Hi brentwill1,
Yes, you are in our thoughts and prayers.
Don't know if this helps or not:
http://armyadvice.org/ryanseals/archive/2005/05/14/2707.aspx
Yes, according to Ryan, it's really heating up in the sandbox, and
it's only the beginning. From what I've seen, temperatures have been
around 100 degrees in and around Baghdad, and I've heard they can
exceed 130 degrees (tell me if you've heard higher).
One thing that I've heard soldiers really appreciate having when it
gets hot over there is Under Armour -- a type of material, or
clothing, that is designed with extreme heat in mind and can really
make living and working in Iraq or elsewhere more comfortable when it
gets hot. It helps them stay much more cool and dry than they would in
traditional cotton clothes.
A site I like to order the gear from for Ryan is GoldmanBros.com. They
delivered quickly and have a really large selection. You can order
T-shirts in Army brown (loose shirts or tight), as well as underwear
(boxers, briefs and boxer briefs). There's also a full assortment of
?heat gear? for ?extreme heat.? They also have socks, gloves, and bags
-- the bags seem kind of weird.
These things are more pricey than your regular Fruit of the Loom
stuff, but I think they can make a difference in a soldier's comfort
and are worth it. Maybe a couple of shirts will make him more
comfortable on those really hot days. I haven't bought any of the
?extreme heat? stuff, but I've heard good things about the regular,
loose Army shirts and underwear.
One piece of advice: Goldman Bros. will ship items free to APO
addresses. However, I'd advise against this. My package arrived in
plastic-bag type packaging and with a label on it saying what was
inside. I don't think it would stand up to a trip overseas, but maybe
they package it differently if you are sending it to an APO address
(doubt it, though). Best to ship it to yourself, then over to Iraq. On
certain orders you get free shipping to your house, anyway. I also
might advise against putting what's in the box on the customs form --
not everyone is a thief, but hey, it's hot, and these things are
expensive and probably in demand. You can usually put ?Bonafide gift
for soldier? on the customs form, and it's fine.
Hope this helps, if you're interested!
-- Christy
Definitely good stuff. I loved my UA under garments. Personally I
preferred the loose gear shirts since they were more like normal
shirts -- the heatgear shirts were basically like wearing stretchy
spandex, and for me at least they wouldn't always stay tucked in (the
loosegear shirts were longer). Both were much better than standard
brown cotton shirts, though.
# re: New definition of "hot" 5/20/2005 5:39 AM Donna Joplin
When Jim was home on leave, he found some sleeveless under armour at
Wal-Mart. He was so excited he left the tag at home for me, so I could
send him more of the same if he needs it.
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Bless you and stay safe,
tlspiegel |