After that, we went to the store room and they taught us how to fold and keep our tents and ponchos and stuff. After that we went to eat lunch. They gave us a week's supply of food. So we had small snacks like buns and biscuits. We put it in our own bags also known as our 'Happy Food'. So we ate that mostly for breakfast and lunch during the 5 days. Then they gave us canned food, bread, and maggi for us to cook during dinner. We also had fruits, apples and oranges. So we all ate an apple each and a bun for lunch. It was filling I guess. Wasn't very hungry. So we were suppose to go kayaking that day then it started to rain. Nooo :( So we waited for the rain to die down a bit. Then we went to take our tents and food that wanna cook for dinner and we used the tarp to cover ourselves and we walked to Block 2. So groups were like paired and do stuff together with another group, so Shackleton was grouped with Tenzing and their instructors were CJ and Siok. So we played this game, there were alphabets on the floor. So we had to tap the alphabets accordingly but some letters were missing, so skip. Then they taught us how to pitch the tent. Then they taught us how to cook. So for dinner on the first day, we ate rice, curry chicken and boiled peanuts. Rice was nice cause Kai helped us to cook it hahaha. Not bad. The rest we cooked ourself uh. Then washed up everything. Then Kai checked the mess tins & pots and made sure they were clean. After that we went to pitch our tents with Tenzing near the beach area. Halfway pitching, Kai said there was a fire drill. So we went back to block 2 cause the ground was wet. After that went back down to continue pitching the tent. Then went back to mgh to take our bags and put in the store then went back to meet Kai & Des at Block 2 again. Then they briefed us before we went back to our tents to sleep. Grouped with Liyana, Leah, Meenatchi & Elfrida.
Day 2
28 August 2012
Tuesday
So last night people were making so much noise, annoying max. Woke up, unpitched tent. Went back to the store. Washed up. Met up with the instructors with Tenzing then we played morning games. Tenzing always make Shackleton late, so in the end all of us are late. Sigh. So, CJ being the annoying arse kept asking us to jog on the spot. So we played games and stuff. Then ate breakfast. After that we played trust fall. It was really fun. After that we had to pack our things into the bags from the store cause we were going to hike to Camp 1. I had a terrible headache. But Kai said that I couldn't take my panadol cause it's not prescribed by a doctor. So I just drank water. So I shared a backpack with Leah cos she was gonna carry the tent. Yeah I almost died. Hiked for about 2.5km I think, then we reached Camp 1. So Kai asked us to put down our bags on top of the mgh. Then he gave us a tour around the place again. HAHA THE SWIMMING POOL. Ok all of us wanted to jump in. Then we sat down outside the medical centre. Kai taught us how to wear the belt and helmet. So we did the same too. Then we learnt how to belay. Funfun. So after we were all done, we went up to do some rock climbing. My headache came back :( So my friends called for Kai and he brought me to the nurse. Took my temperature, 37degrees. Then they gave me 2 panadols. Then I told them I can't swallow, I need them crushed. Then I said that I was used to it already, which I was. So then I popped it and drank water and Kai was like "Eeee,yuck." HAHAH, funny guy. So the nurse asked for my group name so I said Shackleton. Then she wrote down Kai Yong. Then Kai was like "Why you don't ask her for my name?" Then the nurse was like "Aiya nevermind lah." Then Kai was like "Testing her mah." HEY I KNOW YOUR NAME OK. Then Kai was saying that we prefer Desmond to him cause we always call his name first. I think he jelly :( Haha but seriously guys, Kai is the main instructor, not Desmond. So yeah. I feel so bad lol. So done, we went back up to rock climb. Kai damn bloody pro lah. So 7 of us tried. I wanted to. Bleh. But not enough time cause the other group were supposed to use it, not us. So the other 8 of us did the Double Dangle Duo. It's the logs over each other thing, then you have to climb. So there were 7 logs. We just had to reached the 6th log and we're done. Partnered with Emmersen, ok we almost died. I had most of my bruises from there.I was happy with myself. It seemed impossible to climb all the way up. But thanks to my team and my Belayer, which was Kevina. We were both safe and sound. I kept turning upside down :( But in the end we made it. I was so proud of myself :) So after we all were done, we kept the belts and helmets then we went and wait outside the medical centre. Then we went to pitch our tents before it was dark. Then we went to the cook house to eat. OMG. HEAVEN. I mean, not exactly. But it's better food. Rice, Sausage, Chicken Wing, Cabbage, Soup and Punch. Washed up, Kaitlyn had gastric so she wasn't feeling very well. I guess she ate too fast and too much too. So after that Kai & Des gave us time to bathe and shower, etc; Then met at mph. The instructors were all late. So followed Drew to find them at the office, but they weren't there. So we went back. Followed Chloe down to toilet cause she felt like vomiting, and she did. People were all sick. Elfrida vomited too. :( So turns out the instructors were with Kaitlyn at the medical centre. So then Kai gave a briefing on kayaking. So then we had to have 4 Sea Expedition leaders. 2 from Shackleton & Tenzing. So Liyana & I volunteered ourselves together with Dione & Angel. So CJ went to debrief us. We had to create a time table ish thing. WHICH TOTALLY FAILED. We were super duper late. Didn't even go as planned for the following day. So yeah, after we were done, we just told them what time to wake up and all. Then we went to sleep. Elfrida didn't sleep with us cause she was really sick and she went home in the end.
Day 3
29 August 2012
Wednesday
So woke up, then we didn't know if have to unpitch tent. So we went to wash up and all first. Then went back to unpitch which took quite sometime. I was getting frustrated with the bloody tent. Then the instructors were all waiting for us already. We were like 40 minutes behind our schedule. Tenzing bloody taking their own sweet time again. Pissed me off. Then Chloe went to the nurse then we played the Captains On Deck game thing. Hui Yi won. Haha. Then we ate breakfast. Tuna & Bread. Enough for all of us. Then we had to pack our things and gather at mph. That day was super frustrating for me. People just didn't want to listen and help. It was a horrible day for me. So we were really late today. Didn't feel like a good leader. So we put our things down and we went elsewhere for morning briefing. Kai gave us this booklet. To write down stuff about our day and we also decorated it. Jayne & Kevina made up lots of jokes to brighten up our moods. So I guess I was okay for awhile. After we were done, we went back to take our bags to the boat. Then we went back, forgot to take the ponchos. Sian. So Madeline helped me to carry back to the boat with Siok. Mad couldn't come with us cause when she touches sea water, rashes would appear smth like allergic reaction and stuff. So then they taught us how to kayak and all. Then we went into the sea. So fun! Our shoes were gross, full of water and sand. Not cool :( Then Liyana and I followed Kai to get some food that he took for us like Digestive Biscuits and Peanut Butter & Chocolate Biscuits for Shackleton. So sweet. Oh and Chloe came back and she had private lessons with Kai. Ate alr, then time to set off for our Sea Expedition. I was navigator, which totally failed. :( I was swearing my ass off, Sarah was getting annoyed with me. I know. I'm sorry, I was getting so frustrated. The bloody current kept going against us. But in the end, we did it. We made it all the way to the campsite. We took like 3-4 hours to get there because we got sort of lost a bit but Kai helped us. On the way there was one strong wave. Ok we all almost died hahaha. And Liyana & Meredith had cramps :l But we managed to pull through. So we had to bring all the kayaks and paddles on shore and lay it down nicely. And Siok was being a total bitch just because Desmond helped us. -.- I pity Tenzing, their instructors just suck. I had to shout and scold people, so they were annoyed with me. I'm sorry but we have to get things done if not we're not even done with our expedition. I had cuts on my leg because of the long plants. I bet you guys don't even have a scratch. So after we were done with unpacking everything from the boat, we met with Kai and we only finished everything at 6. So we had to pitch our tent, change into dry clothes, and cook our dinner before we had to meet with our instructors again at 10. So our tent.. Emmersen's group took our tent. Bleh. So my group, we were super pissed because there was also no space for us to pitch our tent. Everything was so bloody unfair that night. I know Emmersen was blood pissed with us. So she went on to bitch about us to the 3/9 and 3/10 people. A bit the obvious uh. So after we were done changing, we just changed in the bloody tent, didn't care la. Then Drew and all started cooking first. Curry Maggi with corn. Shared with Liyana. I felt like vomiting that night. So after we were done, we went to wash it in the sea. Then Meredith and I had to pee. So we just peed into the sea. HAHAHA EPIC SHIT. Then Tenzing cook already, don't want to clear up. So the instructors scolded us. So Kai was telling us to have shifts to wake up in the middle of the night to just check for strangers and the boat and make sure that it doesn't drift to Johor. Nobody woke my group up lol. So instead of looking out for strangers, we were finding for ants. Yeah. I got bitten by a red ant. Bloody hurts! After that we went back to sleep.
Day 4
30 August 2012
Thursday
Kept waking up in the middle of the night. So it was 4am and the Magellen people woke everyone because they were so bloody noisy. Omg. Why they wake up so freaking early?! And they left around the same time as us. So we woke up. Unpitched tent. Took a damn long time because there were bloody ants all over the ground sheet, we couldn't find our bags, took damn long to pack. I was really really pissed with the tent. It's annoying! So packed everything, we had to ask for extensions twice because Tenzing wasn't ready yet. I just ate a bread. So after we were done, I went to call for Kai and the other instructors to come. Then CJ asked us to clear the place, if the instructors find any litter, they'll just dump it in our bags. So annoying man seriously. So when we were done, we had to finish all the water. Then we picked up our bags and we went to another place different from Tenzing, thank God. I had enough of them seriously. So we went near the gate to where the quarry was. That's the place where we could have washed up if we reached the campsite by 4, but no we only reached there at 6. So yeah. So morning briefing and games. We sat in the circle and Kai taught us how to read maps and stuff. Then we need to have Land Expedition leaders now. So Kevina & Madeline volunteered. :) Then we played this stone game where we have to throw a stone with our right hand and only catch it with our right hand. We took a while but we all managed in the end. So yay! As soon as we were about to leave, it started to rain omg. So used the tarp to keep ourselves and our bags dry, but it was no use seriously. We were all already drenched cause there were holes in the tarp. And it was Tenzing's tarp lol. Cause they dirtied ours, so we took theirs. So waited for the rain to stop awhile. Then Chloe was still a little sick, she felt cold. And Kaitlyn had her gastric pain again. So when the rain died down, Kai offered to help make hot water with our milo packets and poured into his bottle and we all shared. So freaking kind. So it was already about 12, so we ate lunch and drank milo. Then we went into the quarry for awhile just to see. Then Kai was telling us stories again. So he asked us to shout something positive so that it will echo and it will go a long way. Then he asked us to shout "I Love Desmond". Then Silence. So funny. HAHAH. After that, we set off for our Land Expedition. We trusted Kevina & Mad to lead us. So when we were hiking, Kai kept on singing to lighten our moods. So we sang along with him. Somebody That I Used To Know, Jar Of Hearts, and some other songs which I don't really know. So we were supposed to go to the highest point of Pulau Ubin for our first checkpoint, but because of the rain, the Quarry was our first checkpoint instead. So our second checkpoint was the Aunty's house which the instructors thought of her as a relative. We should be grateful for the things we have because the things we have, she doesn't have. Don't take things for granted. So when we were about to leave, Kai's girlfriend was there too. We all were like "ay ay ay." and we said hi. Haha. Kai was blushing! Then he was like "Desmond!!", then Des was like "What?!" Hahahha. Epic. So after that, we were gonna hike back to Camp 2. AND WE MADE IT! FINALLY! :) WE DID IT SHACKLETON! :) We dumped our bags back at the mph. Then Kai gave us a 5 min break. I had to shit damn badly. LOL. So I took a quick shit. Then went back. We sat in a circle. Tbe we did stretches and we massage each other. So I was sitting next to Kai. Then Leah massage me from the back. So I had to massage him, awkward max. HAHAHA. Then reverse. Eh he massage so shiok. Then Kai asked us to share about what difficulty we faced, what made the greatest impact, who do we want to thank, and we we want to say sorry. So for me, the most difficult was having to lead our group during the sea expedition because I was the navigator and we got sort of lost. Most impactful would be the double dangle duo, it was difficult because I was already losing all the strength that I have, but in the end we made it to the top with no regrets. I thanked everyone in the group and the instructors for encouraging and motivating us. And said sorry to everyone because I was frustrated then things can't be done. So after that, we unpacked everything from our bags and we took ours bags from the store and just dumped it on the flood. After that, we all took a damn long shower. It felt so damn good. So after that, we went to wash whatever that was dirty. Washed the tarp and ponchos and hung them behind the store to let them dry. And we kept most of the things already so the following day we didn't have much to clean and keep. After that we went to take the food we wanted to eat and cooked dinner. We tried to finish all the canned food. We wanted the instructors to eat with us too, but they had a meeting to attend to. So yea :( Finished cleaning and all, night briefing. We went to the jetty area. It was quiet, so it was nice and peaceful. Kevina & Jayne kept on making jokes. Those two.. seriously.. really insane. We had a really good laugh for the whole of the week, the instructors had a great laugh too. So Kai gave us all a string and we had to make a timeline from 0 years old to 15 years old. It's basically a timeline of our lives. So we had to share about it. Then we had to do our reflections again. Oh and Kai told us a 'scary' story. He suddenly shouted then everyone screamed except for Chloe & I. We were like what the hell. LOL. Then we all laughed. After that, we went back to brush teeth and all. Then we had to go pitch our tents. Went up instead of at the beach :( So then we went to sleep in our tents one last time. Oh, there was a joke going on because Jayne said that one of the instructors looked like her relative then Drew was like she likes him. Then Kai kept on talking to that guy instructor, his name was Shake. HAHAHA. Funny shiz I tell you. So whenever we see him, we think of Jayne.
Day 5
31 August 2012
Friday
Last day of OBS :( I was sad. I really didn't want to leave. Woke up, unpitch tent. Went down to take key cause I was Store IC for the day. Washed up, then went to meet instructors. The guys were all jumping on each others' backs. OBS BOYS. HAHA. So more groups came this time. :) Played Captains on Deck again. Leah almost won for us HAHAH. And we played another game. After that, ate breakfast. Kai gave me the instructions on what to do with the store. Then followed Liyana to get hot water. I asked her to call out for Kai then she call until so soft, so I called louder for her. Then Kai came out singing "Whataya Want From Meeee!" Then I was like "Hot water." Then he was like "Oh ok." HAHAHA. Then he went back in singing again. Then Chloe still couldn't find her clothes and things. :[ So dk where it went. So finish eating, cleaned up the store. Brought all the ponchos in. It was wet cause it rained last night. Psht. So we just hung them up. Then we went to wash our fly sheet and ground sheet cause it was super dirty and we just brushed our tents and we hung them up. So did final count for the items. Kai & Desmond were helping us. Pity Tenzing cause their instructors never help them one. LOL. So every store has a file. Then we were looking through the previous users. Some were under CJ and they had things missing and Tenzing had things missing too. LOL. So ironic yea. Lucky we weren't under CJ. I think we would've just died already man. LOL. I think my instructors are one of the best already. So after we were done, we went to Block 2 with our bags, and we still had time so Kevina had paper so we wrote notes to Kai & Des, just a small note of appreciation because they have really helped us a lot. After that, they came then we went to the kayak area for the final briefing. So Kai gave us back our journals. And we had to all write something positive and negative about each other. So we did that and pass, pass, pass. Then we read it. Then we put everything down and we did another trust fall, but with a bell this time. It was easier to fall this time because we were going front instead of backwards. So we had to stand on the platform. Kai said to think of what you what to change when you leave OBS. So when it was my turn, I gave a 'good' face according to Kai. He was like 'good face Sherilyn, I like that.' So hehehehe yay. I want to be more patient and become a better person. It seemed impossible to reach for the bell. Then I did ring it in the end. It was great. :) Then we went back down. Kai took the paper we wrote on on the first day. He asked us to tear it and say something positive before we leave. I said, "Look up and don't ever look down." I still remembered what Kai said about Shackleton. "When you leave OBS, Shackleton won't exist anymore, but it will always remain in our hearts because it's going to be a memory." I cried okay, and I'm crying now too. I miss it so much. I didn't want it to end. So we did evaluation forms and all. Then we let Kai & Des take a part of our paper, for them to keep. So we went back to Block 2. One of the guys read out a poem which Kai actually read to us when we were at the jetty, so it was our second time hearing it. I didn't want to go home. Shackleton didn't manage to say goodbye to Kai & Desmond. They left earlier and when we reached back at Punggol, they were on some duty thing. So we didn't see them :( I was really really sad. Boarded the bus back to school, I cried.
OBS has taught me to become mentally and physically stronger. I'd never thought I had that much potential in me. I had done things that I never thought I would have done. The bruises, cuts and bites are memories that I'll keep. Shackleton will always be in my heart. It'll never leave. I hope to use whatever I have learnt in OBS into my life now. I'm going to persevere. Work my way through Ns & Os. I don't want to be scared of taking chances anymore. Just go with the flow and always do my best. Shackleton also being a class, 3/11, we will strive our best to the coming years. We can do this!!
Kai Yong and Desmond, thank you for being such encouraging and motivating instructors. You'll be dearly missed by all of us. We will never forget you. You have never once scolded us, you guys are really friendly and kind. Shackleton loves you both!
There are no happy endings, endings are the saddest part. So just give me a happy middle, and a very happy start.
-Shel Silverstein
With OBS ending, it's sad. I had a happy start and a happy middle during OBS. I really enjoyed myself a lot. I've boost my leadership skills. I became a stronger person. I wish I would go through OBS again. If you don't try something, you won't know how it feels like and you'll regret it for life. So strive.
I love you Shackleton, you'll always be in my heart.
