Mantroon wrote:
Honestly? For me personally, I felt a lot of the Dress Blues and Color Guard inched dangerously close to that line.
You're absolutely right- it did.
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However, I also know you did your best not to cross it.
Thank you- and yes I was bound and determined to "not" have this be a stolen valor case (which wasn't even a term back then). We're I to do it all over, I probably would not go with a genuine USMC tunic and cap- but rather close enough look-a-likes so there would be even less reason for controversy.
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Others however... that's a different matter.
I looked at things like the DB and CG and thought "It's nice and all, but this is starting to have very little to do with the Alien franchise and is more about playing soldier".
Indeed.
I've said it before and I'll say it again- during my time at D-Con in 2008 in my Service C and full Dress Blues there were two incidents in which I was "Thanked"-
One in which a homeless person came up to me and said "Welcome home." I didn't have the heart to tell him I was just "playing soldier."
And a second in which while crossing the street between hotels, a woman in costume walking the opposite way looked at me and simple said "Thank you."
THAT made me feel like a complete imposter and solidified that I would never wear this "costume" again.
However any time I was asked if the uniform was real or if I was actually in the military I not only said I wasn't and this was a costume, but that I
wasn't even an American.And again- the whole thing came out of wanting to create an Honor Guard as a tribute to Chris that year (for those who don't know- Chris Chulamanis was a member of this board who passed away in 2008- it is why I am wearing a black armband with "FNG"- Chris' screenname).
But- admittedly, what started out as wanting to create a fictional formal uniform as a tribute got out of control.
Did it feel good to be wearing that uniform leading the parade that year- yes it did. But I'll never do it again.
Kevin