7 and a half months now and still going strong

One of the rarest times you people will ever hear me complaim im sure. This was one of the best weekends I had since coming to SISPEC. Was able to catch up with my bros(trashed em all at pool), have some personal time, and also most importantly spend one whole day with my gal. Indeed time does not come by easy especially when you have less than 40hrs a week to spend with your friends and loved ones.

'Life shouldn't be so melancholic' says the lyrics of a song. But i cant help but feel this tinge of sadness enveloping me. Maybe its because im all alone at home the whole day, maybe its because of the tons of thoughts running through my mind, or maybe its all the worries that im carrying. Only God knows.

Never knew family and friends could mean so much to you especially when you are serving the nation. Its been more than 7 months now. And yet at every book in I feel the same sadness as I kissed my dear gal and my mom goodbye at Tekong Ferry Terminal on fateful Febuary 17, 2004.

Take it like a man! Many have said that and so have I. But its not easy indeed to leave everything you held so close to in the civillian world and be cast away on an island filled with rigidity and totally devoid of life, feelings and communications other than my handphone(and I thank God for that everyday). I was never adequately prepared to sacrifice so much of my life in order to serve the nation.

In my bmt and bslc in sispec, I've watch countless people getting 'out of course' and being downgraded to a lower pes status. I've often wondered why I was not one of them. I could have easily been a clerk or an admin personnel if I tried. As i struggled between weighing the call to serve the nation and the sacrifices I have to pay, I cant help but wonder why do all man in S'pore have to suffer this fate.

I thank God for helping me to sucessfully completed my bmt and bslc safely. Those who were with me during trainings probably know that God kept me safe many a times now. I thank my dearest gal for providing me with moral support and courage to go through what I face daily. Thank you dear for all your calls, your messages, all the things you have bought for or gave me, and all the time you have spend with me at every book out. Wonder how I could have got by without you.

I thank my family too as another pillar of my strength. My brothers were always there to hang out with. Thank you mom for trying so hard every weekend to stuff my already quite full bag with the tidbits you bought or made. I thank my elder bro for sending me to Pasir Ris during book ins. I thank my granny for bringing up the family these past few decades and the thousands of meals she whipped up in her lifetime. I thank my dad for working so hard daily to bring home the bread and butter for the family.

Now as i reflected and looked back, what I have contributed or have achieved in my life pales totally in comparison to what others have done for me. Many more have been a greater blessing in my life than I have in theirs. I cant help but feel a bit guilty for not studying hard and doing my best now. Why was i such a big git last time?

Well regrets always come too late don't they? In life we learn many things the hard way. Sigh.

Time to book in. Maybe this week will be better. Signing off for the week now. Take care all you people out there. Have a great week ahead.

AHM-You wont believe it till you ran it

Woohoo!!!! I completed my army half marathon! Done it in a not too impressive time of 2hr12mins53s though(the winner clocked 1hr13mins). Due to the tremendous number of people, we were literally walking for the first 3km before there was a chance to break off and jog.

Stage 1: 0-3km- Was feeling rather frustrated because of the slow pace of the jog. Whata waste of my precious time!

Stage 2: 3-6km- Things got better as we hit the ecp. Was able to break off and run on the outside of the demarcated lane despite the shoutings of the traffic policeman and road marshals. Oops!

Stage 3: 7-10km- The cool sea breeze of East Coast Park never failed to lift my spirits up. Reminded me of the countless hours i spent with my darling dear. Yay! reaching the halfway point liao. Ran a bit faster. Where is the darn gatorade man when you need him?

Stage 4: 10-13km- Reached the halfway mark and dropped a piece of paper with my number(those smartlings will know if you try to run a shorter route). Fatigue starts to set in. Wish I had stronger ankles like normal people do. Bah!

Stage 5: 14-17km- This was definitely the worse stretch of the race. The 15km sign seemed the furthest from the 14km sign. Sheesh. Got overtaken by a girl in her 20s, a sylvesyter stallone body alike guy, my school commanding officer(in his late 30s), a balding man with superbly toned legs and a stray dog. Was wondering if i could jog all the way to the end point.

Stage 6: 18-19km- Outstanding. Water points every few hundred metres. Just what i need. Ran the slowest pace at this juncture in the whole race. Almost walking speed. No sign of the end point. Just have to keep on running.

Stage 7: 20-21km- Yes. Reached marina south park and i could roughly gague the distance left. Ran with all my remaining might left. Maybe the pom pom gals and cheerleaders in mini skirts gave some encouragement along this stretch. Crossed the line finally. Dogged tired, ankles swelling. Never felt better and so accomplished in my life before.

Indeed you can achieve whatever you set out to do. Make your body believe what your mind says. If anything at all i learned today, the above mentioned sentences probably summed it all.

What if Harry Potter and his magical world existed in S'pore???

Hey People check this out- See if you folks agree.

What happens if harry potter and his magical world existed in S'pore

1. He would be registered under the foreign talent scheme immediately. (people of his kind are too foreign)

2. 1 galleon would be equivalent to 1 dollar in S'pore( inflation rates and high standard of living). From rich kid to pauper.

3. On top of that he must purchase coe and pay erp plus buy parking coupons for his broom.

4. Will sleep in the maids room under the stairs in the Dursley's home like some maids do in S'pore.

5. Will learn that potions can either be 'heaty' or 'cooling' during potion classes.

6. Hermione would be called a 'mugger' instead of a 'muggle'.

7. Fortune telling(divination) would be taught since primary school.

8. His mother tounge would probably be 'parseltongue'.

9. Harry would marry Hermione before 30 and have 3 kids in order to benefit from the third child priority scheme.

10. Owls will be either red, yellow, or green in colour depending on the communication company it comes from.

11. S'pore pools will start excepting bets for the Quidditch Premiere League.

12. Harry(ironically) would be the leader of a certain political group because of the lightning shape scar on his forehead.

Cheers ppl!

Dawn attack 0630 hrs. I should be a sleeping at that time!

Boom!!! Artillery fire rained on our objective (the enemy base). This was pathetically stimulated by our seargents throwing thunderflashes from the hill top. The last artillery fire echoed down the hill as the order to charge up was given. Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!! My voice sounded a bit hoarse or so I thought. Who cares? Friggin gradient of the hill and friggin irritating tall thorny grass blades. Thankfully the uniform is thick. After 8 'destroyed' bunkers, 7 'casualties' and much shouting form the sergeants and officers about how poor our fire and movement was, we finally captured 'Susan' (the code name of our objective). 7am. Never realised 30 minutes could be this long.

Bah. Who said the jungles in mainland were better than the ones in Tekong???

After hiking up the hill for 2hrs with a 20kg load, we finally reached our objective. Eyelids felt heavier than usual. Was beginning to wonder if I would still be able to walk when i am 50. No time for much pondering though. There's lots to be done to secure a habour base. Took a short nap at 3 am, fully equipped of course with helmet on and my trusty sar slung to my body (in case we were suddenly 'attacked'). 4am. Time to move off for our attack on our objective. Had to hike up a hill that looks almost vertical (why are enemies forever so darn smart?).

To think I thought hiking was fun last time. After 2 more hours of torturous ascending, we reached our objective at 6am as scheduled. Had to wait fot the green light to attack. Totally wet, tired and cold. I miss you my dear. Civillian life never looked better from where I am now.

Woohoo! Heliborne finally!!!

Went to 127 Squadron for my helicopter ride. Can't believe it takes a whole day of training just to be able to sit in a helicopter. Bah! My first impression of the Chinook- HUGE! Had one more dry run (aka practice) of boarding and alighting from the Chinook before we waited for our night ride. I felt like a 6yr old again waiting for a kiddy ride. Excited of course! Finally the seemingly endless wait ended. The helicopter finally came. We had to run 50m towards the craft. Well the wind from the helicopter blades was stronger than i expected definitely can blow people like sok and ning away). Hee Hee. With minimal difficulties, we boarded the craft smoothly. I was fortunate enough to sit beside a window (there are like around 10 of them only).

Take off!!!!! The view i saw later was probably one that would remain in my mind forever. Totally breathtaking!!! The well lit northern Singapore coastline never looked more beautiful. The dark seas captured the colorful lights from coastal entertainment centres. Views apart, it was a pretty good flight. Too bad about the lack of in-flight entertainment system, those pretty air stewardess, the soft adjustible seats.

Touch down. Sian. Fun's over. Here I am at the foot of a thickly forested Marsiling hill. Stoopid Ex.Grandslam2. 2 dreadful days of jungle training. Oh well.

Monday Blues juz got more blue

The week started off with a boring day of pure lectures only. Man! How am I suppose to endure 9hrs in the freezing cold lecture hall? thankfully I got by with the sweets my dear dear gave me (You do not want to be caught sleeping during lectures in my company, trust me). Apart from that it's a day of little action and plenty of rest which is much needed for Exercise Grandslam2 tomorrow.

Its never too late to start

So i have finally decided to reveal all my darkest secrets to all you netizens out there. Big deal?
Yah right!

Nah. This is just collection of snapshots of the various scenes in my life which is unfortunately all in GREEN now(does not take a genius to figure out why). Yes indeed! A publication of the main events i experience daily or at least every 2 days(if i am not too lazy).

All you readers please feel free to bring up any comments, remarks, criticisms, disputes, disagreement or just about any admonitions of any kind through the friendly comment icon somewhere in the blogs.

I as the writer, will pledge to do my utmost in writing this blog as friends know that writing is one of my many pastimes. I hope this blog will bring all of you people with lots of entertainment, insights, news, information or at the very least you all can pity all that i am going through(joking!).

Ps. This blog is especially dedicated to my dearest gal. Now at least you know what is going through in my army days now. Take care my gal.