MY NYSC CAMP EXPERIENCE (1)
Hey Guys...how do you do? Long time no talk. Wataguan?
Interestingly, today marks the beginning of a three week camp for some new ''otondos'' (allow me please, me too, I hate the name also). I can't help but pity them. Lol. I hated camp. There's no way to put it nicely. Lemme just be blunt like that.
Before we begin, please afford me the opportunity to lash out hundred strokes of the cane to EVERYONE (my two elder sisters included. Yes, I have to call them out on this one) that told me camp would be fun. It wasn't. I didn't enjoy it one tiny bit. And, you guys are my treasured friends, I would not dare lie to you.
Fortunately for me, my elder sister lives very close to the camp, so I was glad to leave her house in the afternoon and by my calculation, I'll get to the camp fifteen minutes later. Quick right? The stress of carrying so much luggage and travelling a distance was not part of my worry, so I was happy and I pitied others coming from far away.
I prepared for camp, I mean, I plan for everything in my life. Camp was not going to be different. My many ''white on white'' were on some A-Game, I had my two buckets, towels, bathing stuffs (what are they called again?), toiletries, pillow, makeup, beverages and of course my documents; original and photocopies (or so I thought) and all of these were nicely arranged in my box except for the buckets and pillow which I had to hold in my hand.
As I bade my sis and mum (who was around at the time) bye, I boarded a cab to the camp with my luggage. We were still quite a distance from the camp when the cab man told me he couldn't go further as there was a barricade in front of him. I sighed and got down, brought out my stuffs and paid him. I had to get all my stuffs from where he dropped me off to the gate. I had my box, my buckets and pillows to deal with. Three separate items. My buckets had some things innit, so the pillow couldn't go in there. You remember I have just two hands and one head abi? Okay. Gradually, I managed to get everything together and I was close to the gate oh with other corp members, when some soldiers saw us and immediately commanded in a fearsome tone that we should go back to the beginning of the road and run down with our luggage on our heads. Nawa. He didn't even give us room to negotiate, we had to do the do. When I eventually got to the gate, I was already gasping for breath. The other soldiers at the gate seemed nice, I was relieved. He smiled and asked for my call up letter and school ID card. I reached out to where I thought it was in my box. I searched and searched. I didn't find them. He asked me to step aside. I had to beg one guy in the shop across to allow me leave my luggage with him while I go to my sister's place in search of my lost documents. I called her, asked her to search here and there, she found them. I had left them nicely packed in one brown envelope in the room. She brought it to the gate, I was sweating profusely when I collected it. She and Mum had a good laugh, they wished me well, I almost cried.
I got back to the camp's gate, collected my luggage from the guy, thanked him and joined the queue after tendering the necessary documents. While we were waiting to be attended to, the soldiers and the Man-O-War peeps had a field day with us. From the weird songs they forced us to sing, to the frog jumps and sit up and stand up drama, you could tell they were enjoying themselves at our expense and for NO JUST CAUSE. After their drama, we were allocated to hostels and while I was rolling my box in a hurry to get a good space in the room allocated to us, I hurt my feet and blood started gusting forth. I had that to contend with when I heard the staff who was allocating rooms point to me and say I'll be in charge of the room and coordinate other corps member and if there were complaints whatsoever, I'll be in trouble. Duhhhhhh, like I wasn't already in much trouble as it was. Mtchewww.
The rest of that day wasn't any better, rain fell and we had to complete our registration under the rain, the soldiers didn't want us to take shed anywhere (that was some form ofwickedness discipline I guess). My kit was an all time error. The ''khaki'' was big, I had the option to amend though. The tennis shoes were too big. Like my leg and my father's leg put in one. I complained and the guy giving out the kit said I should exchange with someone with that size and of course, that someone has to have my size too and must be willing to give that up. How easy. My darlings, it would have been easier for the camel to pass through the eye of a needle that for that rare occurrence. I didn't even bother shouting ''39 for 45''. I just dropped their ''feet of life'' and wore the tennis shoes I got from home.
Long article shey? Oya go and drink water and come back, I neva finish. Part 2 loading...
''Corperly'' yours,
Barby.
Interestingly, today marks the beginning of a three week camp for some new ''otondos'' (allow me please, me too, I hate the name also). I can't help but pity them. Lol. I hated camp. There's no way to put it nicely. Lemme just be blunt like that.
Before we begin, please afford me the opportunity to lash out hundred strokes of the cane to EVERYONE (my two elder sisters included. Yes, I have to call them out on this one) that told me camp would be fun. It wasn't. I didn't enjoy it one tiny bit. And, you guys are my treasured friends, I would not dare lie to you.
Fortunately for me, my elder sister lives very close to the camp, so I was glad to leave her house in the afternoon and by my calculation, I'll get to the camp fifteen minutes later. Quick right? The stress of carrying so much luggage and travelling a distance was not part of my worry, so I was happy and I pitied others coming from far away.
I prepared for camp, I mean, I plan for everything in my life. Camp was not going to be different. My many ''white on white'' were on some A-Game, I had my two buckets, towels, bathing stuffs (what are they called again?), toiletries, pillow, makeup, beverages and of course my documents; original and photocopies (or so I thought) and all of these were nicely arranged in my box except for the buckets and pillow which I had to hold in my hand.
As I bade my sis and mum (who was around at the time) bye, I boarded a cab to the camp with my luggage. We were still quite a distance from the camp when the cab man told me he couldn't go further as there was a barricade in front of him. I sighed and got down, brought out my stuffs and paid him. I had to get all my stuffs from where he dropped me off to the gate. I had my box, my buckets and pillows to deal with. Three separate items. My buckets had some things innit, so the pillow couldn't go in there. You remember I have just two hands and one head abi? Okay. Gradually, I managed to get everything together and I was close to the gate oh with other corp members, when some soldiers saw us and immediately commanded in a fearsome tone that we should go back to the beginning of the road and run down with our luggage on our heads. Nawa. He didn't even give us room to negotiate, we had to do the do. When I eventually got to the gate, I was already gasping for breath. The other soldiers at the gate seemed nice, I was relieved. He smiled and asked for my call up letter and school ID card. I reached out to where I thought it was in my box. I searched and searched. I didn't find them. He asked me to step aside. I had to beg one guy in the shop across to allow me leave my luggage with him while I go to my sister's place in search of my lost documents. I called her, asked her to search here and there, she found them. I had left them nicely packed in one brown envelope in the room. She brought it to the gate, I was sweating profusely when I collected it. She and Mum had a good laugh, they wished me well, I almost cried.
I got back to the camp's gate, collected my luggage from the guy, thanked him and joined the queue after tendering the necessary documents. While we were waiting to be attended to, the soldiers and the Man-O-War peeps had a field day with us. From the weird songs they forced us to sing, to the frog jumps and sit up and stand up drama, you could tell they were enjoying themselves at our expense and for NO JUST CAUSE. After their drama, we were allocated to hostels and while I was rolling my box in a hurry to get a good space in the room allocated to us, I hurt my feet and blood started gusting forth. I had that to contend with when I heard the staff who was allocating rooms point to me and say I'll be in charge of the room and coordinate other corps member and if there were complaints whatsoever, I'll be in trouble. Duhhhhhh, like I wasn't already in much trouble as it was. Mtchewww.
The rest of that day wasn't any better, rain fell and we had to complete our registration under the rain, the soldiers didn't want us to take shed anywhere (that was some form of
Long article shey? Oya go and drink water and come back, I neva finish. Part 2 loading...
''Corperly'' yours,
Barby.
Corpers wee wee wee....as bad as u tink urs sounds, som of us dey envy ur camp if na jus these stuffs happened to u on d 1st day...Dnt allow some of us frm d north east giv our xperiences...lol. nysc is a bitch
ReplyDeleteEven though I was posted to the capital city, it wasn't all rosy as I thought it would be. But I admit it was better than some other camps. I had a friend tell me of how on the first day he arrived camp after a long journey, he stepped out to eat and came back to meet an empty bonk, his sorry excuse for a ''mattress'' has been taken out. LMAO. Please remind me where he slept again?
DeleteHmmm! Camp! Miss fire,well I just spent four days in camp,and believe me it was he'll! when I arrived camp,as usual the soldiers said I should carry my box on my head and run with it,mehnn it wasn't easy,finished my registration by 8pm,doh I got a space in the hostel earlier,but it was like a shit hole, so I had to sneak into the hostel meant for married and pregnant women cos it was big and spacious,had to beg the officials to allow me stay,hmmm!the reason I spent 4 day was becos of call to bar,my screening fell on the 11th b4 d change sha,the next day I started writing my application for leave,cos I couldn't wait,to cut the long story short,i finally left camp that same week, cos my letter was approved, it was when I got home I heard dey had postponed d screening dates,so my oda mates who didn't apply early had to remain in camp,i laughed ehennn,cos I couldn't hv come back to camp again nah,haba! And again,i cried in camp once o,hmm,cos I didn't see water to bath and my body was so sticky n dirty after d day's exercise,yea it's funny,but true,d little time I spent in camp was hell,when I was passing tru the gate on d fateful day I was leaving, hmmmm,it felt like I was going to heaven,lol!
ReplyDeleteLol at ur own story. Thanks for testifying to the ''crappiness'' of camp. Anyway, what wouldn't kill one only makes one stronger...
Deletei got to my camp around 1AM and funny as it sounds and appears, i enjoyed my 10 days on camp.. i didnt want to leave ooooo but had to heed to call of call to bar. katsina camp.
ReplyDelete