If it isn't bloody clocks....

.... it's bleedin' ashtrays made out of 45 shells!

At work with, to be honest, not a lot on (that's not a lot of work to do, not us lot sitting around in our under crackers) and thinking of an early lunch and the rest of the day off and doing my own thing,cool.

The next thing to happen is the arrival of a suspicious looking black bag carried by an equally shifty WO2. Commodores where mentioned (not the good ones that used to sing with Mr L. Richie), Lord Mayors of Portsmouth and ashtrays made from (as stated above) 45 shells. Buggeration!!

I thought I'd never have to do or get involved in another gizzit during my remaining and short time in this mob. Just goes to show that Fate has a sense of humor after all, just a pity it's a lousy one.

It doesn't quite finish here yet. I was then solemly asked if they could have it for the end of the month. So I looked at the clock instead of the calender then turned to the visitor and equally as solom answered with a definitive NO!

You see we do a sideline of various leaving gifts for leaving officers and senior civil servants. All of whom think it is their God given right to receive these gift and assume there is a store room full of these various gizzits and that we just pluck one of the shelf, slap a plaque with their name on it and hand it to a senior officer for them to present it to them at the rather splendid do laid on for them as they leave to go to their next job or to give them out to any local government crony.

You would think that I don't like making these jobs. That I think they are undeserved and a waste of my time. Not a bit of it.

I

WOULD

JUST

LIKE

TO

BE

THANKED

BY

ONE

OF

THE

RECIPIENTS

JUST

ONCE!