Dress code

Went to NH this weekend for the annual MacDowell Colony/Monadnock visit with OSB and her girlies. This year Uncle J surprised me with his request to join the hike. He surprised me again by announcing his reason for heading back to the mountains he'd enjoyed climbing in his youth: Afghanistan, where he'll be embedding with the troops for two weeks this fall. It's quite the trip for a sixty-something, even one as spry as Uncle J.

When Grampy Mc was a war correspondent, back during WWII, he had a government-issued Colt .45, and when he was in a tent in the Aleutians with John Huston, he wore a government-issued wool snowsuit complete with face mask. This was later worn by Uncle D to keep him warm whilst plowing during long NH winters. When Uncle J helped out with the plowing one winter, he took out the local greenhouse along with the snow.

I tried wearing the full-length shearling-lined leather jacket that was part of Grampy Mc's uniform, when I was in high school. Of course the jacket ended up wearing me.

Uncle J apparently can't wear the same camo as the military while in Afghanistan; this is for his "protection," although I think it makes for easy pickings, especially when you consider he isn't allowed to carry a gun.

Even in Massachusetts we get to use pepper spray, though you do need a license.