[RomanSunburn]

Hey everyone!

Soo... Does anyone know anything about the US Coast Guard? My fiance is thinking about joining, and I feel very... confused? I'm an Air Force brat, so I am somewhat familiar with the military and military life. My mom is worried about our wedding; meaning he should plan on joining after next June because there's no guarantee he'll be able to get the day/weekend off. I'm also interested in finding out more about OCS.

I"m looking at their homepage right now, but it's just confusing me more. I just wanted to hear some real life experiences, but not finding much luck in that department either...

Thanks all!

[shezbut]

Hi Roman Sunburn,

Once upon a time, I visited a Coast Guard recruiter. I've always loved the ocean, and wanted to do everything I could to protect everything living in and around it.

What I failed to realize, until talking with the recruiter, is that the Coast Guard is like the Army or Navy. Especially nowadays, the Coast Guard is used to detect and stop shipments of drugs and other illegal activities. Their list of responisibilities has grown quite a bit since I looked 16 years ago!

They still save people, ships, and animals in trouble out at sea. Depending upon where the person is posted, their jobs could be very different though. Those in the Yukon are going to be a lot more like what I envisioned Coast Guard to be. Those in California and Gulf Coast are going to be a lot more into stopping illegal shipments of drugs and people. I don't know about East coast states.

Anyway, once I discovered that you have to go to Boot Camp, report to senior officials (Sir, yessir) I knew that it was not the job for me. :nope: No thank you! Don't know if I've helped you at all ~ but I sure hope so.

[RomanSunburn]

Hey Shezbut! Thanks for the response! I kind of new that it was going to be like the military, but slightly different because they're under the Department of Homeland Security, while the rest of the branches are under the Department of Defense. And since I looked up their website, I knew that drug smuggling was big on their list. I think my fiance is more interested in mechanical upkeep for helicopters and stuff. I dont really know where that would place him though -- for all I know, he could end up on a ship for 9 months fixing the helicopters out at sea.

When I was a kid, I wanted to be just like my mom -- a military wife. But now that it looks like that could actually happen, I'm freaking out a little. There's really just too many unknowns for me, and it's making me super uneasy and even a little scared.

Thanks again! I really appreciated it!