Day Five, Six, Seven, and Eight
We did fire steams on day five, and the rest are a blur. I finally got permission to go off campus to get some medicine. I don't know what I've been doing but somehow I got special recognition.
I guess the instructors knew I was sick as a dying dog but I still kept up with the class making sure I kept pushing until I came seconds away from passing out. Had it not been for my captain making me stop I would have. I had no water in me, I puked but nothing came out. My body was hot but my skin running cool. No sweat....all bad signs. But I finished. I know that if feces hits the thermal osculator I'm able to pull my weight under some pretty gnarly conditions.
So for the entire day I was treated with honors. I know they meant well but I didn't feel great getting recognized for almost not finishing. But I just need to accept how they wanted to credit my commitment and not my performance.
But seriously, the rest of the days are a blur. I didn't write in my blog those days and I was so doped up that I remember bits and pieces. I *KNOW* I had Cinnamon Toast Crunch for breakfast one day. After that....... all a blur
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Friday, November 27, 2009
Day Four
Day Four
Holy crap I feel like crap! Craptasitc! Heading is pounding, snot running out my nose, tired as hell..... mold. It's been raining like a mother at the academy and it stopped today. To add to my fun we did hose loads all day.
First we loaded the bed and then the cross-lays (the side hoses). Then we practiced deployments which means loading back into the beds. Not bitching much but geeeez.
Everyone is telling me I look like shit. They ain't much better, they look like Canadians. :P
Holy crap I feel like crap! Craptasitc! Heading is pounding, snot running out my nose, tired as hell..... mold. It's been raining like a mother at the academy and it stopped today. To add to my fun we did hose loads all day.
First we loaded the bed and then the cross-lays (the side hoses). Then we practiced deployments which means loading back into the beds. Not bitching much but geeeez.
Everyone is telling me I look like shit. They ain't much better, they look like Canadians. :P
Day four
Day Four
We got our rookie ropes and PPE today! A rookie rope is a symbol, a responsibility, and a tool. It must be around our waist at all times (expect for showering and when in *PPE). It shows a fire fighters commitment to preparedness and readiness. It also means we have to keep track of it. If it is lost then we have to earn it back. Either as a class or as an individual.
It didn't take long for us to learn the importance of having the rope available at all times. We had several "60 Seconds", a drill on which you have to don your PPE in ...you guessed it, 60 seconds. A few of us left the ropes around our waist and thus unable to get the rope when our PPE is on.
Push-ups!
*PPE: Personal Protective Equipment, aka Bunker gear, aka turn out gear, aka the hot smelly suit, aka what fire fighters wear
We got our rookie ropes and PPE today! A rookie rope is a symbol, a responsibility, and a tool. It must be around our waist at all times (expect for showering and when in *PPE). It shows a fire fighters commitment to preparedness and readiness. It also means we have to keep track of it. If it is lost then we have to earn it back. Either as a class or as an individual.
It didn't take long for us to learn the importance of having the rope available at all times. We had several "60 Seconds", a drill on which you have to don your PPE in ...you guessed it, 60 seconds. A few of us left the ropes around our waist and thus unable to get the rope when our PPE is on.
Push-ups!
*PPE: Personal Protective Equipment, aka Bunker gear, aka turn out gear, aka the hot smelly suit, aka what fire fighters wear
Day Three
Day Three
Haz-mat...............haz-mat
Wow....talk about a dry subject. Eight hours of facts, facts, and more facts. We had a great instructor that was funny and helpful. He is also about as old as g-d, probably could pass for his younger brother. Talks and looks just like Sam Elliot... kid you not!
We also picked our class Captains and Lieutenants. Freaking last thing I want to do is be a baby sitter in the academy. A few people nominated me and I got a chance to quickly decline the nomination. My attitute of it is that I have been leading people for a long time. Its something I know better than fire fighting. I am in the fire academy to learn fire fighting, not leadership. So..... I'd rather just be a regular Joe. Nothing snobby about it, just a time and place for it and now is not it.
On another note, our cook is a strange dude. He sounds like that creepy old man off of Family guy. He keeps walking into the commons and talking to us. We have no clue what he is saying and I fear that we just agreed to come over to his house to watch "Rainman".
Haz-mat...............haz-mat
Wow....talk about a dry subject. Eight hours of facts, facts, and more facts. We had a great instructor that was funny and helpful. He is also about as old as g-d, probably could pass for his younger brother. Talks and looks just like Sam Elliot... kid you not!
We also picked our class Captains and Lieutenants. Freaking last thing I want to do is be a baby sitter in the academy. A few people nominated me and I got a chance to quickly decline the nomination. My attitute of it is that I have been leading people for a long time. Its something I know better than fire fighting. I am in the fire academy to learn fire fighting, not leadership. So..... I'd rather just be a regular Joe. Nothing snobby about it, just a time and place for it and now is not it.
On another note, our cook is a strange dude. He sounds like that creepy old man off of Family guy. He keeps walking into the commons and talking to us. We have no clue what he is saying and I fear that we just agreed to come over to his house to watch "Rainman".
Day two
Day Two
Aced this mornings test! Yay
Today, in class, we are going over response and size-up, incident command, and building structures. Interesting stuff and I am picking up a lot of details. Still, overall, eight hours of class is pretty rough on my back side.
I am still getting used to this dorm type sleeping arrangement. At the fire house its just me and the guys. Here is me and 20 ~ 30 people sleeping in a dorm. There has been some pranks but mostly just amateur stuff. Stacking someones stuff on them while they sleep and taking pictures. Shaving cream on the hand, etc.
The computers here are a bit of a challnage. The connection is slow and the web browser keeps crashing. Its frustrating but I am still thankful for what we have.
Aced this mornings test! Yay
Today, in class, we are going over response and size-up, incident command, and building structures. Interesting stuff and I am picking up a lot of details. Still, overall, eight hours of class is pretty rough on my back side.
I am still getting used to this dorm type sleeping arrangement. At the fire house its just me and the guys. Here is me and 20 ~ 30 people sleeping in a dorm. There has been some pranks but mostly just amateur stuff. Stacking someones stuff on them while they sleep and taking pictures. Shaving cream on the hand, etc.
The computers here are a bit of a challnage. The connection is slow and the web browser keeps crashing. Its frustrating but I am still thankful for what we have.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Day One
Day One
Uuurg, almost no sleep.
We are going to have a test every morning that covers 2~4 chapter of the basic fire instructional book. Its one of those "Prove what you know" type of things. I can already tell that all my free time of going to be studying for the test the next day.
aced the test by the way
Tomorrow I have fire communication, basic safety, and some other introductory level testing
Uuurg, almost no sleep.
We are going to have a test every morning that covers 2~4 chapter of the basic fire instructional book. Its one of those "Prove what you know" type of things. I can already tell that all my free time of going to be studying for the test the next day.
aced the test by the way
Tomorrow I have fire communication, basic safety, and some other introductory level testing
Pre Day One
Pre Day One
I left my home in the Texas Hill Country so that I can arrive an hour before the Fire Academy starts in Crowley, Texas. Home of Training Divisions two week boot camp. Something that TD does that no other fire school does (to my knowledge) is the dorm living for two solid weeks. You leave, eat, breath, and sleep "Fire House". From 6am (most often earlier) to 8pm (most often later) you are full on Fire House mode. Even when we sleep we have to be ready for fire drills.
So anyways, I made a quick introduction with the fire instructors and then slipped up to the dorm room to pick out a kick arse bunk. Which I did, thanks to the advice of previous students. I got setup and then came the Canadians....wow, holy crap! My class is 3/4 Canuk!
They look normal enough... no 6th finger or webbed toes. Although they did dress like they just finished a Hollywood western marathon. But every freaking word out of their mouth is "Eh" or pronounced "A". I worked with Canadians before and they never said "Eh" this much.
The instructors got us gathered up and assembled in the class room. Gave us our orientation, and then dismissed us for dinner. This is were I met Mr. Glenn, the food preparer. The poor guy is pushing 60, can't understand a damn word he says, and cooks everything in the microwave on the nuclear hot setting for 30 minutes. I swear he actually made green beans hard and turned our dinner rolls into solid state ammunition for the Army's new mass rail gun. He tries and that's what matters I suppose. I like him but not the food so much, two weeks to go!
Later that night..... k, no one has done their chores. I proceed to mop, scrub the toilets, wipe the mirrors and counters, etc etc. Its about 11:30 pm now I am all geared up. Can't sleep.
1:20 am - Just finish my third episode of DEA enforcement on TruTV. I am going to try and sleep
*All academy posts have been published after the academy due to technical problems with the academy computers.
I left my home in the Texas Hill Country so that I can arrive an hour before the Fire Academy starts in Crowley, Texas. Home of Training Divisions two week boot camp. Something that TD does that no other fire school does (to my knowledge) is the dorm living for two solid weeks. You leave, eat, breath, and sleep "Fire House". From 6am (most often earlier) to 8pm (most often later) you are full on Fire House mode. Even when we sleep we have to be ready for fire drills.
So anyways, I made a quick introduction with the fire instructors and then slipped up to the dorm room to pick out a kick arse bunk. Which I did, thanks to the advice of previous students. I got setup and then came the Canadians....wow, holy crap! My class is 3/4 Canuk!
They look normal enough... no 6th finger or webbed toes. Although they did dress like they just finished a Hollywood western marathon. But every freaking word out of their mouth is "Eh" or pronounced "A". I worked with Canadians before and they never said "Eh" this much.
The instructors got us gathered up and assembled in the class room. Gave us our orientation, and then dismissed us for dinner. This is were I met Mr. Glenn, the food preparer. The poor guy is pushing 60, can't understand a damn word he says, and cooks everything in the microwave on the nuclear hot setting for 30 minutes. I swear he actually made green beans hard and turned our dinner rolls into solid state ammunition for the Army's new mass rail gun. He tries and that's what matters I suppose. I like him but not the food so much, two weeks to go!
Later that night..... k, no one has done their chores. I proceed to mop, scrub the toilets, wipe the mirrors and counters, etc etc. Its about 11:30 pm now I am all geared up. Can't sleep.
1:20 am - Just finish my third episode of DEA enforcement on TruTV. I am going to try and sleep
*All academy posts have been published after the academy due to technical problems with the academy computers.
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