One week down, 15 more to go in basic training.

Generally, the army is about getting up early, exercising and spending all day either in class or out in the field, training. A certain amount of time is alloted to cleaning, eating, dealing with equipment and randomly getting punished (push-ups, sprints). The news is that I now have an M-16. It's the shortened, improved version, and I have a Meprolight on it. This little scope-looking thing doesn't magnify the target, it just shows you a yellow dot when you look through it, which helps you aim quickly. After a year, everyone gets an M-4 "flat-top", which is the latest best thing by Colt of HARTFORD, CT. Yes, as strange as it is, all the M-series weapons in the IDF have my home address written on the side.

I also happen to have been the 2nd best marksmen in my company of 119. I am quite impressed with myself. We shot at a little piece of paper at 25 meters, which doesn't sound like a long distance, but when the target is small, it's quite a challenge. My first five shots were within 1.5 cm of each other, which is very good considering the average was a 5-6 cm spread. Next week there will be much more shooting, so I'll have to improve. If I can get it to under 1 cm, I will beat that one lucky kid who was the best shot in the company. The point is that the expensive lasik surgery I had a year ago gave me the 20/20 vision, which is a fundamental requirement. But everyone has that, with or without glasses. What makes someone a good shot is the ability to relax and focus.

This next week also promises to include some hiking and crawling - two basic army activities. The fun is only beginning.