It's not what it used to be...

Nostalgia is, apparently, a thing of the past. Don't tell anyone, but... I've been indulging.

I usually ignore the occasional Facebook group invitation, but the recent one from an erstwhile comrade-in-arms aroused my interest. Three signings-up later, I am now in contact with almost 20 folks I've not seen in more than a quarter-century. We all served Queen and Country together, mostly in Cyprus, doing things we're still not supposed to discuss; I shall merely say that some of us were in the Royal Corps of Signals, while some were Intelligence Corps, but most of us had been taught Arabic, and let the reader draw their own conclusions.

Anyway, here's the problem.

With one or two trivial exceptions, I don't really miss the military life. And, although I'd love to re-visit Cyprus for a few weeks, it's not a hankering that keeps me awake at night. But...

Oh, ye gods and little fishes, my 50th birthday is approaching with most unseemly haste and I yearn pathetically to be, once again, just 21...