Goodbye Saigon

We met as soul mates

On parris island

We left as inmates

From an asylum

And we were sharp

As sharp as knives

And we were so gung ho

To lay down our lives

We came in spastic

Like tameless horses

We left in plastic

As numbered corpses

And we learned fast

To travel light

Our arms were heavy

But our bellies were tight

We had no home front

We had no soft soap

They sent us playboy

They gave us bob hope

We dug in deep

And shot on sight

And prayed to jesus christ

With all our might

We had no cameras

To shoot the landscape

We passed the hash pipe

And played our doors tapes

And it was dark

So dark at night

And we held on to each other

Like brother to brother

We promised our mothers wed write

And we would all go down together

We said wed all go down together

Yes we would all go down together

Remember charlie

Remember baker

They left their childhood

On every acre

And who was wrong?

And who was right?

It didnt matter in the thick of the fight

We held the day

In the palm

Of our hand

They ruled the night

And the night

Seemed to last as long as six weeks

On parris island

We held the coastline

They held the highlands

And they were sharp

As sharp as knives

They heard the hum of our motors

They counted the rotors

And waited for us to arrive

And we would all go down together

We said wed all go down together

Yes we would all go down together

This is the song I fall to sleep with almost every night. Just thought I'd share it with you all!

I've got something to rant about!! Finally!!

My rant! People who really abuse the teamwork thing! What do I mean? Well if you've ever taken part in group physical training you'll understand. The kicker is I'm talking about group PT military style. Sure hockey teams and such have teamwork but do they brush their roommates teeth? No didn't think so! They don't know teamwork like us military folk! Trust me brushing another man's teeth while he's brushing yours is something that really means cohesion. So back to the abuse of teamwork. I hate when people put no effort into keeping up with the rest of the flight in runs. It grinds my gears. I'm trying my best to keep up while others are putting 0 effort in and then we have to circle around and pick'em up which taxes me even more. I know it's good for me both as a team player and someone getting in shape but seriously it kills me. That's my rant about teamwork.

For all of you interested in my weekly activities here they are!: PT, class, sleeping in class, eating meals, studying, cleaning myself, and sleeping! That's my week in a nutshell. I'd tell you about class but I fell asleep in most of them or zoned out. Not good I know but if you were in my shoes you'd understand.

My activities of this upcoming week. Well tomorrow is the largest inspection of my military career thus far and if I fail it then I'll spend Sunday night being inspected. There's also passing of the square tomorrow. In summary it's a drill test mixed in with a single trivia question about the college. You keep going until you get it right. Then it's obstacle course practice. Sunday is parade practice, and Monday to Thursday is the same as this week. Friday is the obstacle course!! Fuckeneh! Saturday is the badging parade (hells yes no more FYOP), and Sunday is the Memorial Parade. Did I mention I get to see my parents next weekend to. Someone convinced the old man to come down to instead of farming!! Anyways that's all for now!

Single Digits Baby!

So that's what I woke up this morning. Much better then O Fortuna. At least I didn't have a feeling of dread and was able to have a slight chuckle as I rushed to get ready for inspection. The inspection by the way didn't go well, then again they never go well. Not because my room mate and I are horrible, just because that's the way it works here.

So it's only 9 days till the big obstacle course. I'm sorta running out of time before I have to leave for physics. But all in all I'm fairly good. I feel like I'm going to explode sometimes when it comes to school and yesterday I felt like dieing after doing 3 long distance runs, 2 of them within 20 minutes of each other but anyhoo. Take it easy, because I sure am not!

Half Way There

So this is my first post since reaching RMC. Where to start, where to start?! Well I'm in the middle of FYOP as most of you know. FYOP by the way is First Year Orientation Period or it could be called a variety of other things, which I won't get into. I started classes on Monday and am quite happy that the campus isn't to large, because it's confusing enough as it is. I think I've been lost at least once everyday (except today) while attempting to find my classes.

On the class side of things I have a lot of classes. All of them at the moment seeming very difficult but my brain hasn't fully turned on yet. Possibly because I'm still recovering from 2 months of boot camp, while undergoing a fun/strict orientation period. Let me get on to the Orientation period portion of my life.

Every morning at 0600 I'm awoken by loud music. Usually the song is O Fortuna (not sure who sings it but download it to get a taste of it. It's classical and semi-depressing). If we're lucky they spice the music selection up a little. Thursday morning it was "Everybody Is Working for the Weekend" and today it was "We're Here for a Good Time" by Trooper. The songs are more then just a wake up call, they're a timer. A timer to get up, shave, get dressed, and have my bed made. Oh and make sure the rest of my room is clean. Fortunately I have a good roommate and all of that is usually a breeze, except on the mornings where I wake up thinking about all the beer I would have drank and girls I would have chased had I gone to U of M or U of S, but in the long run RMC will be the best (worldclass education, I'll be in shape, I'll have a job, etc, etc.) Then after the wake up call it is usually morning PT (long distance run up Fort Henry, ladder training, hills, circuit training, etc). Then we come back to the dorms where we are given 8 minutes to shower, and put on our uniforms to be ready for inspection. Then it's inspection, breakfast, and classes. When classes are done for the day and I feel mentally exhausted and for that matter physically exhausted we go play some sports, where my flight (Whiskey flight) usually dominates over the other flights! Then it's another 8 minute shower and change, then supper, study time with 15 minute phone breaks, hygiene time, and bedtime. At bedtime we sing "Goodbye Saigon". Another song I highly recommend downloading just for fun. It's an interesting song about war, written from a slightly down mood. Then it's sleepy time, which if I'm lucky is disturbed by gift bearing second years. They like to bring us Timbits, cheeseburgers, etc in the night since we're confined to campus until the obstacle course on the 28th.

This weekend should prove to be interesting. Since we have no classes we're most likely fresh meat for our FYOP staff. But hey it's all good I can use the push ups and running. I do know we're beginning our practice runs of the obstacle course. We're doing a course up at CFB Kingston and doing a walk through of the course we'll take on the 28th so that we can come up with strategies to get over the various obstacles. I'll show y'all a vid of last years obstacle course. This year the course is longer with the formation of 3 new Sqns. But it should be good. I can't think of much else to say and I've probably bored y'all to death but now you know what's going on with me so leave some comments and such and take it easy. Oh and if you're still in high school enjoy it while it lasts. Trust me. Nothing beats your own bed, homecooked meals, a mother who does your laundry, and other such luxuries. Plus the classes are a breeze but anyways have a good one!