonight.
-Dave
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