This Is My 101.

For those not in the know, a 101 consists of a list

of FACTS about the person who wrote it.

These facts may be common knowledge or,

revealed for the first time !!

1. Andrew, which is my name, means "Strong" !
2. I have 2 brothers & a sister, I am the 2nd eldest, my sister is the youngest.
3. I am Thursdays child (far to go!!) & a child of the fifties, just (by 2 & 1/2 months !!).
4. I am single, never been married. (I am currently in a relationship, at the time of writing this).
5. I used to wear my hair long... long enough to have a ponytail !
6. When I was younger, I used to suffer from severe migraine attacks but, thankfully, I seem to have grown out of it.
7. My first job was when I was 15, I used to work on a burger van on Bristol city centre on Friday & Saturday nights !
8. I currently live alone, in a privately rented house, just outside Bristol.
9. I was a Soldier, for 15 years 320 days !!!
10. My current partner & I went to the same school, she's a year younger. We first dated when we were 18 & 17 respectively !! It's a Friends Reunited story !!!! 
11. I worked for ASDA, as an LGV driver, for 8 years.
12. My tolerance for fools is extremely low - "I don't suffer fools lightly".
13. I have been made redundant... twice !
14. I was born in Plymouth, Devon. The city motto is "Spirit of Adventure" - appropriately !
15. My siblings are (in age order!) Barry, Graham & Helen-Marie.
16. My Father is deceased. He died from a triple A (Aortic Artery Anurism). Apparently lots of smokers suffer from them! (Thankyou Barry).
17. My Mother lives in Norfolk, as does my Sister.
18. I have 3 nephews & 3 nieces. My sister has sons, my brothers have daughters - go figure !!
19. I left school at 16, with 4 O levels & a GCSE grade 1.
20. I am qualified to drive anything & everything, except a road roller !!
21. When I was at school, I wanted to be a Farmer.
22. My Father was in the Royal Navy, which is how my younger brother came to be born in Malta.
23. At one time, all 3 brothers served in the same Royal Artillery unit in Germany, after I "claimed" the other two.
24. I have lost count of the women I've slept with (no, really !!), but have only had 3 "significant" relationships.
25. When I was a boy, we had a pet dog called Paddington, or Paddy for short.
26. In 1985 I had a relationship with Karen, who had a baby.
27. Sonia-Marie was born on 16-02-86 at twenty to three in the aftenoon, she weighed 7 1/2 lbs. I have never seen her !!
28. In 1994 I achieved a lifetime ambition & went to Australia, I spent six months there. I want to go back - one day.
29. Currently I am in debt, maybe into 5 figures, not as much as a mortgage !!
30. My hair is receding - dammit !!
31. I love taking photographs & think I have "some" talent for it.
32. I hate gardening & am generally lazy, unless it's something I enjoy!
33. The only brand new vehicle I've ever bought was a motorbike, in 1992. For a number of years it was my only transport. I still have it, hiding in my garage. It's a Yamaha Virago 750cc.
34. I have a back problem, it's called Scheurmanns disease !!
35. When I joined the Army, I was the youngest adult soldier, at Woolwich, for over 20 years. (17years & 2 months).
36. When my Daughter was born, I was in Norway. On my return, both Mother & Daughter had "vanished", nobody knew where they'd gone!
37. I lived in Germany for 5 years (when I was a soldier) & love the place. I used to be able to speak "conversational" German, but am well out of practice now.
38. I have blue eyes.
39. I have done a bungy jump, in Cairns, Queensland, Australia.... from 44 metres.
40. I am scared of heights !!!!
41. I have never "done" drugs, I rarely drink ... but I do smoke!
42. I couldn't survive without Nescafe.
43. My older Brother lives in Worle (Weston-Super-Mare), my younger Brother lives in Darlington.
44. My Sister used to work for the Labour Party, & the National Sports Council (not at the same time!!).
45. In 1989 I came 4th overall in the British Army driving championship.
46. I have been to lots of foreign countries, most (if not all) of the European countries, Denmark, Norway, Canada, Cyprus, Turkey, Belize, America, Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Dubai, Malta, Australia, The Czech Republik & Iceland ... think that's all !!!
47. At school, I took my Maths O level a year early, 'cause I was clever ... allegedly!
48. I have sailed across the North Sea, aboard a merchant ship, from England to Norway.
49. When I was a schoolboy, myself & a.n.other broke in to BAe at Filton & stole 2 double decker buses, driving them around the airfield before dumping them & running away - we were never caught.
50. I was a virgin until I was 18 !!
51. On holiday in Ibiza, in the late eighties, my girlfriend & I were arrested for "disturbing the peace" & spent a night in gaol !!
52. During my Australian adventure, I, literally, drove all the way around the country ... covering 26,346 Km's over 4 & 1/2 months.
53. As a child I lived in Cornwall, in Helston. Aged about 10, I took part in the Floral Dance (Look it up if you don't know!).
54. I have a medal.
55. I once raced around the Spa-Francorchamps F1 circuit ..... in an Army Land Rover.
56. I hate shopping, especially when I'm skint!
57. Paul Shane (Of Hi De Hi fame) once bought me a burger !
58. I have "allowed" M.Schumacher into the paddock at Silverstone for the 2005 British GP, he was driving a VW Passat ..... estate !!!!
59. My star sign is Libra.
60. At one time I was a real, honest to God, choirboy !
61. I appeared in the opening credits for GMTV, I was in the crowd that made up the words "Good Morning Britain". It was filmed from a helicopter over Clifton Downs, Bristol, early one Sunday morning.  Can't remember which letter I was in though!
62. Currently I have 6 points on my driving licence, 3 for a red light offence & 3 for speeding.
63. I am NOT a morning person.
64. During my time in the Army, I took part in a "deniable" operation ! (as the Yanks would call it).
65. I have been inside the Artic circle & witnessed Aurora Borealis in its full glory.
66. During an argument with my Mother (as a teenager), she threw a kitchen chair at me - I threw it back - then left, quickly! Don't remember what it was all about.
67. In the next street to ours (growing up) there lived 2 sisters, I went out with both of them (though NOT at the same time !!).
68. My Father left my Mother while I was serving in Germany, he didn't say anything to me about it. I came home on leave, he was gone. I never spoke to him again.
69. I still wear a ring given to me by the lady who shared my longest relationship, even though we split 12 years ago, and she is now married & has at least one child !!!
70. I no longer have "all my own teeth" .... as of last summer (2005).
71. I have walked the streets of Belfast, carrying a loaded weapon.
72. The last time I went clothes shopping was ... years ago, literally !
73. I still have a large collection of records, real ones, on vinyl.
74. For a number of years I had a second job as a DJ, in a club in Paderborn, Germany. It was called City CLub.
75. Once, in Turkey, I woke up to find my tent full of Tortoises !!
76. I hate cooking, but my Brother, Graham, is a qualified chef.
77. I can swim, sail a small boat, water-ski ... in fact I love most watersports, but I can't stay up for long on a windsurfer !!
78. The only bones I've ever broken have been in my hands & fingers, after a couple of motorcycle crashes.
79. A friend of mine was shot to death by a jealous (& angry!) husband.
80. There are several people around, with licences (!), that I taught to drive when I was a soldier. But the military instructor qualification means nothing in civilian life !! Surely they should be re-tested then ??
81. I have never owned a double bed !!!!
82. At my age (!), my music station of choice (during daytime at least) is still Radio 1. (  'cause I'm a big kid :-)  )
83. The first car I owned was a 2nd hand 1974 Ford Taunus 1.6L. My current car is a 2nd hand 1997 Rover 618Si.
84. I have been loyal to Orange since I first bought a mobile 'phone, around 9 or so years ago ... God knows why ! My number has been the same since day one.
85. If I'm going to drink - which is rare - I will (sometimes) start with a pint or two of cider, then go onto Bacardi & coke. I can drink B&C until the bottle's empty ... & the next 2 or 3 !!
86. It takes an awful lot to make me lose my temper, but when I do ... stand clear ! Once (a few years ago now) I broke someones jaw in 2 places, with one punch. There's a bit more to that story - but it's long & boring.
87. I cook a great pizza, from fresh or frozen - lol !
88. I have never said "I love you" to a partner, but I should have.
89. Damp, miserable days depress me, I think I have S.A.D.
90. I haven't been to many concerts, but I have seen Kim Wilde, Gary Numan, Bon Jovi & Pink Floyd perform.
91. I would love to live on the coast, within walking distance of the sea.
92. Kai Tak airport, in Honk Kong, was the most "exciting" airport that I've flown into ... glad I did it, because you can't anymore !
93. Scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef is a dream ambition for a lot of people - done it ! And swum with wild Dolphins in Byron Bay, NSW, Australia.
94. When not working, I'm quite happy to just wander around the house in just my boxers !! Good thing my house isn't overlooked much !!
95. I still, after all these years (!), haven't found my vocation.
96. My ironing pile is huge - I hate doing it, but it has to be done "properly" !!
97. Usually it takes a long time for people to get to know me well, so this 101 is quite revealing, I think !
98. I used to read a lot of books, but haven't lately, finding an author I liked & then reading everything they wrote.
99. Science Fiction TV, when done well, is a "must watch" for me. I have particularly enjoyed Farscape, but also like Roswell High, Andromeda, Stargate (in its various versions) & then there's Star Trek, which has varied in quality !
100. My take-away of choice is Chinese, deep fried crispy chilli beef & egg fried rice.
101. I have taken human life !!!!

 On which bombshell, I reach 101.

Hope you've found it interesting.

it was much harder to do than

I thought it would be.

*****