Oh what a way to start the week ahead...

Its sunday night and book in blues are fast approaching. Heh heh. Thankfully i have asked for permission to book in tomorrow morning instead of tonight. Every minute spent outside to me is a good minute spent indeed. Tonight the unseen forces of book-in blues are terribly strong. Arrgh. I can feel the invisible weight of checking in back to Pulau Tekong weighing me down. Nooooooooo!!!!!! Give me back my weekend!

All right. Enough grousing about my impending fate. But yours truly indeed feel a bit down today. Maybe its because that i will only be able to book out on Christmas Eve after this book in, maybe its because that dear XinYi is not here to send me away, maybe its because my intake of recruits come on December 10, or maybe its because i have lots of weekend COS and guard coms to do? Problems problems problems.

To think that i would be spending the couple of weeks prior to my favourite holiday of the year ranting down recruits necks and doing sai kang. No wonder sergeants are so cranky when you see them for the first time. Because they have to be confined with their recruits whenever there is an intake. Why why why? I should be soaking up the christmas atmosphere in Orchard Road instead. I heard that it is already fabulously decorated. Dang.

Went out with my gang of brudders today. Had Fish and Co at Tamp mall. Man, i just miss restaurant food. Seems like they are not much better off than i am either. Weasel has lots of sai kang to do as a newly promoted sergeant in armour camp. Happy cleaning up your 84mm dude! Siong. Cheer is going crazy too, pulling his hair out as he juggles volumes of vehicle indention forms and handle tough requests from many big shots. Keep up the good work transport spec to be! Lastly, Yeow our champion recce man has ICCT (intermediate close combat training) coming up this week! Hahahaha!!!!!! Good luck to you champ!

The bottom line is that thousands of other poor men like us are spending our precious youth defending our nation. Yes, there are rounds to be fired, sai kangs to be done, training to be given or received, indention forms to be filled, and even weekends to be burnt. Indeed whenever i am outside enjoying civillian life on weekends, i cant help wondering which unfortunate fellow NSF is guarding Pulau Tekong or SAF ferry terminal. Way to go to all NSF like me! Up lah you people!

Perhaps the toughest form of SAF training is the instilling of discipline. When the top pushes the button, you just have to move. No questions asked. Freedom has now become an intangible part of my life. The unsaid creed in SAF goes "Booking out is a privilege, not an entitlement". When you have it, use it and use it good. Serious. Booking out is probably the only thing any NSF in the army looks forward to. When a recruit is punished through corporal punishments, ie. push-ups or lotsa saikang, there is little impact felt. But confine him or give him a weekend guard duty, he can almost cry that's for sure. (Ahem, i am speaking from experience of course)

Yes i have learnt to appreciate the things i have better ever since i was enlisted. You cannot have everything or perhaps even anything forever. Whatever that's lost may not always be found again. Hope all you fellas out there do not take things(me?:p) for granted too. Heh heh. Time is of essence as long as you are not in camp. Take care fellas, I will not be gone totally. Thank God for the invention of the cell phone!!! Do msg me and keep me updated of things ok? 3 weeks is definitely not a short period of time.

Take care and till we meet again to celebrate Christmas! I love all of you ppl!
(Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way.................)