Near-end week post:

Restored Post

My suspicions were confirmed! As I booked in, I saw people making Temasek's kites. Welcome to the SAF sweatshop.

This morning, we were mopping tarpaulin with soapy water and then folding it up, for use during the system run. Horrible experience, it was. The damned weight was the best part of it all. The stench was rather bad, like cow dung, and our hands got all dirty. Maybe I'll get ringworm, tapeworm or assorted other worm infestations, and get MCs. Right. Oh and my shoes, socks and feet got drenched by the dirty soapy water.

I was at Somchaya's store, to dry my shoes, socks and feet after doing sai kang, and I found out that he gets to exchange his preview tickets for Off days! So he now has 4 more. Unfair! I want also. Oh and his nametag cuts his surname into two - "Liemhetcharat" becomes "Liemhet", Most amusing!

I am confined on the 4th of August for being late for the Battalion Life Run. Turns out I read the Routine Orders wrongly - the assembly time was 7:30, not 7:45. Doh! Incidentally, this will be my first confinement/extra duty ever. You can't run away from this sort of things! At least this beats the last batch of new medics, who all signed one extra duty on the first day because they didn't greet our OC.

Thought: Do Pioneer writers have to write more articles when they sign extra duties? :)

5 Tonners have seat belts for the passengers. Argh. But we don't use them anyway, so.

We went down to the National Stadium today. We sat and performed various antics on, the newly repaired choir stage, the one that was partially burnt down. The purpose of our acting as guinea pigs is to assuage any doubts the choir members' parents might have about the stage's safety, even after it's been certified safe. Bah. More likely, weakened by 800 army boys sitting on it, the stage will collapse spectacularly on National Day!

After posing on the stage, we went down to the field and formed the outline of a heart (as the NDP participants do at one point in the parade, except they form a solid heart and not just an outline) by wearing giant red Mexican hats, which probably aren't washed or otherwise cleaned in between NDP rehearsals.

Apparently the NDP motivators were told that any Army boys asking them for their phone numbers, or pestering them otherwise, would sign 40 extra duties. But then, there's nothing attractive about them, as one of us put it :) Haha.

Looking at the Singapore flag, the thought struck me, as it has before, that our flag would have to change as our country became older. Since the Crescent Moon signifies a young nation, the moon will have to wax at least in our 50th year of nationhood! But then, how old must a nation be to be an old nation? I wonder what East Timor has on its flag - maybe a New Moon, signifying a VERY new nation.


On hearing of my confinement, my dear mother had to gloat about it. I don't know why she is so sadistic and likes to cackle when other people encounter misfortunes.


I think I've found the full version of the stupid "oei" cheer.

http://home.njc.edu.sg/student_council/cheers.htm

NJC OEI

(NJ oei!) oei!
(NJ oei!) oei!
(NJ oei!) Sat! Sat!

Substitute NJC with your desired school name :)