my very impatient Dad

[david3103]

I bet it was on because he was texting some of the 6 women in there.

Nahh, he's old school and will do it face to face...


We met one of the six last Monday and she had apparently announced on arrival that she wanted to be called Bimbo because she'd been known as that throughout her career in the RMC.
Seemed pretty much one of the lads did Bimbo, but there have been sufficient issues over the female intake to cause a hiatus in admitting more. The facilities weren't designed with them in mind and the return to a male only intake policy will last for 5 years or more.

[smashedagain]

Best of luck today

[david3103]

Best of luck today

Thanks Jase, but this is not my diary :-)

[smashedagain]

Best of luck today

Thanks Jase, but this is not my diary :-)

[smashedagain]

Just sat at my dads having a BBQ.  Grandad was inthe 51st he believes and was shot at Caan just after D day. On recovering he went out to India training up the Indian army. He was present at Ghandi's funeral then returned home. He left the army for a couple of years and in 52 joined the artillery and moved to Scunthorpe to be PSi at the drill hall in Scunthorpe.

In jan 59 at the age of 15 my dad joined up and became a Royal Engineer at 18 in 62. So interesting talking to my dad. In the late 60's as Ghaddafi started coming to power in "the bloodless coup" he was out with a detachment training the Libyan army in demolitions. This was west of Benghazi at a place called Bomba?? Bay which was originally a German  air strip  during the war. One morning he shows up to work and the guys who he trained had been ordered to turn him and everyone else telling them they were no longer needed. Obviously tense times as there were also some RAF boys with families out there . The foreign office ordered everyone up to An airport known as El Adame to be evacuated and just as dad was about to board a a BOAC Comet he was told he would not be flying out. It was considered too much of a risk to leave the compound with all the munitions etc and he would be needed to return with a group of 4 special services guys to take care of it.

As he had first hand knowledge and he said the task was completed without a hitch and all ended well. In the later years his expertise was building bridges instead of blowing stuff up.

Thanks to this thread as withot it I would never had known about this stuff

[david3103]

Cracking stuff Jase.

My Dad instalment today concerns the joys of configuring his new laptop via TeamViewer so that he can get to his email account. That was so much fun that I don't think I can write about it till the tears stop.

He's been out and about in London a few times now. Walked through St James Park yesterday in his Scarlet and thinks he had his photo taken about twenty times. He's never been one to have a fuss made of him, until now!

[smashedagain]

My dads got some patience. Been showing the grandkids magic for the last half hour.

Click to see full-size image.

[david3103]

Finally some photos of Dad in his Scarlet

Taken by the husband of the lady who Dad has his arm around, a lovely couple who dd a lot for Dad when he was recovering from his triple bypass two years ago. Alan, standing to the right of the picture was Dad's Best Friend from a very young age - they were Best Man at each other's weddings and the two couples spent a lot of time together over the years. Both Mum, and Alma have gone now, but unsurprisingly the two are still close.

Official photo's will come later once Dad's medals are shiny and cork-mounted.

Click to see full-size image.

Click to see full-size image.

[Geo the Sarge]

Great pics David.

For info, the term is "court mounted"

usually the preffered option these days as it prolongs the ribbon life and also prevents any annoyance of "jangling"

Common perception is that it was introduced by Queen Victoria after she had not been able to sleep due to the jangling of the medals of soldiers on sentry duty.

It appears that only regiments performing "Royal duties" like Buck Palace sentry etc were entitled to court mount and in fact for many years it was predominantly only the Guards/Household division regiments who had this done.

On my first stint as part of the Royal Guard at Balmoral in 1980 we all had to submit our medals to the tailor to have this done.

Looking through various pieces it appears it is now a personal choice whetner to have them court mounted or not, however I suspect any regiment will determine to their soldiers whether they are worn court mounted or not.

I once done sentry duty at the Palace of HolyroodHouse wearing slippers after 6 O'clock in the evening due to the sentry path being on gravel and too much noise being produced from the well segged brogues.

0810. Medals (Including Badges of The 4th And 5th Classes of Orders and Decorations Worn as Medals)

h. Court Mounting. Medals may also be worn court mounted. In this method the ribands are mounted on a frame of which the lower edge is in line with the centre of the medals. Commencing from the lower edge of the frame each riband runs over the upper edge and down to the ring of the medal. The medals are stitched down to the ribands. Court mounted medals may also be overlapped however, personnel with 7 or more court mounted medals should always wear them overlapped. Individuals with 6 or more medals may have them court mounted at crown expense. Personnel with 5 or less medals who wish to have them court mounted may do so at their own personal expense.

Geo

[david3103]

Thanks for all of that Geo.
This forum is such a fabulous resource, it really should get government funding.

Dad's settling in really well, yesterday he had his second run out in the Bowls Team, and he's just discovered that he has Sky Sports available to watch in his berth so he's very happy with that.

On the football front, obviously the In-Pensioners get tickets for games at Stamford Bridge and he can put his name in for one of those when Manchester United are there, but he's not too bothered about seeing Chelsea otherwise. So, one of his friend's, the photographer here, wrote to OT and explained his position. Longterm supporter, 86, Chelsea Pensioner etc. Would they have capacity to find him tickets for games at other London grounds? Well, that was a long shot, but MUFC have offered a choice from a selection of home games, Dad+1, full hospitality package including meal. None of the major games, but a decent offer nonetheless.

I'm seeing him tomorrow at a family funeral in Northampton. He's getting the train, using one of the I-P's rail passes to travel First Class. The benefits of life at he RHC just keep coming.

[smashedagain]

Nice touch from old Trafford. Wal

[david3103]

My youngest decided to go on a road trip last week and included a visit to RCH to see her Gramps.
She's pretty 'challenged' by navigational tasks at the best of times and my heart sank when she suggested that she'd be driving through London from Bedford, but when she said she was borrowing a tomtom I thought all would be well...
So it came as a bit of a surprise to be told that she'd parked the car at Epping and got the train into London.
Not sure how you get to Epping having joined the M1 just south of Bedford with a view to driving down the Edgeware Road...
anyways, she was in Epping, spotted a station and eventually got to Marble Arch and askled for directions to RCH.
A bus was suggested, but she couldn't find one that bore the recommended number. So she did the sensible thing and rang Gramps who told her to get a taxi, ask the driver to take her to London Gate and he would meet her.
The meter read £6.20 and Lucy was about to pay when Dad appeared and proffered a tenner to the cabbie, saying 'take £7'.
The cabbie not only refused the tip, he only took £6.
Only 20p, but it all adds up

Add it to the free tea in Fortnum & Masons tearooms last week; the reduced price theatre tickets he's been getting (Singing in the Rain; Billy Elliott; A Chorus of Disapproval, all since he got back from Canada); the discounts he gets on all sorts of stuff locally; and the goodwill that just washes over all the In-Pensioners and it is a good life he's leading.

Did I mention he'd spent four weeks in Canada? Visiting my sister on Vancouver Island. Wendy went out there in 1973 and this would have been around his twentieth visit - quite sad really, the thought that he was doing everything for the last time there. But he's back and fully in the swing, and really enjoying his new life.

He's even going to be on TV - he's one of the In-Pensioners who will be at The Albert Hall for the Service of Remembrance in November; and at the Cenotaph on the Eleventh.

Netx weekend there's this..

Click to see full-size image.

Manchester United v Stoke City...

Car parking; champagne and canapies pre-match; free bar (wasted on my teetotal Dad and I'm driving...); four course meal; programme; top seats on the halfway line; post match food and drinks...

He's also got tickets for Stamford Bridge when United are there the following Sunday - what a life!

[leethefish]

Nice

[smashedagain]

It's great that he is enjoying these perks. We don't give our service men the gratitude that they deserve in this country.

[david3103]

It's great that he is enjoying these perks. We don't give our service men the gratitude that they deserve in this country.