Editor's note: Assistant Managing Editor Stephen Dick is in San Diego as part of a Marine Corps Educator Workshop from Aug. 6 to 10. A group of people, including educators and journalists, from all over Indiana were chosen to make the trip, on Marine Corps expense, to see what happens when recruits enter boot camp. His stories and updates will appear on The Herald Bulletin Web site throughout the week.

SAN DIEGO - Watching recruits go through boot camp brings to mind the old metaphor about making sausage: You like it, but you don't want to know the process it goes through.

Young men from all corners of the western half of the United States (East Coast recruits go to Paris Island, S.C., as do all women recruits) stood around the United Services Organization (USO) Monday night waiting for the Marine Corps buses to arrive and take them to the depot, which has been around since 1921 and trained a million recruits alone during World War II.

Adam Pinkerton, 18, from Huntington, Ind., was there and said he wasn't too nervous. "But I know that will change when I get on the bus."

He joined for the reason many of the recruits give. "I wanted a challenge. I want to do combat support." When asked if he worried about the conflict in Iraq, he said, "The war doesn't worry me."

Tim Hroma, 19, Chesterton, Ind., harked back to Sept. 11 for his reason to join.

"I've wanted to be a Marine ever since the attacks. I've been waiting a long time."

The wait was over when a drill instructor came in and told the young men that if they wanted to be Marines they would get outside - right now - and fall in by the bus. The USO emptied out - right now.

Gunnery Sgt. Rafael Vargas was waiting on the recruits at the recruit receiving building. They arrived on the bus with their heads lowered. The plaza in front of it was marked with yellow foot prints as Vargas, joined by Sgt. Anthony Soehagen, climbed on the two buses to let the recruits know they were in a different world.

"Get off my bus," they yelled. "Right now. Quickly." They directed the recruits to the yellow foot prints. "You stand on those footprints, aye aye sir." The recruits responded, a little timidly, "aye aye sir."

"You yell as loud as you can, aye aye sir," screamed Soehagen. "AYE AYE, SIR," the recruits yelled.

When they filled up the footprints, Vargas mounted a speaker platform and told them how to stand at attention. "You

speak to any Marine, sailor or civilian, you will be at attention," he said.

The recruits faced the wall where the DIs read select passages from the Uniform Code of Military Justice from a large poster.

"The Marines do not tolerate drugs, do you understand," Soehagen said. "Yes sir," the boots responded before being herded inside where they would spend the night getting rid of any contraband - cell phones, iPods, prescription drugs, etc, - that they may have brought.