whew... finally can get a chance to visit my blog again... OJT is indeed very very (muz emphaise that it is very different) from all the things we learnt from our FDC course...here the training is super shiong, cos we need to be trained at a higher level so that we can remain vigilant and always operationally ready at all times... had lots of training throughtout these few days, where we were confined to learn all we need to learn, thus cannot book out the last week... turnout rates were at a record high during this periods, and of course lots of tekan sessions too... nevertheless it's all over for now...

hmm... now we are stuck to our usual duties as RPs at the different bases, some of our good friends stayed, others posted out... quite sad in a way to see so many ppl leave changi... haiz but it all can't be prevented too... now heading for a new start at my new changi base (east) instead of (west). here the facilities much better than before and also quite slack in our duties...

today book out le but still dunno wat to do, so i better be off soon to find activites to do (if not they complain say i no life again) that's all for now...

POP lo... finally a full-fledged RP (after my 2 weeks On-Job Training is over). had a great parade on fri, all of us were high in spirits because all our efforts throughout the course had finally come to an end... this week is pretty busy... for we had to do lots of preparations for the parade. other than that we also had to attend our lessons on biochemical defence...

the wearing of theMopp 4 is tough, for it is completely sealed once we put on the mask... the most unique encounter would be the trip to the smoke chamber. the presence of the tear gas in our faces is a true test of our confidence. we had to do many exercises in the chamber like the canister changing drill. the best part would be to take off our masks in the chamber and shout our rank, name, ic number... most of us ended up crying outside...

we had our first (and most probably the last) platoon outing at sentosa yesterday... went to sunset bay to play beach volleyball... went kayaking too since we paid big bucks to get the tickets... had lots of fun playing catching in our kayaks, playing beach volleys with the noobs... the only drawback was the bad weather...CAT 1 weather most of the time... nevertheless, we still kenna sunburnt in the end...

after that, i went to jessie's 21st birthday... saw most of the ppl of the (long gone) haven study group... talked a lot about our army lives with the rest, and listened to exciting stories by vincent during his daily rountine patrol as a policeman in his neighbourhood... all the gruesome stories about death etc etc...

now still spending my last few days as a part time civilian during my block leave before i go back to camp for my new phase of training on wed... that's all for now.

this week super slack... not much happenings... spend most of my time slacking in the bunk listening to yes.93.3 fm, if not then sleep cos CAT 1 (due to heavy rain)... the only thing impt would be the armed drills conducted by RSM for our passing out parade... if not nuthin else le...

sat is the most busy day of the week ba... cos have to meet zhiqin cos it's his 20th birthday... us (me, qin, xia, lin) went out to celebrate with him at toa payoh yesterday, but somehow we couldn't find anything meaningful to do... in the end we only went to eat there before we decided to go to cck to watch the maid... but no longer showing there le... thus we just slack and took tons of neoprints and perhaps photos from xia's digi cam... other than that, nothing else le...

tmr is the magic tournanment in our bunk le, organised by the usual organiser, me. just formed a new deck to play, but i guess confirm lose one cos super lousy... the rest of the platoon mates all pro one lor... but have a chance to see all the rare cards of the old editions... hmm... i guess that's all for now...

whether i'll stay or be posted out will soon be revealed next week when i pass out lor... hope they send me to sembawang camp...

finally... ex. Earthworm is over... let me see, left 2 more weeks to my pop le... can start packing my stuff from my overly crowded locker. this ex. earthworm is really the whole essence of the FDC, no wonder ppl say this course is super shiong, now i know why. most of us had rarely more than 7 hours of sleep for the whole exercise, which lasted about 4 days 3 night. we did lots of training during these few days, with most of the time used in our trench digging... all i could remember is that we dug and dug, without any faintest idea of when the command post will be completed. but most of us hang on through shere willpower.

i have been wondering why there is so little turnout since last month, as it is a policy to have turnout to keep ourselves alert and vigilant at all times. during ex. earthworm, i finally realised why. they had been storing all these plans for the ex. lor, super sian... almost every 2 hours got 1 turnout, and we were left extremely exhausted (both physically and mentally) cos there will always be some form of punishments everytime, and with the inclusion of 5Bx every morning and trench digging through the night, it is little wonder we were totally wore out...

but never the lest, it is over. now left with a couple of more activities before we can finally pass out as part of the field defence squadron in maintaining the security of our country (so cliche). hope that all's well that ends well ba... i look forward to the day we pass out... POP lol...

this week been pretty busy, with a long chain of unexpected occurences that resulted in a delay in most of our activities for the week. supposedly to be able to complete our platoon live by 3pm as a result of the large number of long status and report sick personnels. thus only left with enough fighting fit to form 3 platoons for the run. but guess not everything is according to plan. the weather decided not to follow the rules and it rained all day yesterday, as such delaying our schedule (almost tot i couldn't be able to book out yesterday night).

these few weeks is the monsoon period ba, and thus heavy showers and occassional thunderstorms can be expected. but i seriously hope that it will be sunshine for the next week cos it's the Exercise le... arghh... after so much fear and anticipation, it's finally here, EXERCISE Earthworm.... time for us to say goodbye and dig our graves for the next 5 days...

penghui going to pop next week le... then he'll become a corporal (then can pump me liao)... so envious and yet happy for him... i wonder when will it be my turn to pass out (3 more weeks)... seems like a long journey considering that i already completed 9 gruelling weeks under our PS and sergeants... press on ba... by then i'll be able to pass out with pride... till then it's time for us to overcome our major obstacle... the exercise...hehe

week 8 of the FDC is over, 4 more weeks to POP lo... not much happenings this week, cos the scedule for us seemed a little mixed up and unreliable, at least for now... all i could remember in my faintest memory is that we had to build another prowl (the roof only) and that we had our IPPT again, this time round with the monetary reward... i guess money can really make the world go round ba, cos even i myself is shocked that i could finally get silver... first time jump so far for SBJ...hehe

there was a water shortage too at our bunk area, first it was only our block, then our entire company had to share 1 pathetic toilet, then something worst happened, the water ran out there too, as well as the water tap from the boots washing point... so in a way, the whole place experienced wat Sgt Zai Wei said " water discipline"... the lucky thing was perhaps we were due to book out early the next day...

we had a outing this sat, which turned out to be a complete failure cos no one went, shawn and daniel and many more decided to "fly F16" on us, and in the end SM, me were the only ones left, good thing was that andy decided to come too, at least late was better than not present... saw so many section 2 ppl in town too... that's all i have for now le ba... next week is late book out, so i guess there will be little time for another outing le...

long weekend this time round, so got more time to rest and play around lor (go back to modern civilisation)... hmm this week been a very busy week, mentally and more physically exhausting due to the POI exercise and all the punishments due to our slow movements. but all was paid off with a long weekend (from sat to wed) more time to rest and enjoy myself in the mood of the national day.

this week is the POI week, thus have a lot of things we have complete by a certain time limit... the training is tough, but the building of the prowls is the worse. so tired until my hands tremble at the sight of the sandbags lor... keep on doing the sandbags so 3 days, so scared of it le... can u imagine the sight of the sand pit and all the sand u have to fill up into the bags...scared out of my wits lor... even until sat also haven finish all, tot cannot go home...

hmm... MB (Muscle Brain) become more sadistic this week, dunnno why also. very stress. came up with a lot of new exercises for us to do (like rotational push-ups, chicken backside, running on the spot, rotational krunches etc etc) almost killed me lor... who knows wat will happen next week during Exercise Earthworm...haiz...

5 more weeks to the end of course le, then after that will be pure heaven lor...hope that day comes soon... till then i shall rest and take a break i continue my journey through the field defence course...

haiz.. corrinne may concert this wed, wanted to go see it a lot, but too bad have to book in by then. haiz... wasted sia. she is a singer i admire, cos she is super pro lor (reminded me of the female version of jay, so talented) haiz...

tmr is the nation's 40th birthday, i wish that Singapore will continue to prosper and grow for all to stay in...

half way through the FDC course le... 6 more weeks to go... this week is the fibua week, quite a good experience in learning something that can be learned only from ASLC and above. very exciting to know how to comb a building and all that stuff... other than that, this week slack lor, more slack than the RP phase... nuthin much to say about lor... just eat and slack that's all...

hmm... this week book out also dunno wat to do, the only activity i have for now is the movie tmr morning with my gang, penghui, weelun and molly lor... dunno where molly found the lobang one to watch "the island" at such a cheap price. but have to wake up super early for it lor... but used to waking up early le la (everyday sleep in fear of a turnout lor)

saw irene on the bus the last week, tot could meet her again this sat but something cropped up in the last min... been a long time since i saw her le, dunno why but she seems to be the only net friend that i'm still in contact with... the rest leh? dunno also, disappeared into mars i supposed...

not much happenings these few days so i will cut it short and end here, in preparation for the tough training coming soon ahead (Ex. Earthworm) buaiz for now...

btw, the only weekdays i'm free would be the national eve and national day that's all, so wan to go out can msg me earlier?

here comes the begining of a new phase of training le, much more physically demanding then before, but i will remain Invictus*. had lots of section movement training this week, where we learn how to work more cohesively as a team. tried out a lot of different types of weapons, though i never got a chance to use it (only carried it for the weight only).

the most shiong thing i had this week would be most probably all the circuit training under "My Chu Chu". A bit too shiong for most, sometimes even i feel shacked out too... arghhh, cannot take it le... on tue i almost tot i couldn't even get pass this week lor, but in the end, i still managed to survive...

next week is Fibua week le, outfield training that cuts everyone from the outside world. guess it'll be as tough as this week ,if not even worst, but i think i have to take like a man lor... My train up even more, if not "My Chu Chu" will complain "why gentlemen, training very slack is it?" so "ur biceps bigger then mine har" lol... keep the jokes within these four walls ba...

that's all i have for now, even though more things happened than that, but i think it's better to share it when we have a chance to meet... buaiz, be back again next week (unless i kenna confine la)

*Invictus- Unconquerable

been raining heavily these few days, and thus less outdoor training this week. been quite slack (the one and only week) with occassional outbursts of turnouts and punishments from the sergeants... spent the whole week mostly in the lecture room learning about the skills to become a RP. Had a test last thursday, and to my surprise i actually passed it (of course la).

We actually had a Happy Hour last thursday too (the one and only one), had a chance to rest from such a hectic week since our course started. but good things wouldn't last, this could be the last one we will have cos someone actually went to complain about the Happy Hour. Hmm... speechless too, Happy Hour is a not a neccessity, so we shouldn't be complaining about it lor...

Next week is section live firing le, a bit scared and yet excited too... mixed feelings ba... there is a high danger risk but i expect all to turn out well if everyone listen to instructions... hope eveything will be ok ba... that's all for now, be back again next week...

lol... back again le... lol my birthdae just went by 2 days ago... had such a "fun" time in camp lor. my platoon ppl help planned a very very special "event" for me... so special until i almost died in the toilet... arghhh... they are indeed heartless sia. never pity me one lor... even try to pour the whole bottle of prickly heat on me... make me shiver for the whole night (cannot sleep)... so cold like shit lor.

this week been quite ok. maybe except for the push ups and pull ups we had to do everydae for lunch and dinner. the worst was the turnout, which happened just a few hours ago... suffer like hell... the sirs and sergeants scold us like hell, do pumping until my hands tremble lor... make me on high alert for the whole night... arghh...

hmm... that's about all that happened for this week ba, since it's all lectures these 2 weeks... see ya next week then...

back again to my very own haven... somehow miss it a lot... these few weeks had been fine for me (at least for now)... i've been posted to become RP for now... tot it was a slacker job, but man i was super wrong. the course i'm attending now is super shiong (FDC- field defence course) everydae like can die one. to think that other RP course is 2 weeks, mine is like 3 months lor. very different from training in BMTC.

forgot to update my blog the last week cos got too much things to do, need to buy a lot of stuff for stand-by-universe (can die one)... my PS reminded me of the Orion PS David... got an air of aura one lor...lol

haiz... lots of stuff happened these few weeks, with the most impt being the range lor... i'm super sad lor cos i miss my marksmanship lor (along with the $200 prize money)... NS pay is very little le, now got a lesser source of income damn sad lor.. but i'll train my physical fitness cos still got IPPT, muz get gold this time round (another source of $200) for me... hehe...

Exercise Earthworm cuming soon le... dunno whether can survive or not lor... but no matter wat, still have to try my best to complete the course (no more recourse for me)... see ya for now... time to pack my field pack stuff for stand-by- universe le...

ps. my com still spoilt, beyond repair le.. so have to use the library com for now, my tagboard also cannot use cos here got filter lor... so if got any msg for me, can send to my email, friendster or sms me lor... buaiz for now...

lol... finally got a chance to use the com again (right here in wdl library)... this week has been a busy one, packed with activities from morning all the way till night (time is running short for me that's y)... everyday went out and eat, eat and still eat lor (looks as though it is my only hobby)... went to lots of places to eat too, tried a lot of stuff that i never tried before, and also spend money like a river lor... no consideration for saving up (my this month pay all used up le) hmm... yesterdae met up with my sec sch pals, long time never meet them le, xia, lin and qin, though mild couldn't come too...haiz... had a great day there... first time i went to the esplanade too, wow... perfect place for ppl who enjoy wat they call "a haven for the arts and inspirations"... lol... but good times don't really last... very soon, my break will be over and i'll be back to the army at changi air base (damn far from my house lor)... see how everything goes ba... be back here next weekend to update my blog (if there is no such thing called confinement period lor) k i'll end here... see ya soon...

lol... here's a poem for all to enjoy... sort of explain my feelings yesterdae at the esplanade... done by my fav. teacher, mr koh. found in kutlama 2004.

Letters Night

laid pressed between pages of diary,

letters you wrote for me.

i touched your hand within these notes today,

not knowing just why. words

penned, speaking familiar conversations,

echoed in laughter and ease.

a call to believe

promises we once held,

with open hands.

i didn't forget the times we spent;

tea-breaks in canteen, simple instrumentals on cds

making breakfast with campbells and cheese,

talking till 3 in the morning.

reaching out,

grasping on bits of future uncertain;edges

of inspiration we sketched on skies

drifting, pencilled in wind-

starred sihouette trees. we once wished

like children

one october night.

i remember

how little beginnings come framed

in sunshine and moonlight-

they flicker on like quasars

in the late evening sky.

now,

your letter writes and empty silence

for i only hear my voice;

seeking places, sheltered

from what i held inside.

you cared enough to let me know-

in the end, that was all i sought,

after having held only fragments

of your memory

in my hands...

having remembered our beginnings

and these waking moments of our end,

ruth came hidden in my honesty

there's so much i still try

to carry through.

i guess you never knew,

even while i loved you.

been thinking about my days as a recruit in Orion Coy these few daes... dunno y but i sort of miss it a lot... i miss all the fun times we had in tekong

i miss...
all the ppl of Orion platoon 3,
all the "Orion 3, fall in now",
all the "lights out 2230, revelie 0530, fall in for 5BX 0545 ...",
all the "are u all shacked ?",
all the " where's ur platoon integrity",
all the road march ,be it 4km,6km,8km,12km,16km or 24km,
all the cheonging during field camp,
all the mine sweeping during SIT test,
all the CPT 1 and 2 ,
all the songs we sang,
all the cheers we did,
all the " my body says enough, my soul cries never..."
all the "reference row, reference row, reference row READY..."
all my sirs, be it sir Zheng or sir Kelvin,
all my sergeants, be it SG Sugu, SG Kiran, SG John, Sg Amiran,
all my sections mates, platoon mates
and all the ppl related to Orion Company,
59th Enhanced BMT is now history,
though i continue to miss them all...

No words can truly captures all the great experiences i had in Orion Company, though it will remain in my heart,
forever...

Lol... my com still screw up as ever, but i realise i can still post in my blog through public com at wdl library... so in a way, i'm back and active (though i can't be as active as before)... Just to give u guys a brief history about wat happened the last few weeks... lol... i finally POP liao, now private rank liao, no need to go back tekong for basic military training (unless i screw up and end up in sispec lor)... now enjoying my block leave which is until 20 june before i report to my new unit... so for those wan to meet up, here's ur chance now... erm... i guess i can only update my blog once a week cos i can only book out on weekends in the future... so this is my first post for now, i'll try to tell u all about my experiences in BMTC soon....