I've a few but this one definately stands out, in fact the whole thing PJ's stands out. At Kapooka (Australian Army Recruit Training) first thing in the morning the staff call out "Hallway" and everyone screams in back, rips off their bottom sheet and bursts into the hallway to stand at attention in there predetermined spots, nothing to unusual there but add to it this. We were issued these ugly lime green PJ's that had a fly in the pants about 10cm long... but with no button...
A bunch of young guys, first thing in the morning, no button. Can you fill the blanks? For the girls there it was an anatomy lesson, for the guys it was simply embarrassing.
Also marching down the hallway to the SAL's and having things fall out through this gigantic hole in the front of your pants, i'm pretty sure they put the girls in the first room before the SAL's just to embarrass us!
May as well add one more as well, the night before the Challenge i was on picket. It was raining heavily, the guy on the minimi (C9) was asleep next to me and all around me nature was raging. It was a huge storm. The i've never seen the sky like i did that night. It was beyond beautiful. Lightning was flashing every few seconds, there was just a constant glow around us, for a brief second huge shadows would swell up and then disappearing in almost the same instant before reappearing in a completely different guise. Kangaroos would suddenly show up not 10m away, smashing through the bush but you never heard a sound of them. Just the thunder everywhere. The sight of the artfully arranged hoochies (we'd created super tents with them) and the sleeping bodies under them as the light created all these different shades, shadows and appearences on them is something i dont think i'll ever be able to describe in all its glory.
I was huddled down next to a tree, wet through and despite it being 3 in the morning i'd never felt so alive or so awake. It was mad, exhilerating, exciting, beautiful, moving, fascinating and beyond belief. When ever i need it i can take myself back to that night and still be in awe of what i saw.
The pride they instilled in us at Kapooka in being an Australian soldier still beats VERY strongly through me and it was the absolute time of my life.
Keep them coming folks,
Hales