We were up pre-dawn.\u00a0 This hotel really has this graduation weekend thing down.\u00a0 Knowing that the Airman\u2019s Run is early, and the first briefing even earlier, they started breakfast at 5AM on Thursdays.\u00a0 We were there at 5:08 and the place was beginning to get full.\u00a0 Breakfast included Texas-shaped waffles (which I had every morning while I was here!).<\/p>\n
We got to the base by 6:30.\u00a0 The weather report called for a high of 60 degrees\u2026 at 5AM, followed by chilling winds and 30 degree temps by noon and icy rain and snow by midnight.\u00a0 At the moment, we were nice and warm.\u00a0 Barbara found her parents and we parked together over by where the Hemenes family had told us to stand for the Airman\u2019s Run.\u00a0 The parking lot was closed off on one side, but we found an entrance that wasn\u2019t blocked.\u00a0 We were the only ones in this lot (we would use this lot a couple of other times as well because no one else knew about it!).\u00a0 Barbara and her parents went to the 7AM parent briefing.\u00a0 Courtney and I went to guard our ideal corner spot on the corner of Peace Street for the Airman\u2019s Run.\u00a0 This was the spot where the airmen would run by, circle around, and then run by again.\u00a0 This location also had the added advantage of causing a huge gap between us and other parents on the other side of the road (since no one is allowed to be on the streets) which would make it much easier for Jeffrey to find us.\u00a0 At 8AM, wave after wave of Airmen ran by quickly, each with their own colored shirts representing their Squadron and Flight.\u00a0 Jeffrey\u2019s Flight was dressed in gray and would be near the end of the run.\u00a0 Eventually, the \u201cWarthog\u201d Flight ran by and\u2026 we couldn\u2019t find Jeffrey!\u00a0 Everyone looked the same, and frankly, we didn\u2019t know what Jeffrey looked like bald.\u00a0 Fortunately, after his Flight had jogged around the loop and returned down Peace Street, having to slow down to pass the barricades, we saw him waving to us as he passed.<\/p>\n
With the Airman\u2019s Run completed, it was now time to reserve a spot on the benches for the coin ceremony.\u00a0 Unfortunately, everyone else had the same idea.\u00a0 Our ideal spot for the Run was very un-ideal for getting to the bleachers quickly.\u00a0 We got some of the last remaining spots on the benches well behind the action.\u00a0 As we sat down, the wind began to pick up and it was COLD.\u00a0 Courtney, Grandma and I guarded our seats while Barbara and Grandpa attended a second parent\u2019s briefing.\u00a0 The coin ceremony wouldn\u2019t be for another 2.5 hours!\u00a0 By the time the event began, it was 30 degrees, and maybe lower with wind-chill, and my back really hurt!\u00a0 The coin ceremony was shortened a little bit due to the weather (it had begun to rain).\u00a0 Afterwards, we got to grab Jeffrey and take him to the Air Force Lodge, where Barbara\u2019s parents were staying.\u00a0 First though, we decided to go to the Golf Course to eat lunch.\u00a0 We had been warned that the food court at the BX would be packed full of 650 graduates and their families.\u00a0 The bowling alley would be packed too.\u00a0 We figured that no one would even think about the Golf course, and we were right, only two graduates showed up. By now, the wind was gale force and it was really unpleasant to be outside.\u00a0 The food was pretty good and the place was nice and warm.\u00a0 We watched the golf flags flutter and lawn furniture roll across the greens outside as the rain came down at a 45 degree angle.\u00a0 After lunch, we stayed in the Lodge until Jeffrey had the idea to go and watch the Zero Week recruits get yelled at inside the small BX.\u00a0 For the Zero Week recruits, today was the day to get all their basic supplies.\u00a0 This turned out to be pretty fun to watch.\u00a0 The drill sergeants were on everyone\u2019s case and even the cashiers were rude to these recruits.\u00a0 Outside in the bitter cold, the recruits were standing in lines getting yelled at.\u00a0 Hey, at least it had stopped raining by that point.\u00a0 Eventually, it got too cold for us, so we went back to the Lodge.\u00a0 At dinner time, Barbara and Grandma went to the big BX to get Arby\u2019s for the family.\u00a0 We ate dinner in peace at the Lodge, away from crowds (which had been Jeffrey\u2019s request \u2013 he was tired of crowds and people after 8.5 weeks of being with people 24\/7).\u00a0 After that, we took Jeffrey back to his barracks and headed home for the evening.\u00a0 We were told that tomorrow\u2019s ceremony would be at 1PM, not 9AM, because of the coming overnight storm.\u00a0 It never snows in San Antonio, so this was something \u201cspecial,\u201d but unwanted by those who lived there.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
We were up pre-dawn.\u00a0 This hotel really has this graduation weekend thing down.\u00a0 Knowing that the Airman\u2019s Run is early, and the first briefing even earlier, they started breakfast at 5AM on Thursdays.\u00a0 We were there at 5:08 and the … Continue reading