Wednesday, November 01, 2006

Col. Tim Collins speech to his troops in Iraq ( Royal Irish Regiment)

( taken from the book Rules of Engagement, by Tim Collins - a book I certaintly recommend)


We go to liberate, not to conquer.
We will not fly our flags in their country
We are entering Iraq to free a people and the only flag which will be flown in that ancient land is their own.
Show respect for them.
There are some who are alive at this moment who will not be alive shortly.

Those who do not wish to go on that journey, we will not send.
As for the others, I expect you to rock their world.

Wipe them out if that is what they choose.
But if you are ferocious in battle remember to be magnanimous in victory.
Iraq is steeped in history.

It is the site of the Garden of Eden, of the Great Flood and the birthplace of Abraham.
Tread lightly there.
You will see things that no man could pay to see-- and you will have to go a long way to find a more decent, generous and upright people than the Iraqis.

You will be embarrassed by their hospitality even though they have nothing.
Don't treat them as refugees for they are in their own country.

Their children will be poor, in years to come they will know that the light of liberation in their lives was brought by you.
If there are casualties of war then remember that when they woke up and got dressed in the morning they did not plan to die this day.

Allow them dignity in death.
Bury them properly and mark their graves.
It is my foremost intention to bring every single one of you out alive.

But there may be people among us who will not see the end of this campaign.
We will put them in their sleeping bags and send them back.
There will be no time for sorrow.
The enemy should be in no doubt that we are his nemesis and that we are bringing about his rightful destruction.

There are many regional commanders who have stains on their souls and they are stoking the fires of hell for Saddam.
He and his forces will be destroyed by this coalition for what they have done.
As they die they will know their deeds have brought them to this place.
Show them no pity.
It is a big step to take another human life.

It is not to be done lightly.
I know of men who have taken life needlessly in other conflicts.
I can assure you they live with the mark of Cain upon them.
If someone surrenders to you then remember they have that right in international law and ensure that one day they go home to their family.

The ones who wish to fight, well, we aim to please.
If you harm the regiment or its history by over-enthusiasm in killing or in cowardice, know it is your family who will suffer.You will be shunned unless your conduct is of the highest -- for your deeds will follow you down through history.

We will bring shame on neither our uniform or our nation.

It is not a question of if, it's a question of when.
We know he has already devolved the decision to lower commanders, and that means he has already taken the decision himself.
If we survive the first strike we will survive the attack.
As for ourselves, let's bring everyone home and leave Iraq a better place for us having been there.
Our business now is North.

Saturday, August 05, 2006

Weekend - at last

Is it just me or this has been THE longest week ever...
Finally friday night, its not even because I have any really exciting plans,but just the idea of not having to wake up tomorrow and go to work is enough to make me really happy..


Tomorrow heading to Kent to visit friends and see Paul's album launch... Check out www.4thwall.net -- really really excited about that, it'll be a FANTASTIC night..

Now my lovelies its time to say goodnight..

Isabel xx



Monday, July 31, 2006

Norway Photos - as promised

Sunset..


Bergen


Cute troll


Brendan and I


Our first pint


Old town- Bergen


Fjord


House


Little Isle

Norwegian Fjords


Good Morning all,

After a few weeks with no news, I think its about time I let you know what I've been up to.

A couple weekends ago spent 3 days cruising the Norwegian Fjords with a few friends, which was absolutely amazing, if anything just made me feel like going back with more time, and travel further north where apparently the scenery is much more dramatic.

The weekend started with a 3 hour train journey up to Newcastle quite early in the morning, there we boarded our cruise ship. We sailed to Stavanger and then Haugesund, unfortunately we were unable to spend time in these 2 cities, from there we traveled to Bergen, the scenery was stunning, the houses are really cute, and the whole journey up to Bergen I was amazed, i didnt know where to look, I didnt wanna miss out on any details of that amazing scenery.
None of the photos do justice to what the place was really like.

We had 2 hours in Bergen, so we figure that the funicular would be a good idea. The view of the city from the top of Mount Floyen was amazing, it really is an beautiful city with an amazing sense of space.

Once we got back on the ferry all we did was a lot of card playing,( The King was beaten at his own game, Well done King ). had quite a few cocktails, saw a truly amazing sunset. And slept lots.

I honestly advice anyone to go to Norway, its not CHEAP, but you'll never forget the place.

It was a great weekend, that just gave me a little taste of what Norway looks like.

Photos will be added soon, just need to get some of the pics sorted out.

Cheers guys,

Isabel

Monday, June 05, 2006

I LOVED YOU

OnceI loved you once, nor can this heart be quiet;
For it would seem that love still lingers there;
But do not you be further troubled by it;
I would in no wise hurt you, oh, my dear.

I loved you without hope, a mute offender;
What jealous pangs, what shy despairs I knew!
A love as deep as this, as true, as tender,
God grant another may yet offer you.

Alexander Pushkin

Thursday, May 04, 2006

Life sucks

I´ve had enough of surprises in my life, I want a normal boring life, full of routine and predictable things.

Today, what a fucking nightmare, more so to David than to myself, but I can´t stop thinking what is going to happen from here, I know I need to be strong and I´m trying very hard.. I´ll be fine and I´ll always be there for David, and I know he is a strong person... I hope that always remains the same,cos this hasnt ended yet, we still have a long way to go although hope is not something I´m really hanging onto now.

Every action has a consequence and we all have to pay those consequences but fucking hell its about time something good happens... Because if not then I dont know what is the point.


I´m sick and tired of people giving me moral lessons, sick and tired of pretence and lies.
Sick and tired of people wanting to know but not really giving a shit, sick and tired of everything.

I´m pissed off with myself for not being there for him for not knowing what was going on.
I´m pissed off with the world, pissed off with the so called self righteous, fucking owners of the truth that really have no fucking idea.

Maybe tomorrow the sun will shine again.

Isabel

Saturday, April 22, 2006

Back Home

Arrived in Portugal around 11 am today, which involved a 6am start, which for me it IS middle of the night, my friend was at the airport waiting for me which was pretty cool.
It always feels strange the first day I´m back. Dont quite feel at home here anymore, if it wasnt for my brother, i dont think I´d come back in a rush.Of course I´d miss the few people i still have here, and my friends, but i think London is home now-well until i move countries again... :p

Anyway, I´m here now, and I´ve spend a load of money already-unfortunately not on clothes - all practical stuff pretty much all for David, and its been pissing down with rain all day, so on top of no money, I also got soak walking to my friends house with 4 bags of food-crappy first day.
Hopefully the weather ppl got something right for once and tomorrow we´ll have 25C, otherwise, I´m pretty fucked.. My wardrobe for this holiday consists of flip flops a pair of boots, jeans and summers t-shirts- the reason why this is the case is that i was told the weather was fantastic here already and i could get away with summer tops - y, oh y did i believe this????
Now my lovelies, time to go, one of my friends has just arrived home from work and its time to chat.. yay..

Love,:p
Isabel

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

Tag... Your it...

I have been tagged, i just thought I would share all the info my friend wanted to know with all of you...


Four jobs you have had in your life…
Cashier
waitress
Receptionist
fm coordinator

Four places you have lived:
France (well i was born there, if that counts.. )
Portugal ( Lisbon, Beja)
London

Four TV shows you love to watch :
CSI
2 1/2 men
Will & Grace
Prison Break

Four places you have been on vacation:
Greece
France
Spain
Italy

Four websites I visit daily:
Yahoo
Hotmail
Blogger.com
Webshots

Four of my favourite foods:
fish
seafood
Pasta
Fruit

Four places I would rather be right now:
Portugal
Tibet
Maldives ( mauritius, etc, etc.. )
South Africa

Hmmmm..... besides the fact that I have way too much time in my hands at work to visit the above websites more than once a day... there's not much to find out..

Keep smiling..

Isabel

Thursday, April 06, 2006

Getting old....



I am now 26 years old, whatever that means... my birthday celebration was dinner with lovely B. at the Blue Elephant in Fulham Broadway.. Its an absolutely gorgeous restaurant inside, and the food is great..

At one point I was trying to explain to B why I felt quite down about my b'day this year, and nothing relating to feeling old or anything, its purely because I dont feel like I've achieved anything much between April 2005 and April 06.
My b'day celebration last year was great, probably cos i did feel like I had such a brilliant year, with loads of travelling and money saved.. I was so looking forward having my friends around and party.. This year is a completely different story...

Lets see what this year has in store for me, up to now it has all been difficult news for me to deal with, hopefully it'll get better at some point..

Bye,
Isabel

Monday, April 03, 2006

Another week...

This day in History: 1862 - Slavery was abolished in Washington, DC.
1882 - Jesse James is murdered


Monday again............

Weekend was good - drunk friday night with work friends, drunk saturday night - snakebites at the Elgin
And quiet day yesterday- At home watching the boat races and friends came over for dinner. B cooked roast chicken, which tasted great, although he can't get his head around making gravy ( he always fucks it up, it hilarious).

This week is my birthday, turning 26 ( I cannot believe it).. And contrary to last year, when I was looking forward to my birthday for weeks, and had everything super organised about 2 weeks before the celebration, this year I can't be fucked with organising anything, to be honest I dont actually want to do anything. But its becoming pretty much impossible getting away with no doing anything, unless I hide away somewhere for the rest of the week, I havent decided anything, but its another friends b'day celebration on saturday night, and we have a few common friends, so probably just have a few "celebration" drinks then. Hmmmm, I'll keep u posted...

Changing the subject slightly...

Going back to Portugal again on the 15th April, for a week, B is coming with..so happy he can make this time, it'll be good having him there. The weather is quite good this time of year, so hopefully I'll get a bit of colour in my cheeks, so pale at the moment that I look sick...

It'll be good to see my bro as well, he calls me whenever he can, and it breaks my heart not being able to contact me whenever I want and having to wait for him to call, and even then only managing a 2 minute conversation cos the calls are quite expensive. Going over, for at least a week, I feel that I can be of more help somehow, and be nearer all the shit that is happening at the moment.


Regarding work, alls ok...... a few changes happening, which I'm not exactly thrilled about, but there's nothing I can do, so I just have to take it and shut up. A new company is taking over the contract as well, and this new one its an international company- not sure yet if that is a good or bad thing as far as our situation go, staff briefings soon enough, lets see what they say.

Bye for now..
Isabel

Brugge

A few weeks ago I went to Brugge with B and a couple of friends.
The town looks extremely pretty and clean, but to be honest since we pretty much arrived our aim was to try ( or the boys aim, shall I say ) a many different Belgian Beers as they possible could.. It did help the fact that was extremely cold, and on the day we got there, it was pissing down with rain pretty much the whole afternoon, what better excuse to delay the sighseeing a bit and head straight to the pub, I ask??? Well, for the 4 of us it was the PERFECT excuse... Expecially cos D'boy had read about this pub that serves around 300 different types of Belgian beer. Over 3 days, the boys (with very little help from the girls - I'm not really a beer drinker, and D is pregnant), manage to drink almost 40 different ones - and yes we did manage some sightseeing... people in general are very friendly and they whole seem to speak english, which was good for us.. .. :p

B got very very drunk on the second night, B'boy was nice enough to film the whole think, so now we even have evidence on how my sweet boyfriend was behaving - we did have a good laugh...

I found the city very charming, would probably like to go back in the spring or summertime, cos it was very cold, I pretty much lost feeling of my toes( and just in case, yes i was wearing winter boots.. :p )

We also spent a couple of hours in Brussels.. according to D'boy saw everything there is to see in those 2 hours, my first impression - pretty, but not in a rush to go back, Brugge seemes a lot prettier..

Anyway, some photos below... I'll add some more sightseeing pics later on...

The Pub
A few beers down the line


Beer 5&6 - 1st day


Canals Klein Japp have the time of his life

Keep smiling,

Isabel

xx

Friday, March 17, 2006

Happy St Paddy's Day



The Wearin' O' the Green
Today is the day fer the wearin' o' the green.
Today is the day when the little people are seen.
Today is St. Patrick's Day, so if ye'r Irish me lad,
Join the celebratin' fer the grandest time ta' be had.
Ya' put yer hand up in the air, the other hand on your hip.
Ya' tap yer toe, ya' tap yer heel,
ya' bounce yer knee a wee bit.
Ya' prance 'n dance around the room,
n' circle one two three.
The saints be praised, I must admit, ya' all look Irish ta' me.
March 17th birthdays
1919: Nat King Cole, Popular American singer and pianist
1933: Penelope Lively, British Novelist
1938: Rudolf Nureyev, World renowned Russian ballet dancer

No internet - how did we do it before???

Hello world,
After almost 2 weeks with no internet at work, its finally back up and running, i dont know what was wrong with it, to be honest I don't really care,however, this service provider has a completely ridiculous customer service attitude - it seems to be- ignore all the complaint emails for as long as possible, and leave customer on hold for at least 45 minutes or otherwise until they hang up-Anyway, we came to the point that we just sent them a last email and told them that we were cancelling out direct debit, as we weren't paying for a service that we were obviously not using... and MAGIC... email about 2 hours later, saying that there was a problem with the "line"(whatever that means), and we would have internet again by next morning the latest - and we did... : ) We're all happy again.. Especially cos I have been on a Health and Safety course all week ( I know, exciting stuff.... not ) , and I couldn't check my emails, couldn't check friends blogs ( Del - ur blog as usual looks great) .

Since when did I become internet dependent??? I check my emails about 10 times a day, its ridiculous, I know...
Anyway, there's no point going on an on about...

Once again Hello world... I'm back : )

Isabel
xxx

Thursday, March 02, 2006

on this date....



A few things that have happened in the 2/03 throughout the years... Enjoy


1903 - In New York City the Martha Washington Hotel opens, becoming the first hotel exclusively for women. -- Although men were allowed in the restaurant... ( love this bit)....

1933 - King Kong premieres in New York City.

1963 - Release of Please Please Me in the United Kingdom, the first LP from The Beatles.

1990 - Nelson Mandela elected deputy President of the African National Congress.

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

: )

Your Eyes Should Be Brown
Your eyes reflect: Depth and wisdom
What's hidden behind your eyes: A tender heart
What Color Should Your Eyes Be?

Wednesday, January 04, 2006

New Years Are a Chance for a Beginning

New years are a chance for a beginning
Even when there hasn't been an end.
Wheels turn in an interminable bend,
Yet, marked in one spot, seem to wobble spinning.
Each year we hope to do a little better
Although we know that really nothing's changed.
Reason thinks that everything's arranged,
So we must dream if we would fate unfetter.