B - IS FOR BULLDOGS

That was the longest damn walk in her life! She thought they would never get to their new home. Why didn't they just get back on the bus and ride over there? It seemed like they had walked a mile. Rom's legs were sore and her mouth was dry. It's their first day so maybe they might be given a break? No such luck. Now they were standing in a hallway of buildings. And standing and standing and more standing. Her legs were like spaghetti. Just when she felt like passing out, Rom heard her name.

"Private Rom" barracks B. Drill Sergeant Anderson motioned her to walk toward the building with a big red B over the door and the word Bulldogs underneath. Bulldogs? Is this some sort of sorority or something? How stupid. She thought the Army was all about training. Bulldogs. Just wonderful. She was a bulldog. Yeah Team!"

Once you get inside, everyone needs to pick a bed. Take your time choosing a bed because this will be your bed from here on out. Stand beside your bed until I tell you otherwise." Great, more damn standing! Well the race was on! The girls took off to locate their sleeping quarters. There seemed to be groups that knew each other already and were trying to find bunks together. How high school. Rom really didn't care which bed she got as long as it wasn't a top bunk. She thought about her spaghetti legs and knew climbing on that top bunk would definitely be a problem for her. She found the first available bottom bunk on the right side of the barracks. She only hoped her new roommate did not snore."

Look on the floor to see your bunk number" Drill Sergeant Anderson yelled. There were big red, of course, numbers on the floors. Rom assumed the color red was their school color. She was in room number five. "Remember that number. NOW, I want room numbers one through five to come over here and watch this demonstration. I am going to show you soldiers how to make a bed." You have got to be kidding me Rom thought. Make a bed? What the hell did that teach her? She already knew how to make a bed. Or so she thought. Drill Sergeant Anderson made that bed so quick her head was spinning. She never saw someone make a bed so fast and so neat. He must have done that demonstration a million times because there was not one wrinkle on that bed.

Oh God. Rom should have paid close attention instead of being sarcastic because she messed up already. What if her bed didn't look like his? Did she just break a rule? Oh shit! What's the punishment for breaking that rule? All these wild thoughts like military prison and different kinds of punishment starting going through her mind.

"You gonna make that bed today soldier or you waiting on a special invitation?" Drill Sergeant Anderson yelled at Rom. Yeeesss Sir. She scrambled to finish making the bed. "SIR? Did you just call me SIR? I work for a living! Listen up, all of you! MY Name IS Drill Sergeant Anderson. YOU Will Call Me Drill Sergeant Anderson. OR you can call me Drill Sergeant. BUT AT NO time will you EVER call me SIR. You all got that? NOW finish making that bed soldier."

As Rom fought off the tears, her hands trembled while making the bed. She just remembered him smoothing the sheets with his hands in a sweeping motion so she just kept doing that hoping it would work. It didn't but luckily she wasn't the only one who failed the bed making test. There were only a handful of girls that passed and those fortunate souls got the duty of demonstrating to the rest of the failures how to make the beds. Drill Sergeant Anderson told them that he had made the bed quickly on purpose to locate those individuals who could teach. Except for the embarrassment of calling him sir, Rom felt much better. That tricky bastard! Was this the sort of stuff she had to endure? He couldn't have told them this beforehand? She was doing it again. Shut up Rom and pay attention! Drill Sergeant Anderson told them once their beds were made they could take a nap until dinner. Get familiar with their surroundings. Unpack their things. Do whatever they wanted as long as they stayed in the barracks. He would be back to get them at dinner time.

Let the slumber party begin! Everyone scrambled to find their lockers and unpack all their junk. Others sat on their beds and chatted and giggled up a storm. Of course the topic of conversation was boys. Rom had to constantly remind herself she was now in a roomful of teenage girls. Teenage girls with raging hormones and all the other issues that were part of being a teenager. Once again, what the hell was she thinking, joining the Army at age thirty!