October 15, 2013
regular Dinner Club, WRAC 1 Comment
Oh! you ladies of the WRAC
What have you managed to do to me
I have no voice, my nose is snotty
I can’t control what is coming out my botty ….
But as I sit and think about the weekend past
My face begins to smile and I start to laugh
The jokes, the songs and hugs at parting
Not to mention the unlady like farting ….
It took us back, it made us smile
and made the hangovers so worthwhile!
So until Fort William or next years DC
Here is a hug and smile from me!
April 9, 2013
Army stories, regular Army, WRAC 6 Comments
There are times in your life that will stay with you forever.
Last weekend was one of them.
Over 80 ex WRAC women met up in Fort William to celebrate their time in the army and to remember friends and colleagues who have left to march in the great parade square above.
The years fell away as we celebrated friendships, old and new, danced like we were all 30 years younger and partied like tomorrow would never come. We became one again, the celebrated sisterhood of women that join together in comradeship that we cannot explain to those who have never served in the forces.
Our most poignant moment was the tree ceremony, where we dedicated a tree to our comrades and our memories of our past. The words spoken by Maggie Purkis brought a tear to everyone’s eye as we stood in the most beautiful forest, over looking a loch and onto the grandeur of Ben Nevis.
It is memory that united us all, the ladies of the ATS and WRAC … the Sisters in Arms
September 26, 2012
Back in the early 80’s I spent 18 months in Northern Ireland. As postings go. it was great! .. we had so many pubs on camp that you could spend a whole week drinking in a different one each night.
Like many of the WRAC in those days I did partake (often) in a wee drink or twelve… and like most drunks ended up starving at 1am!
The cookhouse was open 24 hours in those days, there were so many different shift patterns and patrols coming and going that it was possible to get food at anytime (although you weren’t really meant to use it when you were drunk as a skunk!).
One night, after a really good NAAFI disco (were they ever really good .. or was I just really drunk), a group of us ended up in the cookhouse and due to the fact that one of my friends was working behind the counter, we didn’t get kicked out and managed to help ourselves to a plate of burger and chips each.
There was a pudding on offer .. Rice Pudding. but it was a congealed mess and none of us (even in our very drunken state!) liked the look of it.
It was the Rice Pudding that started it. It was, really. One of my friends suggested to me that the Rice was more like plaster of paris and wouldn’t it be funny if I stuck my boobs in it.
Well.. I did… to much hilarity and cheering … so much so that my cook friend came out to see what was going on .. (by this time I had pulled my shirt back down) .. checked her hot plates and stirred the rice pudding (which I had left with two very large holes in it).
We were still laughing when a group of RMP’s came in … and one of them helped himself to the Rice Pudding .. did we tell him .. did we hell …
August 16, 2011
regular ;esbian, surprise, WRAC 1 Comment
There are things in life that are unexpectedly enjoyable. I was introduced to a site for ex Army women on Facebook and since I have joined I have met friends of old and some lovely new people online who make me guffaw with laughter.
The surprise has been our common pride we all have of our backgrounds and our time in the WRAC, we share a common love of those days of square bashing, pot washing, smartly ironed creases and shiny shoes!
The WRAC was a great turning point in my life. I always knew I was “different”, I had boyfriends, that I didn’t want to sleep with and much preferred to be playing hockey than dating!
Then I joined up. I very quickly learned why I had always felt I was “marching out of step” with everyone else that I knew.
.. and so started my awakening as a lesbian .. and the rest, so the say, is history.
I have been around the block (and in the words of Melissa Etheridge) three times, maybe four, but sometimes, I am taken aback at my lack of knowledge or my lack of foresight into situations.
This week has been no different, there was something right in front of me that I never noticed, I cannot believe I was so ignorant of facts that have since been pointed out to me <smile> but there you go … sometimes you can’t see the wood for the trees.
Whatever happens next is not just my decision but even if nothing does come of this.. it has given me a smile, put a bit of swagger back into this decrepit old fool and made me realise that perhaps Im not the old has been I thought I was!
It has given me something to think about.. but at least it is a very pleasant thing!
There is a saying that you may forget what people say, but you never forget what they make you feel.
I can only be grateful. Thank you <smile>
August 8, 2011
Poetry and writing In nights, WRAC Leave a comment
Lost .. me .. never!
IN NIGHT!
Oh how I hated them at the time .. not realising just how much fun cleaning was with a bunch of gals!
At Bicester the sound of Bilitis verbarated around the corridors .. (for you young un’s Bilitis was a lesbian film and EVERYONE had the sound track!)
I remember Jackie Murphy and Sue Carline best for handing out the rota for cleaning the block .. my favourite (for some reason!) was cleaning the bathrooms .. I still like a sparkling bathroom now!
We had a lovely wee Scottish Sgt Major in Bicester, for the life of me I can’t remember her name – but she was a very fair, decent woman, who had survived my attempts at sabotage when I was seconded to the troop office after hurting my arm. I spent weeks pouring over the big sheets with everyone’s name on it .. I think they were for rations .. I really have no idea (I was a storewoman not a clerk!) .. anyway .. her favourite saying at that time was “Private Johnson .. a nice wee cup of tea would be lovely” .. I hate making tea .. so .. after a week or two I was really fed up with it. I decided (in my great wisdom) to sabotage tea making. The next time I heard the “a nice wee cup of tea would be lovely” I made my move … 12 teabags in a wee teapot .. honestly you could have painted with the walls with the tea that came out .. so.. very pleased with my very clever idea .. I smugly dropped it down in front of her.
She took a sip … paused … took another sip .. then said “Private Johnson, thats the best cup of tea I’ve had in a long time”
My flabber was gasted .. my dirty evil plan had failed … although looking back .. I think she was just too damn clever for me!
I did however extract a wee bit revenge at the next in night. I had in my possession (I can’t remember why!) a plastic dog poo .. now this SM liked to bring her wee cute dog round the block on in nights … so I waited .. until she had checked our room and moved on to the next .. and quietly placed the poo in the middle of the corridor.
The gasp was audible from the other end of the corridor … she turned red, was apologising profusely and telling her wee dog off … then she looked again … stared a bit harder … then it came … from the souls of her boots … “PRIVATE JOHNSON .. .GET OUT HERE NOW” …. how she knew it was me, I have no idea .. but thankfully she seen the funny side of it.. or maybe she was feeling sorry for me as I still had my arm in a sling ….
…ah .. the sling … I had actually been told by the medics that I could take my sling off .. BUT we had a big parade coming up the next day and I couldn’t be bothered bulling my boots. One of my roomies .. Joanne Hawker .. very kindly offered to bull my boots for me … I was sitting on my bed (with the sling off as I told her I could give it a wee rest out of the sling now and again) when she flung a cigarette over to me .. I grabbed it in mid air .. with my “bad” arm ..
The boots followed through the air a couple of seconds later ….
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