1ao1c - a little matter of perspective

dear class,

It has been almost three months since I and the tekong boys stepped onto that wretched island at the east end of Singapore. Unfortunately for me, while the other guys have been shipped off to the mainland after BMT, I am left on this island, grabbing my bald head with my left hand and sucking my right thumb, writhing in general anguish and wondering what dark deeds I have done in my past life to warrant such a cruel fate, together with mark and qiyan.

I am suppose to attend what is termed as the Basic Section Leader Course (BSLC) (a pretty nifty term for a course that teaches trainees how to prance about in the jungle with 6 other men) at the School of Infantry Specialists (SISPEC) (Tekong folklore has it that SISPEC actually stands for a much more sinister term: Suffer in Silence Plus Extra Confinement. Despite the fact that I believe in ideals like Truth Love Beauty and Peace, I will not confront my sergeants regarding the validity of the aforementioned claim, since I sincerely believe that the highest ideal is Self-Preservation).

I was posted to Foxtrot Company in SISPEC, and for those who leaped to the immediate conclusion that Foxtrot Company in SISPEC bears a close resemblance to that in BMT, I hope you brought a parachute, because you have just leaped into the Canyon of Wrong Conclusions. To claim that SISPEC Foxtrot is BMT Foxtrot's identical twin is akin to claiming that Michael Jackson is straight or that Beckham is a Swiss taxidermist.

Why do I say so? There is enough circumstantial evidence to convict OJ Simpson for murder, camel abuse and irresponsible dumping of nuclear waste 10 times over. Here are some:

1) A search for "sispec foxtrot" at Yahoo yields material alarming enough to scare off a tribe of bloodthirsty barbarians. A certain Mr Pantat (mrpantat.blogspot.com) wrote: "SISPEC is a Nightmare!! Any stronger word ? After all the slacking and enjoyment in Hawk, I got a culture shock in SISPEC, Foxtrot Company." At retrospecter.blogspot.com, this person has this to say: "Well, perhaps SISPEC may not be so bad after all, unless I get posted to some screwed up company. So I am praying hard I will not be posted to Foxtrot."

2) I was at Gramaphone the other day, browsing through cds. MAS called me and asked me for my unit and company. I said "SISPEC Foxtrot". Immediately, the guy in front of me turned around and gave me this "you are so screwed" look. Deep inside my brain, I was thinking, "WTFKNNBBBQ".

3) On my first day at SISPEC, the first sergeant I met has this to say to us trainees: "Welcome to SISPEC. Training here is tough, but tahan-able. But for those going to echo or foxtrot, we wish you good health and luck and endurance." I promptly went to check my company posting after that, and there was it, the large capital F besides my name.

These are interesting times, but I do not want to be part of it. Gah.

-gin tonic

posted by i will not argue @ 10:25 pm