[JERRY2KONE]

Glad that I caught this thread. I just read through the whole thing and it looks like some of you guys have covered a lot of info for him. FIrewire seems to have done his homework and if you really want to go in I suggest that you do yours before you sign on the dotted line. George16 is still serving and can probably give you some first hand advice. The others seem to have your best interest in hand, but the bottom line is that you have to make decisions that will ultimately affect the rest of your life. If this is truly something that you think you might want to do, then talk with the recruiters and take in whatever information and advice they have to give you. It is free and most of the time from the heart. Please note that they are no different then you local car salemen and have one goal in mind. That is to close the deal and get you to sign on the dotted line.

Now that being said I can give you some real world advice. I joined the US Navy in Feb/77 when I turned 18. For me it was a life or death situation and I was heading down a road to self destruction. So joining the service was an easy choice for me, and I knew from day one that 20 years was my goal. Still I did my research and made the best choice for me. Going to college was not for me either, because I am a natural born craftsman andlove working with my hands. I retired in May/99 and have not looked back on any of it. I had a ball nearly every day of my career, and I do not regret one minute the decision that I made at 18. I see so many young men and women wasting their time trying to figure things out like they have a life time to decide. The more time you waste thinking about it, the more time you waste doing what you need to do. That is making your life the best that it can be.

I could fill volumes telling you stories good and bad about my experiences, and I do share that with my kids and friends alike. I retired at 38 collecting nearly $2000 a month every month since that day for doing absolutely nothing. This of course is not enough to live the kind of life that I want so I tried working in the civilian sector for a while, but private companies have no respect or interest in taking care of thier people no matter what they tell you. And 3rd shift just sucks if you have a family or want a life outside of work. If you really want further advice I would be happy to talk with you about your options. Life is too short to sit around figuring it out. Get off of your butt and get moving. The train is moving. Are you going to get onboard and enjoy the ride or sit by watching everyone else do it for you?

Sincerely Jerry Hill US Navy(retired) US Embassy Seoul, Korea.