I never thought I would see this day coming. I mean I got so used to seeing people leave. I never thought I would leave myself. It's almost surreal when I took back my Pink I/C. Remembering the day i relinquished it on that scrubby island in that scrubby Ulysses Coy for the GreenCard. And so the story that began on that little island ended in Changi Naval Base not too far south...
It was just 2 years ago when i had relinquished my I/C on tekong in that auditorium unknowingly. All the feelings that accompanied me when i first set foot on that island, i felt i could collapse from over-feeling. Of course, this whole new life isn't something one gets acquainted to overnight, i meant all the incessant, nonsensical shouting of course. I couldn't fathom how a human with intelligence could stoop so low, suffice to say what's being done acheives its objectives in a crude manner. SO, i did make friends in BMT, one has to, to survive. I could remember the myriad types of people we have, even though it was a JC platoon.
We had the slackers. The Bastards. The clueless. The only-PHD-beng. The aristocrats. The silent ones. The gossipy ones. The one-who-can't-sing-for-nuts. The chao-geng kia. The cheena-types and so many more... Of course there were some nice moments and those downright dirty ones when people quarreled or played stupid political games behind the scenes (being a JC platoon, nothing was too blatant).
Most of us survived through BMT, meaning 24km route march, battle inoculation, and 7 day field camp. Somehow we made it, nothing beats the POP parade for us even though it was rainin and all on the ominous day of 060606, we felt proud as we passed-out of the accursed (aka haunted) island.
A few days later, i received posting orders as a Naval Combat Systems Operator @ RSS Panglima, Changi Naval Base. Thinking that a whole new world other than the crappy army has been opened up, i was rather pleased. Yet, somehow i was cheated being told that there weren't enough vacancies and was reposted to another unit, something called 'Sea Soldiers' silly if u ask me. Thinkin that i was gonna be doing army stuff again filled me with gloom.
Before that however, i went through a 3 mth training course, a rather shiong one if i may say, because i managed to get almost a silver (due to my lousy SBJ) from a fail. Finally, i got posted to Changi Defence Squadron, Sea Defence Team 1, aka SEDET 1, a truly unforgettable platoon. We kinda stuck through everything together except for a one or two bad eggs, and fyi bad eggs don't thrive very well in Sedet 1, it wasn't a place for dirty backstabbing, it's was confrontation, suffice to say that solves most problems. We had fun of course, we were a rather tight knit somewhat 'elitist' bunch among the other sedets riddled with problems, conflicts and whatnot, we were just a happy-go-lucky bunch. Which was all very good for 6 mths.
I had a stupid accident, all because i was over-enthusiastic over a sepak tekraw game where i broke and dislocated my left arm. I was MIA for about 3 months. In the process of which i also became the butt of jokes for my arm, i had a metal piece to join my broken bones so, go figure. When i came back at long last. Things were not what they were, CDS was on the verge of a monumental reshuffle, in the midst of dirty politicking, silly feuds and standing up for what we deserved, SEDET 1 was a victim and was no more broken and split and melted into the other 2 platoons. It was a period of adjustment and depression, even though we were all still in the same unit, i still missed them, being absorbed into the other platoons meant that we were 2nd class citizens. Things went on for awhile and we grew numb.
Now, that i have somewhat assimilated myself into the new platoon, replete with underground dealings, dirty backstabbing, ugly politicking, snide remarks and jokes. I got sick of it. I settled myself down with people i trust at my station where i was the I/C and made my stand. That made life bearable even with the disgusting 7 day duty cycle implemented. I recreated what i could of my previous platoon and survived.
Being in the navy has opened my eyes to the world, i've done crazy things that i actaully enjoy, seen foreign navies the world over, gone onboard an american aircraft carrier, taken numerous J-turns, and actually did an activation even though i wasn't qualified. What matters most - poignant memories.
Now... i'm just waiting while i reminisce.
