Pull up a sandbag ~ "I remember when..

[Al R]

• The smell of Jizz Trees in the bondu just before sunrise. The smell of damp dust and stinking sweat stained lightweights from the day before as the sun warmed things up by 0630.
• Chummers on a pre promotion course navigation night exercise, flagging a Cyp down and scrounging the section a lift hidden in the speedboat being towed. We debussed a k short, and got our heads down for the night instead of tabbing 20 miles.
• Top of the Pops pirate cassette tapes.
• Those awesome No6 KD dresses which unbuttoned down the front..
• Asking someone on Delta Force why on earth he was filing down 9mm rounds.
• Not getting caught pinching the Wraf Block sign.
• Getting caught putting the Wraf Block sign by the Dog Section.
• Being charged for sunbathing
• Watching the Northern Lights whilst out night skiing. Gaping.
• 'Where the f#ck is Decimomannu?' T Shirts.
• Buying yourself out.
• Laminating an A3 piece of paper having written 'Gay soldier on board, honk for a bonk!' and placing on the back of the convoy commander's Land Rover (with a revolving pink light on the roof) on the way to the docks.
• Putting a few frozen fish from the ferry galley in his wagon heater box when he got shirty about it. He soon got the hang of things.
• Chicken in Cyprus, that smelt and tasted of fish at Akr.
• WRAFS in Cyprus, tha..
• BFBS (Jon Scragg, Tommy Vance etc).
• The bogs at Soltau ranges (any tankies remember them?)
• Polish Tank Transporter Coprs drivers, the last retired off in 1985 (ditto). I salute them all.
• OC C Flt getting lost and leading a Flt attack in the armour.. across the main fairway at Bruggen golf club.
• Tacevals, thanking god that we were about to be nuked because soon it'd all be over.
• When dug in, putting your hand over your mouth and pretending you were in full IPE (when talking on the net).
• My last range shoot with the SLR. Then cleaning it better than ever before.
• When, in OPs, using the swiftsacope sniper sight to see what freq the locals were flying their remote control aircraft on (they used a blackboard). Then.. passing the info to the guys in the clank who would then transmit at 50 watts..
• Getting back to the clank to discover that Lou and Mich (tailor and upholsterer in civvy street) had decorated it in crushed crimson velour and made us all 3 piece suits out of sandbags for the summer ball.
• Prior to a summer stalk in Cyprus, scheduled to last 48 hours, covertly pouring warm orange juice mixed with honey over an army lad's sniper 'ghillie' suit.
• Doing an anti aircraft shoot and being told not to shoot at the very expensive drones. Yeah, right..
• Expeds.
• OHPs
• TV rooms.
• Snooker rooms.
• Beautifully worn in and comfortable windproof smocks.
• Rads, not cGy.
• "It is my duty to inform you that it is an offence to remove from this or any oher...!!"
• "If however, on returning to..."
• Block barbies.
• NAAFI ashtrays.
• Helpful, well trained NAAFI staff who saw themselves as being there to help you.
• Reference my last, cancel.. out.