How do you know when you are an old sweat?

**PartTimePongo** · 13-07-2005, 00:44

It happens to us all eventually...

Is it when baby recruits look like they should still be suckling on mums chebs?

Or when Baby Officers do?

How do you know when you've become an old sweat?

**Cutaway** · 13-07-2005, 00:48

When you've been busted from Cpl for the third time for decking a Sgt you could have sired ?

**Rocketeer** · 13-07-2005, 00:55

When you're at a command meeting and the C.O. says"
Right!.. take notes..
and you pull out a #6000 Mil Pad and a HB #2....

and the rest haul out laptops or blackberries..

**BronzeWhaler** · 13-07-2005, 01:22

When people start thinking your warries have historical merit.

**Biscuits_AB** · 13-07-2005, 07:18

When you pull out yer baccy and make a roll up at the CO's conference and nobody bats an eye lid.

**Vegetius** · 13-07-2005, 08:02

When the DCI feels that he has to make you a brew and laugh at your jokes before he asks you to do something.

V!

**Steven** · 13-07-2005, 08:11

When you hear someone whinging about a bit of kit that you can remember being the dogs danglies when it was first issued to you.

Having someone of senior/same rank as you with the first name of Wayne or Sharon.

When you mention an OP/EX that you had been on and some one says "I was in kindergarten/not yet born when that happened"

You know how to hand crank an RL.

**Mister_Angry** · 13-07-2005, 08:25

When you remember 3rd Shock Army, NI when it were a reyt proper war and doing first stag on Hadrian's Wall :D

**J_D** · 13-07-2005, 08:27

When you start using the phrase " When I was a young lad in the army................."

**Seadog** · 13-07-2005, 09:09

You remember Long John Silver when he had an egg on his shoulder.

You could lose an arm and an eye and not get invalided out (or want to be).

Chiefâ€™s punishment (whack) was preferable to the old manâ€™s official punishment and the old man approved.

You remember when the dockyard would do refit work outside the official spec in return for a carton of duty frees and a porno vid to the foreman. Happy and efficient days.

You were once senior to The Duke of Edinburgh.

**abacus** · 13-07-2005, 09:10

Sadly, I just need to look in the mirror.

**Ranger_Danger** · 13-07-2005, 09:31

When you find a picture of yourself on your first NCO Cadre resplendent in Shirt KF, Lightweights, DMS & Puttees. There are no TRF patches on your uniform and a single new stripe SEWN on your right shirt sleeve.

**Vegetius** · 13-07-2005, 09:55

^ I have that photo, sans stripe but with '58 webbing (with "pack, large, ridiculous"), tin helmet with "Dad's Army" scrim and of course armed with the ferocious Small Metal Gun. In the background is a canvass-topped AP short-wheel base land rover. I think this makes me older than I feel.

I am standing somewhere in Germany waiting for the Russians.

I can't wait to tell my grandkids about it one day, they'll think we were mad.