We Got Mail

From Connie "It most certainly would be a brave soldier who would volunteer to have the spotlight put on her or him for being a trans person in the military today. This may be just the thing to tip the scales toward acceptance, though!" From my time in the service, I can't believe the pressure the very few "out" transgender military troops feel. They must find pockets of acceptance from superiors is all I can figure.

From Pat:  "Thank you Cyrsti and all the veterans who served the greatest country the world has known. I was at a very moving Memorial Day Ceremony yesterday. After it broke up it was interesting to watch the vets from the various services get together with the Marines dissing on the Navy, the Navy on the Army and everyone dissing on the Coast Guard. These were all contemps of mine who spend time in Vietnam...Who served at DaNang...who was on a vessel support the Tet...etc. I did not see any of the Vietnam era folks happy with the Obama apology tour stopping to disparage America in Hanoi and the former Saigon. Many wondered why he could not stop AF 1 on the way back home in Hawaii to honor the Americans who were killed during the sneak attack at Pearl Harbor. Others wondered why, during his annual visits to vacation in Hawaii he could not find the time to lay a wreath at Pearl Harbor like he did at Hiroshima.
While some may talk about his kind words about LGBT others question his value as CIC".

Thanks to you Pat! Obama indeed will have a "curious" legacy at the least. 

Back to Connie:  "My brother-in-law was a Vietnam vet. He suffered from the effects of agent orange his whole adult life, including the cancer that ultimately killed him just last year. It wasn't until his mid-sixties that he finally even wanted to say or hear anything about his stint in the service, although I know it haunted him on a regular basis. I told him once that I was sorry I didn't do my part, and he said, "Why the hell should you be sorry; consider yourself lucky." I suppose that I was lucky enough to narrowly miss the draft with a lottery number of 122, which is right where they stopped taking draftees. Now, for me it's a "there but for the grace of God" attitude that I have. 

On a lighter note: If the BBQ bitch ever joined in with the LGBTQ community, would we have to make it the LGBBQT community!!"

Yes, my draft number was the only thing I ever won with a "27" my ex brother scored in the upper 200's. Looking back, I got the better end of things. He still lives within a mile from where we grew up and married a neighbor girl. Uncle Sam sent me to three continents on his Dime in three years. I'm still alive, wiser and not allowed in his house!!!