Yet another interminable post:

Restored post

This whole week has been "cover" week for me. I've hardly been in the Medical Centre, always being somewhere - outfield or in a hall, doing Medical Cover.

On Monday, I was in the land rover covering Support company's SOC at 41SAR's grounds. 41SAR, as I've been told, is right next to the dreaded Detention Barracks. Driving down the road to 41SAR, DB came up, naturally enough, on my right. Except for the barbed wire fences, it could be taken for a normal SAF camp - nay, better, for it is very colourful. Just as in the Island of Doom, however, the cheery exterior conceals a depths with unspeakable horrors. Perhaps, in the SAF, the level of decoration of the camp is inversely proportional to the amount you suffer while in it! I also noticed something odd about the driver. Upon further enquiry, I found that my judicious use of Sixth Sense was indeed correct - he was from HCJC. The way they post us these days...

On Tuesday, I was sent Outfield with Support to cover their Bronco All Terrain Tracked Carrier Driving Test. I spent most of the morning in blissful sleep.

One officer had a notebook open, and inside were some trivial words that he wanted to know the meaning of. After hovering around for a time, I bravely snatched the baton and chimed in, taking over from the person who hitherto had been making the words more understandable to the group gathered round. As I was able to explain better than the one I replaced (I think), I was feted ; He whom I replaced appeared slightly relieved, even, though he was booed as I, a 3 A student, could beat him, a 4 A (and 5 D, 1 M) student, in this arena at least. Stunned by my seemingly erudition, they asked if I was a Uni student (...), and one revealed that they liked to fraternise with students with many As to "absorb" some of, and bask in our aura.

On Thursday, I went Outfield to do cover again, but this time with civilians - DSTA, Singapore Technologies (Engineering, Kinetics, Dynamics and the lot) and others were doing trials of the Bronco All Terrain Tracked Carrier (ATTC) swimming. For some reason, there was someone who was introduced to me as a Catholic Priest. Maybe he was there in case anyone drowned. He asked if I was Catholic. When I replied in the negative, he said "not yet". Gah. Anyhow, he's with ST Dynamics, and has a son, so.

There were 2 boatmen from Steven's unit - 35 SCE. They say he's full of crap but rarely late (so something's changed at least). They say that at Seletar Camp, the pace of life is very slow. But their book in timing is 10:30pm, never later than 11:00pm, so.

We were having a short discourse on mosquitos (Yes, that's how sad - and bored - we were). One person tried sitting in the middle of 10 burning mosquito coils, and he still got bitten. Those mosquitos are irrepressible. Later, prompted by a few, I tried sleeping on my stretcher, but my cough kept me up.

One guy was very kiasu. He had the Nokia splash-proof, shock-proof phone, yet he ziploced it.

My mother lent me Dave Pelzer's "The Lost Boy" to read. I started at about 9am and was done by 2pm. It wasn't bad, but after all it was A New York Times Best Seller for over 3 years, a # 1 International Best Seller and was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize to boot.

Much is said about the innocence and angelic nature of children. In retrospect (and on reading the aforementioned book) though, one realises that there is quite a bit of bullying, peer pressure, malice, spite, exclusion of others from social groups and casting out of some, and people do the oddest and silliest things for social acceptance. Then again, as people age, these are still present, only more subtle. Actually, possibly they lessen in intensity as morals and ethics guide our actions.

Now that we're done with the reflection, it's time to do the other part of the commentary.

I should've known, when my mother lent me the book, that it was going to be a feel-good kind of book. And indeed it was. Intoxicating to many, is it any wonder books from this genre (so to speak) often top the bestseller lists? Witness the popularity of books such as "A 3rd Helping Of Chicken Soup For The Souls Of Compulsive, Incorrigible Gamblers Who Mortgaged Their Wives, Children, House and Dog to Pay Off Their Gambling Debts, And Who Then Resorted To Becoming Pimps For Child Prostitutes, Sold Their Kidneys And Blood And To Pay Off The Last Cent, Burnt Whatever Shred Of Dignity They Had Left And Debased Themselves By Eating Feces On National Television - 666 More Stories To Open The Heart And Rekindle The Spirit". As I read the book, I could feel the author trying to release my endomorphins.

Recently, we got a new Company Sergeant Major (CSM). He seems to be more lenient with releasing the book in/book out books, but he wants to enforce a lot of silly rules, like a lights off timing, and making us reveille by - wait for it - 5:45am! The days of snoozing till 6:45 and not eating breakfast seem to be over. They will be missed.

The quarter of a mooncake that I brought to camp and neglected to bring to Sembawang had grown mould by Monday morning, after 2 weeks out of a fridge. And to think I'd eaten an eighth on Saturday night. Maybe that was the source of my stomachache.

The curse of missing items has struck again, and it now it is the doom of another. James, coming back from our jaunt at Sembawang Wharf, found that his groundsheet, and some other things, was missing. The horror. Apparently he knows where to find a second hand groundsheet, but there's only one left so.

However, the possibility looms of my not needing to pay for the groundsheet that was spirited away - a storeman revealed to me that his friend has 2 groundsheets, so a simple swop, and both our problems are solved. Anyhow, from the Horse's (Storeman Specialist) mouth - groundsheets cost $30-$40 only and the ET Stick $20-$30. Then again, still a hefty sum, actually.

Since my shins hurt, I deigned not to go for Unarmed Combat. And so I missed my Mock Grading, and by extension my grading. And I'm going to take a whole new UC package. Whee. More thigh splitting splits, here I come.

Yaodong may have played his last game - an officer came in asking for his complete Medical History. Uh oh.

We've all these jokers coming in - the latest: One person who ate 16 tablets of Panadol and then claimed he wasn't trying to commit suicide.

Robin and Ian Chen Yi'en are armour warriors too. Whee. I was looking at them when they were getting ready to run their SOC.

One of the mysteires of life is why people think that RJ people are very stuck up. It seems to be everyone's impression, and when I reveal the identity of my Alma Mater, I invariably get comments of "RJ people are very snobbish". A few bad sheep perhaps, or maybe they're just more inclined to be disinclined towards us, and have the mindset that we are "stuck up". One person was telling me that he knew 2 RJ girls. He pronounced them both "very chio" but also "very stuck up".

In a related vein, whenever people ask me if I know certain RJ people, it's invariably Arts Girls they're asking after. Sociable lot, aren't they?

An interesting proposition was levelled at me - A level students with good results (and assumedly who will earn a lot in future) are sent to OCS so during Reservist, the Government won't waste a ton of money paying Corporals.

Alvin, now disrupted, had told us not to send our bedsheets downstairs to be washed, because they'd come back with holes and funny stains. Turns out they won't, and Alvin was the one who was responsible for changing the bedsheets and had lost track. Cluck cluck.

One driver was telling me how all his nights off become stay outs - he just rides out on his motorcycle and comes back at 5:30am in the morning. And who said the MT line people weren't slack? Unfortunately, even if I had a motorcycle, I wouldn't be able to do such as I'd be caught or ratted on. Oh well. And over at 4th Brigade HQ, Som's bunk mates go for illegal nights off all the time. Oh well.

Our Commanding Officer (CO) is very long winded. I think he can give Ho Chin Geok a run for her money! It's simply draining to listen to him droning on and on.

I've got duty on the day of the Army Half Marathon. Hehe, no 5km fun walk for me.

First, in September's issue, our budding Pioneer writer featured me as a Medic. Now for his October masterpiece, he claims to have drawn Mr Ong Chiau Jin. I shudder.

Disturbing thought: The copse you pee at today may be where you take cover tomorrow

Zixuan asked me to go for a focus group at NTU on Monday on, of all things, slimming. Gah. Anyhow it fits in nicely with my schedule, so I'll humour her, but neither Myo Li nor Shuyu will be around (so I can't poke around the latter's room, hehe)

On the bus back yesterday, I saw this NS guy with the Nokia phone with the built-in digital camera. Rich kid! And daring too - that is definitely disallowed in SAF premises, and it's very visible.

My mood was rather jubilant on booking out, but it was soured because of an unfortunate incident with Tse Ming. Normally, he's cheery, jovial and reasonable, but yesterday, maybe because he had a bad day, or was riled by the delayed book out (the Guard Commander was checking bags so there was a very long queue at the gate), he flared up at me. I was smsing him, asking him when to book in - monday night or tuesday morning. He smsed, flustered, back, for me to go to Marina South at 7am on Sunday for the Army Half Marathon (AHM). I replied that I had duty on Sunday, and repeated my earlier question. After giving me the answer - Monday night, he later smsed and called me to remind me to go for Weekend RT, to book in on Friday night. When I replied that I was excused running, he asked me to go anyway, and when I suggested I call the COS to confirm, since RT is mostly running and going would waste not just my, but the Duty Officer's time, he flared up and threatened me with extras, though he finally relented. His parting words (on sms) - "next time I ask you to do something and you don't want to do it, you sign extra, I mean it... maybe you need more weekend duties to wake up your idea". Sigh :( I just hope he was having a bad day. Anyhow, Sunday duty beats Weekend RT in a way because I'll actually get to sleep at home.

Update: I've to go for RT after all, says the COS. Yeh. My camp bed is actually firmer than my real bed, actually, after my brother in law and sister both slept on it daily for 3 months


There was a trailer on Channel 8, and in the background was a track from the Swingle Singers. Intriguing.


Quotes:

[To me and a 5 Distinction, 1 Merit TJC Student] When was the age you all first started masturbating?

[On Porn] There is only one reason I surf the Internet: To Relieve, man, to relieve

We like to talk with you all A Student, to absorb some of your aura... 'All of my colleagues are A students!' (students with many As)

And: [To someone called Wanyuan] Here's my phone number so you can come to my house and eat rambutans (???) - The Commander


Scathing book review of the day:

"HAD enough of novels that make obvious sense? Books with a conventional plot? Stories that actually go somewhere? Characters you can relate to? Then try the latest offerings from Zadie Smith and Nicola Barker. They are probably two of the most frustrating novels you will read this year."

The much lauded Yinkae has been forced to close down. The cries of distress from the hordes of fans are still audible.