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Coccyx posted:Hmmm, it's tricky guessing how much to disclose but here goes anyway. I've heard stories both ways regarding drug use, and it seems to dependent on the type of drug and the trade you intend on signing on to. One of my friends was flat-out denied to the Navy after admitting to having done mushrooms. I was put on a three-month drug probation because I truthfully went out and said I smoked pot a lot but I had been clean for three months (they told me they wanted six months since I did it last). Hallucinogens from the sounds of it seem to be the big issue because they don't want you "relapsing" or whatever when poo poo's going down or something. It's bullshit, but that's the way it is. Conversely, you could just do the same as 90% of the people I know and lie, although having some sort of paper trail behind you involving rehab may or may not pose a problem there. After a tour as a corporal or a private, assuming you don't spend too much during it or you don't have some girl at home spending all of it you're looking at 15-35k. This all depends on your trade (if you get spec pay, sea pay, danger pay, etc.) and the tour itself. We're pulling out of Afghanistan so at this point you're not going to have a combat tour there, which means you most likely won't get the maximum amount of danger pay or what have you. If your heart was set on shooting Taliban in the name of the Queen, sorry to break it to ya. Our military is a mixed bag. There are tons of problems with it that are pretty common in other militaries as well, but when it came down to our combat arms shooting things in Afghanistan, we were pretty well-regarded and recognized as capable and professional combat troops. Our three main allies (US, UK, Aus), in my experience, respect us a lot, and I have never seen or been in any pissing matches with any of them. From the few international concentrations I've taken part in, Canadians have definitely proven to be the biggest drinkers though, and that includes the Irish. 
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Jan 17, 2011 21:08
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acumen posted:
Well drat, that's exactly what I wanted to hear. I don't particularly want to shoot anyone. There is something very satisfying about sending a projectile a long distance and hitting home but if I can do my job without any shots fired all the better. I plan on getting at least a year of clean time before enlisting to ensure I don't have any gently caress ups on the job. I would hate myself I rushed in too soon and it resulted in some bad poo poo going down, which is a real possibility in this line of work I take it. I've already started a work out regiment and am making sure to get more and more fruits and veggies each day. And I said no offense drat it! I know our troops are hard guys. gently caress, we are a nation of beer drinking hunters with the only nation sport where you're allowed to throw down your gloves and fight it out. I guess I was buying into the stereotypes too much lol but we get slapped in the face with it all the time.
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Jan 17, 2011 22:52
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Welp there are ex cons and what not in the forces, ex hells angels and the like and there are innocent choir boys. So it's really all types. Speeding tickets aren't a major thing so on the criminal side you shouldn't have any problem. As long as you piss clean you should be good to go. As long as it's something you want to do, and if it isn't, hey you only are signed up initially for a few years. So you should be good to go.
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Jan 18, 2011 03:53
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Elgar posted:I was going to say, the SQ that I am "running" right now doesn't get CB'd and it's policy at LFAATC. Wainwright is different I suppose. Why didn't you just get on the SQ here? It's rare for combat arms but some Combat eng have been on the ones run by LFAA. Don't ask me, that's above my paygrade. All I know is that right now is the big push to get rid of all the Engineer PATs is going on now. We have 2 DP1 courses running, 2 SQ courses running and everyone is getting their tools package as soon as they get to PAT. The SQ's going on now are being run in Meaford and Wainwright. Wainwright isn't bad at all. We get CB'd first week, which sucks, but then we earn our weekends. Our course staff is full of good guys and it's pretty relaxed. Only 22 guys on course and 12 of those are Engineers I went to basic with. We're all pretty motivated soldiers and there's no shitpumps I can see yet. The course is pretty relaxed, but it's just day one. I feel like as long as we don't gently caress up this'll be a really fun course. Our sergeant major is loving nuts though. He seems like a Boer War veteran or something. Inspection layout is a joke compared to basic to.
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Jan 18, 2011 05:56
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My Spirit Otter posted:Chances are you'll be cb'd the entire time. Every SQ I've heard of has been cb'd all four weeks Wait, what? 4 weeks? I haven't been in that long, have I? My BMQ/SQ/BIQ were 12/11/12 weeks respectively. Not to sound crusty as gently caress, but please tell me they havn't cut one of those courses down to a third the length. (Yes, I'm aware that before I did it BIQ was 16 weeks. Past me would probably time travel to the future to slap me for saying so, but that probably would have been better.) Also, one of the new guys in my platoon today told me he didn't have Trench Week or AFV. Can someone, preferably one of the Wx goons who I'm sure are running courses right now please confirm or deny?
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Jan 24, 2011 23:38
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BMQ is 13, SQ and BIQ were combined to DP1 and infantry DP1 is now 13 weeks. They had defensive weed ( trench week) in 2008/09 when I was in Meaford. I believe they do a defensive ex on SQ.
Fraser CDN fucked around with this message at 04:23 on Jan 25, 2011 |
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Jan 25, 2011 04:18
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Fraser CDN posted:BMQ is 13, SQ and BIQ were combined to DP1 and infantry DP1 is now 13 weeks. They had defensive weed ( trench week) in 2008/09 when I was in Meaford. I believe they do a defensive ex on SQ. I thought SQ was turned into BMQ/L, since after that I only have my QLs as a sigop.
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Jan 25, 2011 23:29
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Canuck-Errant posted:I thought SQ was turned into BMQ/L, since after that I only have my QLs as a sigop. BMQ/L and SQ are the same thing. Fraser CDN fucked around with this message at 03:00 on Jan 26, 2011 |
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Jan 26, 2011 02:18
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BMQ/L do a defensive portion, then it is participate in section attacks and patrols, then a pl offensive.
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Jan 26, 2011 04:57
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I just finally received my first posting message, on this, my second to last week of DP1.2. Looks like I'm going 1VP. Anyone have any info on that particular battalion?
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Jan 27, 2011 11:22
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Yeah, I'm in 1VP. What do you want to know?
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Jan 27, 2011 19:53
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I was told to draw winter kit, and have been told sweet F.A. with regards to why, other than "you'll be heading North." Just wondering if it's going to be Advanced Winter Warfare, or ...? Also, as this will be my first time in Battalion, I have no idea what to expect as far as the character of the place goes. I've been told that it's a pretty tight knit group, or at least more so than 3VP. Any places/people I should see/strenuously seek to avoid?
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Jan 28, 2011 01:22
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Well, the majority of us are headed on an excersise starting Monday that will presumably be Winter Warfare. As originally told to us it'll be toboggans only and dismounted, but now we're bringing HLVWs for gear/resupply/etc. and the flying kitchen is coming and we packed mod, so I assume it'll be just like any other ex. v0v Draw your winter kit. Buy some snivel kit, also. The Battalion is a pretty decent place, as far as battalions go. Everybody is pretty relaxed overall, and we do very little drill/other dumb useless army poo poo. On the other hand, we're terrible for losing paperwork and organizing poo poo. We pretty much reinvent the wheel any time we try and do anything, so it has its pros and cons. I won't tell you who not to hang out with or any of that, as it's pretty obvious once you hit the ground. Don't be a dickhole and try not to be stupid and you'll be fine. This isn't prison, you don't have to shank someone on the first day. If you end up on this ex (or any of the several that will follow right after one another until probably May) then make sure you have everything packed that you'll want. Note I'm not telling you to pack the kit list, although some dudes *do* get inspected on it occasionally. Grab your Neoprene glove liners or your -100 Sorels or whatever you wished you had when you did your course exercises. Most places you'll end up in the battalion will let you wear them. Oh, and get out of the shacks as soon as is practical. Unless you like spending every night partying and spend all your money on booze and having the whole place filled with broken glass and HIV positive shack rats, in which case get the gently caress out of my army, we have enough of you already. Also, frequent fire alarms. Usually at 3 AM with three feet of snow on the ground. Edit: One thing I should mention. We've been operating at basically a full sprint for as long as I can remember. It burns alot of dudes out, and we have been making do with lovely half-solutions to problems for so long that we've come to except hosed up as normal. I'm sure many other units are the same way, given war and poo poo, but be prepared. Lube helps. Morristron fucked around with this message at 01:50 on Jan 28, 2011 |
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Jan 28, 2011 01:43
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Wicked. I'm coming in on the officer side of the equation, so not too likely to end up in anything resembling barracks. Good to know about the operational tempo, I didn't really get any read on what stage things were at there, other than 'not work-up training.' If you're starting Monday, I'm guessing I'll probably show up and just immediately be shipped out to wherever everyone's gathered, as my COS date is 7 Feb. I've got a fair bit of snivel, but the Sorrels sound like a good idea, as the mukluks can only do so much. I'm not terrible at paperwork and organization, but I'm certainly no rock star, so I guess I'll fit right in. 
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Jan 28, 2011 02:19
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I'll try not to spread me officer hate directly on you, but I will say one thing while you're just a fellow goon and not an officer in my battalion. We have organizational problems. We have problems with hasty backwards thinking. It's *ruining* dudes. Lots of dudes. Please actually give real thought to your leadership, both in style and actions. If you are not already a smart fucker, please become a smart fucker. I'd rather have an empty position than another shithead 2lt who's more concerned about making friends with his pte/cpls and getting drunk on ex. Not assuming you're a shithead 2lt, but if you are, please don't be that kind of shithead 2lt. If I've offended, I'm sorry, but I love my battalion and want to see it in good health. Edit: The adj is a good one. Notice the Vader helmet on the top of his desk when you go clear in to him and you'll probably make a friend for life. Morristron fucked around with this message at 06:26 on Jan 28, 2011 |
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Jan 28, 2011 06:18
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Anyone think they could spare some time to talk to me about the reserves? I can't be an officer (dual citizenship  ) but I'm still really really strongly considering joining the reserves. The recruiters aren't the best at answering questions about them  My AIM is FoWafflehound
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Jan 29, 2011 00:56
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Morristron posted:I'll try not to spread me officer hate directly on you, but I will say one thing while you're just a fellow goon and not an officer in my battalion. We have organizational problems. We have problems with hasty backwards thinking. It's *ruining* dudes. Lots of dudes. Woh wait, 2lts that come into the battalion are getting drunk on ex and being buddy buddy with their NCMs?
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Jan 29, 2011 03:09
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Morristron posted:good intel Thanks for that, I'll make sure to keep as much of that as I can in mind. I still don't know what position I'll be filling - whether it be platoon commander or something a little less glamorous - but I'm certainly looking forward to the challenge. As a lowly Lt. I won't exactly have much latitude for making changes, but will strive to not just be some shithead officer that can't be bothered to do his job properly. The other two guys that will be accompanying me to 1VP as well are likewise competent and motivated. Good to know that about the Adj, our staff had talked up that position as being one generally inhabited by people who would be just as happy to see you dead (or at least someone that you should strenuously seek to avoid).
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Jan 29, 2011 17:04
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I've already said it in person, but congratulations Simkin. Make sure you get drunk and make lots of friends with the troops!
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Jan 29, 2011 22:05
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WAFFLEHOUND posted:I can't be an officer (dual citizenship The U.S. state department got back to me and informed me that I can be an officer as long as I don't send them a letter saying I want to give up my U.S. citizenship, so I guess that changes things a bit. I guess I have another question then: If I want to be an officer, must I have a degree in hand or can I say "well I'm literally a couple of months away." I know I need to contact a recruiter about all this but I'd like to go in with as much information as possible. Also I'm in Fredericton N.B. so I think all we've got is infantry which kind of sucks as far as having options goes.
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Jan 31, 2011 17:03
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WAFFLEHOUND posted:Also I'm in Fredericton N.B. so I think all we've got is infantry which kind of sucks as far as having options goes. You've got Combat Eng too, remember? I told you about that.
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Feb 1, 2011 01:15
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Canuck-Errant posted:You've got Combat Eng too, remember? I told you about that. And the farty school and the tankers and the air defence and the whiskey battree
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Feb 1, 2011 05:22
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My Spirit Otter posted:And the farty school and the tankers and the air defence and the whiskey battree Yeah CFB Gagetown is outside of Fredericton, there really isn't a better place to live if you want to do a combat arm in the army. You'll be able to go home while you're on course!
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Feb 1, 2011 20:44
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tuyop posted:Yeah CFB Gagetown is outside of Fredericton, there really isn't a better place to live if you want to do a combat arm in the army. You'll be able to go home while you're on course! Well, W battery would suck, 260 days or something like a year in the field. gently caress. That. poo poo.
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Feb 2, 2011 01:51
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I knew a guy from my unit who took any chance he got to go to Gagetown for Class B's with Whiskey battery.
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Feb 2, 2011 05:38
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I'm off phase 3 again with a back injury, looks like my little scuffle with a Carl G and a large hole may have done away with my career in the infantry. Oh well, back on PAT. Went to work for 10 this morning where they told me that because snow is coming my next timing isn't until 10 tomorrow morning. gently caress yeah. I've been listening to ex MARS officers tell me horror stories in an attempt to keep me from OTing to MARS. It really doesn't sound that bad. For example, a friend in the artillery was saying that when she was MARS one of the bad blades that she saw, that was fairly common, was the dude up on the simulator ordered a correct right (port? Starboard? whatever) 240. 240 steers the boat straight into land, the helmsman knew this and could interpret that the person meant 140. However, he followed his orders and went 240, causing the person being evaluated to get "yelled at". Seriously? That just seems like your problem for not taking responsibility for your fairly significant fuckup. 
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Feb 2, 2011 15:44
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tuyop posted:I'm off phase 3 again with a back injury, looks like my little scuffle with a Carl G and a large hole may have done away with my career in the infantry. Oh well, back on PAT. Went to work for 10 this morning where they told me that because snow is coming my next timing isn't until 10 tomorrow morning. gently caress yeah. A helmsmen can reply "say again" to prompt the oow to rethink their order but if the helmsman decided to interpret a conning order their own way they'd be the ones getting yelled at. Truth is the helmsman was probably thinking about his own run he has to do in an hour and wasn't paying attention to the situation. I'm not MARS but from what I see there isn't so much backstabbing (at least on course) and that most of the problems are due to stressful academics and the fact that people psych themselves out with all the rumors long before they start. Thats just the training though life in the fleet is different. Honestly with the number of MARS officers in the training pipeline right now and the number of ships going into refit it really isn't a good time to start a MARS career. The wardrooms on ships are going to be chalk full of SLts trying to get time on the bridge for their ticket. I say this as someone who switched MARS - NCS eng though o_O
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Feb 2, 2011 16:47
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How is Naval Combat Systems Engineering Officer? Is that NCS eng?
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Feb 2, 2011 17:11
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The Amputee House posted:most of the problems are due to stressful academics and the fact that people psych themselves out with all the rumors long before they start. Pretty much this. I've heard that the fail rate for MARS 3/4 can be anywhere from 40%-70%. Disclaimer, I haven't been through it yet, but spent a summer with them while I was doing Phase 2. It seems to me that the blading and backstabbing horror stories are really exaggerated. I met quite a few people either being recycled for another shot at it, or having failed twice already and being forcefully OT'd. Coincidentally it seemed that these were the types who had the most negative things to say about it. I also have a number of friends from BMOQ or whatever who really love it, even while they're in the midst of the 'lovely' times trying to get their ticket on a ship.
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Feb 2, 2011 17:34
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tuyop posted:How is Naval Combat Systems Engineering Officer? Is that NCS eng? CSE is excellent if you're at all technically inclined. You learn about all the electronic gear on the ship and how it all works together, then you manage the people who maintain it and provide technical advice to command. You have to understand a lot of technical concepts and commit a lot of systems to memory, but It's not as intense as MARS day to day and nobody in your chain shits on you just because they can. I've been going through CSE training the last couple years, feel free to PM if you have any questions.
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Feb 2, 2011 21:26
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And if you want to be CSE but also want a challenging job (given infantry I'd think so), think about going subs.
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Feb 3, 2011 18:31
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Lt. Jebus posted:And if you want to be CSE but also want a challenging job (given infantry I'd think so), think about going subs. I'm quite scared of fire, though. 
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Feb 4, 2011 14:21
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WAFFLEHOUND posted:The U.S. state department got back to me and informed me that I can be an officer as long as I don't send them a letter saying I want to give up my U.S. citizenship, so I guess that changes things a bit. I guess I have another question then: If I want to be an officer, must I have a degree in hand or can I say "well I'm literally a couple of months away." I know I need to contact a recruiter about all this but I'd like to go in with as much information as possible. Also, you have a heli wing there as well, maintenance, log. Gagetown is a fairly sizeable base with a lot of trades in it. Also, just got back from the BMQ-L field portion. It went quite well I think, however one candidate got hypothermia unfortunately. Even though we warmed him up multiple times. Also a few got sick, the rest were alright though.
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Feb 5, 2011 21:02
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tuyop posted:I'm quite scared of fire, though. You're only allowed to have one fire per submarine class, so no worries there 
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Feb 5, 2011 23:04
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tuyop posted:I'm quite scared of fire, though. Don't worry, on a sub it is definitely the smoke that will kill you
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Feb 6, 2011 21:50
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Sweet. The BMQ-L is done. Now off to Aldershot. Does anyone know anything about Aldershot? As in conditions of shacks? Internet access?
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Feb 9, 2011 02:50
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Elgar posted:Sweet. The BMQ-L is done. Now off to Aldershot. Does anyone know anything about Aldershot? As in conditions of shacks? Internet access? Aldershot is loving fantastic. I did my BMQ and CAP there. The main shack building, I forget the number, is very nice. Seems to be pretty new, custom built for military work. You get dedicated, huge weapons cleaning rooms, pretty nice common rooms, and the showers are alright. The rooms hold sixteen, which really sucks, but that's just the main building. I'm not sure about the others. From that building, depending on where your room is, you can sometimes pick up the internet connection from the Officer's Mess up the hill. You can also just go there and hang out on the internet if you're an officer. I don't know what the Junior Ranks mess is like at all. The best part of all is that it's not in New Brunswick and it's only an hour away from Halifax, so it's nothing to go home on the weekend if you're from there, or get the gently caress out of the Valley if you're not. If you like hiking, the region that Aldershot's in (Annapolis Valley) has some of the best coastal hiking in the world, in my opinion. The bouldering is absolutely amazing, they have fairly cheap skydiving, tidal bore rafting, all sorts of sweet outdoor stuff. It's a beautiful place, in the summer at least. 
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Feb 9, 2011 18:47
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Yeah, should mention I will be Course officer there. I am definitely not going to be sharing a room with anyone. So none of the buildings other than the mess have available internet connections? I will just be there until May.
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Feb 9, 2011 22:13
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Elgar posted:Yeah, should mention I will be Course officer there. I am definitely not going to be sharing a room with anyone. So none of the buildings other than the mess have available internet connections? I will just be there until May. Yeah as far as I know. I haven't been there since 08 though, so the internet situation may have improved.
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Feb 9, 2011 22:49
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Lt. Jebus posted:Don't worry, on a sub it is definitely the smoke that will kill you Are you on the HMCS Victoria? Our sub visited BC one year in 2007 or so and I met a few of the crewmembers(I think it was in the docks at the time)...the only one I remember was some cook with full sleeves who I'm pretty sure was drunk as hell
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