Military Service

[stlmichelle]

I was chatting in a chat room yesterday with a couple other girls and the discussion of military service came up. I was just a curious how many of us served in the various branches of the armed forces, and more importantly how did you hide your crossdressing??
I personally served in the U.S. Navy, was on active duty for two years and in the reserves for an additional three. While on active duty I lived aboard a ship where we had next to no privacy, so cding in those years was quite a challenge. At the time though I was still not really accepting of myself yet. My crossdressing was limited to wearing pantyhose on a rare occasion usually in a hotel room that I had to rent for the night. When I got off active duty I enlitsted in the reserves, it was a little easier for me then but still hard. We used to go away for the weekends and I usually had shaved legs, and many a Friday afternoon was spent stripping nail polish off my toenails. But I managed to cope in my own little way, but like I said I was just a little curious how others that have served managed to cope.

[wo-MAN]

I am in the army. Since I have been in, I have not Cross Dressed because I am always afraid of being caught and kicked out. What makes it hard is going to the post exchange and seeing all of the female clothing when I first walk in. I will have to wait for my three years of acitive enlistment to be over with before I try any thing again.:)

[ChristineRenee]

I was in the U.S.Army from 1972-75 and was stationed in Heidelberg, Germany for 2 and a half years of that time. I did not CD at all during my military service, but the desire to was always there.;)

[Maddie]

Air Force for 4 years combat control (yea i am crazey)

No dressing till i got married It was living hell

[Nastasha]

Navy for 5 years. I wore panties under my uniform during the winter months but obviously couldn't when we were wearing our whites.
I always kept a backup pair of boxers in my duffle with me in case I had to go to medical for anything. Couple of close calls .. but, made it through.
:cool:

[dreaming2bmichelle2]

During my career I was able to dress. I was even married. I had a complete wardrobe and would even venture out as Michelle ocasisonally. Of course I couldn't shave my legs, but I learned how to hide that very easily. Of course had I faced my need to dress rather than hide it, i think my life would be totally different now.

Michelle

[wo-MAN]

How did you do that?

[Sweet Susan]

Four years in AF.

[Helen MC]

You have all confused me greatly! :doh: I would have thought the very LAST thing any CD or even more so any TV would want to join was the Armed Forces!

When I started to CD, panties to begin with when I was 12 and then other female clothing of my sister or my mother when alone at home, I realised that any sort of activity where I had to get undressed in front of others, especially other boys or men was out of the question. Until I was able to drop it when I was 15 I had to wear Y-Fronts (although I hated them) on PE and Games days. Now even before starting to wear my sister's panties I hated PE and any "Rough and Tumble" activities and would far rather read a book or build a model etc than play Cricket or Football (Soccer) etc. To me the absolute last thing on Earth I would have wanted to do was to enlist in anything as Butch as the Army, Navy or Air Force and luckily by the time I was of that age National Service in the UK had been abolished never to return. This must have made life Hell on Earth for sensitive lads especially any who were CDs.

So how did you "Gals" come to join the US Armed Forces, was this a masochistic tendency on your part. I especially cannot get a handle on StlMichelle who enlisted in the Reserves after their active service, a glutton for punishment?

I could understand a F to M TV especially one with Lesbian tendencies joining the Armed Forces, over here we have quite a few such women in ours, but why a man with CD/TV tendencies would do so I just cannot imagine.

Please end my confusion on this matter.

[suanne]

U.S. Navy. 4 Years active 22 years USNR Reserves. 26 total and retired. I dressed when I could. Not very much at all on active duty. I didn't mix and match when in uniform. But when I was off duty. well.......yes I put on what few things I could buy at the moment. That was really a hard time to be a cder back in the sixties. If you were there, then you know what I am
talking about. The Reserves were different. I dressed at home and kept Suanne there. Only one time did I wear panty hose and panties under my uniform. I wanted to more but was chicken.

Suanne

[SherriePall]

I spent six years in the Marine Corps Reserve (the six months of active duty wasn't easy) and six years in the Pa. Army National Guard. So, of course, no shaven legs (which I first did before Halloween this past year) because of the monthly drills and being married to someone who didn't know.
P.S. to Montfort Cherub -- there was a time when it wasn't voluntary to join the Armed Forces. I'll admit my time in the Guards was, but the pay by that time was temptingly good.

[Deborah]

You have all confused me greatly! :doh: I would have thought the very LAST thing any CD or even more so any TV would want to join was the Armed Forces!

So how did you "Gals" come to join the US Armed Forces, was this a masochistic tendency on your part.

Please end my confusion on this matter.

First i was in the army for 10 years as an helicopter mechanic.
Machoistic? no I was in denial of who i really was. Part of the "I think this may make a man out of me" syndrome.
Oh and i would edit the US armed forces part. This board is international girl. :D

[Dana]

Twenty years ~ active duty ~ United States Marine Corps ~ Retired

[davine]

I was in Australian army 1971/1972 as a conscript and only ressed while on leave.

[Nikki Dee]

Seems to be quite a common theme over here too...though not me personally...but I have met...and know...many girls that have been..or are still in, the Armed Forces....Must be the Macho that brings out the femme.!!!
Love Nikki. xx

[Joyce1702]

Helen,

It's very common for crossdressers to choose not only masculine careers, but also those which have their own typically male "uniform". Whether it's our own confusion, fighting back against the urges, or just a hiding mechanism, I'm not sure. My opinion is the latter. We feel that by working in a typically masculine career (military, police, firefighter, etc.) that we are proving to the world that we are brave and macho and then they will never suspect that we have a feminine side.

Also, take a look at when most of these girls were serving in the military. It was way before the internet, and we really didn't know how many others were out there. We were fumbling along on our own and coping the best we could. Many of us believed that the military would "fix" us, just as many of us believed that marriage would "fix" us. Of course that never happens.

I truly believe, however, that being a CD made me a much better police officer and that it makes me a better person overall.

Hope that helps explain it somewhat.

Joyce

[suanne]

Hi Montfort Cherub. When I was finishing my senior year in High School all I wanted was to join the Navy. In 1964 I didn't even know what a cder was. I knew the word Transvestite and I didn't know much about that either. What I did know was I felt like a freak for wanting to dress in womens underware. So.....I hid it with all I had in me. There was NO communication to speak of for hetro-guys who liked to put on mom's or sis's undies. You were in the closet. I surpressed my feelings and joined the Navy. I was proud as hell to serve my country. I am willing to lay down my life for my country. Crossdressing WAS on the back burner. Duty, Honor, Country!!! If I am ever needed again. I will go!!! And Suanne will stay behind. What I would like to know is how many wonderful young guys that liked to dress in girlie clothes gave their life for their country. A past President said. Don't ask...Don't tell. Some policy, but it worked for me long before he said it.

Suanne, USNR-Retired

[Mistress Robyn]

i was 25 years Miltary service
and as for the comment about TVs in the service
I think the dressing comes out because we were in such a testoserone filled ocuppation that we need the girl sessions to balance our selves out

[Dana]

Helen,

It's very common for crossdressers to choose not only masculine careers, but also those which have their own typically male "uniform". Whether it's our own confusion, fighting back against the urges, or just a hiding mechanism, I'm not sure. My opinion is the latter. We feel that by working in a typically masculine career (military, police, firefighter, etc.) that we are proving to the world that we are brave and macho and then they will never suspect that we have a feminine side.

Also, take a look at when most of these girls were serving in the military. It was way before the internet, and we really didn't know how many others were out there. We were fumbling along on our own and coping the best we could. Many of us believed that the military would "fix" us, just as many of us believed that marriage would "fix" us. Of course that never happens.

I truly believe, however, that being a CD made me a much better police officer and that it makes me a better person overall.

Hope that helps explain it somewhat.

Joyce

In hindsight it was very much trying to "kill" off my feminine side ~ deny my feminine side ~ "De~nile!" isn't just a river in Egypt!

On the flip side it was very much trying to "prove", "earn" or at least validate my masculinity ~ attempting to reconcile the paradox of having been born male ~ but with the mind of a transgeneder person.

[Lauren415]

I was in the Army National Guard for 6 years

[celeste26]

I got very lucky, I was never stationed on a ship. As a computer repair person (Data Systems) I was working at a trainning facility and allowed to live off base. Four years of hell though, I did get trainning for my future career in electronics.

[Deborah]

i was 25 years Miltary service
and as for the comment about TVs in the service
I think the dressing comes out because we were in such a testoserone filled ocuppation that we need the girl sessions to balance our selves out

Ok so what if we crossdressed before entering the military and still do it afterwards lol?
Just picking you....you don't have to answer.:bs:


Hiya Lauren. Where you been girl?

[lil red]

US Army, stationed in Germany for 2 years, even went clubbing while dressed there. Just had to hope that I wasn't "caught".

[Billijo49504]

I was in the Army from 67-69 and was in South Viet Nam for Tet of 68 as a grunt, 11 Brush. I carried a radio and 2 rifles, one being a scoped bolt action. When I wasn't with a line company, I went out with a LRRP team. We even had a chance to cross a zone and a line in the bottom of a river, that we never saw. I had a GF who used to send my panties. Then I went to Okinawa. There I had a chance to get off base and get some clothes and dress at hotels, on weekends. Till I got out. Then I could enjoy dressing more often.:clap:

[Alison Michelle]

Ten years in the Navy. Joined for the experiance and money(money?). Yea mostly guys but just a job we did, no testostrone being thrown around on my ships. Did not even identify my feelings to dress as such untill the last two years.

[Maddie Nolan]

I did try to join the Navy after I left college but failed the medical on account of being blind in one eye, so that was the end of that.

[Deborah757]

20 years in the Infantry, now retired.

[Butterfly Bill]

Regular 4 year hitch as a Squid. I wanted to get away from the high school environment SO bad, and the Navy promised travel and adventure (which it did deliver on, but not quite in the way I had anticipated). Started clipping beads off my short-timer's chain at about 180 days and a wake-up.

I dressed in hotel rooms and off-base apartments (I was an airedale, and only spent a total of 10 days aboard ship) I LOVED the "black market" shopping district of Naha, Okinawa.

[Lilith Moon]

Yes, I think it is a macho compensatory or curative sort of thing we do when struggling to accept ourselves. Lots of people here say they did it to "make a man" of themselves. I didn't join the services but I did go through equivalent phases. For example, I spent a while hanging around with outlaw bikers sporting a black stubble beard, dirty leather jacket and a sneer designed to get me arrested.

[Jodi]

27 years US Army Combat Engineer--Retired

Jodi

[Andrea202]

Aviation electrician on A-6 intruders, wow I never realized how sexy that sounds:cheeky: U.S.N.

[robyn1114]

I've been in the AF for 14yrs now

[Sherrie]

USAF for 3 years 1 month. Retired medically. Avionic communications and navigations specialist. I dressed rarely and hated that. But when I did dress I hit a mall in a city away from base, bought a couple of outfits bras and panties, got a motel room and dressed for my enjoyment. What a stress reliever.

[connie rotten]

I was 4 years active 6 years drilling reservest US Navy. I shacked up with women my size and dressed in their clothes any time I was home and they weren't while I was in the service.
When I realized what a terrible thing that was for me to do I started buying my own clothes ,but that is for another thread .:doll:

[Cathleen]

I didn't choose the military. It chose me. Lyndon Johnson sent me an invitation & I showed up. Spent two years as an Army psychology & social work specialist, occasionally seeing lasses just like us, who were being "boarded-out" as "unsuitable for military service." (No one asked - but they told.) Dressed when I could - off-post and off-duty.

There seem to be so many of us vets, from many different nations on this board. Perhaps we need our own organization, like the "Fighting CD's" or "The Tranny Division." :bs: Here's a suggested shoulder patch:

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d17/Cathy02747/2dTrannyDiv.jpg

[wo-MAN]

I didn't choose the military. It chose me. Lyndon Johnson sent me an invitation & I showed up. Spent two years as an Army psychology & social work specialist, occasionally seeing lasses just like us, who were being "boarded-out" as "unsuitable for military service." (No one asked - but they told.) Dressed when I could - off-post and off-duty.

There seem to be so many of us vets, from many different nations on this board. Perhaps we need our own organization, like the "Fighting CD's" or "The Tranny Division." :bs: Here's a suggested shoulder patch:

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d17/Cathy02747/2dTrannyDiv.jpg
Good one:angel:

[Rachel E]

I did 2 1/2 yrs in the NG and in 1951 joined the army and fought in Korea from 52 to 53, did not get to dress during that time. Got out of the army in 54 and got married in 55. Re enlisted in the AF in 56 and retired in 1973. I started to dress at the age if about 14yrs and still do. one of my last assignments in the AF was with ADC/NORAD. I dressed most of the time in the military eccept when i was in KOREA or VN. I dod dress some while i was in Germany and like most of every body else i always was very careful to not get caught. For my 47 yrs of married life, my wife never had any idea of my most secret side of my life. She passed away 3 1/2 years back.
I can now dress as much as i want and i does feel great and is a great stress releiver.:angel:

[jessicat]

wow. i had i idea how many of us are or had served in the armed forces. my self 6 yrs active duty marine, 8 yrs resv. navy seabee, 4 years national guard, served in drsert storm and recently iraq AGAIN .

as for my dressing, i would have mad a very good spy, cause i would scout out times , places etc. to dress. was LESS then an easy thing to do...but i keep going on.

i did not go in to the service looking to stop my dressing but rather to make myself a better person and to serve my country like my father and his father berfore him.

[Falcor]

4 years OZ reserve,I was lucky. met up with another cder,we had become friends.Within that friendship,he told me,well impossible for me to keep my mouth shut,returned the compiment.They were good days.

[Holly]

US Army...

Basic-Fort Ord, California 1/68-4/68
AIT-Fort Sill, Oklahoma 4/68-7/68
NCO Academy- Fort Sill Oklahoma 7/68-12/68
199th Infantry-Long Bien, Vietnam 1/69-12/69
Armed Forces Vietnam Network (AFVN) Quang Tre Vietnam 1/70-8/70
I was a Tactical Communication NCO. Spent my last 8 months as a DJ... Gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood Morning, Vietnam!

[confused]

Just finished over 4 years in the Coast Guard. I rent my own house so it was fairly easy to dress when we were not underway

[terza]

i've never been in the military but want to pose a question.

i wondered how many of you who experienced the military
feel about a "ficticious" military where openly transgender
persons are accepted.

a) would the scenario have a negative effect on the unit?
b) would the scenario have no effect on the unit?

c) would you still joined the military as a "macho" statement
(if that was your perceived reason)?

a pre-emptive thanks from me.

[Meag]

I joined the Marine Corps Reserve in 54 and in 58 went active. Got out in 66. I didn't start CDing till 3 years ago. Glad I didn't know that I was a CDer then, It would have been h--l trying to dress out of a sea bag.

[sterling12]

I did 2 years in The Army about the same time as BilliJo. Won't say what Division but I was in Vietnam. Joanie was very much on the "back burner " for those two years.

When I got out, back to CD almost immediately. In retrospect, it was a very bad 2 years because I couldn't dress. I know that I thought about it constantly.

And speaking of Military Service, let us not forget a rather famous,(or infamous, depending on how you look at it), well known cross dresser, one Mr. Ed Woods. I have read that Ed served in World War II, as a Marine and if I remember correctly he served with valor on Iwo Jima.

Percentage of Cd's in The Military? I would guess about the same as the figures given for the general population....3 to 5 %. Maybe a little higher percentage of Officers compared to Enlisted Personnel but that's just a guess. I know I would have felt a lot better when I was in Basic Training, if I could have pictured my Drill Sargent en' femme!

[suzy]

I spent 4 years active duty in the USAF and 2 years inactive duty.:clap:

[Tina T]

This seems a good thread to start my posting here after lurking for so long !!!

12 years in the regular British Army, plus two Brat service and six in the reserve.

[racquel]

Five years special service.Lived on base in barracks,dressed partially.Last two years, shared an apartment,dressed often and even went out occasionally.Was never caught.

[stlmichelle]

wow that is quite a few of us, thank you all for responding. I am proud to be able to call myself a veteren with all of you. :)

[Rachael R]

I served 4 yrs (69-73) in the Marines which included a combat tour in Vietnam. Dressing was out of the question during that time although I thought about it constantly.

I knew even when I signed up that I was a cd but in those days I thought I was the only "freak" in the world. I joined because I felt a need to "prove" something to myself.

[sarahjan]

I spent just under 11 years in the British Army 1975 - 1986. The Britsh Army's light recce and attack helicopter unit. I also belong to the Rose's Web site and a similar tread has run there and it would appear that there are a lot of us out there in the Services.

Fly Army
Swim Navy
Eat Crab

Crabs are what we call the RAF

[Jonien]

I wasted 6 years of my life in the british army that was to try to be the ma ma ma man I never was I did't dress in them days so it was't a problem my biggest problem was although I did't know it at the time you can't make a ma man out of a girl I just did not fit in Like I have tryed all my life to be like other men it never worked

[LindaC]

USNR form 1967 to 1976. In those days Naval Reservists were required to do a minimum of 2 years active duty. I did almost 4(by choice).

I was attached to the Flag Administrative Unit of CINCPAC/CINCPACFLT. Worked for Adm McCain(THe senators old man).

I only dressed when I came home on leave.

[Amanduhrob]

6 years USMC...Semper-Fi!!!! from 87-93

I joined to follow the family tradition, and don't regret it.

I did put Amanduh on the back burner for most of my service, but did have a couple of occasions to dress while on leave, or weekend pass.

[Amelia Moxon]

....any of the armed forces except the Air Cadets, I did have do dress as a female cadet to make up the numbers (male to female ratio was about 5:1) on our annual do, I protested but, secretly enjoyed it ;) .

I have always considered going into the RAF Regiment and always will, should the time come to do my bit for Queen and Country then I would have no problems signing up.

I love playing at soldiers, and always have. I don't think I ever played with dolls when I was younger (If i was a girl I guess I'd have been and still would be a tomboy :p .

Hugs
Amelia xxx

[Veronica E. Scott]

I was in the USN 63-65 served aboard the USS John S McCain DL3 home port Pearl Harbor.Spent 6mo in Trippler gen. hospital and 6mo in a medical hold co couldn't dress at all,at that time Veronica didn't have a name.

[Helen MC]

I don't want to start a Flame War but from reading the posts on this thread I sense that there is a very different mindset between Brits and Americans on the topic of Military Service.

I was born in 1953, 8 years after WW2 and I am glad to say that the UK has not been threatened by War since. We had some Colonial conflicts as the British Empire was dismantled and of course the situation in Ulster since 1968, but my Country has not been under imminent threat of invasion, bombing from the skies etc by a foreign power since 1945, the implied menace of the Cold War disappearing with the Iron Curtain in 1990.

We abolished National Service in 1963 when I was 10 and the only people since who join our Armed Forces are those volunteers who genuinely wish to do so and make a career out of it. Some find it was not what they thought and leave as soon as they can, some are discharged as unsuitable, but the others stay the course. Our Armed Forces do not wish Conscription (The Draft) to be returned.

Thankfully I am now too old to be called-up unless perhaps there was some really dire National Emergency, when I suppose we would all have to do our bit, although with modern weapons and their means of delivery that might be a futile gesture in any event.

I could never envisage myself in any of the Armed Forces and feel I would have hated every moment and even taken steps to render myself unfit if the threat of Conscription or National Service had arisen.

I respect those who do feel that they have this mission in life but it's not my scene nor that of the majority of my friends and associates , particularly not with the lack of privacy and my being a CD. Am I correct that as a percentage of the population far fewer UK males would consider joining the Forces compared to their equivalents in the USA?

Of course we were very fortunate that our then Prime Minster, Harold Wilson, refused to take the UK into the Vietnam War so there was no call-up here at that time. Had there been and knowing the attitude of my contemporaries in the UK in the late 1960s I feel there would have been massive disobedience and Draft Dodging by British Youth.

[gennee]

I served in the U.S. Army in the early 1970's. I was not a CD at that time.

Gennee:rose2:

[serinalynn]

I retired from the US Navy in February 1990 with 21 years service I still work for the Navy as a civilian aircraft Mechanic overhauling fighter jet aircraft. I never dressed while on active duty but upon my retirement the desire to crossdress went from a from a pilot light to a full blown flame. I have my own ward room of clothes. I just took the pic for my avatar this morning. :)

[Butterfly Bill]

All who responded to this thread might want to sign the book at http://www.geocities.com/tina_michelle_smith/ncoclub.html

This is a page maintained by Tina Michelle Smith, who has posted to alt.support.crossdressing. She calls it the "TG NCO Club", but it is open to petty officers and commissioned ones as well.

[robyn1114]

Thanks for posting the site

[KellyCD]

Still in the Army right now, been in for almost 3 years. I do dress(I'm dressed right now) and even been out as "kelly" a couple of times.

[Lawren]

Four years in the U. S. Air Farce for me. I was lucky enough to be able to keep a small stash of fem things but even then I didn't dress much. However, I did have one disaster. I was caught wearing pantyhose by the Security Police!!! I was drunk, I was arrested, taken to the hospital for examination and sentenced to see a shrink. That lasted about a year and a half. Of course it went on my permanent record and I believe it was mitigating factor when I tried to re-enlist. I was denied re-enlistment, supposedly, because I had an alcohol problem. Now I am a Disabled Vet and spend most of my time at home so I can dress as often as I want. Even my GF accepts it! Alas, such is life! ;)

[JoAnnDallas]

I too am a vet. 1965 - 1969 USAF assigned to the 6994th SS.
Then spent 1969 - 1972 working for the CIA, but still in the USAF.
I bet many don't know that the USAF had a SS. :cool:

[ginafaye]

us army 1971 though 1974 helecopter electrian mos also crew cheif mos....... overseas 2nd inf div korea......vietnam era........didnt dress in the army..........worked are at my job...........played hard too........did the taekwondo thing in korea.................

[jenny c]

I Served 10 years in the British Royal Navy with regards to crossdressing i found it hard to dress whilst on duty but when i was alone in married quarters i found a little time to dress but not fully only panties and stockings but that was the start of something i now take for granted.

[Joni Thomas]

I was in the Army stationed in Stuggart, Germany from 1972 - 1975. As a military policeman. I often wore panties under my uniform! I had to be extra cautious for sure...........

[RobynB]

US Army 68 to 96. Three years active duty and the rest reserve duty. CD all the years except my year in Vietnam.

[DonnaT]

1973-1979 US Army.

Most of the time in the Signal Corps, and in the 2nd Armored Division at Ft. Hood TX. Our patch http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y12/DonnaTvTg/2ad.gif

I joined to earn enough and get the benefits for a college education. Knowing I wasn't going to stay in long, I turned down an appointment to West Point. Stayed in 3 yrs longer than intended because I got married.

The two yrs before getting married, I CDed at home when on leave. didn't think about it during other times. After getting married, once I told my wife, I CDed at our house often enough. My wife even shaved my legs.

[Cathleen]

US Army 68 to 96. Three years active duty and the rest reserve duty. CD all the years except my year in Vietnam.

Robyn:

You are one stract officer, M'am !

Now I fully understand the motto:

~ I am the Queen of Battle ~
~ I am the Infantry ~
~ FOLLOW ME! ~
http://www.basecamp.cnchost.com/army-cross-rifles.gif

:bs:
Cathy (ex-SP/5)

[Darlene Rochelle]

I am US Navy Retired, I started CDing in 1984 while living in the barracks. We had two-man rooms in the E-5/E-6 barracks. My roommate always went home on weekends,and allowed me time to dress up in lingerie and fool around a little bit.While on board ship I could not dress at all and it was DIFFICULT! Now I can dress more frequently.:clap:

[Katie Ashe]

AFJROTC 3 Year Graduate, 6.5 years active USAF, under delayed entry due to age. I graduated High school when I was 17, and turn later that summer. I was a Ground Rat 2E153.

[Genevieve G]

I was in the Army for ten years. Part of the reason I joined was because it seemed so macho, that maybe a healthy dose of being macho would cure me of my many tendencies. I worked on helicopters, which was okay, but turning wrenches didn't cure anything. I don't think there is a cure for happiness. I just put it on hold and that was very hard. I just remember being miserable, almost to the point of hyperventilating on a daily basis that I had body hair--yuck!! Such is my mania. Glad that's all behind me, but I'm glad I served. In short, I just tried repressing the best I could & it was one of the hardest things I've ever done.

Tina


BTW: Go Army Hooah!

[Stormgirl]

Sorry to be vague but I dont want my identity revealed. My old MOS was 11A then I got injured and reassigned to another MOS regarding Intel.(35B)


Rangers lead the way hooah!

[Shiny]

It interested to note the quote from "Billijo" saying she was in Nam during the Tet offensive and was a member of a LRRP team. Man, that's tough, like Navy Seal tough!! Did you sign up to show how macho you could be or just get assigned the job? I think that was why I joined the Marine Corps while the war was still on? Maybe it was crazy but it didn't really change anything for me. I salute you just the same Billijo! You have far more guts than I ever could have. You are an amazing person!