xmas

Festive Greetings one and all

Looks as if our Senior Officers are doing a runner and Gunfire celebrations will have to be carried out under own arrangements (mine will involve a celebratory single malt)

Enjoy Christmas where ever you may be and here's to 2012 (with continuing banter and exchange of information)

JPW

PS Appreciate that this weekend is a mere dress rehearsal for the serious stuff on Hogmanay for our Scottish contributors

PPS Beachley Boy are you trying to make us jealous?

Merry Xmas and a good 2012 to all. Will raise my glass to another year on this great site and the people who make it what it is, long may it continue.

BobG

Merry Christmas to one & all.
Its been a good year on this excellent site. Had more promotion this year than all my 25 years in the Army.

Mine's a Cherry Brandy

Jimsigs1

About this time (1925 Alpha) on Christmas Eve 50 years ago I was enjoying a family Christmas in the Herford MQs with Hugh and Betty McCabe (7 Sigs) and their two daughters Betty and June.

A lot of winters have passed since then and my own kids are in their 40s, but I always look back on that particular Christmas with great fondness. Unfortunately I lost track of the McCabes after I came back to Canada in '65 and following the tragic accidental death of their daughter Betty in 1966. (Hugh was demobbed in 1964 after returning from Singapore and settled in Blackburn).

I hope the many friends I've made on this site have equally happy memories of those "BAOR Xmases". For most of you it will be along in about 5 1/2 hours; an hour less for those living large in Germany. Of course we have an Aussie or two who are already way ahead of the rest of us and Hardrastions will be noshing on his turkey 2 hours before Ciphers and me out here in Lotus Land.

It's been wonderful posting along with you all. My wife Moyra joins me in wishing you a Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, or whatever you choose to call this wonderful time of year. May 2012 be a happy one for you and yours.

Roderick MacIntosh
(Recce 83)

At any time tomorrow take a moment to say a little prayer for those who are away from their loved ones fighting for peace and democracy in Afghanistan ( bring them home safe )

MERRY XMAS EVERYONE

Couldn't have said it better Roderick, all the very best of Christmas Cheer to yourself and Moyra and may Santa be good to you.

Mavis and Len Payne

I Second that John Boy as I'm sure all on this site do

MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL

Hallo all stations this is brum

HAPPY CHRISTMAS !

I say again

HAPPY CHRISTMAS !

over

HAPPY CHRISTMAS to you Brum, may you have many more

Merry Christmas to all our members

Thanks Mike and likewise to you and yours

brum wrote:

Hallo all stations this is brum

HAPPY CHRISTMAS !

I say again

HAPPY CHRISTMAS !

over

Reading you loud and clear!!!!!.......OVER

I've had one or two less than festive Christmases in the army, one in particular was guarding the brigade commanders house at Soltau. He lived in a huge house out in the sticks and since the bogtrotters from the IRA were making a nuisance of themselves it was considered easier to ruin Christmas for dozens of soldiers than to disrupt the brigadier's Christmas. At 08.00 on Christmas day we relieved eight lads from an Engineer Regt, we were told to stay out of sight of the brigadier and his family, perish the thought he should have to gaze upon his own troops freezing as they crawled around his vast garden on Christmas day. The Brigadiers wife bought us a tray full of fried egg banjos for Christmas dinner, we were living in a garden shed, and she honestly expected us to be gratefull! At 08.00 on boxing day we were relieved by eight lads from 207 Sig Sqn. When we got back to camp the orderly officer went mad when he found out what we ate for Christmas dinner, but in all honesty there wasn't a fat lot he could do about it. Suffice to say, that particular Brigadier was an arse.

Yes unfortunately you had that with all officers, some were absolute a-holes and others, thankfully the majority were perfect gentlemen, I still think some of the best were the ones with QM comission

Les

I agree, ex rankers usually had more common sense.

And they were better at drill, didn't let everyone else down with sloppy moves

I think for me it was a case of Officers actually interested in what was going on and those only interested in their own importance lol

jimsigs1 wrote:

Hi Beachley Boy,

Have a great Christmas etc.
One thing puzzles me about Aussyland, does anyone there live in the interior. Every advert, film, TV programme etc always show Aussies near a beach.

Jimsigs1

Quite a few large inland towns, but granted 90% of the population reside on or near the coast. Too bloody hot inland.

Hope everybody had a nice Chrissie. I hear the weather was not too bad in ye olde Dart.

Hope Phil the Greek is recovering.

Belated Merry Christmas to you all (unless any of you happen to be Ukrainian extraction, in which case I'm really early!!) and a Happy New Year. Looking forward to seeing whether it really will be all over come Dec. 21, 2012. Just hope it's quick if it does hit! :-)

I worked Christmas Eve (insane!!) and Christmas Day (less insane, but still kinda nuts). Most customers very pleasant and wishing us all a Merry Ho Ho (who you callin' a ho, ho?!?) but inevitably there's always a couple who are just plain a**holes. Ah well....but actually rather enjoyed working and interacting with people and all.

Weather here quite mild after a bitter cold snap a couple of weeks ago. Santa sent us a Chinook (no no, not the helicopter, the warm mountain wind sweeping in from the Pacific coast through the passes) so temps shot up into the '+' regions of Celsius. Suits me fine....!

Les Pattenden wrote:

And they were better at drill, didn't let everyone else down with sloppy moves

A quick story if you have a mo...

The Queens silver jubilee was fast approaching (1977) and someone decided it would be a good idea for Her Majesty to visit 16Bn RAOC (Bicester, near Oxford for those who may not know) We were told that two drill Sgts from Pirbright were going to 'whip us into shape' for the parade, we were more than a tad concerned and all to soon the fateful day arrived. With the battalion on parade the RSM marched on with these two drill Sgts from Pirbright. Our fears were almost instantly dismissed, they were brilliant, I mean they were bloody good at what they did. I was on the honour guard and we expected bollockings, beastings and to be marched off to the nick at least once a day, I mean this is how drill was taught in the RAOC but these two drill Sgts (From the Welsh Guards) knew how to teach drill, they didn't bawl & shout, they didn't beast or threaten us, they were with us for two weeks and during that time I learned more about drill than I was taught during basic training it was great. Our drill instructors were a tad pissed of with the situation but the RSM was happy, which was good for us. The parade went off without a hitch, I was a young soldier and it's the only time I ever saw the Queen, and she came within two feet of me. I was surprised how short she was!

Have you posted that before Wilf?

Well, had a good Christmas with my youngest Son and his Essex crowd. Bloody M25 was packed getting there then I remembered, the underground railway was on strike that day. Good old Blighty - we know how to put the dampers on things.
All in all an OK Christmas but looking forward to 2012 now. Wonder what's in store for us all.

Jimsigs1

I`ll be able to tell you that in 2013 Jim..

Gordon,

Predictions :

1. Libdems will leave coalition.
2. Diamond Jub medal will not extend to veterans.
3. Swindon to become a city.
4. Man City becomes League leaders.
5. We will have a very hot summer.
6. There will be a confrontation in the Falklands although not as big as first one.
7. Milliband will be replaced in Labour party.
8. Brown will be elevated to the House of Lords.

All good fun - let's have others with their predictions, serious or otherwise.

Jimsigs1

Brum will become a General and
Johnboy will sober up