In a remarkable display of military efficiency, I am now scheduled for one class over the next seven days. I don’t why it ended up this way, but it’s a big waste of people’s time and government money. A lot of people are upset over this, especially folks who are deploying straight to Iraq from this training. They’re bitter that they have to sit here on post under General Order No. 1, when they could be spending a few extra days with family before leaving the country. If I think about it too much I could also get bitter, so I try not to think about that. It is what it is. One senior NCO in our command actually told us to “stay motivated even if we have to be motivated while doing nothing.” Today we had a one hour block of instruction and the rest of the day free. The holiday weekend is completely open. On the surface this seems like a good situation, but when you are restricted to Fort McCoy it becomes less than good. Luckily I have made a few good friends with whom to pass the time and I have been logging huge hours at the gym. I’ve finished two books, listened to over 500 tracks on my iPod, watched several DVDs and I’ve been able to write almost everyday. Parole board meets in less than a week.