Now I have talked about how different life is when your life has something to do with the Military. For instance, dating or marrying someone that is in the Military. If you are dating or married into the Military, then you know exactly how different life is than the average person that is not in that situation. One important thing that you have to learn, is the lingo. There is a different way of talking that the average person is not used to, and it takes a while to get the hang of all the meanings. From ranks, to buildings, there is practically a whole new way of talking. From what I have learned, it helps to know these things. You may not need to know all of them, but knowing more than the average Military S.O. (Significant Other) could be a good thing. Not only is it good to just have the knowledge, but it also shows your S.O. that you care, and that you have taken the time to learn these things. They will appreciate it. The Military is their life now, and the more you know about it, the more you have to talk about and the more it shows that you care what he is doing, and that you care about his work. Below I have put together some terms and words that I find useful. It isn't even close to all of them, but it is better to start somewhere than nowhere!
DFAC: Dining Facility. Otherwise known as Chow Hall, Mess Hall. Cafeteria style building for soldiers to eat their meals. May have t.v.'s for entertainment while eating.
MP: Military Police. Military members who's job are of a police man or woman.
NCO: Non-Commissioned Officer. Another saying for Sergeant.
OPSEC: Operations Security. Prevention of plans and more getting to the enemy. Read more about that here.
Hooah: The official word of the Army.
Hooya: The official word of the Navy.
Ooh-Rah: The official word of the Marine Corps.
Roger: Another way of saying "understood"
High and Tight: The most common haircut.
ACU: Advanced Combat Uniform. Their every-day uniform.
AIT: Advanced Infantry Training. The second part of training at basic.
BAH: Basic Allowance for Housing. Money given to a Military member and family (spouse and/or kids) for a place to live in.
BX or PX: Base Exchange or Post Exchange, I compare this to like a Wal-Mart.
Commissary: Grocery store.
CO: Commanding Officer.
CQ: Command Quarters. Open 24 hours. An overnight desk duty. If you hear "I have CQ" they're normally saying they have a 24 hour shift, at the CQ.
Humvee: Military vehicle.
MOS: This, definitely know. It stands for Military Occupational Specialty, and is their job title. For example, 11B or 11Bravo is Infantry.
MRE: Meal Ready to Eat. This is a meal in a bag basically, yummy. ha ha.
PCS: Permanent Change of Station.
PT: Physical Training.
Quarters: Military family housing, or doctors direction to stay at home from work.
E-1 Private PV1
E-2 Private PV2
E-3 Private First Class PFC
E-4 Corporal CPL, Specialist SPC
E-5 Sergeant SGT
E-6 Staff Sergeant SSG
E-7 Sergeant First Class SFC
E-8 Master Sergeant MSG, First Sergeant 1SG
E-9 Sergeant Major SGM, Command Sergeant Major CSM
Sergeant Major of the Army SMA
W-1 Warrant Officer WO1
W-2 Chief Warrant Officer CW2
W-3 Chief Warrant Officer CW3
W-4 Chief Warrant Officer CW4
W-5 Chief Warrant Officer CW5
0-1 Second Lieutenant 2LT
0-2 First Lieutenant 1LT
0-3 Captain CPT
0-4 Major MAJ
0-5 Lieutenant Colonel LTC
0-6 Colonel COL
0-7 Brigadier General BG
0-8 Major General MG
0-9 Lieutenant General LG
0-10 General GEN
General of the Army GA
