Still Eyeing the National Guard

I e-mailed my recruiter just now. She had told me before to "just be patient". But it's been late February since I took my medical exam, and a couple months after that since I last talked to my recruiter. My dad said it took 3 months for him to get a medical waiver for his gout medication.

Perhaps this explains a little why it's taking so long...

Sgt. Dana Kline holds an oversized check for $62,000 at his Georgia Army National Guard armory in Macon, Ga., in March 2007. The check is a portion of the $94,000 he'll receive for recruiting 47 new Guard members. By Elliott Minor, AP

Looks like there's no shortage on recruitment. Of course, that's good news. I just don't understand why it takes so long to hear back on a medical waiver- whether it goes one way or another. Is it just bureaucratic inefficiency?

Meanwhile, on the anniversary of our nation's Declaration of Independence, almost 600 U.S. soldiers re-enlisted at Baghdad's Camp Victory, with 161 serving also becoming naturalized citizens.

The military is starting to offer free LASIK. If I were already in, I might consider using my recruitment bonus to pay for LASIK, myself. I'd hate to serve under combat conditions, and have my contacts melt into my eyeballs from flash burns during a firefight.

I can't help but wonder if this too, might not be another motivating factor for the non-shortage in enlistment. That's a really nice smile. Enough to make any American suddenly feel an overwhelming sense of patriotism and a dutiful desire to serve in 1st Battalion, 211th Aviation Regiment, Utah National Guard, just to bask in the radiance of those teeth, and in those eyes whose warm glow eclipses the sun.