Chow Time! In the army there's this thing called food. Actually, food is also outside of the army, but for some reason, for basic Trainees, this is one of the most important times of the day, when you get to eat! Basic Training is such a physical act that you burn through calories extremely quickly. As such, you eat. A lot. And after leaving the dining facility, within ten minutes your hungry again. Sucks to be you. The only time you ever get to eat is when you are in the dining facility. Or outside at some range eating MREs. Or getting field feed. Have you ever noticed that food is better outside? Like when your camping? Well, there are three basic types of chow in the army basic training environment. Indoor, outdoor, and just add water. You learn about indoor first. Well, there are roughly sixty soldiers to a basic training platoon, four platoons to a company, and at one point during basic training, we had four companies in my batallion. Or was it five? Do the math. That is a lot of people to rush through a dining facility. In today's politically correct army, it is called the dining facility, not the chow hall like they did in vietnam. Though with everything else, this has over time gotten shortened to D-Fac. Any indoor place meant to consume food to an army grunt soldier is called a D-Fac. Kind of like all toilets are known as Latrines. Anyway, You gotta get a lot of soldiers through a dining facility as quickly as humanly possible. So they have this choreographed, and they do it every day. You get used to the routine after you've done it for nine weeks. Each company gets a time frame to go through the D-Fac. Within each company, each platoon gets dibs on who goes first. Within each platoon, each squad knows who goes first. You eat in that order. You squeeze as many people into line as can be fit. You stare straight ahead and don't say a word. When you are standing their, you stand at parade rest as your stomach growls. You see the chow lady, or another private on KP, you quickly tell them what you want. Don't dawdle, the Drills are watching. Make your decision, quick, and get out of there. Pass the Fruity Cake bar but look, don't touch. Forbidden fruit, keep walking. Put your plate down, go back and get a glass of water, pass the fruity cake bar again and then sit down and Eat. Don't talk, just eat. Don't do any sign language either. Chow time isn't for communication with your battle buddies. You're duty is to eat, nothing else. Once your plate is cleared, take it to the dishwasher and get back in formation. Everyone should be in formation within ten minutes. Then you go about your business. Usually class or whatever else. Outdoor chow is relatively the same thing, except its outdoors with Mermites. They bring chow to you. Its hot, and hot is good. You don't have to worry about other companies, its just yours for the most part. You get a main meal, vegetables, lotsa bread, some other junk, and of course the junk food your forbidden to eat but they still have it there to taunt you. The drills usually serve it also. "Hey Private, want a Honey Bun?" So you sit yourself down, your weapon slung across your back, make sure to keep the muzzle out of the dirt, and chow down. Sometimes you can get away with talking during field feed. When you aren't priveleged with field feed, they give you MRE's. Just add water. MRE's have become Infamous in the army. You got a complete meal in one package. Most of the contents are described in paragraph form on the packages. They got this nifty little heater where all it needs is water and you got yourself a heated course. Don't worry about what kind of meat you get, whether its beef frankfurters, breaded chicken or ham slice, to tell you the honest truth they taste all the same. And of course if you are feeling particularly vile, you can always challenge a battle buddy into the saltine challenge. "Hey, I bet you my chocolate brownie against your lemon pound cake that you can't eat all of those crackers in two minutes." Just be careful who you challenge, cause it can be done. -Risawn: # 4:20 PM 4:20 PM