Name : Tan SiKai
Rank : SOLDIER 2nd Class
Birthdate : 10 April 1989
Birthplace: Singapore
Ethnicity : Chinese
Religion : Christianity
Gender : Male
Height : 167
Weight : 56
Values:
-Commitment
-Trust
-Truth
-Reason
Personality:
ISFJ (Jung Typology Test) - I-22%, S-1%, F-25%, J-33%
Explanation:
* slightly expressed introvert
* slightly expressed sensing personality
* moderately expressed feeling personality
* moderately expressed judging personality
Traits:
* Large, rich inner store of information which they gather about people
* Memory for details which are important to them
* In-tune with surroundings - sense of space and function
* Can be depended on to follow things through to completion
* Will work long and hard to see that jobs get done
* Stable, practical, down-to-earth - Dislike working with theory and abstract thought unnecessarily
* Dislike doing things which don't make sense to them
* Value security, tradition, and peaceful living
* Service-oriented: focused on what people need and want
* Kind and considerate
* Likely to put others' needs above their own
* Learn best with hands-on training
* Enjoy creating structure and order
* Take their responsibilities seriously
* Extremely uncomfortable with conflict and confrontation
Career-defining traits:
1) extremely interested and in-tune with how other people are feeling
2) enjoy creating structure and order, and are extremely good at it.
Ideally, the ISFJ will choose a career in which they can use their exceptional people-observation skills to determine what people
want or need, and then use their excellent organizational abilities to create a structured plan or environment for achieving what
people want.
Relationships:
+Committed
+Difficulty in leaving a relationship which is bad, or accepting that it's over
+Selfless
+Intimacy as a tangible way of strengthening their relationship bonds
+Warm
+Difficulty with conflict situations
+Dependable and affectionate lovers
Although two well-developed individuals of any type can enjoy a healthy relationship, the ISFJ's natural partner is the ESTP, or the ESFP. ISFJ's dominant function of Introverted Sensing is best matched with a partner whose dominant function is Extraverted Sensing.
More at:
ISFJ Profile or
Protrait of
an ISFJ
"To be a hero you got to have dreams... and honor" - Angeal
BMTC #2: My Manager, PTE Leonard Teo
Wednesday, 18 June 2008
So now to the second part, introducing my must-blog bed buddy cum my manager (cuz he made me famous)
At the first sight, he was a very nice person, full of manners and sociable. He was your typical nice guy. During the confinement week, he was always ready to help (as in READY to help, meaning: I'll help if you ask me to..). Then I also found out that he had a girlfriend (in fact, many of my platoon mates are attached. My section alone had 7/13, or 5/11 excluding those posted out.). The greatest thing was that they were together for 5 years!! It was like a record setter for our company! (until recently I heard that there's one 6 plus years from platoon 1). The girl is so blessed with this nice guy...
Until that day when he started my "Island Best" name-calling. It seemed like a drug to him that he must say it everyday every moment possible. Together with his quick wits (or twisted thinking) and my section's "Combat Medic", they would come out with funny ideas to describe my life, as they perceived it. Ideas like having a pull-up bar at home, to ridiculous ones like having a pull-up bar on a fighter plane and I'll power it by pulling as many and as fast as I can. Knowing that I want to be posted to Officer Cadet School (OCS), he would every morning greet me as though I am an officer already. He was very persistent with it, and kept saying that Army needs someone like me. He even signed me up for Air Force during a talk, and gave me the name "Thomas Brian".
Here comes his "bastard" part: As he got more and more used to me being an officer, abet I'm not even posted to OCS, he would always encourage me to greet the company officers and sergeants. The troublesome part was that he would rally people to ask me to do "my job". Under the pressure, I bent in. I got so used to it as well, and when there came an opportunity to greet our school's Commanding Officer, I got the entire company, even our Officer Commanding Capt Roger Chen, into attention and greeted him. Afterwards, My beloved Manager got even more daring and forcefully encouraged me to greet our commanders. There were a few times when I got tired of greeting, and he pulled me up and made me do it. I still recalled the worst one, where he pulled me up, called our company to attention, and sat down immediately, leaving me there to greet our commander.
There was still another area that he would be a "bastard", that is he would keep volunteering me to do things, or just make me do things, for the "sake of my OCS". He would bring my kindness to another level. When I would fill up the bottles for my section mates when I felt like it, he would make me do when I don't feel like it.
One more area: He made a song out of the song I would usually sing during our route march, which is "When the whistle blow". Goes like this:
C.P.T.1
He does it at home.
Early in the morning,
He washes his clothes.
What is his name?
Thomas Brian!
And he is the best
In Pulau Tekong.
So echo~ echo out loud ya!
Thomas Brian marching down the road ya!
So echo~ echo out loud ya!
Thomas Brian never let you down ya!
Even with all his "flaws", I would say I look up to him many times. When he helped people, he did so willingly, where I would grumble to myself, suck thumb and just do them. His "welfare" also surprises my platoon. When he was the I/C, where many would just leave the platoon in "at ease" position (of which we still cannot move in the file), he would command us to be at ease (meaning: just do whatever you want, within the file); where many will require the platoon to assemble in standing position, he would ask us to sit down in a file. His quick wits surprises us. There was once when our sergeant asked him to call his man (which was us) to assemble faster, he did as he was told, and without missing a beat gave us the permission to be at ease. There are a lot more things I looked up to him for, but it'll be too long to add..
By the way, he's damn strong and a professional fighter. In an weight category last year for Singapore "Sanshou" (something like kickboxing, managed by some organization), he defeated many opponents older than him! He had even made an "Ang Moh" (meaning: Caucasian) heavier than him "tap out" (meaning: admit defeat) in another friendly. I had a few friendlies with him, but was overpowered in just a instant. My Taekwondo skills were no match for his speed and flexibility, having learnt Muay Thai, grappling and locking. After a kick, I would get into his range for him to grapple me. Of course, not wanting to give up just like that, I struggled many times, finally relenting to his strength. To add, he got bronze for that Open Category tournament...
I was really blessed to have him as my bed buddy, my friend, and my Manager..
posted at : 19:01
-irreplaceable (male version)
Friday, 13 June 2008
(player's on the left, thank you..)
To the right, to the right
(Huh, get, get to steppin`)
To the right, to the right
(Woahh ayy yeah)
To the right, to the right
That's where I'm goin' in the middle of the night
Now in the closet, that's your stuff
But trick, I bought it, so bitch don't touch (don't touch)
You talk a lotta bullshit, alright
But while you walk 'n talk I'mma gettin' high now
It's my name that's on your last
You bald-headed rat tryna get ridda that
Back up outta my face fraud
I'm really tryna not talk to you
Talkin' bout I'm neva gonna find a girl like you
You must got me fucked up
You must not know 'bout me
You must think I'm playing
'Cause I can have another you in an hour
Matter of fact, she's upstairs in tha shower, baby
You must now know 'bout me
You must think I'm playing
I can find another you on the corner
So don't you ever for a second get to thinkin' you're irreplaceable
Trick, give me my phone so I can call the chick and see if she's home, yeah
(Oh shit I) Oh shit I forgot she's already home
What did you think I was putting you out for?
'Cause you was unreal
Kinda like the horse that was sittin' on the back of your head
Baby fix them teeth
Seeing your face is so old to me
Back out outta my face fraud
I'm really not tryna talk to you
Tellin' me I'm neva finding a girl like you
Well ya got me so damn twisted
You must not know 'bout me
You must think I'm playing
'Cause I can have another you in a minute
Matter of fact, she'll drive up in a minute, baby
You must not know 'bout me
You must think I'm playing
I can have another you in an hour
So don't you ever for a second get to thinkin', you're irreplaceable (irreplaceable)
So since I'm not your everything
I'm not giving you anything
Nothing at all to you
Baby, I'm not giving you nothing, no wayyy
Go ahead and shed your tears
'Cause the truth of the matter is
Replacing you was done last year
To the right, to the right
To the right, to the right (you gotta go, go to the right right oh yeah)
To the right, to the right (oh yeah ohh woahhh)
To the right, to the right
Don't you ever for a second get to thinkin' (What?!)
Get to thinkin' (What?!)
Get to thinkin' you're irreplaceable
You must not know 'bout me
You must think I'm playing
You must not know that I can have another you in a minute
Matter of fact, she'll be here in a minute. baby
You must not know about me (baby)
You must think I'm playing
I can have another you in an hour
Matter of fact, she's upstairs in the shower ohhh
You must not know 'bout me
You must think I'm playing
I can find another you, baby
There's so many of you baby
Gold diggin'(You must not know 'bout me)
Two timin' (You must think I'm playing)
Back stabbin'
Always lying
Always leaving, I need somethin'
But the truth is
You have always been replaceable (Ooh)
Please see yourself out this way
Nice song, mockery to the core! haha..
posted at : 22:06
SOngs
Thursday, 12 June 2008
Set a new list of songs for my blog, in attempt to refurbish it.. haha..
posted at : 23:27
BMTC #1: I am Island Best
Yay, POP lo..!
Finally after some gruesome 9 weeks in Tekong, I'm outta there. So happy :)
Or at least, I should be feeling this way..
I entered the island with a troubled and uncertain heart, but throughout this 9 weeks I grew stronger spiritually, physically, mentally and emotionally. I got a better view of myself! I am so glad when on the last day my section commander told me that though I may be outstanding in my platoon, being known throughout the company made famous by my "beloved" manager, I am myself (as in I dun wayang around..).
I still recalled how I came to be that "Island Best" or "Tekong Best" or that "Thomas Brian" that the company is familiar with. It was the third week of BMT. Sergeant Joel tasked us that every section in our platoon has to do 250 pull ups in total. As my section mate Jerald was on Att C (meaning reported sick and is at home), we had less people to hit the benchmark. It cost us even more given that Jerald always did a lot of pull ups when the benchmark was at 200 previously. So I decided to help my section by being the one pulling while they supported me up (its within the rules Xp). Next to my section was another section with this person named Spartan Ben, as he is very fit and can do a lot of pull ups. He was given a title of "Platoon Best" by his section. Not wanting to lose to them, my Manager Mr Leonard Teo decided to bestow to me the title of "Island Best".
My Manager and my section's "combat medic" (as he, Raymond, is a medic by vocation but training to be a combatant) loves to make fun of me using my name. They made jokes out of me doing pull ups everywhere I go, like me having chin up bars at home so that I can do when I am at home. And since I was the "Island Best", going back home to me as they thought was a confinement to me, having to leave Tekong for mainland. Then they started linking "Island Best" with "Tekong Best" and just kept calling me that. My platoon soon came to know me by those titles. What's worst was that my Manager signed me up for Air Force as he said that I was suited for the Army and must sign on. Under my nose he signed me up for the Air Force, using the NRIC, name and contact that I gave him under the requirement of our buddy system. He can't possibly write my name as "Tekong Best Tan Si Kai", and he gave me this name "Thomas Brian Tan Si Kai" and submitted the form.
So when was I made famous? It was during the second day of my field camp (5th week) when our platoon 4 platoon sergeant called for a volunteer for each platoon. It was in the midst of his lesson, and every platoon called on the person they always sabo-ed out. When he asked my platoon, my helpful Manager shouted out my name and rallied a few people to do the same. One more fact was that all the commanders were present at the lesson, and even our Officer Commanding Capt Roger Chen was there. My name was known to everyone who could remember then.
There was another incident one week after our field camp. There was this Air Engineering Officer follow-up talk/ interview. Surprisingly, I was the only one who's name was called. Our Chief Duty Officer (CDO) for the day called out: "There will be an AEO talk for the following recruit in the evening today. When I called out your name please acknowledge. Thomas Brian." He looked around. I looked around as well, thinking:
who is this person to have such a weird name? He called out again:"Thomas Brian. Thomas Brian Tan Si Kai."
Oh its me! Argh Leonard thanks ar..
posted at : 10:13
-Numb...-
Looking around, feeling empty again.
People passing by, children playing by, couples laughing by…
Here I am, alone once again.
Blinded by my own perceived love,
Trusted too much in your words,
Naively,
I fail to see what you are telling me…
I could have done better; I want to do better;
But you stopped me…
What’s done
is done.
Only time can tell whether wounds will ever heal…
posted at : 10:05
field camp
Sunday, 8 June 2008
wow long time since last posting. maybe update with my long delayed field camp experience =]
Field camp is really a tough time for me. That’s when I realize a few more things about myself under stress.
The 8km route march nearly wore me out, together with the baking heat from the sun. Then there was tent building. The ground was so hard and one of the tent pins isn’t in a good condition. The harder we knocked, the more it bent. The worst part is that irritating rifle which we had to sling while knocking in the tent pins. It kept moving around even when I had it tightly sling. Finally, I place it on the floor and kept my leg in between the sling and the rifle. Even then, due to my short term memory, I soon forgot about it until platoon sergeant reminded me of it. Needless to say, I was in for guard duty that night.
The night view of the camp can be intimidating. It was so dark except for the light that emerges from the commander's tent. I had my first experience of powder bathing and many guys naked with me. I never knew that it could be so important until the end of field camp that I saw the heat rashes on my body. The first sleep was also not very nice. I thought with my experience in NCC sleeping in my school’s field would get me accustomed to the hard and rocky ground, but it didn’t. I would wake up with numbness here and there and adjust myself to relieve them. With my bunk mates talking about sergeants stunning rifles at night, I got afraid of landing in another night of guard duty and hugged my rifle to sleep, magazine in my Load Bearing Vest. Though nothing went on that night, I came to know that one of the sergeants indeed tried stunning one of my platoon mate’s rifle in the middle of the night.
The guard duty was like the previous that I served, prowling around. I also landed myself to another round the next day while talking to my platoon sergeant leaving my rifle a short distance away for a quick question. I came to know that even that was not the acceptable behavior the hard way. With 2 nights of guard duty, I lacked sleep and mood turned a little foul. Still, I pulled through the 3days in the camp site. I was also made famous by my manager Mr. Leonard Teo, who volunteered me during a lesson. It was also at our camp site where we had our fire movement practice. It was pretty fun, and I learnt how to clear double feeding and triple feeding, though it still required a long time to clear. Moreover, I had to force myself to prone on the grasses, upon all the insects that may be crawling under. There was also this latrine area that we used. I managed to shit on the second day! Wow I can’t imagine myself squatting in some shit hole that contain other’s shit as well. It was an interesting experience, and also seeing flies around, I learnt to shit and shake my butt at the same time to prevent any from landing on me!
There came Group Battle Course (GBC). It was the highlight of the entire camp. We went around clearing danger areas and moving tactically. Then we took cover when there was noise of vehicles nearby, bashing into the vegetation and prone. Then there were some vegetation that was not good for bashing and I had to run along the way looking for one. One of the bad points is that we lose communication easily under cover, and have yet to get over the problem.
Then it poured heavily. The road was all filled with potholes with water, and I just ran across them. This caused my boots to be soaked in water after awhile. There was also a period where we were held up as others were using the same route (which is lame, but no choice I guess). My group and I found some cover behind the trees and we sat to have some snacks. GBC finally ended with a test. Sadly, I had to prone a few times in mud and soggy sand. I was all wet.
Our new camp site was near other camp. I miss bunk life. So near, yet so far. We ended our day sleeping under canopy. This time I got afraid of insects as the ground is still damp and it’s really a forest this time (the other being a former rubber plantation site). I kept my helmet on for fear of things dropping on my head, and I can also minimize exposure of skin. It turned cold in the middle of the night, and I tried to just keep awake for fear of getting a cold. My body got over me, and I gave up, rub my hands together, tugged myself and tried to sleep. I woke up a few times before it was finally the time to wake up.
The event for the first day in my new camp site was to dig shell scrapes. We spent the whole day just to dig it. The worst part was that the rifle had to be sling to us. In my first try I nearly had an outburst because of my irritating rifle. I thought to myself: what for letting my emotions get over me and continue digging? Then I decided to take a rest once every few moments of digging just to clear the mud on my boots, which made it very heavy and injuring my knee. I also took the chance to helmet-off to cool my head. Taking my time to dig of course had its downside. I soon got very bored of it and was digging with less zeal. Still, I managed to get it done, unlike my PC’s first time when he dug for 2 days. One thing I love about shell scrape was that compared to other ground, its cozy. With a little insect repellent over my body, I’m unafraid of the insects around and set myself to sleep. Even when it got cold at night, it was still manageable and I slept soundly. The only downside was that every one of us had to do those guard duty thing in the middle of the night.
The second last day was mainly uneventful. We had lessons, took our test, and the rest went to the camp site to slack. Well for me, I had it better. We had fire patrol, which was for those who fail GBC. But anyway, I had a number of experiences there. It was there I saw my platoon sergeant grabbing my comrade’s helmet and shouting at him. He seemed to keep doing it. Maybe he has a fetish for it. Anyway it was there that I ran into a large spider the size of my hands! It was once where we were taking cover when I felt my face went in to some web. Then my comrade saw the large spider on my head and attempted to brush it off with his rifle. What went across my mind at the time was: SHOOT IT WITH THE BLANKS! He failed in his mission, and the spider was there so near my face! I yelped and jumped around, attempting to hit off the spider with my rifle butt. Then I ran out and took off everything. The spider was no where to be seen, but I don’t want to see it anyway.
The third special experience that I had was to be involved in bee drills. Not really bee drills, but my on of my comrades ran into a bee infested tree while taking cover and got a sting. We ran like with was artillery strike in the air for around 100m before the sergeant with us told us to stop. We went back to take a look, and indeed there was a hive. There was also an insect on the ground which turned blue-black and squirming around on the ground, swollen in size. It was disgusting, but nonetheless interesting. It is a pity that no camera is allowed on the island.
The last fun experience during the fire patrol was the part where my comrades and I gave our all into the stimulated game. We shouted out loud, we did our prone regardless of the ground (I’m so thankful for the insect repellent. It made me daring.), and we did our drills correctly. The whole fire patrol ended with an artillery drill.
On the last day was Battle Inoculation Course (BIC). It was really nothing much but leopard crawling and back crawling and machine guns firing overhead. It was the most tiring of the entire camp! It took so much of my energy that I had to recuperate every few crawls. And finally, it all ended.
posted at : 15:55
March 2007
