My callup was for 1 July 1984. University had finished in December, so I managed to get a job at the University of Zululand, helping with rainfall research at the Dept of Hydrology. I lived in Mtunzini, a sleepy little village on the Zululand coast.
I had this little booklet on how to prepare yourself for diensplig. I cannot remember if it was sent with my oproep papers or whether it was a CNA special that my mother bought (mom’s did things like that).
One of the articles stressed that you needed to get fit before you went to the army, and gave a whole set of exercises that one needed to do. Having grown up with all the horrible stories of what happened in basics, I decided I’d better do something about this. What they didn’t tell you was that you only needed to be fitter than the fattest guy in your bungalow – but that of course you only find out in basics.
Every afternoon after work I’d head to the beach. I’d do about 30 pushups, 30 situps, and run up the tallest dune 10 times. Then I’d sit down and drink a 6-pack before going home. All pretty useless.
