I scrambled to my room yesterday afternoon around 2pm. I threw down my duffel bag and got on the comp. I fired up Firefox and it loaded up my usual tabs, ready for me to get to work; mainly reading up on the news and trying out some experiments.
I've spent the entire past week in the company office as an OOC personnel. Since Monday, I've watched as the numbers grew. We now have eight OOC personnel. The numbers are growing.
It's been a great time so far. I'm not saying this for the sake of my own consolation. A load was lifted off my chest when I received the "Unfit for OCS/SISPEC" letter that the MO gave me. I don't know why - maybe because finally I had some direction and no longer walking around aimlessly. I didn't have to go back up to my bunk anymore and sit around as my other bunk mates studied their materials for the upcoming test. I could have studied, but I didn't - I was going to go out of course... or will I? I took the test as well, and I failed, and I was confused on what to do next. Now that I was officially out of it, I beamed happily.
Our job scope was simple - sit in the office from 530hrs to lights off... which could either be at six in the evening or twelve midnight. We had to answer calls coming into the office and do the usual paperwork. I took this large amount of ball-hanging time to read. I bought a book from a second hand book store in Beach road called "This Man's Army.". Again, it was a non-fiction account of a soldier in the GWOT (Global War on Terror). Back in BMT I was reading the journal of a WW2 Sergeant in the European theatre titled, "Roll Me Over". It used to be the attraction of reading about the action in war... but then after that you realise that's just a small part of it. I've learnt quite a lot on books like this and I realised it made no difference between being in the SAF or in another military. Whatever you see here in the SAF happens elsewhere in other Armies. The waiting, the politics, the training, the difference between officers and sergeants, enlisted and conscripted... I don't worry so much anymore.
I had the privelege of being the CSM's pet and he has given me grace by letting me handle the armskote with him. I'm not sure whether it was because he knew what I did before I enlisted. I dont know, he once came to me and asked,"Audi, you were a stuntman?"
Aside from that, he brought me along almost everywhere he went. I got to see more of Pasir Laba Camp and its other schools. He brought me over to deal with drawing equipment, checking for damages, etc etc. I got to handle the signal sets and had a fiddle with the Night Vision Goggles. I watched as the other units trained. I listened in to conversations and observed how everyone behaved. It's something I do whenever I'm at someplace new. I got to see the real Army, from the support side. It's one hell of an interesting place.
We were left alone, mostly. Our CSM allowed us a certain degree of freedom. It's a good and bad thing, really. I found myself smoking more than usual. I'm talking about a packet in two days. I hope it's just me getting used to the freedom. We could go over to the canteen whenever we liked. I wore my smart 4 wherever I went and no one said a thing when I had my admin shirt in my number 4. We self-managed and came up with a rotation schedule. Of course, the bottom line is that we do our work when we have to. Things were fine when the number was small... at six. With more people coming in, I can sense that this little heaven we created would be polluted with the smelly armpits of self-righteous "volunteers". I had a glimpse of this during book out.
I sit outside the office sometimes, down on the floor. On my right, just across the 2 metre wide road, is Charlie. I hang around there as I watch Jayden and Junior train. I wonder what they think when they see me there "slacking". I didn't seem to be able to spot Jayden at all after the little break.
I take my own little walks sometimes towards the cookhouse. I had a look at Sergeant Rocky in the Chevron Square and the three other statues at the Leader's Heritage Trail. I like Sergeant Rocky a lot. I used to think his pose was a botched attempt at looking anything sort of inspiring. I think I'm beginning to like it though. They sell his little statue for SGD150 in the Gift Shop nearby. I might want to order it. They allow laser engraving on the plaque. I should put, "Sergeant Rocky, whom I never got to meet."
Yes, deep in the back of my head, I've had regrets of being an OOC. I met up with Nicholas on Tuesday night over at Clementi. It hasn't been a particularly good day - We actually had a big party planned by Jayden, then he had guard duty, a few other people started disappearing or booked out late, Justin had some of his own problems and Sgt. Lyndon fell asleep when I forgot to return his call. At the end of the day, only Junior and Joey came besides us. And of course, Sgt. Zaini.
I couldn't help but feel weird as I recounted my experience in SISPEC to Nick. He bent forward as I spoke, intently listening, since he really wanted to be with us. I spoke about out training, the little nuances and vignettes we normally had, all this with the knowledge I'm speaking about it from a third person's perspective. I was recounting someone else's experience, it seems, but through my own eyes. It's a split personality if you ever came across one. My main goal then was to never let it be known that I had OOC-ed just the day before.
I missed Nick a lot and that day he had cheered up from the breakdown he had half a week before. We became like little kids on the playground - making little pacts and having borderline homosexual themes about what we would do to remember "those times". He planned to print pics I took to put in his cupboard. He then mentioned something about printing that little pic that I we took together (Justin was cameraman). The thing is, that pic was a blatant act of anti-machosism. And I don't ever want it to get out.
I was tasked to be a stand-in at the SISPEC guard room on the day of book out, which was their Games Day. Another one of the OOC followed me and I took on the role of "that bastard who never does work" and continued reading, "Death of Innocents". I watched the CCTV monitors and had a go with the gate barriers. I got bored and took a smoke.
I did something I shouldn't do - leave my post - and went over to the field to catch the hoo-ha. It was a really random thing. It was then that I heard a very familiar cheer and spotted a formation that looked so familiar. I was delighted - and pissed - when I realised it was Delta Company with a cheer led by non other than Justin. It felt good to see him in such great energy and mood, coordinating the other 20 guys, and it pissed me off as well because that was OUR dance. It was Yankee's! I learnt those moves!
I stayed around in the hot sun, waiting for the cheer to come up. It did come.. about an hour later. I took a stand infront of the entire school as one by one each company came up to do their thing. I noticed then that there was something different about my company and the others. Mine was still as a stone. The others were going nuts with the impromptu cheers and jeers. What does that mean?
When Delta came up, I leaned forward. There was our good friend, standing front centre. And he just went all out with the routine. It was the usual - lead in, dance, solo, finale. It was fucking fantastic. Simply amazing. The cheer ended, I clapped, and couldn't stop laughing like a little girl. His commanders were cheering for him, and I listened in as they took little playful stabs at the other commanders on how fantastic they were with Justin around. And I'm not exaggerating this. It looked like he had a good chance to go into OCS.
But of course, they didn't win anything, and I expected that. I took a turn and left the area.
A SHORT LOVE STORY IN STOP MOTION from Carlos Lascano on Vimeo.
Back out here, booking in soon, I can't help but notice a lot of people feeling depressed in SISPEC. I don't agree it's the training. From what I've seen it's a no brainer. Jayden's thinking of quitting and Justin just came in with the thought of giving it up... what.... even after that fantastic cheer?
I'd have to digest all this and think about it as I lay in the Company's conference room. Personally, though, I feel it doesn't really matter. I was more concerned with the current economic crisis and the other developments across the world. It really doesn't look too good of a future, and I wished I could be kept updated everyday... at least through a real newspaper... none of that New Paper crap.
I'm looking forward to Oct 7th 2008. It sounds like a special date.
I've spent the entire past week in the company office as an OOC personnel. Since Monday, I've watched as the numbers grew. We now have eight OOC personnel. The numbers are growing.
It's been a great time so far. I'm not saying this for the sake of my own consolation. A load was lifted off my chest when I received the "Unfit for OCS/SISPEC" letter that the MO gave me. I don't know why - maybe because finally I had some direction and no longer walking around aimlessly. I didn't have to go back up to my bunk anymore and sit around as my other bunk mates studied their materials for the upcoming test. I could have studied, but I didn't - I was going to go out of course... or will I? I took the test as well, and I failed, and I was confused on what to do next. Now that I was officially out of it, I beamed happily.
Our job scope was simple - sit in the office from 530hrs to lights off... which could either be at six in the evening or twelve midnight. We had to answer calls coming into the office and do the usual paperwork. I took this large amount of ball-hanging time to read. I bought a book from a second hand book store in Beach road called "This Man's Army.". Again, it was a non-fiction account of a soldier in the GWOT (Global War on Terror). Back in BMT I was reading the journal of a WW2 Sergeant in the European theatre titled, "Roll Me Over". It used to be the attraction of reading about the action in war... but then after that you realise that's just a small part of it. I've learnt quite a lot on books like this and I realised it made no difference between being in the SAF or in another military. Whatever you see here in the SAF happens elsewhere in other Armies. The waiting, the politics, the training, the difference between officers and sergeants, enlisted and conscripted... I don't worry so much anymore.
I had the privelege of being the CSM's pet and he has given me grace by letting me handle the armskote with him. I'm not sure whether it was because he knew what I did before I enlisted. I dont know, he once came to me and asked,"Audi, you were a stuntman?"
Aside from that, he brought me along almost everywhere he went. I got to see more of Pasir Laba Camp and its other schools. He brought me over to deal with drawing equipment, checking for damages, etc etc. I got to handle the signal sets and had a fiddle with the Night Vision Goggles. I watched as the other units trained. I listened in to conversations and observed how everyone behaved. It's something I do whenever I'm at someplace new. I got to see the real Army, from the support side. It's one hell of an interesting place.
We were left alone, mostly. Our CSM allowed us a certain degree of freedom. It's a good and bad thing, really. I found myself smoking more than usual. I'm talking about a packet in two days. I hope it's just me getting used to the freedom. We could go over to the canteen whenever we liked. I wore my smart 4 wherever I went and no one said a thing when I had my admin shirt in my number 4. We self-managed and came up with a rotation schedule. Of course, the bottom line is that we do our work when we have to. Things were fine when the number was small... at six. With more people coming in, I can sense that this little heaven we created would be polluted with the smelly armpits of self-righteous "volunteers". I had a glimpse of this during book out.
I sit outside the office sometimes, down on the floor. On my right, just across the 2 metre wide road, is Charlie. I hang around there as I watch Jayden and Junior train. I wonder what they think when they see me there "slacking". I didn't seem to be able to spot Jayden at all after the little break.
I take my own little walks sometimes towards the cookhouse. I had a look at Sergeant Rocky in the Chevron Square and the three other statues at the Leader's Heritage Trail. I like Sergeant Rocky a lot. I used to think his pose was a botched attempt at looking anything sort of inspiring. I think I'm beginning to like it though. They sell his little statue for SGD150 in the Gift Shop nearby. I might want to order it. They allow laser engraving on the plaque. I should put, "Sergeant Rocky, whom I never got to meet."
Yes, deep in the back of my head, I've had regrets of being an OOC. I met up with Nicholas on Tuesday night over at Clementi. It hasn't been a particularly good day - We actually had a big party planned by Jayden, then he had guard duty, a few other people started disappearing or booked out late, Justin had some of his own problems and Sgt. Lyndon fell asleep when I forgot to return his call. At the end of the day, only Junior and Joey came besides us. And of course, Sgt. Zaini.
I couldn't help but feel weird as I recounted my experience in SISPEC to Nick. He bent forward as I spoke, intently listening, since he really wanted to be with us. I spoke about out training, the little nuances and vignettes we normally had, all this with the knowledge I'm speaking about it from a third person's perspective. I was recounting someone else's experience, it seems, but through my own eyes. It's a split personality if you ever came across one. My main goal then was to never let it be known that I had OOC-ed just the day before.
I missed Nick a lot and that day he had cheered up from the breakdown he had half a week before. We became like little kids on the playground - making little pacts and having borderline homosexual themes about what we would do to remember "those times". He planned to print pics I took to put in his cupboard. He then mentioned something about printing that little pic that I we took together (Justin was cameraman). The thing is, that pic was a blatant act of anti-machosism. And I don't ever want it to get out.
I was tasked to be a stand-in at the SISPEC guard room on the day of book out, which was their Games Day. Another one of the OOC followed me and I took on the role of "that bastard who never does work" and continued reading, "Death of Innocents". I watched the CCTV monitors and had a go with the gate barriers. I got bored and took a smoke.
I did something I shouldn't do - leave my post - and went over to the field to catch the hoo-ha. It was a really random thing. It was then that I heard a very familiar cheer and spotted a formation that looked so familiar. I was delighted - and pissed - when I realised it was Delta Company with a cheer led by non other than Justin. It felt good to see him in such great energy and mood, coordinating the other 20 guys, and it pissed me off as well because that was OUR dance. It was Yankee's! I learnt those moves!
I stayed around in the hot sun, waiting for the cheer to come up. It did come.. about an hour later. I took a stand infront of the entire school as one by one each company came up to do their thing. I noticed then that there was something different about my company and the others. Mine was still as a stone. The others were going nuts with the impromptu cheers and jeers. What does that mean?
When Delta came up, I leaned forward. There was our good friend, standing front centre. And he just went all out with the routine. It was the usual - lead in, dance, solo, finale. It was fucking fantastic. Simply amazing. The cheer ended, I clapped, and couldn't stop laughing like a little girl. His commanders were cheering for him, and I listened in as they took little playful stabs at the other commanders on how fantastic they were with Justin around. And I'm not exaggerating this. It looked like he had a good chance to go into OCS.
But of course, they didn't win anything, and I expected that. I took a turn and left the area.
A SHORT LOVE STORY IN STOP MOTION from Carlos Lascano on Vimeo.
Back out here, booking in soon, I can't help but notice a lot of people feeling depressed in SISPEC. I don't agree it's the training. From what I've seen it's a no brainer. Jayden's thinking of quitting and Justin just came in with the thought of giving it up... what.... even after that fantastic cheer?
I'd have to digest all this and think about it as I lay in the Company's conference room. Personally, though, I feel it doesn't really matter. I was more concerned with the current economic crisis and the other developments across the world. It really doesn't look too good of a future, and I wished I could be kept updated everyday... at least through a real newspaper... none of that New Paper crap.
I'm looking forward to Oct 7th 2008. It sounds like a special date.
Posted by
Audi
Labels:
Filmmaking
,
Henry
,
Jimmy Low
,
National Service
,
Things to come....
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