#navy boot camp 2021

[standardquip]

Dysphoria

A video representation of my experience with dysphoria. Made in 2020.

Video:Bakemonogatari, Kizumonogatari, Vision of Escaflowne, Escaflowne (movie), Revolutionary Girl Utena (movie), Neon Genesis Evangelion, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, Devil May Cry (anime), Fullmetal Alchemist, Noragami, Steins;Gate, Blue Exorcist, Guilty Crown, K (TV), Death Note, Death Parade, Akira (movie), Demon Slayer, KARAS, Children of the Sea, Dorohedoro, Psycho Pass, Nisemonogatari, Your Name, Paprika, Perfect Blue, Le Portrait de Petit Cossette, Weathering With You, 5 Centimeters per Second, Charlotte, Attack on Titan, Black Clover, Bleach, Erased, Darwin's Game, Deadman Wonderland, Drifters, Fate Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works, Free!, Sunday Without God, Blood Blockade Battlefront, My Hero Academia, Owari no Seraph, Chivalry of a Failed Knight, Re: Zero, Rozen Maiden, Strike The Blood Third, Sword Art Online, The Rising of the Shield Hero, Macross Frontier Audio:JT Bruce – Hypnic Jerk Premiere Date:2020 Status:Downloadable, Streamable Genre(s):Horror, LGBT+, Other, Artistic Cons/Awards: Anime Weekend Atlanta 2020 PRO Contest: won “Best Technical”, finalist in “Artistic” Agamacon 2021 – Honorable mention “Endless Nightmare” YoumaCon 2021 – “Now in Technicolor!” Award Outside Links:.org

Dysphoria AKA Skeptic’s Hypothesis AKA Multicultural Panic Attack

Started: 12 dec 2019 Finished: 11 aug 2020 Work time: 47hr 58min in premiere 26hr 16min After Effects

General Comments I started out wanting to make a weird/creepy glitch video. But as I started making it it became something way more personal.

The part where I over-explain everything

I joined AWA PRO in 2019 with a video that was completely forgettable (Exposure). I came away from that feeling very weirdly defensive of my editing skills so I set out to make something to prove I could edit. That was the AMV Esoterra, which was largely a shallow, showy piece. Aside from the technicals, it’s also just a type of video I don’t generally make because nostalgia/vibe things don’t interest me much.

While that video was coming along I got the urge to do something edgy, and I have always wanted to do text and glitch effects in a video. I’ve had a love affair with JT Bruce’s “Hypnic Jerk” for several years so worked on cutting it down to something usable (the track is ~10 minutes long). Once that was done I set it aside to make after Esoterra was done, to make sure I finished it before the pro deadline. I didn’t intend to finish Dysphoria for PRO, but I figured if I finished it in time (a big IF) I would submit it in addition to Esoterra.

Once I started on Dysphoria, the time went by so quick. I wanted something that would separate the viewer from reality and just focusing on the song would have been enough. But I got this idea to attach it to something real. And eventually decided to roll with it. It’s weird, because when you look at these 2 videos (Esoterra and Dysphoria) You’d probably think Dysphoria was the gimmicky one, but it’s much closer to my brain than Esoterra is.

I’m not super open about it, but I’m transgender. I also have clinical/major Depression. I wanted Dysphoria to be about the fight you have in your head with yourself on whether or not you want to change, or if what you’re dreaming is really something you want.

During my time in the Navy (2009 – 2012) I was constantly fighting with myself on what I wanted more– transition or to stay in the navy? DADT was repealed shortly after I enlisted, but trans people were still largely unknown and had to be closeted. This video helped me work through some of that, I think. I had a pretty good idea I was trans when I joined, but I wasn’t sure until after boot camp. And once I went on my first deployment things sort of snowballed, and I was constantly weighing the pros and cons of staying in or getting out to transition (Obama’s trans inclusion thing didn’t happen to shortly after I was discharged).

I wanted this video to be relatable to anyone imagining what a mental crisis was like. It was very important to me that it was still “gender dysphoria” but it didn’t beat you over the head with it. I wanted it to be subtle. Something that maybe trans people would get but cis people could still appreciate without feeling like the vid has a specific message. Gender dysphoria can be fairly insiduous. I don’t think many people realize how much it can affect things. It is also easily attributable to other factors, so can be very hard to identify as an issue if you aren’t already 100% sure you’re trans. I guess this video is just relaying feelings, and the general steps/phases/stages you try to work through during a mental crisis or psychological break.

For the text, I watched a lot of AMVs with text in them and I learned that text seemed to work better when you weren’t concerned with reading it. So I made the text hard to read and I used it more as an artistic framing device. Any time the character was feeling the text, I tried to put the text on the character, especially over their face. There are two “worlds” in this vid, one being reality (which is almost always starring a female character), and one being the dream/fantasy. Reality is dim, has washed out colors and hard to read text. Fantasy has easier to read text but it’s usually in another language. It’s also way more raw and emotional, and not the lyrics of the song/track.

And, as especially the case for the first minute, I started out the text being fairly legible but then got more screwed up and harder to read as time progressed. Because in the beginning you think you’ve got things figured out, but the more you think about stuff, the harder it becomes to decide, and the more frustrated you get. Especially true for ~0:28 – 0:34ish, screwing with the text in such a way to be artistic but also to purposefully frustrate you that you cannot read it.

Which introduced an ongoing problem into my video: How do you make things specifically frustrating (especially the later glitches) without it being so frustrating that the video is no longer “good”? That was an ongoing conversation I had with at least 3 different beta testers. Much more about the glitches than the text, because I had very specific visions for the text. In the end, I think I figured it out okay so there is a good balance between “messy” and “not done well”. But that took several tries to get right.

People suffering with mental crises generally feel alone. So I wanted the characters in reality to be relatable but have a barrier between them and the viewer. That being the text, blurs, VHS overlays, etc. I especially tried to pick scenes where the real characters were not looking right at you.

Dream world is brighter, vibrant, hopeful. The characters you see yourself as (the boys) are looking at you, and they’re for the most part cool, badass characters.

The glitches were predominantly hand-made using the very scenes they’re on top of. I did have some presets, but I’d say 80% – 90% of glitches were made from scratch. The presets mostly got used during the elevator scene around 2:13 – 2:17and 2:31 – 2:35. The only other help I had making this were VHS overlays which got peppered in throughout the video.

Despite Esoterra taking more time, I’d consider Dysphoria to be much more technical and difficult to edit. In Esoterra I was playing with, and learning about, flow, composition, and overlays. The time it took to effectively learn and apply those things was immediately used in Dysphoria which surprisingly has a lot of the same core concepts, just utilized differently. Despite them being nearly ideological opposites, I don’t think I would’ve been able to make Dysphoria as good as it is without having the experience of making Esoterra first.

Scene selection was incredibly intentional for every single part, and caused a lot of headache at times due to not finding what I wanted. Because my specific theme was gender dysphoria (and even more specifically, female to male) girls only show up at specific times: – the real world – the very first time the character goes into the dream world “at first it is a plunge into hyper reality” – when the character is actively fighting with themself (the yes / no sections) – after an implied suicide attempt at 1:32, when dream/fantasy start become one.

In the “Yes / no” parts of the video, the boy is always yes, and the girl is always no. That is specific to gender dysphoria, and to FTMs. When you visualize yourself? Is it as a girl or a boy? It was always a boy. But some trans people (myself included) will go through phases where they dream as their real-world (non-transitioned) self. For me, I went through a long period of denial, so would try to force being ok with myself, even though it brought me pain.

So all the scenes with girls in them are painful. The scenes of boys start out cool and confident, but then become trapped and locked away. They get angry and kill the girl around 1:20, which then results in the mental breakdown that follows. The suicide attempt, the male self saving the female self, the overall anger and confusion, and the “crisis” part of the video. The crisis is: Now you know you have to do something. Will you finally accept this part of yourself? Will you finally transition? The overlays at 1:53 signify the decision. Glass breaking, hands parting, and scissors cutting an umbilical cord.

The next section is “Help”. The character finally recognizes that they need help, because they are finally accepting that there is a problem. But just because you recognize there’s a problem doesn’t mean you’re any good at solving it. Therein goes the brief period of survival in the dream with the super clear picture of the man saving the woman. It works in two ways, one at surface gender dysphoria level because it’s a dude being cool, the secondary being that the masculine side is saving the feminine side. “Hey. You don’t have to die. You’re still a part of me. You might be transitioning to male but that doesn’t mean my feminine side disappears.”

The elevator section of the video was one of the first sections I edited, and so it is predominantly just a glitch fest as a way to transition from living in escapism to getting back to reality. It ends at the scene of the girl in bed. For me this symbolizes depression more than anything else. You know you need help, you are constantly thinking about how to get it, but sometimes you just can’t fucking do anything. So we have that scene and then shinji (the boy) appears as a reflection beneath. The video ends with shinji waking up in the hospital and the question “Are you awake?” It’s a throwback to the original video’s premise of a skeptic’s hypothesis… Can never know if you’re dreaming or not. But also a sort of ambiguous ending of never knowing if the character got the help they needed or not. Are they still living in their dream of being a boy? Or did they actually transition and this is reality now?

¯_(ツ)_/¯

So anyway that’s my over-explanation of this video. I put it off for so long, partly because I don’t like revealing this part of myself, and partly because I don’t think it’s right to force my interpretation/message on anyone. But overall decided the pros in putting this essay out there outweighed the cons.

Since I finished this video in August 2019, released it publicly in December, and only now just wrote this explanation at the end of February the following year, I forgot a lot of things maybe I wanted to touch on in between that time. But this is long enough as it is. If you have any questions, feel free to hit me up I guess. Contact info in my profile.

Some things I want to point out just because As mentioned previously, all scene selection was super intentional. But a lot of it goes by so fast and seems kind of random so here’s some things I want to bring attention to lol.

0:02 – there’s an overlay here of more rain (dropping on the camera) and also some faint glowing eyes. I wanted to bring some paranoia into this video but this is the only part that panned out.

Beginning to 0:21 – Your Name was amazing to work with because it had the perfect amount of scenes of girls looking at boys and being sad about it. This establishes the character’s life up to this point as being unhappy with who she is. The scene of her staring in the mirror at the boy and then crying really sets up the whole gender dysphoria framing device without being obvious about it.

0:24 – anthy is a fragmented, bare, vulnerable individual with a trapped and tortured boy prince inside :)

1:20 – metaphor for self injury. Also foreshadowing of some other chest-based scenes. 1:23 – the result of the previous scene. This was the best anime representation I could find for ftm chest surgery. Obviously the scar is all wrong but it was the only chest scar scene I could find that looked kind of believable for what I was going for.

1:24 – 1:32 I synced the tracking dot to the beat lol. Also the text on the bed moves when she lays down on it.

1:57 – 1:59 is all scenes with barriers because the characters are all trapped. The last scene is a first person shot of looking down at boobs, which in context of all the suffering scenes leaning up to it are meant to imply that boobs are bad. Character has massive chest-related dysphoria. It’s a quick callback to the other 2 chest scenes.

2:01 – 2:05 is dilandau!! From Vision of Escaflowne. I won’t explain the scene because it’s a huge spoiler but if you know the anime/character you’ll know why I used it here. :)

Note: the (uncredited) live action footage is a recording of myself.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Many thanks to my beta testers and our discussions about the intricacies of glitches: Ash, Dr. Derpface, TheLazyDaze

Thank you to Synaethesia for helping me with the VHS overlays.

Thank you to Kriegher for the help with including Hindi as a language.

I also must mention ProstrateConstantly/ZaneWins, whose DESTRUCT vid and making of vid heavily inspired me to make my own glitch vid. And to CrackTheSky’s blog for mentioning DESTRUCT, as I otherwise never would’ve seen it. D E S T R U C T: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=878jSaMBtxw Making of DESTRUCT: CTS’s blog: https://crakthesky.wordpress.com/

Original track of JT Bruce – Hypnic Jerk: https://www.jamendo.com/track/24044/hypnic-jerk?language=en https://open.spotify.com/track/0e3aRWcOl7XqYNWP1ss5AO

I did a large amount of work to the song to make it work- here’s a screencap of my Premiere timeline for the song:

In (approximately) September 2021, JT Bruce commented on the youtube video!

[mostlysignssomeportents]

This day in history

#20yrsago Hacker R0TC https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-17-tm-cyber46-story.html

#15yrsago Korea’s Internet “addiction” boot-camps https://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/18/technology/18rehab.html

#10yrsago What do we do about untrustworthy Certificate Authorities? https://www.nature.com/articles/491325a.pdf

#10yrsago Taliban uses CC instead of BCC, exposes identity of 400+ contacts https://observer.com/2012/11/taliban-accidentally-publicly-ccs-its-entire-mailing-list/

#10yrsago House Republicans release watershed copyright reform paper https://www.techdirt.com/2012/11/16/house-republicans-copyright-law-destroys-markets-its-time-real-reform/

#5yrsago Outstanding rant about the surreal design ethos of The Cheesecake Factory https://twitter.com/MaxKriegerVG/status/931373170791198720

#5yrsago Poor Detroit neighborhoods, abandoned by telcos and the FCC, are rolling out homebrew, community mesh broadband https://www.vice.com/en/article/kz3xyz/detroit-mesh-network

#5yrsago 70% of poor people on broadband subsidy will lose their connections thanks to Trump’s FCC https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/11/sorry-poor-people-the-fcc-is-coming-after-your-broadband-plans/

#5yrsago The 0.2% of Americans exempted by the GOP estate-tax plan (including the Trump cabinet) have never paid tax on their millions and never will https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/16/business/economy/estate-tax.html

#5yrsago Donald Trump will re-legalize importing endangered elephants’ ivory and severed heads https://www.newscientist.com/article/2153684-trump-to-let-americans-import-ivory-and-hunting-trophies-again/

#5yrsago Navy admits its pilot sky-wrote a giant cloud-wiener https://www.krem.com/article/news/local/okanogan-county/graphic-navy-admits-to-being-involved-in-obscene-skydrawings-spotted-in-okanogan-co/293-492496113

#5yrsago Pentagon mass surveillance slurped up the world’s social media traffic; then they dumped it on a publicly accessible Amazon cloud server https://www.upguard.com/breaches/cloud-leak-centcom

#1yrago Live Nation is to blame for the Astroworld deaths https://pluralistic.net/2021/11/17/do-well-do-good-do-nothing/#crushing

#1yrago Aspiration’s comprehensively deceptive greenwashing https://pluralistic.net/2021/11/17/do-well-do-good-do-nothing/#greenwashing

[retrospections]

today, april 26th 2021, marks the start of my two-week countdown.

in two weeks' time, i'll be shipping out to Navy basic training.

where will i be by the time i look back at these posts? what will i be thinking? what will i look like? will i be proud? will i regret it? did i make it through? am i over it? should i be proud? am i stronger than i thought i was? i have so many questions for you, future me.

tell me; did i do good? did i make myself proud? i need to know.

who are you right now, at the time of new you reading this?

right now, i'm scared. stressed out. embarrassed. ashamed. embarrassed that it took this long to get here and ashamed that i'm having second thoughts. i'm doubting you. but i bet you discover a newfound strength in boot camp, don't you?

i should keep my wits about me; my head on my shoulders. i should be kind to myself, and patient. i should be better to myself.

i hope i make you proud.

[southernvangard]

(Southern Vangard) Episode 283 - Southern Vangard Radio

BANG! @southernvangard #radio Ep283: COVID-19 Edition 75! How goes it Vangardians?! It’s time to delete some of those sleepy time podcasts from your queue to make room for that Twice A Week goodness your guys DOE & MEEKS deliver week after week. Ep283 brings you TWO, count ‘em TWO, WORLD EXCLUSIVES from RIKERS ISLAND BOXING SCHOOL, which is comprised of rhyme animals EFF YOU and SPIT GEMZ, who have an album dropping this Friday! It just so happens these two gentlemen agreed to talk about this and more for our Thursday interview session series - you can catch snippets of the interview at the end of the mix until the full drops on Thursday. We also managed to nab a mid-mix interview with BODEGA BAMZ, who just dropped EL CAMINO on the world a few weeks ago, and boy is it a doozy! Stop reading, start listening and remember it’s always that #SmithsonianGrade #TwiceAWeek #WeAreTheGard // southernvangard.com // @southernvangard on #applepodcasts #stitcherradio #soundcloud #mixcloud #youtube // #hiphop #rap #undergroundhiphop #boombap #DJ #mixshow #interview #podcast #ATL #WORLDWIDE #RIPCOMBATJACK

Recorded live March 7, 2021 @ Dirty Blanket Studios, Marietta, GA

southernvangard.com

@southernvangard on #applepodcasts  #soundcloud #youtube #spotifypodcast #googlepodcasts #stitcherradio  #mixcloud #SmithsonianGrade #TwiceAWeek #WeAreTheGard

twitter/IG: @southernvangard @jondoeatl @cappuccinomeeks

Talk Break Inst. - "Prince Of Bollywood" - C-Lance

"Triple Crown" - Rikers Island Boxing School (Eff Yoo & Spit Gemz) ft. Aye Wun (prod. Snowgoons) ** WORLD EXCLUSIVE **

"Noffa Nuthin" - Rikers Island Boxing School (Eff Yoo & Spit Gemz) (prod. Vic Grimes) ** WORLD EXCLUSIVE **

"Boot Camp 4 Life" - Tek ft. Sean Price, Buckshot & General Steele (prod. Don Notz)

"Climbing Mountains" - Napoleon Da Legend & Akhenaton ft. BBass

"YMG-Unit" - Ymg Shooter ft. Kevin X & Devil Trggr

"My People" - The Good People x Milkcrate

Talk Break Inst. - "Curse Of The Snow Woman" - C-Lance

"As Above, So Below" - O The Great (prod. Vago)

"Suicide" - Wais P ft. Termanology and Lil Fame (prod. Team Demo)

"Broad Day" - Termanology & Shortfyuz ft. Lil Fame, Rome Streetz & Jay Royale

"Willy Breeze" - The Architect x Byrd Land

"Crime Pays" - Bodega Bamz (prod. Tre Eiht & Onslaught)

"Dear Music" - Bodega Bamz (prod. Navi Beats)

** MID-MIX INTERVIEW - BODEGA BAMZ **

Interview Inst. - "God of India" / Murder In Mumbai" - C-Lance

Talk Break Inst. - "The Hannya Mask" - C-Lance

"Feeling Like Biggie" - Bang Belushi (prod. Foul Mouth)

"Columbian Neck Ties" - Cousin Feo & Lord Juco (prod. V Don)

"Opium Fields" - Red Inf & Vanderslice ft. UFO Fev

"Nothing Like The Sun" - Tree ft. Roc Marciano

"Barry's White" - Haze ft. Estee Nack

Talk Break Inst. - "The Golden City' - C-Lance

INTERVIEW SNIPPETS - RIKERS ISLAND BOXING SCHOOL (EFF YOO & SPIT GEMZ) ** FULL INTERVIEW DROPS THURS 3/11 **

SOUNDCLOUD

https://soundcloud.com/southernvangard/episode-283-southern-vangard-radio

APPLE PODCASTS

https://itun.es/us/QyyX9.c/

SPOTIFY PODCASTS

http://bit.ly/svrspotifypodcasts

YOUTUBE

https://youtu.be/v8CQFUXC7LE

GOOGLE PODCASTS

http://bit.ly/svrgooglepodcasts

MIXCLOUD

https://www.mixcloud.com/southernvangard/episode-283-southern-vangard-radio/

#SouthernVangard #DJJonDoe #EddieMeeks #CLance #RikersIslandBoxingSchool #EffYoo #SpitGemz #AyeWun #Snowgoons #VicGrimes #Tek #SeanPrice #Buckshot #GeneralSteele #DonNotz #NapoleonDaLegend #Akhenaton #BBass #YmgShooter #KevinX #DevilTrggr #TheGoodPeople #Milkcrate #OTheGreat #Vago #WaisP #TeamDemo #Termanology #Shortfyuz #LilFame #RomeStreetz #JayRoyale #TheArchitect #ByrdLand #TreEiht #Onslaught #BodegaBamz #NaviBeats #BangBelushi #FoulMouth #CousinFeo #LordJuco #VDon #RedInf #Vanderslice #UFOFev #Tree #RocMarciano #Haze #EsteeNack

[whatjillwore]

February 15, 2021

Event: Boarding Air Force One at Hagerstown Airport after a weekend at Camp David.

Items: HiSo Light pink coat with flared hem, Celine Mini Luggage black tote and Sorel Joan of Arctic snow boots.

Notes: The President is wearing a baseball cap, black leather jacket and navy blue pants.

[usnccollege]

The United States Naval Community College A Pathway to the Future

By USNCC Public Affairs 

Many young Sailors join the Navy with the hopes of making a better place for themselves in the world.  Today, very few employers offer the vast array of opportunities to a recent high school graduate like a career in the U.S. military.  Within a year of graduating from high school, a student with an interest in car engines might be overhauling complex and versatile work trucks with the Marines, or doing maintenance on a state of the art aircraft engine, hundreds of miles away from shore.  This comes at great cost to the Navy and no lack of effort on the part of a Sailor.  Training pipelines vary, but it generally follows a similar path; recruit basic training, affectionately referred to as boot camp, followed by an “A” school, perhaps some more technical training and before they know it, Sailors, Marines and “Coasties” are on the deck plates in the fleet, working in a job they’ve been trained for and mastered to a level they are trusted to perform daily. 

Now, imagine putting all of that relevant training to work towards an academic goal recognized by civilian colleges and suitable for transferring to the civilian workforce.  Imagine a professional certificate recognizing time spent in Navy classes awarding credit towards an associate’s degree.  Now imagine this does not impact any existing education benefit, and can be stacked along with other credits and certificates to work towards a bachelor’s degree, and perhaps beyond.  Imagine having the option to do all this, or not, within a single enlistment. 

Now, imagine no more, because it’s about to become a reality. 

 In January of 2021 the United States Naval Community College (USNCC) is kicking off a pilot program with approximately 600 students from the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Coast Guard.  These naval students, attending classes and giving feedback to the newly established educational institution, will lay the groundwork for the next step in bringing the education dreams of Sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen into reality. 

 The USNCC is still years away from being available to the entire fleet, but that’s not stopping the development of what is described as a system of stackable achievements, completed over time, leading to a degree awarded by the Department of Navy (DoN) and recognized by civilian colleges and universities, according to Dr. Randi Cosentino, the President of the USNCC. 

 “The goal is to have an associates of science degree,” Cosentino explained during a recent interview with the Defense Media Activity.  “The importance of that is that it’s a transferable degree, that's going to prepare that Sailor or Marine, not only to get a very practical degree that’s going to support military and operational readiness, but put them on a path to lifelong learning.”

 Cosentino explained the overall arc of the program is to establish a network of top community colleges and four year universities to develop a curriculum based around a series of Naval centric areas of focus, taking advantage of Sailors’ baseline knowledge and amplifying it with Naval Science courses. 

 “We envision between 14 or 15 concentrations in areas that are relevant to the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard, that are going to help you not only be successful as a Sailor, Marine or Coast Guardsmen, not only today in your job, but prepare you for challenges for tomorrow,” she said. 

 Cosentino is an experienced adult education expert with the credentials to establish such a program and give it credibility.  She combines a doctorate of education from the University of Pennsylvania and a Masters of Business administration from Harvard with nearly 20 years of experience working to deliver online education for working adults.  The USNCC is envisioned as a fully online institution, supporting the fact that Sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen are deployed around the globe, in a non-traditional classroom environment. 

 “I think we have an incredibly unique opportunity here because we’re building it from the bottom up. We can make sure that what we’re building coincides with naval and fleet operations and what's going on in the field,” she said. 

 With her combined experience and the support of Naval leadership, the USNCC is well on its way to establishing a baseline following feedback from the pilot students, and expand operations within the next couple of years.  Once the pilot is complete, the next phase of the initiative begins, expanding from the initial 500-600 students to nearly 5,000, hopefully extending to the entire fleet in the coming years. 

 “We want to stay laser beam focused on making sure we’re delivering high quality associates degree programs designed to improve readiness, operations and support, that service members in ratings and MOS’ may use to prepare them for the future,” she emphasized, noting plans do not stop there.  “As we move forward we envision expansions that may very well include certifications supporting career fields that may allow us to support a bachelors. In the interim, our goal is to put in place articulation agreements, meaning that when you’re graduating from the USNCC or one of our college partners, you have a clear and charted path to transfer to that four year degree with minimal or no-loss of credit.”

 Education is viewed by leadership as vital to gaining an edge in 21st century conflict. 

Cosentino echoes that sentiment in her vision of education for Department of the Navy personnel. 

 “The Navy has incredible enlisted sailors and marines that are making things happen. The training they get and the work they do is critical to success, but as we continue to move to what is becoming a more complex environment in the 21st century, where there are new and emerging technologies, where there are new challenges, where there is the need to communicate in new ways to work with teams, the opportunity that you get from education is unparalleled,” she explained. 

 The nuts and bolts of the program will be worked out with the pilot, but the movement is underway and the enthusiasm behind it is palpable. 

 “One of the most exciting things of getting into that classroom is having that opportunity to have your junior enlisted along with your sergeant major all in the same room and folks can learn from each other. There is an opportunity to bring different experiences, to bring different levels of knowledge to the table and to test your own hypothesis and to push your own learning beyond where it has been,” Cosentino explained.  “You can have folks share their own experiences, they can go right up against the boundaries of their own lived experience and can test what they have learned and what they have experienced and can hopefully push even beyond it.” 

 The Navy has long invested in the physical fitness of Sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen, but now wants to make a more direct investment in their academic fitness.  By honing the development of the minds of its Sailors the Navy, the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard hope it will directly contribute to the operational readiness of the Navy for the 21st century and beyond, allowing those pursuing a higher education to take advantage of time well spent in pursuit of Navy professions.   

[creepingsharia]

Nebraska: Heavily armed Marine arrested trying to enter Air Force Base

A friend of Ali Al-Kazahg believes he was being taunted because they assumed he was Muslim. His sister says he is Christian.

An off-duty Marine from Nebraska was arrested at Offutt Air Force Base two weeks ago after he tried to enter the base with two semi-automatic rifles, a pistol, a silencer, a bump stock, a vest with body armor and a case of ammunition.

Pfc. Ali Al-Kazahg, 22, of Milford, is in custody at Marine Corps Base Hawaii near Honolulu, a Marine spokesman said. Al-Kazahg, a landing support specialist at the Hawaii base, has not been charged. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service is investigating.

It is illegal to carry weapons at Offutt, aside from authorized members of security forces and certain military retirees. It’s not clear to base authorities whether Al-Kazahg intended to use the weapons to harm people at Offutt, said Lt. Col. William Smith, commander of the 55th Security Forces Squadron.

Al-Kazahg — who was home in Nebraska on leave — was stopped in a pickup truck May 31 at Offutt’s StratCom gate after security guards there saw his name on a law enforcement watchlist of people judged capable of doing harm. A “be on the lookout” bulletin had been circulated across Nebraska a week earlier by a coalition of federal, state and local agencies tasked with monitoring security threats.

The bulletin, issued May 24 by the Nebraska Information and Analysis Center and later obtained by The World-Herald, said Al-Kazahg told another Marine that he would “shoot up the battalion, starting at the barracks,” if he were disciplined for certain misconduct. According to the bulletin, he also mentioned specific Marines he wanted to target.

The bulletin quoted NCIS as reporting that Al-Kazahg had previously made “suspicious statements” and been reported for “suspicious activity.” It said he had previously “shown various people large amounts of cash” and an online order he had placed for body armor, magazines, weapons parts, holsters and medical supplies, all to be shipped to a Nebraska address.

The bulletin also cited a caution about Al-Kazahg issued by the Lincoln Police Department in 2016 (before he enlisted in the Marine Corps) alleging that he was “dangerous, has an infatuation with guns and violent acts, and has a dislike for law enforcement.”

Al-Kazahg had made no threats specific to Nebraska, the bulletin said.

Al-Kazahg’s vehicle was stopped at the StratCom Gate, on Capehart Road, at 6:39 p.m. May 31. Law enforcement authorities haven’t said why he showed up at Offutt that Friday evening.

Smith said Al-Kazahg presented his military identification card at the gate. The guard who checked the Marine’s credentials saw that they were flagged with a message to detain him and contact the Office of Special Investigation, the Air Force’s investigative agency.

Agents from OSI’s Offutt detachment responded within minutes, Smith said. Al-Kazahg’s pickup was searched, and agents found the weapons and other gear.

Al-Kazahg said little about his intentions to either Offutt guards or OSI agents, Smith said. He was turned over to NCIS, which investigates criminal activity involving the Marine Corps and Navy, about an hour later.

Public records indicate that Al-Kazahg lived in Milford, about 17 miles west of Lincoln. In 2017, he served on the Nebraska Children’s Commission’s Bridge to Independence Advisory Committee, which advises the state on policies to help kids in foster care transition to adulthood.

He joined the Marines on Sept. 11, 2017. After boot camp in San Diego and additional training at Camp Pendleton in California and Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, he was assigned to Marine Corps Base Hawaii in August 2018. He is a member of the 3rd Marine Logistics Group, and his enlistment is up in 2021.

Al-Kazahg’s public social media posts indicate no obvious signs of anger or discontent. There are no mentions of politics or religion.

He has never posted on a four-year-old Twitter account in his name, which has just 10 followers. His Facebook and Instagram pages are private, though a cached copy of his Instagram page shows a number of photos of him posing with military weapons. His images also seem to convey pride in the Marines, his own personal fitness and his Husker heritage.

Smith praised his personnel at Offutt for their diligence in quickly detaining Al-Kazahg.

“This was one of those seamless events from start to finish,” he said. “This was an opportunity where we could have saved lives.”

Maj. Gen. Daniel Karbler, U.S. Strategic Command’s chief of staff, went a step further in a post on StratCom’s unclassified internal computer network.

“This service member was out to hurt people,” Karbler said. “Thank a Security Defender next time you come through the gate.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

More: Sister says man who arrived at Offutt heavily armed 'had zero intentions' of harm

Ali Al-Kazahg’s sister and two buddies said they know the 22-year-old Marine as a gun buff who was a bit of a showoff but responsible with his weapons.

She and two of her brother’s friends, Trevor Reilly and Colton Wurst, presented a different version of Al-Kazahg than portrayed by a “be on the lookout” bulletin that had been circulated across Nebraska by a coalition of federal, state and local agencies tasked with monitoring security threats.

“I truly believe my brother had zero intentions of hurting someone,” said Nedhal Al-kazahy, 20, who was a page in the Nebraska Legislature and now is a camp counselor for kids in foster care.

Al-kazahy, of Lincoln, told The World-Herald that her brother has been her best friend and protector as they navigated the Nebraska foster care system and launched their respective careers.

They have different last names, she said, because the spelling is inaccurate on her brother’s birth certificate.

Al-kazahy said that she and her brother are two of seven siblings born to Iraqi refugees.

...

Reilly said he was on his way out of the Marines at the time, and Al-Kazahg was on his way in. They worked out together, talked about the military, went to the firearms range and hiked in the Colorado mountains.

He described his friend as a little cocky, enthusiastic, competitive, not a person to back down. Reilly said he believed that Al-Kazahg was getting harassed and taunted by people he worked with, in part because they assumed he was Muslim. (His sister said he is Christian.)

[itsybitsyblogger]

The Beginning

In early August of 2021, a magic device called a pregnancy test revealed that I was going to be a mom. By the end of October, I had also become a wife. It was my dream to be a mom and a wife someday… I just didn’t think it would be so soon, and at the worst possible time. I’d turned twenty just a week before the positive pregnancy test. I was still living at my mom’s. Three days later I was fired from my job. I wasn’t in college or learning a trade. My boyfriend-now-husband and I were arguing every day. He’d already decided to join the US Navy a few weeks prior. Every night I had the same vision: a single, underaged, uneducated, unemployed woman girl living with her mother and struggling to make ends meet for the rest of her life.

You could say I was a bit of a pessimist back then.

I didn’t tell my mother for two weeks. I was terrified and ashamed. My boyfriend and I argued about what to do as most young adults do when their lives have been changed drastically overnight. After a cooling-down period much needed by both of us, we made a game plan. Appointments were made and family members were told. He would continue with his plan to join the Navy, however heartbroken it made me. We would get married, and our baby would be provided for.

About two weeks before our wedding at the courthouse, I suffered a subchorionic hemorrhage. I was twelve weeks pregnant, and there was blood pouring down my legs. I drove myself to the ER, a Hello Kitty towel folded under me, and I was shoved into a wheelchair and rushed through various testing. I heard the words “bleeding” and “miscarriage”. I was completely alone. My mother was hours away on a business trip. My fiancé was stuck at a plasma center forty minutes away with no car. My sister and her girlfriend offered to come stay with me, but I didn’t want them to see me that way; visibly trembling, sobbing, blood dripping from the wheelchair to the linoleum floor. An older woman–a stranger–sat down next to me and rubbed my back and told me I would be okay, that she was going to sit right there with me so I wasn’t alone. I think about her often.

My fiancé finally made it to me two hours later, and after four more hours of waiting and bleeding and waiting some more, a doctor came in and told us our baby was healthy and safe. We cried, I was put on pelvic rest for a month, and we went home. 

I got married two days before Halloween in a long black dress my mother and I bought at Forever 21. I held a bouquet I’d made myself out of fake flowers and ribbons from Micheal’s, and we had our rings–bought at an antique mall in Arlington, Texas–in two little cardboard boxes that I’d drawn a heart on the tops of. We had seven guests at the ceremony including the judge, and afterward our first meal together as husband and wife was fried chicken from Winco. Later that night we had a wedding party at Dave and Buster’s. We ate cake, drank sugary drinks (nonalcoholic for my fourteen-week pregnant self, of course), and played arcade games all night. My favorite part was sitting with my husband at a coin pusher as we talked for hours.

On December 6th, my new husband left for boot camp. The next day my car broke down on the highway, and when my mother and her boyfriend showed up to rescue me I cried and cried and ate the bag of Doritos and Oreos they bought me. I’d like to blame the pregnancy hormones, but really I was just missing the man who annoyed me the most in the world. 

Okay, maybe it was a little bit of the pregnancy hormones, too.

The holidays were a blur. I was promised a phone call on Christmas Day from my husband that I didn’t get until New Year’s Eve. I cried, he cried, I told him about Betty White and whatever other gossips he needed to be updated on, and an hour and a half later we hung up and I cried for a little while longer.

In early February my mom, my father-in-law, and I flew up to Illinois to watch my husband graduate basics. I was twenty-seven going on twenty-eight weeks pregnant, and I had never been happier. The ceremony was nearly three hours long and my butt was numb by the end of it but that moment of seeing him for the first time in two months was worth it. We met up at the hotel we were staying at later, went to dinner in my father-in-law’s rented orange Mustang, and I changed my flight just to stay two days longer. 

At thirty-two weeks, I went into preterm labor. There were strong drugs involved, a lot of flirting with the nurses by yours truly, and plenty of drug-induced Eminem rapping that could have earned me my own diss track by Slim Shady himself. Seventy-two hours later, my husband caught a flight home just in time for the birth of our baby boy. 

The Bug was born two months before his due date. He stayed in the NICU for eighteen days with lots of visits from Mommy and Daddy. He was a favorite among the NICU nurses; he had his mother’s sassy attitude and his father’s love of dramatics and he wasn’t afraid to show it. He came home dressed in a preemie-sized Winnie-the-Pooh outfit that was still too big on him. Everyone who met him over the next few weeks wore a mask, and everyone fell in love with him. 

A lot has happened since then. 

I turned twenty-one in July of 2022. My husband graduates from submarine school in a few months. We moved to base housing one thousand seven hundred miles away from home and the furthest I’ve ever been from my family. I’m on medication for postpartum depression that makes me feel like the old me. The Bug is crawling and saying made-up words that I have to pretend are real words. I have a plant named Dorothy and I crochet when I’m not writing, drawing, or catching The Bug’s head before it smacks on the hardwood floor. I’ve even thought about taking college classes this next year. 

Join me on this journey of young motherhood, young wifehood, and overall young adulthood. I’m still learning and growing, and hopefully, I can bring some peace, laughter, and connection to others in similar situations while I learn and grow (and teach and nurture my own spawn).

Itsy xx

[thetoxicgamer]

S1mple Wants Navi to Settle CS:GO Roster for 2023 After Addition of Sixth Player

After the team's march to the IEM Rio Major quarterfinals earlier this month, Natus Vincere changed its CS:GO roster. Andrii "nipl" Kukharskyi, a member of the academy team, has been elevated by the organization to a backup role on the first team. The move comes ahead of the BLAST Premier Fall Final, a tournament that allows teams to make substitutions in the middle of a best-of-three series, and amid rumors that NAVI’s long-term stand-in Viktor “⁠sdy⁠” Orudzhev is on his way out of the team before the end of the year or at the start of 2023. For the team’s superstar and best player in the world, s1mple, it’s important that NAVI decides on the future of the roster as fast as possible so the team can fight for championships like they did in 2021 when they won IEM Katowice, IEM Cologne, and, most notably, the PGL Stockholm Major. “I think the organization and team need to finally decide with what roster we want to continue in 2023,” s1mple said in a press conference at the BLAST Premier Fall Final, according to HLTV. “Since the war started, there have been no boot camps, there was hard practice, and we removed players as well… I think we just need time and we need to understand with what roster we need to move in the future.” The Ukrainian AWPer said the decision to add nipl was made to see how the youngster will fare during practices and that NAVI are expecting to go “as deep as possible” at the BLAST Premier Fall Final, a $425,000 tournament held in Copenhagen, Denmark. NAVI will face Fluxo in the opening round tomorrow at 9am CT. Heroic, Team Liquid, FaZe Clan, G2, Ninjas in Pyjamas, and OG are also attending the event. Read the full article

[don-lichterman]

Roanoke Welcomes Navy Musician Home

Roanoke Welcomes Navy Musician Home

Amherst County native Musician 1st Class Caleb Cox returned home to Roanoke, Virginia, Wednesday, Sept. 7, in his new role as a lead vocalist with the U.S. Navy Band Country Current. Cox was selected for the rare vacancy in the Navy’s only country/bluegrass ensemble after a competitive audition in November 2021. Like all Navy enlisted Sailors must do, Cox graduated from Navy boot camp in August…

[ashleyanxiety]

Hello There

It’s been a while. I created this blog many many moons ago and then kind of forgot it. Well, I’m back baby. No one actually follows me or reads this, but I feel like this is a good space to put my thoughts out. So let’s start off with some about me, in the off chance that someone does see these and thinks I’d be cool to follow (imagine me winking and giving a thumbs up.)

My name: Ashley obviously. Why is my username Ashley Anxiety you may ask. Well, I literally have anxiety. Diagnosed and all, go me. I’m 28 turning 19, June 2022. I am happily married with 1 awesome child.

Background info: My sister (6), brother(3)and I(8) left Ohio with my mom after my dads abuse became too much for my mom to handle. We moved to Arizona 🌅 and my mom married my stepdad(who used to live in Ohio and had literally been around since we were babies). High school was…interesting, as it is for most teenagers. I joined the Navy when i was 17 after getting told by my stepdad that if I didn’t have a job when I turned 18 I would be getting kicked out. I left for boot camp 5 months after I turned 18 (November 21 2011). I graduated boot camp January 26th 2012 and also found out that day that my mom and younger sister(16) had gotten into a car accident on their way to said graduation, and my sister didn’t make it. So, not a great start into adulthood. I spent 2 weeks on emergency leave, depressed and confused and then went straight into Navy life. Obviously, I was not a happy camper. I was stationed on the other side of the world away from my family, on the East Coast. I developed anxiety and depression from the loss of my sister and from some situations that arose while in. I got pregnant with my child at 20, I was still in the military. Her father and I split and I was a single mom for many many years doing everything on my own while also active duty on an active sea going ship, so to say it was hard, is an understatement. In 2016 my stepdad died of stage 4 cancer, I was on duty on the ship when my mom called and told me. *cue more anxiety and depression here* In 2017 I started dating someone who I thought was amazing. We were friends before we started so I thought it would be perfect. Which it was, at first. Then that perfection turned sour and I experienced abuse (not physical thankfully and I’m sorry to anyone who has went through this. And I know some people will say mental/emotional abuse aren’t real but anyways) at the hands of someone I loved with all my being and I did the smart thing and left before it got worse, which was devastating. In 2018 a friend committed suicide on the ship in one of the spaces our department owned. In 2019 things got a little better because I started dating my now husband. I was introduced to a world of love and acceptance and happiness, which I hadn’t felt in a very long time. 2019 is when I also decided that I’d had enough of the military and not being there for my child and family. 2020 i got a new job and I also got engaged! April 2021 I got married. 2021 is also when I finally got my diagnosis of anxiety and depression, along with a slew of other things that combine to make me who I am. After 8 years of people telling me I was faking it and that I was fine and it was all in my head, it was amazing and a relief (Not that I am fucked up but) to finally have it in writing and official that I was telling the truth. Which brings us here to the present, 2022. I am still on the other side of the world away from Arizona, I’m happily married and my child is doing amazing and I just hit the 2 year mark of working at the same job. Obviously that’s a lot of condensing of the things I went through, but I’m sure I’ll make in depth posts later on. So, that’s who I am.

[guiness76]

What differences do you see in this #eightyearchallenge ? By the numbers, it's 2013 on the left and I'm 290 pounds (I peaked at 320 two years later). On the right it's 2021 and I'm 195 pounds (what I weighed when I graduated Navy boot camp at 18) In 2013 I was still deeply wounded and attached to carrying that hurt with me. I was toxic, didn't love myself, and constantly searching for external validation and approval from romantic partners. 😞 In 2021 I was three years into my (ongoing) Healing and Recovery journey. I love myself, I accept myself, I'm comfortable in my skin, and I fully embrace being a complete and whole person. 🥰 I am proof Recovery and Transformation are possible, and it's a lot easier than you might think 😊 When you're ready to live differently and feel comfortable and confident in your skin, I'm here to help ❤️ I believe in you. You can do this, too. DM me for more information 🥰Be Kind To Yourself 🥰 . . . #healthymindhealthybody #weightlosscoach #comfortableinmyskin #fitatanyage #healthyatanyage #weightlossdoneright #clevermousecoach (at Delray Beach, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/CZC4498uwv2/?utm_medium=tumblr

[sandcreekfarm]

Top 8 Best Base Layer For Cold Weather Reviews (2021 Updated)

While stylish insulated jackets are the first gear for farmers in winter, they are hardly your most potent defense against the cold. If you are serious about staying warm when working outside, you should make sure to get the best base layer for cold weather as the foundation for other pieces of gear, like leather work boots, mid-layers, insulated vests, work gloves, etc.

Let’s explore my 8 top-rated base layers to complete your appropriate layering before the winter comes.

Top 8 Best Base Layer For Cold Weather 2021

Product ImageProduct NameFeaturesPrice LAPASA Men's M31Best Lightweight Base LayerSee latest Price Under Armour Men's Base Crew 2.0Best for DurabilitySee latest Price MERIWOOL Men’s Base LayerPrevent Annoying Sweat & OdorsSee latest Price Icebreaker Men’s Merino Wool Base LayerNo Chafing For Continuous Leg MovementsSee latest Price HEROBIKER Women's Thermal Underwear SetBest BudgetSee latest Price Under Armour Women's Base Crew 2.0Best for WomenSee latest Price MERIWOOL Women’s Base LayerAutomatically Adapted to Body TemperatureSee latest Price Kari Traa Women's Rose Base Layer BottomsFeminine DesignSee latest Price

In-depth 8 Top Rated Base Layer For Cold Weather Reviews

1. LAPASA Men’s M31 – Best Lightweight Base Layer

Check Latest Price on Amazon.com

LAPASA M31 is my best base layer clothing for cold weather in day-to-day farm activities outdoors like feeding livestock, cutting wood, plowing snow, loading grains, etc.

This undergarment set is designed with the user’s health in mind. It is made of 100% Australian merino wool that meets the STANDARD 100 Oeko-Tex – one of the world’s most well-known ratings for textiles tested for harmful substances. This label means that every detail of this base layer is safe for human health.

Since farm jobs are hyper-active and require continuous body movements, you need a lightweight base layer to avoid the bulky feeling. This LAPASA base weighs only 200gr/m2 and has a four-way stretch rib-knit hem and snug fit, allowing you to perform a wide range of motion in daily farm jobs.

Plus, it is made from thousands of 18.5-micron merino wool fibers to slide your skin smoothly with no itching like traditional wool clothes.

Pros Cons

Made of 100% natural Australian Merino wool for excellent insulation, breathability, safety, and comfort

Four-way stretch for maximizing your body movements

Easily removable tag

Lightweight

No separated top/bottom options

Too thin and fragile

2. Under Armour Men’s Base Crew 2.0 – Best for Durability

Check Latest Price on Amazon.com

By keeping your vital organs warm enough with the Under Armour base layer, you will regulate your good blood circulation. Thus, your arms and legs will always stay warm under frost winter mornings.

This Under Armour T-shirt is sufficient for small land or farm owners because it is more budget-friendly than the above LAPASA merino shirt. It is made of synthetic fabric, with 93% polyester and 7% elastane for extended stretchability, durability, and dryness.

Since Under Armour is a worldwide well-known brand in the sportswear industry, you can also use this T-shirt for various outdoor activities like hiking, camping, fishing, etc.

This long john is marked as Base 2.0 – which is applicable for cold weather conditions with moderate activity levels. If you live in extremely cold or arctic areas, you should look for a better-insulated base layer of Under Armour that is Base 3.0 or Base 4.0.

Pros Cons

Versatile for farm work and outdoor activities

Affordable price tag

Made of synthetic fabric for extreme durability, dryness, and sun protection

Scent Control technology

Only available in one color (pitch gray)

Not for severe cold weather

3. MERIWOOL Men’s Base Layer – Prevent Annoying Sweat & Odors

Check Latest Price on Amazon.com

Although the undergarment is the inner layer and is mainly used for farm work, you might want it to be more stylish. This MERIWOOL base layer offers you 9 color and pattern choices. You can mix this T-shirt with jeans to wear on a relaxed fall afternoon.

This base layer is also made of natural merino wool like the LAPASA one but slightly heavier with a unit weight of 250gr/m2. Still, it is comfortable enough for me with no itches like traditional wool shirts.

As stated by the manufacturer, you can safely clean this long-sleeved shirt in the washing machine using cold weather and dry it in the dryer with a low heat setting.

While performing physically active jobs like snow shoveling or harvesting crops, this T-shirt prevents sweat build-ups or annoying odors on your skin. The natural properties of Merino wool will instantly absorb moisture better than any other fabric. Thus, you will stay dry and comfortable all day long.

Pros Cons

Various color choices

Can be used as a base or mid-layer

Machine-washable and dryer-safe

30-day return

Slightly heavier than the LAPASA M31

4. Icebreaker Men’s Merino Wool Base Layer – No Chafing For Continuous Leg Movements

Check Latest Price on Amazon.com

If you already have a top base T-shirt, you might want to get these Icebreaker Thermal Pants for full-body protection against the upcoming frigid winter. These pants are available in 3 neutral color options – Black, Estate Blue, and Midnight Navy.

This men’s legging from Icebreaker is a perfect combination of natural and synthetic fabrics. It is made of 85% Merino wool and contains less synthetic material than traditional outdoor standards.

When getting this legging, you can experience both the coziness and breathability of natural Merino wool and the extreme stretchability and durability of sportswear.

These slim-fit pants feature an elastic waistband, making them a groovy pick for layering in winter. You can choose them as the inner layer and jeans as the outer layer.

Its flatlock seams help reduce chafing and avoid irritation on your skin. Thus, you can also use these pants for other sports that require continuous leg movements, like cycling.

Pros Cons

Slim-fit form with

Elastic waistband and flatlock seams for extra comfort

Contain synthetic fabric for extended longevity

Not true to size

5. HEROBIKER Women’s Thermal Underwear Set – Best Budget

Check Latest Price on Amazon.com

This HEROBIKER Underwear Set is the best budget base layer for women. This long underwear set provides next-to-skin comfort as the base layer for your farm clothes.

Still, it is thick enough to use as the outer layer for any indoor or outdoor activities, like shopping, climbing, snowboarding, yoga, fitness training, etc. You can even use it as the inner layer for your professional office outfit.

This has a remarkable lightweight and breathable construction with 92% ultra-soft polyester and 8% spandex, meaning that you don’t have to scarify your comfort for warmth.

This synthetic material combination is also much more affordable than natural wool workwear. Thus, you can give yourself several sets for utmost protection every day.

Although this underwear set is dryer-safe, you should wash it in cold water and let it dry naturally to extend its lifespan.

Pros Cons

Many fashionable color choices for women

The most affordable base layer

Made of synthetic material

The top is too short

6. Under Armour Women’s Base Crew 2.0

Check Latest Price on Amazon.com

This base layer is another Base 2.0 pick from Under Armour but for female farmers and workers.

Like the men’s version, this long-sleeved shirt includes everything you need for a moderate activity level in cool and cold weather. Some mutual characteristics between these two items are the UA Scent Control technology, lightweight, flexibility, four-way stretch construction.

So, what differentiates this T-shirt from the men’s version?

It is made of 100% cotton. Compared to synthetic material, cotton is suitable for certain outdoor conditions, like hunting in the forest on a warm sunny day or mountain biking in California.

However, since cotton retains moisture as its natural characteristic, it might make your skin sticky or cause strong body odors. Using a cotton base layer like this Under Armour shirt even results in emergencies like hypothermia.

Therefore, this Under Armour shirt is still an excellent pickup for certain moderate weather conditions. You might want to explore an alternative that is better in insulation and moisture-wicking.

Pros Cons

Suitable to use for warm or cool days

Lightweight and high flexibility

Made of 100% cotton; Can’t keep you warm better than synthetic or Merino wool fabric

7. MERIWOOL Women’s Base Layer – Automatically Adapted to Body Temperature

Check Latest Price on Amazon.com

This MERIWOOL base layer is similar to the above men’s version but available in more color variations. I bet that you will give a big “YES” to this thermal shirt. Because for female workers, performance should always go along with fashion.

This base layer is also manufactured of Merino wool from Australian sheep. Unlike any fabrics like cotton or synthetic, his textile is automatically adapted to your body temperature. Thus, you will never feel too hot or cold in any circumstance.

Another reason that I love this MERIWOOL product is that you have 30 days to try the product. If you don’t feel happy with it or want to exchange your item for a more suitable sizing and color choice, you can get it back to the manufacturer.

Nonetheless, each shirt comes with a 1-year limited warranty, covering manufacturing and material defects.

Pros Cons

Wide range of colors to serve women’ fashion tastes

Excellent customer care policies

Adaptive textile

Not suitable for women with a long torso

8. Kari Traa Women’s Rose Base Layer Bottoms – Feminine Design

Check Latest Price on Amazon.com

Why limit your winter workwear to dull solid colors when you can play with patterns? This feminine Rose Base bottom from Kari Traa has funny colors of the Scandinavian winter. You can use it as a base layer for farm maintenance tasks or as an outer layer for winter sports like skiing, hiking, or snowboarding.

Made of natural Merino wool, these thermal pants keep your bottom body warm when going with leather work boots and a good pair of insulated socks. The side panels are thinner to better wick away sweat and moisture from your skin.

Besides, its firm but soft elastic waistband keeps the pants in one place but doesn’t cause any sores on your belly.

What don’t I like about this item? The fabric is see-through and hard to be worn alone. If you just want a bottom to wear inside your work pants, this is a good one. But if you want it to be both an inner and outer layer, you will have to find thicker pants.

Pros Cons

Classic and feminine design

Thinner side panels for moisture-wicking efficiency

Durable elastic waistband

The fabric is see-through; can’t be worn alone

Final Words

There is no perfect choice for everyone in every circumstance. In other words, the best base layer for cold weather for you is the one that meets your fashion style and work preferences.

LAPASA M31 is my all-time classic choice for both farm work and outdoor activities. This set is a valuable pick with both the top and the bottom for full-body protection. It is also the only item on the list that meets the STANDARD 100 Oeko-Tex rating, the golden standard for users’ comfort and safety.

Source: Top 8 Best Base Layer For Cold Weather Reviews (2021 Updated)

source https://sandcreekfarm.net/best-base-layer-for-cold-weather-reviews/

[spotifypremiumapks]

Marines, Service Members Killed in Afghanistan: Names, Photos & Tributes

Marines, Service Members Killed in Afghanistan: Names, Photos & Tributes

Who were the Marines and service members killed in Afghanistan? Rylee McCollum was about to become a young father in only three weeks and wanted to be a Marine as long as anyone could remember, even toting around a rifle in his diapers. Jared Schmitz was remembered as a “true American hero.” Serving his country was “something he’s always wanted to do, and I’ve never seen a young man train as hard as he did to be the best soldier he can be. Max Soviak was a Navy corpsman from Ohio whose sister described him on Instagram as “…my beautiful, intelligent, beat-to-the-sound of his own drum, annoying, charming baby brother was killed yesterday helping to save lives. he was a f***ing medic. there to help people. and now he is gone and my family will never be the same….he was just a kid. David Lee Espinoza was described as a “brave young man from Laredo, Texas.” Kareem Nikoui was a young Marine from California whose dad told Daily Beast he “really loved that family. He was devoted—he was going to make a career out of this, and he wanted to go. No hesitation for him to be called to duty.” They were among the 13 U.S. Marines and service members who lost their lives in the Kabul, Afghanistan, attack on August 26, 2021. Heavy is committed to running a tribute and photo for each. You will see those tributes and pictures below, and we are adding more as they are identified. President Joe Biden said in a news conference that the dead service members were “standing guard at the airport…These American service members who gave their lives are… heroes.. engaged in the selfless mission to save the lives of others.” However, some of the parents of the service members were very upset by how their children died. ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack. Asked by the radio host in St. Louis what message he wanted Americans to remember, Mark Schmitz, Jared’s dad, said: “Be afraid of our leadership or lack thereof. Pray every day for the soldiers who are putting their lives at risk and doing what they love, which is protecting all of us. I think they’re the only ones that we can honestly say have our backs.” The Daily Beast reported that Steve Nikoui, a Trump supporter and Kareem’s dad, expressed anger toward President Biden, saying, “They sent my son over there as a paper pusher and then had the Taliban outside providing security. I blame my own military leaders… Biden turned his back on him. That’s it.” Here is a tribute and photo of each hero, added as they are released:

Rylee McCollum, Wyoming: ‘The Definition of Courage’

Rylee McCollum, of Bondurant, Wyoming, was remembered as “the definition of courage.” Chi McCollum, his sister, wrote on Facebook, “Rylee James. My heart is completely shattered. I love you so much. You are my hero and you were going to be the best dad. I love you, I love you, I love you… Semper Fi.” On August 19, she wrote, “I’m thankful everyday you are my brother. Stay safe, we love you. Can’t wait for your return and to meet my niece or nephew. Love you Brotato 💗🇺🇸🦅⚓️🌎” He was from Bondurant, Wyoming. “We are deeply saddened by the loss of this brave Marine,” Regi Stone wrote on Facebook. “When it comes to the definition of courage, Rylee Mccollum is it. We were fortunate to have him in our home in Wyoming many times as he and Eli were getting ready to enlist together. They kept each other out of trouble, which wasn’t easy, because they were both so ready to serve their country. One evening as we were all having dinner, Kim tried giving her best motherly advice and suggested that they let someone else go in first if the time ever came. Without hesitating, they both said, “if anything ever happens to us, just know, we were doing what we loved. We’re heartbroken but proud to have known this brave hero. Please pray for his family, his wife and new baby that will be born soon. And, let’s keep all his Marine brothers in our prayer. Semper Fi.” Wyoming’s Governor Mark Gordon confirmed McCollum’s death on Facebook. “I’m devastated to learn Wyoming lost one of our own in yesterday’s terrorist attack in Kabul, Afghanistan,” he wrote. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of U.S. Marine Rylee McCollum of Bondurant. Jennie and I, along with all of Wyoming and the entire nation, thank Rylee for his service.” The Casper Star-Tribune reported that Rylee McCollum was on his first deployment for the evacuation and was manning a checkpoint at the airport when he died. His older sister, Roice McCollum, told the newspaper that he was expecting a baby in three weeks. “He wanted to be a Marine his whole life and carried around his rifle in his diapers and cowboy boots,” McCollum’s sister said. “He was determined to be in infantry… Rylee wanted to be a history teacher and a wrestling coach when he finished serving his country. He’s a tough, kind, loving kid who made an impact on everyone he met. His joke and wit brought so much joy.” She added: “Rylee will always be a hero not just for the ultimate sacrifice he made for our country, but for the way he impacted every life around him for the better. Making us stronger, kinder, teaching us to love deeper.” Rylee’s sister Chi wrote on Facebook, “My hero, Our hero, an American f***ing hero. I love you.”

Kareem Nikoui, California: ‘He Was Going to Make a Career Out of This’

Nikoui’s father, Steve, a California carpenter, told Daily Beast, “I stayed home from work yesterday because there was that attack and I knew he was there. So all day, I was glued to the TV.” He knew it would take about eight hours to tell him if his son was among the dead, and horribly, around 7:15 p.m. PT, “these young men walked up,” he said. He told Daily Beast, those Marines were “more choked up than me,” Nikoui said. “I was actually trying to console them. But at the same time, I just wanted them to get out as soon as possible so that no one from my family came back and saw them. I thought it appropriate that I be able to tell them.” “I haven’t gone to bed all night,” Nikoui continued to the publication. “I’m still in shock. I haven’t been able to grasp everything that’s going on.” Kareem “loved what he was doing, he always wanted to be a Marine,” said Nikoui to Daily Beast. He was initially stationed at Camp Pendleton and often brought fellow Marines home for the holidays. “He really loved that family. He was devoted—he was going to make a career out of this, and he wanted to go. No hesitation for him to be called to duty,” the father said. The Daily Beast reported that the father, a Trump supporter, expressed anger toward President Biden, saying, “They sent my son over there as a paper pusher and then had the Taliban outside providing security. I blame my own military leaders… Biden turned his back on him. That’s it.” A woman wrote on Facebook, “We lost a member of our Norco family yesterday. My friends grandson was one of the Marines killed in Kabul…Kareem Nikoui you are our hero and a hero to so many you were helping. Godspeed Marine! We thank you for your ultimate sacrifice and we will not forget you.”

Jared Schmitz, Missouri: ‘True American Hero’

Jared Schmitz, 20, was identified by his father in a St. Louis radio interview as one of the 13 U.S. Marines and service members who died in the attacks in Kabul, Afghanistan, on August 26, 2021. He was remembered as a “true American hero” who had always wanted to serve his country. Speaking to St. Louis Today radio, Mark Schmitz emotionally paid tribute to his son, who was from the St. Louis, Missouri, area, saying that serving in the Armed Forces was “something he’s always wanted to do, and I’ve never seen a young man train as hard as he did to be the best soldier he can be. That’s a big part of why we are all obviously devastated and sad, but there’s so much anger right now because he wasn’t even given that opportunity to demonstrate all the skills he had protected and learned while in the Corps, and he took his job very seriously. Someone came along took the easy way out and ended everything for him and for us. And the others who were killed.” State Rep. Nick Schroer wrote on Facebook, “Today please pray for Lance Corporal Jared Schmitz who paid the ultimate sacrifice yesterday serving our nation. This young marine was from St. Charles County and is a true American hero. Keep his family in your prayers today. Thank you for your service young man! God Bless you and your family, Marine.” Heavy reached out to Jared’s father to see if the family wanted to say more, and he said they would be sending out a release soon. Schmitz told St. Louis Today’s Carol Daniels: “I was able to talk to him this morning, his son was killed in yesterday’s explosion. Marines came by at 2:30 in the morning to give the horrific news. They are supposed to come back today to follow up on more details, what happens next, details I am assuming, I don’t know a lot but unfortunately our son was one of the 13 casualties yesterday.” Schmitz said Jared had only been in Afghanistan for two weeks. “He was stationed in Jordan on his first deployment and then when things got a little hairy over in Afghanistan, he was one of the 6,000 or so troops that was called in.” The father said that he and his wife were concerned when they found out Jared would be going to Afghanistan. “We knew this was something he trained for and was looking forward to participating in,” he said. “He was not the type that liked to sit around and get his four years in and walk away.” He added, “He wanted to be in a situation where he actually made a difference in what his role was within the Marine Corps; he was excited to get that opportunity. As his parents, of course we were terrified. I don’t have words for how upset we are and I am sure he is as well, This is just absolutely devastating Mark Schmitz said that his son graduated from high school in 2019 and as a Marine in October 2020. He was a Lance Corporal. “He was probably one of the coolest unique individuals I’ve ever met. Very honored, I can call him my son,” the father said, becoming emotional during the radio interview. “His life meant so much more and so incredibly devastated that I won’t be able to see the man that he was very quickly growing into becoming.”

Max Soviak, Ohio: ‘Helping to Save Lives’

Soviak’s sister Marilyn posted on Instagram, that her “baby brother was killed yesterday helping to save lives.” She wrote: I’ve never been one for politics and i’m not going to start now. What I will say is that my beautiful, intelligent, beat-to-the-sound of his own drum, annoying, charming baby brother was killed yesterday helping to save lives. he was a f***ing medic. there to help people. and now he is gone and my family will never be the same. there is a large Maxton sized hole that will never be filled. he was just a kid. we are sending kids over there to die. kids with families that now have holes just like ours. i’m not one for praying but damn could those kids over there use some right now. my heart is in pieces and I don’t think they’ll ever fit back right again. Max Soviak was a Navy corpsman. He was a medic in the U.S. Navy, and was a native of Berlin Heights, Ohio, according to Fox 8. “Max was full of life in everything he did,” Edison Local Schools said in a statement to the television station. He was killed at the airport’s Abbey Gate. “He was well respected and liked by everyone who knew him,” the district said. U.S. Senator Rob Portman wrote, “Jane and I are heartbroken by the death of Max Soviak, a Navy Fleet Marine Force Hospital Corpsman from Berlin Heights, who lost his life in the service of his country. He was a hero who died serving with his Marine brothers helping to save fellow countrymen and our Afghan allies. We mourn his loss and are praying for his family and friends.” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost tweeted, “Max Soviak was one of ours, a 2017 graduate of Edison High School. Each one who died had a hometown where they were known—classmates, friends, family. Familiar places they should’ve been able to return to as they grew older sights and sounds and memories. They did not die as Republicans or Democrats, but as Americans, self-sacrificially serving others in the face of danger. Let us honor them.”

David Lee Espinoza, Texas: ‘A Brave Young Man’

David Lee Espinoza was a Marine. The City of Laredo, Texas, wrote on Facebook, “The City of Laredo expresses its most heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of U.S. Marine David Lee Espinoza, a brave young man from Laredo, Texas. Thank you for your service to the United States of America and Laredo. Your acts of courage and bravery will always be remembered in our community. Read the full article

[lilnoodle525]

August 5, 2021

oh hi again. since we last caught up

He told me he was going to propose two new years days in a row. We looked at rings. i lived in this boys parents house literally twice. like moved completely in twice. I graduated from college. i had a big girl apartment all by myself. I took the nclex. i passed the nclex. I worked for 8 months as a RN in a pandemic. OH yea a pandemic hit. and i quit my job and I moved to SC to live with boy, and im on the lease. and were on the same phone plan. oh he went to officer boot camp. and we did a year of long distance during a pandemic. And his little brother got engaged after he (brother) got out of enlisted boy bootcamp- which made me go kind of crazy with jealousy. (the i want to be married and start our lives together jealousy). our friends bought their first house and got engaged. My bestie gal moved in with her boyf and has been kicking ass in the ICU (which was a covid icu during orientation/first couple months). sweet boy has graduated from an awesome and extremely hard school and is in the middle of the next one in his pipeline. and we have met so SO SO many navy friends that i cannot imagine 

and i love this boy even more than i thought i was going to. and i know that love is just going to grow. :) 

also I am panicking. i have been ~unemployed~ for about a month and a half. I am supremely good at spending money. Sweet boy said that he is happy to provide for me but i feel like a giant moocher. and like i want a job but we have 3 weddings to go to this summer (my little baby cousin, his brother, and our besties) so like im panicked about missing the weddings, panicked about going through an orientation process again, and then moving again in january. and i dont want to pay ohio taxes and SC taxes. which i would have to do as a ~military gf~ and not a ~military WiFe~. so theres also that one. but i miss having my own $$$ and i want to buy a car. 

aLSOooOOo i think i dont want to be a nurse anymore. LIke i think i want a 9-5 or something and im scared im underqualified. and that my dad will be mad at me. But also i dont want to work when ry is home and his schedule is about to include weekends. So i could do substitute teaching. but that is only $80 a day. and that is what i made in 2.5 hours as a nurse.  but like i was so good at being a nurse and i miss it. but also it was soul sucking and it was horrible. but it was only 3 days a week. but i made $BANK$. so yea. idk idk idk idk. so like idk im spiraling if i think about it too much.

but hey i have a copy of the house key:)