After 12 days of military training (half way through), I finally got to take a break. Like what I said to people who called me since yesterday, the training was physically easy, but mentally tough.

Military training for Civilian alternative service sounds easier than the training for the army, but conversely, that wasn't what I experienced. On one hand, this year MOI (Ministry of the Interior) wanted to straighten up the reputation of its troops: "lay back" soldiers. On the other hand, the training was executed by personnel dispatched by the military--normally lieutenants. Therefore, they applied the standards of normal troops on us--even though most people go to Civilian Alternative Service due to physical conditions. In their belief, as long as others could reach their standards, why couldn't we do it.

To depict the tough mental environment, I'll give you some simple statistics: the average frequency of pooping in our squad is 3~4 time in 12 days. In addition, 3 (out of 110) people didn't poop at all during the first 7 days. We basically lacked the time and the mood to poop, choosing to spend time folding our blankets to reach "blanket codes" instead (or else we might get banned of break).

Well, I have to get back to the military base before 7:00 pm so it is time for me to stop writing. The good news is I'll be taking a break again in 6 days. See you guys soon!

Well, never in my life has my hair been so short! The bright side is that I don't need a dryer, hair gel--simply put, I won't need anything regarding "hair."

At least I still get to keep my beard for two more days!

Anyways, for the next four weeks, I can't be reached by cellphone (which is a contraband during boot camp) Therefore, those who want to contact me can write an e-mail, which I might be able check on weekends.

I'm entering the military on Aug. 12 (next Tues.)

This was something I have been waiting for since graduation, but when the day really comes, I guess you still need time to adjust. Well, I'll definitely treasure my last week of "freedom."

All the test results came out today. The results are listed below.

For the GRE paper-based test I scored:

• Verbal: 600/800 (% below:85)
• Quantitative: 770/800 (% below:88)
• Analytical writing: 4.0 (% below:37)

For the ibt-TOEFL test:

• Reading: 30/30
• Listening: 30/30
• Speaking: 26/30
• Writing: 30/30
• Total: 116
  

I was trying to achieve a total of 1400 points for the GRE, but I guess 1370 is acceptable. Preparation for it was arduous enough, so I'll go with it. I'll just have to complement the application package with other strong references.

Although TOEFL was quite easier--compared to GRE--scoring high was a difficult task. You had to concentrate for a length of 4.5 hours and minimize your errors--with only a 10 minute break. Speaking was a little lower than expected and writing a bit higher which sort of canceled out each other. In sum, I'm satisfied with the score, which reached my objective of scoring above 115.