flashback 1999. my final year serving NS in the army. a good year which kicked off with me and a bunch of my SISPEC cohort brudders getting posted to the 1st Guards unit (and my bunk mates were already best kakis prior)

we were sent a few months before the arrival of the 9th Mono Intake to train and prepare ourselves (and the facilities) to take on this batch. while training was obviously tough, we could handle it all .. which slightly surprised the CO. RSM though, was like a proud dad, going "that's because i was the RSM of their camp back when these guys went through their specialist training".

when the new recruits arrived, training them was quite "fun". me and my brudders had a little more, uhm .. flexibility, in comparison to our ways in the main BMTC school. i mean, afterall, we were moulding this intake to be Guardsmen - "underpaid commandos, overpaid infantry". and these recruits were .. well, let's just say a more meaner, tougher, grittier bunch than what we normally get back in main BMTC camp.

after they graduated, i got sent back to the main BMTC school again, but this time, in their new island camp. those last 6 months was quite the blur. i was in "ORD" Platoon Sergeant mode .. but would occasionally whip out the angry tough love section commander mode.

and in between training, me and my CSM did a lot of sneaking out to go crabbing, fishing, or just lepak one corner .. and also clearing my leave.

i did however, for that last batch's final major exercise before they graduated .. brushed aside all "don't do it" calls, and donned my field SBO for one last time to participate in the fire and movement tests, with my platoon.

then December '99 came. i finished my service, made a last minute decision to further my studies, settled on the Curtin offer over LSE, rushed to sort my stuff out, and .. arrived in Perth a few months later.

then i fell in love with the laidback lifestyle, and have been here since. i still do wonder sometimes, what my life would have been like if i went the other way and accepted the LSE offer instead.

so yeah. while poly days shaped me, it was my army "daze" that moulded me into who i mostly am today .. especially my leadership style, and how i deal with different people.

and 1999 had the best 6 months of them days.