Month: April 2010

Hi all, not posted for ages as I didn’t have anything definite to say. I was trying to get into the T.A., but had many doubts as to whether I’d make it. I have had encouraging noises from several driving agencies, but as is the law with agencies, nothing has come of it. I’ve applied for Tesco’s as a warehouseman, just to escape the crapness of my current job, not heard from that either. So nothing actually happening to blog about it. Well, nothing changing. I was still being sent to the freezer to work in these conditions; Thus engendering happiness of this order; My Kung Fu has been progressing apace. I took my first assessment and passed it, though not with any elan. Not without a bit of commitment either, for that matter; But as for any change for the better in my driving career, nada. This weekend it all changed. I had my assessment for the T.A. As I say I really doubted whether I could get in, right on the limit for age (too old in 27 days, that’s how on the limit I actually am!) medical record from last time I served stating ‘temperamentally unsuited for military service’ or words to that effect. No actual driving experience, being a codger therefore too old to meet the fitness requirements, etc. I booked some holidays (hence the title of this entry) and trotted off. Bloody hell! The first night there, me and about fifteen other lads (and they were lads, most teens and early twenties) in one room, bunk beds, army horse blankets. It was a total flashback to twenty years ago in basic training. I hated it then, and I was hating it from memory straight away. To add to my misery we were all marched (I say ‘marched’, they weren’t allowed to march us anywhere, we were put into three ranks and ‘ambled’) to the NAAFI bar. I don’t drink any more, so that was a trial in itself. Obviously I didn’t get much sleep, everyone tossing and turning, snoring, and all the kids getting texts and such on their mobiles in the middle of the night. Then, being newbies, they were getting up at 5.45, when we didn’t have to get up until 6.15. Had about three hours kip. Less than loving it on the Saturday then. From 5.45 until end of last lesson at 8pm. Bollocksed. Anyway, we did team building exercises and such and I was a lot happier by the end of the day, back in army mode. We did lots of test, and I was the second highest (that I know of) scoring person. The highest scorer was an A&E doctor, so not too shabby from me. It was all hanging on the 1½ mile run, which I had to complete in under 14 minutes. Not too harrowing. Just a matter of focusing your chi and putting one foot in front of the other. So I thought. The uncertainty lay in […]

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