My wife had 3 small jobs around Gutersloh: dinner lady at the school at Manser (sp) barracks; clerk typist in one of the brown job offices; and finally, the internal mail delivery driver on camp. This was a great job, whizzing around, outside and around the base all day long. She knew the place better than I did! (I was on 230) She drove the mail about in one of the two tannoy-equipped minivans (remember minivans?) that were used by MT to call out the troops on the married patches during wars or exercises.
On the day she found out she was pregnant with our daughter, she was, er, not quite herself- fair enough, you'd agree. End of shift, she backed her van into its strictly allocated spot when she heard and felt a loud bang! The tinkling of glass followed in slow motion. She got out, in shock, only to see that she had crashed her minivan into the only other tannoy-van on base! The MT FS wanted so much to go ape, but she (very very uncharacteristically) started sobbing uncontrollably. He took his ire out on the sniggering airmen, who soon realised they were going to be staying on until both broken vans were roadworthy again.
All he could pour on Mrs Golf was, "You, don't wear those silly (high heeled) shoes tomorrow!"
So, at least one night in 1984 being Taceval-free is down to my unborn daughter!