Shadow Beast

I have a vauxhall astra van 1.7dti its done 156,000 miles and cant fault it, its on a Y plate, £275 insurance and 51mpg i am sparky and it does all i need. richie

I understand what your saying about the pension, but you get a pension for the time you served, every body gets the choice to which arm they join, or what career to follow (depending on quals), so if you decided to leave after 16 years and had the choice to serve till........ think the RAF is 55 if i remember rightly than surely you cannot complain that you are hard done by. Agreed "you end up drawing the same pension as the slob that sat on benefits all his life having contributed nothing to the world bar 10 illegitimate kids". but that is the way the system is, either you nor I can change that, it the system that is at fault. The point i was trying to make about the pension was that the guy deserves nothing, if you choose to go AWOL and march at the front of a rally when your not allowed then you forfeit the right, or at the very least pension untill the first day being AWOL. Richie

There are quite a few good arguments on here having read through this, couple of points i would like to bring up:- 1. The guy joined up to defend Queen and country, that means you go where told whether you agree or not. At his rank he is not in the position to say if he wants to go or not,(he can but no one will listen) if he did not want to go then he should of signed off. 2. He went AWOL, that in itself is a military crime, he should of been jailed from the outset. He can protest as much as he likes once kicked out. 3. You do get basic rights when you join but........... when it comes to war and fighting you go end of (that's what you signed up for). 4. Surely your pension is only lost if you go AWOL or do less than the required time or get discharged dishonorably? All IMO of course Richie

Elmo and Thornton

SLMF Richie

What they should of done is just said "fair enough keep your turban on" then thrown the biggest sodding brick at him and see if the cloth protected him then. After all it would of been his call not to remove it. Then when he ends up in hospital tell him it serves him right for not wearing a riot helmet. That would be a lesson then to all others who refuse to remove them. Richie

I am a sparky mate, and its just a thought and i appreciate it should have nothing to do with your looks, more about the quality of your work, but how would it look turning up at a customers house to price a job covered in tattoo's, its only a small thing but could make a lot of difference to work gained. however if your employed and plan on remaining so then it aint to much of an issue. Richie

Yeah i sought of messed up there, i was supposed to be doing a triathlon on Sunday, dont think its going to be fully healed before and as its in a lake i dont want to risk it. Animal are they your tattoo's?

Well............ Done the distance, got the t-shirt and now have the tattoo! well pleased with it. Richie

just bringing this back to the top again, not had any luck else where. Richie

The average age of the military man is 19 years. He is a short haired, tight-muscled kid who, under normal circumstances is considered by society as half man, half boy. Not yet dry behind the ears, just old enough to buy a beer, but old enough to die for his country. He never really cared much for work and he would rather wax his own car than wash his father's, but he has never collected unemployment either. He's a recent Comprehensive School graduate; he was probably an average student, pursued some form of sport activities, drives a ten year old jalopy, and has a steady girlfriend that either broke up with him when he left, or swears to be waiting when he returns from half a world away. He listens to rock and roll or hip-hop or rap or jazz or swing and a 155mm howitzer. He is 10 or 15 pounds lighter now than when he was at home because he is working or fighting from before dawn to well after dusk. He has trouble spelling, thus letter writing is a pain for him, but he can field strip a rifle in 30 seconds and reassemble it in less time in the dark. He can recite to you the characteristics of a machine gun or grenade launcher and use either one effectively if he must. He digs shell scrapes and toilets and can apply first aid like a professional. He can march until he is told to stop, or stop until he is told to march. He obeys orders instantly and without hesitation, but he is not without spirit or individual dignity. He is self-sufficient. He has two sets of uniform: he washes one and wears the other. He keeps his water bottle full and his feet dry. He sometimes forgets to brush his teeth, but never to clean his rifle. He can cook his own meals, mend his own clothes, and fix his own hurts. If you're thirsty, he'll share his water with you; if you are hungry, his food. He'll even split his ammunition with you in the midst of battle when you run low. He has learned to use his hands like weapons and weapons like they were his hands. He can save your life - or take it, because that is his job. He will often do twice the work of a civilian, draw half the pay, and still find ironic humour in it all. He has seen more suffering and death than he should have in his short lifetime. He has wept in public and in private, for friends who have fallen in combat and is unashamed. He feels every note of the National Anthem vibrate through his body while at rigid attention, while tempering the burning desire to 'square-away' those around him who haven't bothered to stand, remove their hat, or even stop talking. In an odd twist, day in and day out, far from home, he defends their right to be disrespectful. Just as did his Father, Grandfather, and Great-grandfather, he is paying the price for our freedom. Beardless or not, he is not a boy. He is the British Fighting Man that has kept this country free for over 200 years. He has asked nothing in return, except our friendship and understanding. Remember him, always, for he has earned our respect and admiration with his blood. And now we even have women over there in danger, doing their part in this tradition of going to War when our nation calls us to do so. Prayer wheel for our military.. Prayer Wheel 'Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them as they protect us. Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need. Amen.' When you receive this, please stop for a moment and say a prayer for our ground troops in Afghanistan, sailors on ships, and airmen in the air. Of all the gifts you could give a British Soldier, Sailor, or Airman, prayer is the very best one. Richie

didn't happen to have a place in Rushden did he just off the high street? I completed my ironman triathlon last weekend in austria, i have raised just over £1000 for help for hero's. Imagine my feelings when i was driving back when i got a phone call from one of my mates at my old unit informing me that another of my mates has been blown up. He lived but has lost both legs, one hand and the eyesight in one eye, not good at all, couple of the other lads badly injured and one death which was all that was repoted on the news, I wish they would provide the full story. Richie

I suppose though, if they bury him soon, then it would make for a good entrance to the concert if they play Thriller! just a thought.....................

Thats real bad news, i liked his music. richie

There you go that's my entry, taken at RAF Odiham little while back, was a good day! Richie

Just a quick one mate, i have raised close to £500 so far for the HFH charity, i am off to Austria next week to compete in the Ironman event but thought i would do it for a charity close to my heart. Richie

Hi guys Jen is after an offiside rear spat for the supra, her one has been knocked, as far as i know its a standard one, colour is not to much an issue as its going in for some spray work soon, although black would be handy if anyone has one. Richie

cheers mate, its my first ironman but have done a few Olympic distance ones and sprint ones to date, but am really looking forward to this one. Sub 13 hours if i can. We'll see! Richie

That "marathon" that she has just completed is following on from a 2.5mile swim followed by a 112mile cycle, no wonder she is knackered, i will prob be in the same situation in 3 weeks time in Austria, keep your eyes glued to you tube for said video:d:d Richie

Did you hear the interview at the end? Rossi said there has been 2 good races in the past few years, "one was with Stoner but he fell of with 5 laps to go so i could relax and the other was today" that says something. The Edwards & Baylis one, was it not the last race of the season, where Baylis had won the title if he came second, but still raced flat out? Richie

i brought a D60 about 2 months ago and have been very pleased with it, i looked at the cannon 450D but decided on the D60 because of feel, i suppose it comes down to personnel preference, it felt better quality than the cannon. i have been very happy with it so far and seems to do all what i need in a camera. Richie

cheers guys, next one is in a few weeks time at grendon lakes in northants, open water swim though just hoping the water heats up a bit between now and then!! richie

Thought i would just update you on this, had my first one this year, it was a sprint distance:- 400m Swim 06:47mins 20km Bike 40:55mins 5km Run 21:13mins so quite happy with the results, came in 83rd out of nearly 500 competitors. Roll on the rest of the season. Oh and the bike weighs in at 15lbs without water bottles Richie

happy birthday mate richie

Elmo and Thornton Richie