Being married at TBS

["Quality"Spread]

My wife didnt come to TBS and I think that that was the best choice. I know of at least 2 people in my company..1 in my platoon that lost their marriage due to TBS. If you wife isnt there, she will get used to the fact that you arent there...come home at 0200...and leave for long days in the field. If she was in Stafford...Quantico...Fredricksburg..etc, she will have to sit alone in those ****ty towns pretty much putting her life on hold while you are at TBS.. Just a thought, its really subjective depending on your own personal situation. YUT!

 

[KBayDog]

I know of at least 2 people in my company..1 in my platoon that lost their marriage due to TBS...

Sorry, but nobody lost their marriages due to TBS. Those guys probably ate pizza at least once or twice during their stint in Quantico - you could just as easily say that they lost their marriages due to eating pizza. It should go without saying, but those marriages were "lost" due to a lot more than simply going to school for six months.

If she was in Stafford...Quantico...Fredricksburg..etc, she will have to sit alone in those ****ty towns pretty much putting her life on hold while you are at TBS...

Only if sitting alone and putting her life on hold is what she chooses to do.

 

[jamnww]

If she was in Stafford...Quantico...Fredricksburg..etc, she will have to sit alone in those ****ty towns pretty much putting her life on hold while you are at TBS.. Just a thought, its really subjective depending on your own personal situation. YUT!

The wives typically get really involved with each other and fill their days, or she could get a job. There is a lot for wives to do. Besides you will be apart for long stints before you know it that she can't come along on, so why not be with her when you can?

Personally it was always nice to get away from Graves and relax on the weekends or even just a few hours at night.

 

[alwysfaith]

Good lord, I work 12 hour shifts, at night 7-7, its more like will he see me, than will I see him, we'll come together at some point...

 

[ArkhamAsylum]

Another story: my wife got her Masters from FSU while I was in API/Primary, and is now working on base in a (hopefully) transferrable job. She had to fight to get that in-state tuition, but finally got it worked out. Moral of the story: if you dig far enough, you'll either find gold or hit rock bottom.

 

[kimphil]

I have another question about the married Lt at TBS situation. I've read the previous threads and I'm still not sure exactly what the answer to this is. I know that as a married lieutenant, you have the option of getting BAH to live off-base, usually in Stafford. I've heard that you also get a rack in a barracks room at TBS, mainly for late-night events, mess night, etc. So, if you're doing the brown-bagger thing and taking BAH, is there any limit on how often you can stay in the barracks? Here's why I'm asking- when I get to TBS, my wife will be working fairly long hours for a law firm in downtown DC. So, if I live off-base, we have a choice between her having a long commute from Stafford, me having a long commute from Arlington, or some sort of inconvenient compromise. Would it be possible for me to stay in barracks 3-4 nights a week to minimize the nasty commuting, or would I have to give up BAH to do that?

Try Springfield. If you find a location near the Metro, your wife can take the Metro into DC and you can commute in the opposite direction of traffic. With "aggressive" driving (traffic S on I 95 in the morning and N in the afternoon is light) you can be at the gate on the mainside of TBS in 15 mins. I wouldn't recommend testing that limit but it's nice to know that you can do it if you have to. Only try if your car is fast (My car did the Kessel run in less than 12 parsecs).

Other option is to try to find a dump in Q-town. You can probably pocket some BAH, your wife can walk to the VRE and commute into DC (although it sucks to do that; from what I've heard it's crowded by the time the train reaches Quantico and commuters usually have to stand) and you can zip to TBS from the mainside of the base to the TBS side. You could also live in base housing and do the same thing, assuming you have two cars (wife drives to Quantico train station, takes VRE).

Other options, but those are probably your best courses of action.

 

[ArkhamAsylum]

I knew a guy in esday's situation. He ended up getting a place in Arlington and stayed in the Q during the week, except for the rare "short" days. He didn't seem to mind. Springfield is an excellent choice, as there is a lot to do there, and the metro system is definitely the way to go if she's working in the DC area. To give you an idea of time required, you could probably make it to the front gate in 20 mins, but it's another 30 minutes until you're in the door at Camp Barrett. If you're in the Stafford area, the commute is substantially shorter.

 

[kimphil]

I knew a guy in esday's situation. He ended up getting a place in Arlington and stayed in the Q during the week, except for the rare "short" days. He didn't seem to mind. Springfield is an excellent choice, as there is a lot to do there, and the metro system is definitely the way to go if she's working in the DC area. To give you an idea of time required, you could probably make it to the front gate in 20 mins, but it's another 30 minutes until you're in the door at Camp Barrett. If you're in the Stafford area, the commute is substantially shorter.

Stafford's not bad. However, it can take you a surprisingly long time to get to Quantico from Stafford if you get caught in the traffic heading North on Rte 1/I-95 (not normally a problem at TBS because of the early on-deck times). However, any commute into DC from Stafford would suck. If you leave from Stafford to DC at 7 am, count on a two hour commute. Taking the VRE would suck since you would either have to drive 20 miles South to Fredricksburg or queue up at the gate to mainside to get the train station in Quantico. Living in Stafford only works if your wife doesn't work or works in Stafford or Quantico. The worst part of a reverse commute is definitely driving to TBS from the gate. With the construction at Camp Barrett, it would definitely be the longest part of the trip.

BTW, there is a gate along the North side of the training ranges (around R-15). Before 9/11, you could drive right into Quantico from Manassas (so I've heard). If the base had any sense, they'd reopen that gate to relieve traffic at the other gates into TBS/mainside. I only mention this because someone smarter than me may have already done this. If that's the case, Manassas might be another commuting option.

 

[esday1]

Wow, I stop posting for a few months and I still get new informative answers to a question I asked back in February. I really appreciate all the responses. Anyway, to follow up...

I knew a guy in esday's situation. He ended up getting a place in Arlington and stayed in the Q during the week, except for the rare "short" days. He didn't seem to mind.

This is pretty similar to what I'd like to do, since we're pretty happy with our current apartment in Arlington. Could I get DC metro BAH for my wife and kid and still stay in the BOQ during the week (instead of just being assigned as the extra "brown-bagger" in a room)? In other words, is having my family in Arlington far enough away from Camp Barrett for me to go to TBS as a geo-bachelor?

 

[HueyHornet75]

Man, I haven't posted here in forever...Here's my two cents...I'm from California. My wife and I got married in the court. I left her there and collected GEO bachelor pay for the bay area...word...bonded with the boys in 201A, and hit DC plenty of times, PT'd a ton, and made the most out of the situation. Does it suck? Yeah, but we were newlyweds, and my wife was planning the "Wedding" back home, working full-time and living rent-free in a friend's house.
My buddy lived just south of Arlington, so his wife could do her lawyer-thing in DC, and he commuted most days. No thanks. Also, I didn't have my wife to drag me all over God's green during the weekends.

 

[GT Propjock]

Could I get DC metro BAH for my wife and kid and still stay in the BOQ during the week (instead of just being assigned as the extra "brown-bagger" in a room)? In other words, is having my family in Arlington far enough away from Camp Barrett for me to go to TBS as a geo-bachelor?

I just did the Geo-Bachelor thing with my wife in Atlanta while I was stationed at Cherry Point, going TAD to Little Rock for a few months. The biggest thing I have is that if you do the Geo-Bachelor route, expect BAH for the area you are assigned to (i.e., I drew BAH for Cherry Point, not Atlanta). This is if your orders to said location include your family, if your family is not included on your orders, I would believe that you can draw BAH for their local. If anyone knows better/for sure, please let me know.

 

[jamnww]

Could I get DC metro BAH for my wife and kid and still stay in the BOQ during the week (instead of just being assigned as the extra "brown-bagger" in a room)? In other words, is having my family in Arlington far enough away from Camp Barrett for me to go to TBS as a geo-bachelor?

I don't believe so...

 

[ArkhamAsylum]

If the barracks happen to NOT be overcrowded (chances of this are in the range of selecting X-Wings out of primary), you might get special treatment in the form of two to a room. Otherwise, 3 to a room isn't all that bad, as you won't have as much stuff to store there as the "residents". And when the barracks lose power or water for a week, you'll have a proverbial "rear area" to retreat to.
About BAH, I don't think anything in the DC metro area is far enough to label you as a geo-bachelor, but the BAH for Quantico is high enough where you shouldn't have to grossly stretch your budget.