Last Friday I swore in at MEPS. I accepted a 6 year contract for the AECF (Advanced Electronics and Computing Field) rating. I have been taking care of some things so I can spend the last month of my time as a civillian spending time with people, getting in better shape, and doing my first solo bike camping trip.
Moving on
I put in a Military Leave of Absence to my job and have one more week left until I am no longer on the schedule. I will probably pick up a few shifts to help out and spend some time with all of my co-workers who I am definitley going to miss. I am very greatful for the position I was given by my bosses and I will miss them and my coworkers, as well as many of the customers and the ability to get them out on the road riding their bike. I enjoyed being a bike mechanic and since I have put in military leave, I have the option to go back to it after my six years serving the country is over. I am looking forward to keeping in contact with many of my coworkers and seeing their growth from afar in the next six years.
I have also been scrambling to get rid of many of my posessions that I know will go unused over the next 6 years. I am trying to sell many of them on Facebook Marketplace as well as Ebay. Dealing with people on Facebook Marketplace is kind of a drag. Whatever is not sold by April 15th I will be slashing the prices on and by April 20th I will be donating. I do not need to hold on to most of the stuff I have in my life. I want to keep some of my musical instruments, as well as my camping gear, clothing, and electronics. Everything else I can part with. I only want to rent out the smallest storage space, and I want to be able to easily move that stuff with me once I select a command.
The last major thing that needs to be taken care of before I can begin to relax more and use my time for travelling is finding out what needs to happen with my deffered loan for a coding bootcamp that I attended. The amount of interest on the loan was an insane amount, but once I join the military it is required for them to drop it to 6%. For payment to begin I have to be making more than a specified amount, while starting in the Navy I will be making less than this amount so I am not sure if I will have to start paying it back yet. At the same time I will not be able to continue applying for jobs in the tech sector, so that may mean I am required to begin payment again. If I get the interest amount lowered I should have no problem making monthly payments, moving towards having no money owed anymore.
After I am done with work and I have cleared out a majority of my uncessary posessions I will be ready to start enjoying the last of my truley free time before shipping out for bootcamp. I know I will be offered 30 days of vacation a year, and will have free time after I leave the Navy, but it feels like this last block of free time should be something that I take full advantage of.
Travel Before Shipping Out
Travelling with Brother
I have already planned and booked a trip that I will be taking with my brother. This will be the first thing I do after I am done working at my job. We booked an Airbnb in Northern California for two nights and will be doing some hiking in an area that we enjoyed spending time at when we were younger. I have not brought it up to him yet, but I would also like for us to go visit our grandparents who live about an hour and half away from our destination. I think it will be nice to see them, and there is a large chance that it will be the last time we get to see them as they are in their late 80’s now. I am excited to spend time with my brother like this. It will be the first trip that we have ever gone on without any other family memeber, because we finally bother have our driver’s liscence.
Grand Canyon
Another thing I would like to do before going to the Navy is visit the Grand Canyon. I am not 100% sure I will do this due to time and money constraints, but I really want to. I think it may be possible if I bundle a flight and car deal soon. After doing some quick research on it looks like something I could do for just under $300. My plan would be to fly in with only my packed down camping gear as well as some warm clothing, then rent a car and drive down to the Grand Canyon and camo out there for two nights before driving back on the third day and catching a flight back home. I think this is doable, it is just a matter of making sure that I have all my affairs sorted already and not being short on funds. There is a possibilty I am short on funds due to the final thing that I would like to do before shipping off to bootcamp.
Bike Touring
I would like to enjoy cylcing and camping in California before I leave. California is my home and I love it hear. I have not traveled it enough by bike, and I do not know if I will be moving back here after completing whatever time I decide to stay enlisted in the Navy. I know I do not really have a whole week to ride, more likely a few days. I could do some repeats of trips I have done in the past, or I could go further. I have a few monitary decisions that I have to make before leaving.
- Do I rent a car to get to my starting point or driving back to my end point?
- Do I take a train back from somewhere in SoCal?
- Do I make upgrades to my most comfortable bike to make it easier to climb while loaded with gear, or do I take my bike which is easy to climb with but can cause knee pain.
I am leaning toward upgrading my more comfortable bike, as being in pain does not sound fun and could cause issues at bootcamp. I am also thinking it will be easiest to take the train back up north after riding south. I will keep this blog updated with my plans for this bike trip by having a post deticated to the planning of this trip. This post will include information on my gear and my thoughts on either starting from the Bay Area and riding south or travelling north and riding back down.
What’s Next?
I cannot be 100% certain on what is in store for me in this next chapter in my life. I took a Navy rating that feeds into 3 different ratings, so I am not even certain on exactly what job I will be doing in the Navy. I do know though, that whatever rating I get, I am going to put all my effort into being the best at it that I can be. I want to work hard and advance in my Naval career. I am excited to learn, grow, and become part of the Navy team. This will be the biggest change I have ever encountered in my life, although I am doing it at a later age, I feel excited like a younger person. I know that my maturity will set me apart from others and may be something that I can use to my advantage in advancing and helping other’s in my Navy career.
What’s next? My new improved life.