The Kayla

Tonight was 08-14's track Select at Vance 2- T-38's 4 or 5 - T-44's 3-helos-- One to an AF dude, the rest to Marines, I think.. a couple T-45's(?) and the rest were T-1's. Please excuse the lack of 'exact' numbers.. They had a pretty decent sized class with AF/Marines/Navy and I think one ANG.

That's not always true; I know a spouse who is a Dr.(Kid's doc at that), and she has tried looking for jobs yet she can't find one.

I can't speak for Military planes, but in the civie world, animals are crated in FAA approved crates/carriers, and if you are a passenger, you might be able to have them as 'carry-ons" I know some people who do that if they have a Yorkie are some other grown rat of that sort (I keed..I keed..) If you were going to Germany, I would reccomend flying Luth-something. They are the number one transporter in animals.. since a lot of people import German Shepherds, Rotties, Mals, etc. They have always have a vet on hand. Also, what time of year are you flying over? I know that most airports won't allow 'imports' during June-August, because it becomes so hot, which would be unhealthy for the animals, so check to make sure that it's safe for you to bring your pets-- Now, this will be a mute point IF you are able to bring your kitties on as a carry on. Oh! and a flying tip! if you can, bring ice cubes as water for the kitties. Ice Cubes don't 'spill' and don't make as big of a mess as regular water, just on FIY! And if your cat's do not travel well, your vet can give you a tranq to give to them to help them 'cope' with the flying around. This might also help keep them quiet, just incase you have an ass on your plane that starts complaing about the noise..

The way I'm reading the rules from the website given above, is that if your cats are under 10months old, you have to do teh 180 quaratine. but if your cats are older then that, and up to date on everything.. then they can stay home with you

I went to ASBC for a couple of weeks, and there was an SOS class there. I met one of the wives, and she enjoyed it. She worked online, so she just brought work to her. The playground is pretty eh. There's not too much to it. There is a really nice shopping center, that has some really cool outletstores, and a kick ass movie theater! I would bet that the SOS would have a "spouse's club" and will also have playgroups and such. The room is going to be like a studio apartment. one room, one bathroom, kitchen (small) and a pull out couch. With a pretty decent sized closet, that some people put the play-pin (depending on how old your kid is) and let the kid sleep in there. You can get the internet for like $5 or $10 bucks. Maid service everyday if you want.. etc. Parking is a BITCH.. I will warn you of that now! I know that I didn't go to SOS, but I hope that helps!

Some of you have suggested going to the OSS building to finding info on the U-28, or going to a SIPRNET (?) -- But what if you are a spouse that would like some info on this aicraft. Bug The husband to go get the info?! Thanks in advance!

I mis-read her post, I thought she was referring that all O1's got paid the same. Not everyone knows that there is such a thing as O1E.

www.airforceots.com They would be able to tell you everything from when the boards meet to when thay are "supposed" to let you know if you made it or not, they would also be able to tell you all about ages and waivers regarding pilot slots. That board will also give you a chance to meet with other people who are on teh same board that you are, and when you make it, it will introduce you to your class mates, as well as your upper and lower class mates.

www.airforcecrossroads.com or something like that, would give you some great information regarding spouses and jobs on base. I read--somewhere-- that jobs on base go by this priority list first priority: Vet's/Retired Second: Spouse's of AD members (as well as spouse's of retired memebers) thrid: Civillians

I don't know how that works, I've asked my husband and he has no clue either. I'm not even sure who could answer that either, maybe going to the finance office? Good luck in finding out!

I'm going to say that nursing is also a great career field to get into if you are a mil. spouse. You will have a job anywhere, since nurses are in such a high demand. I discourage anyone from going into retail. And that is coming from some one who's been in the retail field for the past 5yrs.

To run off this: Vance just went privatized(Oct 1, 2007), and from what I read in the newspaper, is that if housing isn't at 90%-- or something like that-- That Pinnacle(the Housing landlords) can allow retireers and DOD employees can live on base. THEN if that doesn't get the base housing filled up enough, civillians can apply to live on base(at least, that's what I think I read three weeks ago).

Ace - This is Kayla's husband. She insisted I reply because she thinks I have a lot of insight to share on this topic (she's a crazy person though - heck, she married me!). I've walked the path you are deciding; to give you a little preface, I start UPT groundschool in three months, earned my commission back in March (OTS), and enlisted as a C-5 Crew Chief back in 1998 right after graduating high school. Reading the previous posts, I would say M2 is right on in his first couple of posts, but I'll reiterate anyways. When I graduated from HS, I was an unmotivated schmuck. I had awesome test scores (well, compared to my school at least) but below-average grades and was not motivated for college. On top of that, I was ready to get the heck out of dodge anyways... I was not a big fan of small town NE Washington and was almost ready to drop out my Junior year from frustration. I knew I wanted to be a pilot and figured if I enlisted first, I could work towards my degree down the road w/ my benefits and get a cool enlisted flying job in the meantime. I told my recruiter, "I don't care what job I have, as long as I'm flying." He replied with, "Well, Crew Chiefs fly!" That's only half true. I did spend three years as a Flying Crew Chief, but what I wasn't told (and didn't know to research) was that FCCs are only 5-levels or higher and usually at least SrA. I started flying as an A1C that had been selected for Below-the-Zone, the early-SrA promotion. I did five years as enlisted active duty, flying for the last 2.5, and then another 3 years as a reservist (but only flying for the first six months) so I could finish my degree. Here's my take on the enlisted-to-aviator idea: The closer you are to a flying job as an enlisted guy, the harder it will be to get your degree. Plain and simple. The AF is about flying airplanes around the world and that means mobility, which school is not really compatible with. I took about four extended-campus Embry-Riddle classes at Travis AFB before I started flying and not a single one after that. That said, the first two years of your enlistment that you aren't allowed to go to college will still net you a year's worth (or more) of college credits. You'll earn hours for your tech school, your upgrade training, leadership schools (if you are selected), etc. On top of that, if you can get a 50% on a multiple choice test, you have the opportunity to test out of almost all of your general education classes for FREE. I have over a year's worth of college from testing out (I believe 36 semester hours to be exact). The tests (CLEP and DANTES, available as a civilian too but about $100 a pop) and CCAF credits-for-training got me my AS degree at my five year mark. The AS coupled with my GI Bill and student loans got me my expensive BS degree from Embry-Riddle. I am very glad I did everything as I did. Granted, I think the job I should have had enlisted into was loadmaster, but to be honest I didn't even know what a loadmaster was until I got to tech school. You have a leg up on me, already researching on sites like this. More importantly, I think my enlisted time matured me by a factor of thousands, not only turning me into a person I am very happy to be (HS was not a very pleasant time in my life) but also preparing me to excel in college - more so because I was in college because I was READY and WANTED to be there. I am happy to say my motivation helped me graduate with a 4.0, but the fact that I transferred in with 98(!) xfer credits really helped too (who knew it added up that much!). I was lucky enough that I enlisted very young - only 17 yrs old - and that by the time I got my motor going I still had plenty of time to beat the pilot age limit cutoff. Looking back, I could have achieved much the same a lot sooner had I enlisted into the AF Reserves or the Air National Guard. Plus, a lot of AFR/ANG flying squadrons hire from within - ie, if you can get on as a loadmaster, flight engineer, boom operator, gunner, etc w/ a guard/reserve unit and finish a degree, there's a very good chance you will be at the top of the "Hire" pile the next time they are looking for pilots. As long as you've impressed everyone and aren't an enlisted douche. The first couple of years enlisted were tough for me but I'd do it all again if I needed to. Here's some other things to consider, too... I didn't know until I started the commissioning process that pilots are primarily taken from the Academy and ROTC (OTS is, by it's nature, for filling slots that Academy and ROTC don't) but there were still many pilot trainees in my OTS class. I am glad I went the route I did because I was able to dictate my officer job; my OTS application had PILOT on it and nothing else, so I knew I had it locked in before even starting my commissioning program. If you go ROTC there is no guarantee you'll get a rated slot at all, and it is very selective based (almost) wholly on your Flight Commander's rating. I hope all that helps; if nothing else, you know it can be done 'cuz I just did it! You've got a huge decision to make and it should help knowing you can't really go wrong either way. I will say this though - I am very lucky I made it here. There were many "incidents" along the way that could have killed my career before it even took off, and most of them can be attributed to underage drinking. I was lucky and never got caught but I had many friends from my maintenance squadron that are were not even allowed to finish their initial enlistment. Whichever route you choose, make sure you keep your nose clean; a DUI even as a ROTC cadet will end your career. And if you go enlisted, choose the job you'll be happiest with. No job will make getting a degree easy, but where there's a will there's a way... at least as a Reservist or Guardsman you often have the option of working full time if you need the $$ though. Feel free to PM me (er, my wife) if you have any other questions.

You forgot to mention Crappy's.. hehe

If I remember correctly, the 71st has a spouse's "club"-- and I use that word sparingly- and I want to say that some of the other squads have like a group of wives that put together the fundraisers and what have you. And I think* that there's a spouse's orientation once your husband starts UPT to give the wives an understanding of what's going on.- But that is just a guess from what I've been told from other spouses.

You have to get a permit-- and then people have to come out to check out your property to make sure everything is OK, and THEN the dish people come out and make sure that you even have a good line of site for the Dishes. Also, when we called around, Direct TV wanted us to sign a two yr contract with them, and since it was "satellite", Service would be good anywhere(generally speaking) so there was no way out of the contract.

we have three bedrooms and 1.5baths. only one bathroom has the shower and tub, the other bathroom is in the master bedroom, it's just the toilet and sink with mirror. We do not have a garage. We share a carport. There is one walk in closet, and that's in the master bdrm,-- in my house, the master bdrm has two closets. In my house, I have 5 closets. The kitchens have a lot of cabs. and a lot of space. I think we have two cabs that have nothing in them.. Yes. You would be better off and would most likely make money living off base with Capt's BAH. Honestly-- from what I've been told, PCSing is higher during teh summer then the winter.. but, this is a training base. So, only time will tell if you'll have a wait list or not. Your best bet would be to call about a month or so befor you get here to see what the housing wait list is like. I only waited two weeks, exactly to get into my house-- but, I waived the cleaning and the painting. It's usually about two weeks after some one moves out that you get to move in, unless you waive the painting/cleaning. The depends on your opinion of "slummy". Some people like SR, some don't. Some dont mind that the landlord is a drunk, and some do. It really depends on you. Also, I've heard that they were building new houses... so, that could be an option. haha, you haven't been to Enid yet.. you can get to anyplace in just about 5-10minutes+/-. Are you looking to buy? If so, KM is in the process of buying a house here-- I would suggest sending her a PM.. Hope that helps!

Ok, some one made a comment about women getting drafted: Yes, I don't think it's fair the only get got/get drafted, it should, in some way be equal. That being said, this won't make sense, and will probaly piss off some women(and men) on here: I'm not a feminist. I do not agree with the statement "A woman can do everything a man can.". And I sure as hell don't want to be drafted. Call me a pansy, a bitch, a whimp, anything you want. I'm OK with that. If I wanted to join the military, I would. Simple as that. I have high respect for people in the military-no matter what branch- But, it's not for me. I think that if the draft was to include women, fine-- Make the Chicks that think "I can do everything that a man can" go first. Make all the feminist go.

I'm late on this: Friend or not, make him sign a lease. We learned this the hard way. We screwed ourselves, because we were trying to be "good friends".. Here's the story: We had a roommate before my husband left for OTS, a really good friend of ours. stayed in the house while he was at OTS (even though I have three huge dogs, I'm still a chicken sh!t). Roomie and I talked about rent, and what would happen if he couldn't find some one to share the rent with.. he said that he would tell his dad, and everything would be taken care of(his dad paid for all his bills...). Well, we never made him sign a lease. Not even one week after I PCSed to Vance, my Husband was at ASBC, Roomie calls my husband and says "Hey, I can't find anyone to help me with rent.. I'll be out by the end of this month." As some one who has BTDT, we learned our lesson.. it doesn't matter if it's family or friends or strangers.. ALWAYS sign a lease... It will cover your ass... It sucks to have to be a bad guy, but honestly, your ass on the line if he bails out on you, not his.

You need to take the form that you signed, saying that you had medical, and take it to DEERS, and have them enroll you in Tri-Care. Also, have your orders in hand and be ready to go talk to the Sgt and tell him/her what's going on, maybe they can make a few phone calls to help you out. Before you have anything done that's expensive, you need to make sure that you are covered for one, and for two, that Tri-Care will even cover it in the first place. Good Luck!

If you start UPT in August, then I would think that would mean that you are considered an Active Duty member now, possibly on Casual status? and if that's the case, then when you enrolled her in DEERS(she needs to be enrolled in DEERS to get her ID card), the default to putting people on Standard, and it's her job, or your's, to switch her over to prime-- but until you switch her over to prime, she's covered on Standard. She'll have to stay on Prime for a year, from when she switchs over from Standard to Prime. another idea: Play stupid-- act like you guys dont know she's PG-- It's not uncommon for women not to know that they're PG until 6-9wks along. and just assume that their bitchiness is because of stress, work, husbands not doing what they are told ;), etc. you get the jist.

Are you ROTC/USAFA/OTS? ASBC: That will happen, if you're married, she can live in Billeting with you.. just a girlfriend, then she'll have to visit Casual: Again, if you are married, she can help pass the time while you wait on your thumbs to start a casual job or while you are working at your casual job waiting for UPT to start, and you can live on base together, if you aren't married, you might get confined to the dorms... IFS: She can't go with you. My DH has to go to IFS.. gimmie a few minutes, and I'll post the info about IFS for you... IFS, she should think of it was a TDY/Deployment "practice test".-- Again, you, and some of the other wives on here need to understand that My DH is a 9yr prior service in the AF, therefore, I remember when he was gone 3wks, home 12hrs, gone 3more wks. Yes, it sucked(I'm sure it was worse for other wives then what I had.. ). and at that time, no I didn't take it as a vacation, but as a learning tool. She needs to learn, sooner or later, how to deal with TDY's/Deployments, because if she doesn't deal with them... then you can fill in the blank. I just asked my DH, if he could get married before or after UPT, what would it be.. He said before.. it helps to have a "partner".-- No, my DH isn't the type to tell me something so he doesn't get in trouble either... You need to get married when you both are ready for it, I don't think there's ever a right time to get married, if you both aren't mentaly and emotionaly prepared for it.

With financing.. well, are you going to put any down? Or, just put it on one of your credit cards? Or are you going to get a Jewlery store card? Chances are: You are better off puttin it on one of your CC's, since it will probaly have a lower interest rate. Store CC's are high, like 20-25% Remember, when looking for a ring, think of the four C's 1) Clarity 2) Carat 3) Color 4) Cut If you can, take a female with you. Some one who knows your chick. That should help. Anything else?

I'm with Rainman on this... for right now, you both are OK with being deployed, together or seperate, give it time to where you have a family or something like that... things will change....

I'm bored. so you guys are going to get alot of info from me... The School that is right outside base.. Eisenhower Elementary School (seriously, this is like maybe a 10minute walk from base housing..) (580) 234-5954 I got my house sooner, then teh 18th, but I waived having it painted and cleaned.. If you like decorating, you still have to get the waiver to paint teh inside of the house, but you don't have to worry about painting it back over. Housing(or CE) does it now. I have a 3bedroom/1.5bath(master bdrm has a bathroom, just no shower) I lucked out, I got a house with a fenced in yard.. some houses do not have a fence. A LOT of people have dogs here.. hope no one is scared of doggies! There's a long driveway, and a car port, that fits my full SUV under it perfectly.--side note: be careful if you have lowered cars, some driveways have a "steep" angle(mine does at least). I've noticed that most Student pilots and IP's live on Bass/Hurst drive. The house comes with washer/dryer hook ups. They have both gas and electric hook ups for dryers. To the lady who has a question about housing for her, since her DH was a Lt.COL: I live two houses down from the start of teh Lt.COL house's.. they don't have to share a car port with anyone, and their car ports have two-three stalls. ----Vance does not have a storm shelter thingy for 'nados---- they reccomend that you just stay in one room..I can't remember all what teh guy said) but they do give you a weather radio thingy I'm geographically challenged so I won't be much help when it comes to houses off base... but, let me know and I'll try to help the best I can... OH.. time for stupid info.. If you aren't into sports.. hahah.. this will be fun... KM, please correct me, or jump in anytime here! Oklahoma State University and Oklahoma University--- BIG here.. you are either for one or the other.. as long as you are NOT for TX.. and you will be golden here. Orange/BLK is OSU and teh crimson/blk(I think) is OU.. --- you won't understand until you get here, I have a firend at Tinker, and she told me about this, and I didn't understand... now I do... shopping(yes, your spouses are going to want to know this): There is nothing. The mall, Oakwood Mall.. really sucks.. It has a JCPenny's, Sears, Dillards, Bath and Body, Buckle, and a cute store for chicks, it's called "Vanity", it's like a Maurices(https://maurices.com/), they have a Regis hair salon--around town, there are alot of little salons and nail places-- There is an Old Navy, a Wal-mart, and a Lows --- for any good shopping, plan on going down to OKC or shopping online... ***** Oakwood mall hs a "club" where moms can walk the mall with their kids in strollers.. Food: Pizza: a Papa John's, Pizza Hut, Domino's, and a GodFather's Pizza place(never eaten there) Fast Food: Mcdonalds, KFC, BurgerKing, Bueno Taco(like taco bell), TACO BELL!, Wendy's, Mayo-something, and a few others.. Chain restraunts: IHOP, Chili's, AppleBee's, --I think that's it.. not sure though.. There aren't any good chinse restraunts here.. there are a bunch of hole in teh places, which are probaly really good(they normaly are).. OH! There is this really nifty Irish Pub on Independence(a big street here) that has awesome food! I don't drink, so I can't say anything about the beer.. AS soon as I get my house put together, I'll take pictures, I have a different kitchen then what the housing pics on baseops.net has posted. Let me know if anyone needs anymore info..