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Monday, March 09, 2015 / 12:11 AM
It's been too long So it's been 2 years and some months since I last made an entry. I'm probably a little bit rusty. Still this is probably one of the few ways I can say what I want and not many people will notice. Single digit view count FTW! I can always set this to private but I don't really care that much about who si reading this pile of junk that I come up with. The last post I made was back when I was still serving the army. What has changed? I completed my 2 years of mandatory National Service in the military a.k.a. conscription policy a.k.a. cheap labour. During which I pulled out my wisdom teeth, took on an appointment above my rank, went for overseas exercise (also my first plane ride!) and I got to take part in the National Day Parade!! YEA! So NS wasn't as miserable as I thought it would be. But I got the people around me to thank for. I am lucky enough to have met good friends in both my superiors, my peers and my juniors. They offered gave me plenty of opportunities to try new things. For that I have to thank them. Still it doesn't change the fact that I still think NS is a waste of my time. Especially when you look at the financial impact it has on me. I come from a middle class family. I am the only child (don't go spouting of about how lucky I am read on...) Half way through my 3 year diploma news got to me that my family specifically my dad ran into some financial trouble. I was studying... what could I do? Suddenly I hit a wall where I know I will be held back by this in one way or another. So I tried my best to pay off what was left of my tuition fees. I worked part time during the holidays. I sacrificed pretty much all of my social life. Of course my grades took a nose dive. I never recovered from that. Still I managed to graduate. Seems good right? Maybe maybe not. I took up part time work. Nothing much just a typical office job at a government sector. I brought back enough to help pay bills and keep myself alive. Here comes the dreaded letter of enlistment. So I had to leave my part time job shave my head and book in for BMT. FYI recruit allowance starts at 450 SGD a month when I enlisted. You can say "You spend your weekdays in camp where everything is paid for". Fine I'll take that. But remember I have bills to pay. Do you think 450SGD is going to cover that and keep me alive and satisfied? Hell no. Not when Singapore is ranked no.1 most expensive country in the world to live in. Things might have been considerably better if I was made an officer or a specialist maybe even a regular combatant would have helped. But no... I ended up in logistics. So no combat allowance, stuck with the same basic 450SGD (it's 480SGD now). Also to note there was something wrong with my batch of recruits because even the people ranked in the top 10 of my platoon ended up going to logistics. Like what?! You let capable men like those guys sit in a storeroom and rot? Mind you I was labelled as combat fit. In fact I was in the top tier of combat fitness(from all the medical history and what not). So stuck with that shitty allowance I moved to my unit and spent the remaining time of my NS life getting promotions and financial perks whenever I can. Mind you I did not moonlight. Eventually I made it to CPL and my allowance is now 550SGD. How much is that? Not much. The part time job I mentioned earlier? I worked 8am-5pm five days a week and I still brought home more than whatever I was given in NS. How was I to pay for bills and continue living with that pathetic sum? Any full-time job I can get as a fresh graduate with a diploma would easily be 3 times that amount. So I have effectively lost what could have been 66% of my income per month for 2 freaking years. Moving on... Most NSFs like myself would be looking to further their studies after they graduate. Unlike some of my peers I was not able to secure a position in a local university because of my grades(read above). Meaning I would have to look into other options if I am to obtain a degree. One look at the tuition fees and I crumbled. There is no way I would be able to pay that amount of money and for a family with financial troubles there is no way I would be able to get a loan. So effectively I was left with one option. I had to go to work. September 2013, I ORDed in peace or so I thought. I got a job and started saving. 1 year and 6 months later. I still haven't gone back to school. Even with an "average" basic salary of an engineering diploma graduate I struggled to save enough cash to go for my studies. Although I have to say I am getting so close I might as well submit my application now. But the journey was tough. I clocked hours and hours of overtime. Picked up skills that are pretty much out of my job scope. Some may say this is a good thing. I'm a freshie I need to learn. But I did all that just so I can at least cover up for the 2 years I lost surviving instead of improving. During my 2 years in the army I gained a lot. But I lost many things as well. In the army they always say that whatever we learn we can use to protect our family in times of need. What's the point when the policies that are laid down effectively screws my life over and all I can do is watch in envy when other's enjoy their life while I stress myself over the next step I have to take to save myself and my family. This is just a rant. I have no idea what I'm talking about half the time and there will be things that don't quite add up or don't make sense. Bye. |
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