The Adjutant Winked At Me

About the Book

A whistle-stop tour, scattered with awkward adolescence and first encounters with original sin. Escape through the ever-open doorway of the church. Voluntary service in the RAF to avoid being conscripted and progress into police work and Forces Broadcasting in 2nd TAF (Tactical Air Force) in Germany. This ended by ridiculous fall into temptation and danger. Civvy street, and a series of jobs in a disastrous and unsuccessful trample to find an occupation that was tailormade.

Matrimony to the beautiful woman from chapter two begins to shape the future, then college education making friends and enemies and more serious gaffs along the way. Drama study in college and comedy at home with the birth of children in a bygone age.

Gentle beginnings of student life and consequent exciting discovery of true vocation. Eureka!! A place in the real world at the age of thirty teaching in one school. That awful Monday morning feeling never intruded into it. Becoming a magistrate at thirty eight, after which no other jobs but a succession of joys; children, comfortable living; many performances of plays as actor or director, and thrilling, hilariously funny episodes. The search intensifies to find God as middle-age beckons. The kids leave home and disaster strikes in the torturous illness which ends the story. The last chapter should really be: "Marie Curie tries to save the day ... Palliative care, Parting and Prayer"

About the Author

Carl Palmer comes from a comfortable home in South Wales. The last of four children, a boy with three sisters, his first job at sixteen years of age was Trainee Manager with F. W. Woolworth. At 17, he joined the R.A.F Police. After three UK postings, he went to Germany in 1953. His only reckonable talent was in Drama, so he was soon working in Forces Broadcasting. After demob. in '55, he had a succession of failures in Retail selling and as a "rep" in Cardiff, Swansea and the West. Clerical jobs followed in the CEGB, Western Mail and in the Civil service in Cardiff. There were "in-between" jobs too, taxi-driving, and a stint as Manager of a Toy Shop in Cardiff. At the same time as this daytime poor showing, was a rising tide of performances in Amateur Drama in Swansea and Newport as well as Cardiff. In the early sixties he started directing plays and appeared in several small TV roles. Finally he made the only sensible choice and entered Teacher Training. He never looked back! His first post was in a little Sec-Mod which, in 1970 became Cardiff High School and in 1971 he became Head of the Drama department, a post which he held until 1992 when he retired after losing his wife to cancer.