My cousin in Military bootcamp for the National Guard in Fort Leonardwood, MO wrote me a letter, and in it she wrote the lyrics to a song that they had made-up in the camp, including her little annotations in parentheses:
(“It’s a Hard Knock Life” melody)
Hot guys we never see
Ice cream we don’t get to eat
Mountain climbers, 30x a day (an exercise that sucks)
Then it’s back to scrubbing this bay…
-It’s a hard knock life-
Have to hold our cups to our chests
Always told we look a mess
Holy crap private, front leaning rest (down to pushup position)
You’ll never pass your PT test..
-It’s a hard knock life-
Army Greens and MRE’s (“meal ready to eat”-packaged food you take camping)
5 minute showers and 2 second pees
Trail mix is always gone
Our bunks are always wrong…
-It’s a hard knock life-
We used to play beer pong
Now we march all day long
We always avoid going to the pit (where you get “smoked” with PT)
In formation we aren’t allowed to spit…
-It’s a hard knock life-
I used to do my hair
Now I don’t even care
We used to shave our legs
Gunna throw-up if we have to eat more eggs..
-It’s a hard knock life-
Stand in the freezing rain
Get frostbite, feel the pain
Fingers are broken and I wanna cry
‘cuz I gotta write a 5,000 word RBI (paper you have to write when in trouble)
-It’s a hard knock life-
I really hate to pack
My entire life in that small rucksack (nothing ever fits)
For breakfast we eat lots of cake (drill sgts call pancakes, waffles, and biscuits “cake”)
After a 20 minute run, it clearly was a mistake…
-It’s a hard knock life-
Ask a male to hold my gun
Then we had to drop as one (pushups- “can’t” talk to boys)
I tried to plead my case
But all I got was a “half right face” (position you move to before getting smoked)
-It’s a hard knock life-
People eating candy
Playing pool and watching tv
Boy I can’t wait until that’s me
Living life at AIT! (2nd part-advanced individual training)
-It’s a hard knock life-
The informant enjoys singing this song because it helps pass the time and it lightens the mood of bootcamp and brings everyone closer.