Home - Grumpy Old Guy

Rome 2016

What the hell is this site? Simply put now that I'm retired I can finally start to enjoy life.... Or I would enjoy it if it wasn't for the complete arse holes that seem determined to ruin everything. From man or woman in the street to the Government, they all seem to want make life hell for me and probably you as well.

This site is pretty much a diary to stop me fromforgetting the great times and a way of ventingover the bad things. So come along and laugh, cry and rant about my opinion which seems to be worth jack these days.

Easy offended?

Hate dark humour?

Politically correct?

Then best leave this site before you start getting upset.

I'm too old to care about offending people, after all it is not me that is offended, it's them - they need to get a bloody life.

I'm a Boomer and as such I've got balls as big as a dump truck and have done my bit for Queen and Country.

About Me

Steve Richards

Born in Colwyn Bay in December 1959, my childhood was typical of any broken family.

Two sisters and one brother until my mum re-married and I got a half sister.

School was OK, I was better at the sciences and English than other subjects until I was able to persuid my maths teacher that I would work hardin Computer Studies.

That was 1974, I got the examresults I expected, Sciences, and English, not so well in maths, but really well in Computer Studies.

Aged 16, I ran away to a flying circus..... Otherwise know as the RAF. I joined as a L Mech GR which is to say Electronics Mechanic Ground RADAR.

Laugh - yes - for 18 years!

Eighteen years only got me to Corporal, why? Well, if you don't know me, you would be suprised to find out that one phrase was popular in my annual assessments. Steve doesn't suffer fools gladly!

Now, on my side, that meant my superiors understood and agreed that those people I lost my rag at were indeed fools, on the other it means my people skills needed improving.

If you actually know me, then you will know that bit never happened. Even after I left the RAF and about 5 years later was working forTrafficmaster in Milton Keynes, myself and a good friend Tony were sent on a "Customer Services" course in London for 2 or 3 days listening to bullshit. When we got back to work Jim (out department manager) asked us what we had learnt..... Me and Tony looked at each other and in unison said "Fuck off please".Jim just shook his head and walked away.

Life style

On board P&O Britania in a wheel chair- yes it got that bad.

I could stand and walk very short distances. Getting around was down to the electric wheelchair and my lovely wife.

P&O Britania Medical Staff were amazing

Why did I need P&O Medical staff? Because muppet that I am I reversed my wheelchair down a ramp and flipped it, later the same day I did the same thing on the ramp of a bus - The medics checked me out and I was declared fit enough so we continued our Norwegen cruise. My wife Ange was so upset when I backflipped the wheelchair off a ramp, she thought I was a gonner or something..... That's what she said, I thinkshe just forgot where all the insurance documents were.

So, after all those years in the RAF, and many years afterwards doing things like Sailing (Dinghy racing - GP's Enterprise and Lasers), with a dodgy back due to slipped discs in my lower spine, I eventually ended up with a problem.

I was living in Daventry at the time and woke up to find I had no feeling from the waist down. I had slipped 2 discs trapping my spinal cord.

Five hours on the table in Northampton General and I was fixed. They warnedme it would come back and bite me, yeah sure I thought.

How wrong was I. Just before Covid hit, I found I had Corda Equina Syndrome, I couldn't walk far, my back pain was really high and my legs felt like there were nettles stinging the front and ants running up the back of them.

With all of this 24/7 plus lost bladder and bowel sensation life was fan-bloody-tastic - NOT.

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Technology

18 years running my own IT Company.

We already know that I have a low tolerance level for idiots, so running my own company was ideal for me.

Never an easy thing to do, you sink or swim based on how good you are. I even managed to get my Masters Degree in Computer Science and Cyber Security something I am very proud of doing, it was a challenge, 2 years hard work while running my business.

Now I am retired. It's time pack it all in and sell as much as I can. I have a good friend who was in the same line of work, so my best customers are going to him, because I trust him tolook after them.

Computer Technical Solutions Ltd

I had no idea that you can't officially close a Ltd company until you have taken no revenue for 3 months. What a stupid rule!

Bloody Bureacracy.

Pippa, who with Ange saved my mental health.