T minus 12 hours - 6/16/09

Hello everyone,

When I was in the police academy, the instructors taught me very well and gave me the tools I will be keeping in my toolbox during my lengthy career in law enforcement. However, none of them ever really talked about their rookie experiences or gave any of us any insight as to what the first couple of baby steps in this profession would be like.As such, I have decided to make my contribution to the law enforcement community, both in uniform and in this nifty way you see before you. I will be keeping a log of the every day activities of a "daisy-fresh rookie". Sorry if this post is long, but below I describe how I got to where I am now. Enjoy.

I've always wanted to be a police officer. My father used to work for the United States Postal Inspectors, and he was the main reason I got interested in LE in the first place. Just the way he carried himself and how happy he seemed to be initially caught my attention. Then came the father-son bonding, which over a number of years, began with the playing of the police lights, PA, and siren, watching news clippings of him on TV, going to the shooting range, and listening to some of his arrests on 1010 WINS, a news channel in New York City. Sorry, I grew up in New York, forgot to mention that.

After my Dad was transferred to South Florida a couple of years before his retirement, I realized I would be staying here in this mosquito, red ant, sunburn, flying plywood infested State for quite a while. I graduated high school early (23rd in my class of 1025), and found myself at the University of Central Florida 2 weeks afterwards. I majored in Criminal Justice, and three and a half jam-packed years of vigorous studying later, I had myself a Bachelor's Degree. 2 weeks after that, I found myself in Gainesville, FL at the Santa Fe College Law Enforcement Academy. 6 months and one incredibly painful round of OC spray later, I graduated 3rd in my class of 23 recruits. 48 hours after that, I passed the FDLE State Exam. Now it was time to get a job.

The application process sucked. I thought because I was certified I didn't have to go through all the "pre-app" stuff. Wrong. I also thought these applications were only a couple of pages. Wrong again. Some were 40 pages long!!!! .I headed to the Broward Community College where I took a swim test and a physical abilities test. I then proceeded to flood the market with applications. One of them was to a Dade County Police Dept. In fact, it was one of the first applications I submitted. I sent apps as far north as the Palm Beach/Martin border, and as far South as Miami. I waited.If there's anything that sucked more than losing my pants at the Broward College Swim Test, it was waiting on these departments to get back to me. Day in and day out I headed to the mail box and checked my phone for missed calls and voice messages. For a solid month, I heard nothing. Finally, I got a pulse. The Dade County agency wanted me to take a swim test for them. I said I'd be there.

It was April, so I figured it'd be warm outside. Of course, being the Murphy's Law poster child I am, it was ABNORMALLY cold outside. I got there early. The test was at 7AM, I was there at 6:30. One of the detectives greeted us, and I walked to the pool in nothing more than swim trunks and one of my academy shirts. Once I lost the shirt and began stretching, it didn't get any warmer. In my mind I'm like, "The pool must be freezing." I dipped a toe in, and quickly found out the pool was heated. Nice! I swam the test which wasn't too bad, and then began to dry off. There was one guy there who said he didn't know how to swim. I tried to give him some pointers, but he didn't look confident. This was a chance for me to try to get some "pluses" in my corner.

1. By cheering the guy on and coaching him, I could give the guy the strength to pass, hoping one day he would be my partner and would back me if I needed help.

2. By cheering the guy on and coaching him, I could show the detectives I was a team player, and since I had my academy shirt on with my last name embroidered on the back, they'd know EXACTLY who I was.

Unfortunately, the guy sank 5 yards before the finish line. I felt bad, but also felt good I passed. They said he could come back later; I really hope he tried again.After passing the psychological exam (which was a mind-picking 5 hours), I was now in limbo, I mean background . This was the waiting game. I didn't hear back from them for a month until they told me I passed my psych. A month after that, I was scheduled for an oral board. This, for me, was either the deal-maker or the deal-breaker. How I conducted myself would determine whether or not I had a job. I began to run through possible questions they'd ask me, and thankfully, I crossed my "T's" and dotted my "I's".

I walked into the oral board in a NICE suit. I liked the way I looked, I guarantee it. . I sat down ONLY after being told to do so, and they began asking me who I was, why I wanted to be a police officer, what my opinions were on use of force, why the hell my driving record was so long, and if I would be loyal to them if they hired me. I am a damn good public speaker, and anyone who knows me can tell you I can run my mouth until there's no more air left, so I used that to my advantage. I talked my way through it. I was serious, but had a personality. One of the questions they asked me was "What do you know about the Tribe?" On the way to the oral board, I figured it'd be a step up if I knew SOMETHING, so I memorized the colors of their flag (White, Black, Red, Yellow in that order) because I saw so many of them on the road. I could tell they liked that because they laughed.At the end of the interview they asked me if I had any questions for them. I asked, "What is the next step?" They told me to wait outside.

I was so nervous I could barely find the door handle to exit the room. I shut the door, and immediately began to breathe again. I did some square breathing to relax, got some water, and waited. A couple of minutes later the Chief of Police came out, stuck out his hand, and said, "Congratulations, I am going to hire you". For a moment there I felt like I had swallowed a watermelon because I couldn't say anything, but regained my composure and said "Thank you" like it was going out of style. I calmly exited the police station, got in my car, and left. As soon as I rounded the corner I became T.O.; I did the biggest Super Bowl touchdown dance you could possibly do in a 2-seater car. I immediately began calling everyone in my phone. I finally had it. I was a POLICE OFFICER!!! All that was left was a medical exam, which I passed.

On Monday, June 15, 2009, I got my uniforms, equipment, and was told to show up on June 17th at 8AM to get sworn in. I was also told earlier today that after getting sworn in and completing paperwork to show up again at 11PM for my first tour. 11PM - 7AM. I like that, I stay up late anyway.So here I am. Uniform is clean and pressed with all the pins on it. All I have to do is wake up tomorrow, go down there, and get what I have worked so hard for. I am psyched. Tomorrow is the next chapter in my life, and I can't wait to write it.

See you all tomorrow!