Training in the California Nat'l Guard

Well, I have been training for about 2 weeks now. I am with a new unit, and learning a whole bunch of new stuff. The 25 person platoon that I am serving with is quite a mix of people. We have in our midst, 3 Iraq vets, 1 Kosovo vet, 1 Afghanistan vet, and a myriad of other job specialties and men and woman. I have to say that I am very impressed with the women. They are just as motivated and tough as the men, even though they can't carry as much weight, they don't complain and add a new dimension to my experience in the Army. I have served with women before, but not very often. My hat's off to them for their doing. The Infantry Soldiers add a wealth of knowledge to a bunch of "pogues" (Term for non-combat arms(Infantry, Armor, Artillery etc.) types). I have a lot of book knowledge, but practical experience, I am sadly lacking. The days are roughly 12-14 hours a day, and are filled with classes, training, and the heat, oh my god, the heat, its been over 100 the whole time out here. When you are wearing 20lbs of gear, long sleeves, and walking/running everywhere, it takes it's toll. I think that this unit will be very well off in the long run, but we have a lot of work to do before we get there.

I am looking forward to going home, I miss my significant other, and my animals. But I am roughly half-way done. My platoon was picked over all the others today to put on a demonstration for a major morning show this afternoon, that is a sign of pride for us. We got our asses kicked, it was an eye opening experience, it showed us how far we've come in 10 days of working together, and it showed us how far we need to go. Its good to get the experience here, as there is no replay button where we are going. I don't know how I feel about getting shot at for real, but if today is any indication, its not going to be fun, and I will get plenty pissed off. The confusion, the noise was unlike anything that I have ever been exposed to in my life, I hope when the real thing comes that I won't falter.