supply school

ESBC 27 (Enlisted Supply Basic Course)
July 22 - August 19, 2003

Right after graduation from MCT we finished packing up our stuff and wandered out to the field next to the barracks. They had little signs set up indicating where you should pile your seabags so I dropped mine in the humongous Camp Johnson pile and sat down to eat my bagged nasty. The bus ride to Camp Johnson was all of ten minutes. I became part of MAT (Marines Awaiting Training) platoon, the holding tank for all Combat Service Support School people before they head to their individual schools. Like at MCT, we spent a week running wild on base and off-base in Jacksonville. One night while I was on firewatch outside the MAT platoon buildings, one of the girls from my platoon at boot camp walked up with a CamelPak on her back and a big grin on her face. She asked if I wanted a drink of water so I said sure, but it turned out not to be water...

They moved us to our respective schools' barracks but my supply class still did not pick up. We waited around for more Marines to arrive and spent our free time that week on working parties. I cleaned the supply school offices several times but most days we organized papers and books for the upcoming supply officer's course. When our class finally began we had about 30 students, 29 males and me. The San Diego Marines were especially impressed by the presence of a female Marine. Since their recruit depot only trains males, a lot of them had never seen a female Marine before.

To sum up supply school, we learned and memorized all sorts of things that made no sense to us. Once we reached our unit and had some on-the-job training, the stuff we learned in school made more sense. I think they need to redo their curriculum and rewrite the classes. Keypunching, weird codes, and strange acronyms and programs don't mean much if you don't also learn the basics of Marine Corps supply. Maybe I just remember it badly, I don't know, but that's what it seems like looking back at it now.

Our platoon sergeant was SSgt Gibson and he also taught one of our classes. One of our other instructors was MSgt Bailey, a well-endowed older, cheerful, blond woman the guys drooled over. I forgot the names of the others ones but I remember what they look like. We had a funny company 1stSgt too, 1stSgt Rodriguez. He was a huge Puerto Rican New Yorker (I think) who talked like a huge Puerto Rican New Yorker. Our company GySgt was Gunny Albert.

After school and on the weekends, I spent my spare time going to watch movies and hanging out at the recreation center. They had computers with Internet access, video games, TVs, movies, a pool room, and a little restaurant there. Out in Jacksonville the main attractions were Walmart, the mall, the movie theater, tattoo parlours, bars, and strip clubs. There was also a club that had a Latino night I went to once and attempted to learn how to dance. The last weekend before we all graduated and left, a bunch of us went to the Marina to hang out. That was...interesting...

I had two sets of roommates at Camp Johnson. The first two were Elliot and Stark. I didn't like either of them and the guys told me horrible hope-they-aren't-true stories about them. I don't remember the names of the second two roommates I had because I graduated not too long after I moved in with them. They were really nice though. They were the same MOS as me but since they came later they were in a different class.

One day during class the instructor told us where our next duty station would be. I liked that instructor but I forgot his name. Anyway, the two guys who requested Hawaii, Hayhurst and Priebe, got Hawaii. Everyone who picked East Coast got East Coast. All but one who chose Overseas got Overseas. Lopez got Camp Lejeune instead and I heard he eventually went to Afghanistan. Two people went to Iwakuni on mainland Japan and the rest of us were sent to Okinawa. Everyone who asked for West Coast got also Okinawa.



Random Fun Facts:

We had a Charlie inspection done by an supply officer course student who asked to smell our breath.

I got mysterious weird blisters on one side of my face and I had to go to medical voluntarily for the first time to get antibiotics to make them disappear. Lopez helpfully informed me that he would still "do me" blisters and all. Thanks, I think...

On a battalion run, we ran in circles on a muddy path surrounding a field out in the woods. My platoon was the only one to come back looking like we just finished a giant mud wrestling match. Everybody else tried to avoid the glop, we just splashed on through.

During company PT one day, we had a platoon race. We had to run three miles as a platoon, if somebody couldn't keep up we had to slow down. My platoon beat all the other supply school platoons!

Oldenkamp and his roommates left a mop bucket in their room after field day one week. Of course, their room was the first one the battalion commander randomly inspected the next morning. The pissed off company gunny put the mop bucket out front with their room number taped to it.

Some kid who had just graduated from supply school before us got stationed at the supply school company offices. Poor guy.

Two of my friends got married while I was at Camp Johnson. They only let me come home for one wedding and I almost got a speeding ticket on the way back from the reception. Fortunately, I was wearing my dress blue Deltas and I think that helped convince the cop to just let me go. My friend Stephanie laughed at me the rest of the way home.

We had five tests during our course. I missed one question on each of the first two and none on the last three. The Marine who was first in our class had 100% on all five and got meritoriously promoted to PFC about two weeks early. I was two questions from getting promoted to lance corporal! Me, Toppin, and Compton were tied for second place.

A few years later I went back for the Intermediate Supply Course, which is a lot like the Basic one except that it's more in-depth and they treat you more like an adult.