As an infantry soldier, my unit only had access to beer when we were at a firebase or when visiting a major base camp. At the firebase, the options were limited to Falstaff, Pabst, and Black Label. Major base camps typically had a PX (post exchange), along with EM, NCO, and Officers Clubs, which functioned as bars and offered a much better selection, including hard liquor. The beer at these locations was ice-cold and cost about 10 cents in Military Payment Certificates (MPC). If you had access to a major city like Saigon or Da Nang, bars were abundant and local beers were cheap and plentiful. Imported beer usually sold here for one dollar or more MPC. In the bush, some units received one beer per person on resupply days. The temperature was usually around 90 degrees, and the beer had an acquired taste that not everyone appreciated. Many soldiers chose not to drink beer and instead traded it for their favorite C-Ration treats, soda (like Fresca), or cigarettes. I remember seeing armored units with cases of C-Rations and beer stacked inside their vehicles. They rationed these items carefully or used them to barter with other units. When we arrived at a firebase or rear area for a three-day standdown after spending about a month in the field, we were treated to steaks, burgers, and fries, along with unlimited cans of ice-cold beer from large 55-gallon drums. Many of us found ourselves tipsy after just three or four beers since our bodies weren’t accustomed to partying; we ended up passing out and enjoying a full night’s sleep. So, what kind of alcohol did you have access to during the war, and where did you drink it? ***** Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you have a question or comment about this article, scroll down to the comment section below to leave your response. If you’re interested in learning more about the Vietnam War and its Warriors, subscribe to this blog to receive email or feed-reader notifications whenever a new story, picture, video, or update is posted on this website. The subscription button is located at the top right of this page. I’ve also created a poll to help identify my website audience. Before leaving, please click HERE and choose the one item that best describes you. Thank you in advance!

As grocery prices climb, diesel fuel surges, household bills pile up, and millions of Americans feel increasing pressure from the cost of living, fear and uncertainty can easily take hold. But for believers, our confidence was never supposed to rest in the economy, the stock market, a paycheck, or Washington—it rests in the faithfulness of […]

Apple Store architect Ron Johnson says Apple's secret sauce has always been its people.

Something tells me Dolly wouldn’t be happy about this drama surrounding her death. Dolly Parton‘s estate has fired her nephew, Bryan Seaver, and his security companies from his longtime role of protecting the country music legend’s properties. Seaver, as you may recall, was the one who announced Dolly’s death back on August 25: A message from the family of Dolly Parton. pic.twitter.com/9DNRgRx0uH — Dolly Parton (@DollyParton) August 25, 2026 According to a termination notice obtained by TMZ, Seaver was informed that he was being dismissed immediately, and replacement guards have already been brought in to protect Dolly’s home in Nashville, along with her museum, downtown Music City residence and warehouse. As you can imagine, it doesn’t sound like the termination is sitting well with Seaver, who said he was “dismayed by the unexpected and, so far, unexplained” actions of Dolly’s longtime manager Danny Nozell and Pinnacle Bank, who is presumably serving as a trustee over her estate: “We remain unshakably resolved to fulfill her final directive to protect her family, and we refuse to be intimidated by those whose actions we believe are being taken in bad faith and with the intent to profit from the life of someone who willingly gave so much.”  Seaver, the son of Dolly’s sister Cassie Parton, had served as Dolly’s head of security for over 20 years, and in the video announcing her passing he reflected on the weight of the responsibility given to him by Dolly to tell the world that she was gone: “This video announcement is something Dolly asked of me years ago, before I fully absorbed it as a future reality. As her head of security, for more than two decades, a role my father Larry held before me. I have imagined the heaviness of this moment but haven’t truly felt it until now. It is an honor, an honor that is mixed with absolute pride and great sadness. But sadness lies with us, not with Dolly.” When her husband, Carl Dean, passed away last year, his entire estate went to his wife, with instructions that it be distributed between their nieces and nephews in the event that Dolly passed away before him. While we don’t know what was in Dolly’s will, presumably it would be similar to her husband’s instructions. Dolly’s estate is held by the DP Dean trust, named after the country singer and her late husband, and the notice of termination received by Seaver indicates that his “personal interest in the trust remains intact.” Neither Nozell nor her estate have commented on the decision to fire her nephew and longtime head of security, though it sounds like the fight over her estate is unfortunately going to get nasty – which I think we can all agree would be the last thing Dolly would have wanted. Such a shame and a dishonor to such an amazing life and legacy.The post Dolly Parton’s Nephew Fired As Head Of Security For Her Estate, Calls Out The Country Legend’s Longtime Manager first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

The White House has just launched Trump TV, saying that it will be updated in real time with the ‘latest and greatest’ from the administration, past and present. Here’s the announcement: IT’S . . .

In a 1990 People magazine interview, the late Barbara Bush said The Simpsons (still a fledgling series at the time) was “the dumbest thing” she’d ever seen. She never anticipated getting a written response from the Simpson matriarch herself. Nor did she expect it to be so heartfelt.  Marge Simpson writes to Barbara Bush On September 28, the former First Lady received a note from Marge, which read:  “I recently read your criticism of my family. I was deeply hurt. Heaven knows we’re far from perfect and, if truth be known, maybe just a wee bit short of normal, but as Dr. Seuss says, ‘a person is a person’.” Marge went on to say how she believed they both “had a great deal in common,” as both she and Bush “lived their lives to serve an exceptional man.” She concluded that “I hope there is some way out of this controversy. I thought, perhaps, it would be a good start to just speak my mind.” Marge’s letter to Barbara. Photo credit: Letters of Note Barbara writes back Just a few weeks later, Bush wrote an apology.  “How kind of you to write. I am glad you spoke your mind; I foolishly didn’t know you had one. I am looking at a picture of you, depicted on a plastic cup, with your blue hair filled with pink birds peeking out all over. Evidently, you and your charming family—Lisa, Homer, Bart and Maggie—are camping out. It is a nice family scene. Clearly, you are setting a good example for the rest of the country. Please forgive a loose tongue,” she penned.  To really sweeten the deal, Bush even added, “Homer looks like a handsome fella!” Barbara’s apology to Marge. Photo credit: Letters of Note Tensions between the Bush and Simpson families would continue throughout the years Unfortunately, while Barbara learned her lesson, her husband, then-U.S. President George H. W. Bush, would hurl another insult at the Simpsons two years later, saying, “We’re going to keep trying to strengthen the American family. To make them more like the Waltons and less like the Simpsons.”  This, of course, did not go unnoticed. For in the next Simpsons episode, the opening sequence included the family watching Bush’s speech on their television, to which Bart responded, “Hey, we’re just like the Waltons. We’re praying for an end to the Depression too.” Perhaps that’s why, in a 1996 episode, when George gets into a fistfight with Homer, Barbara and Marge are nothing but friendly with each other.  The sweet pen pal bond between Barbara Bush and Marge Simpson was largely unknown until The Simpsons showrunner Al Jean shared Barbara’s letter to commemorate her death in 2018.  A very wholesome lesson We may come from different places, live very different lives, and see the world in vastly different ways, but we can all find what connects us. Often, it takes a little kindness to see it. But hey, if a fictional cartoon mom and a first lady can find it, we all can.  Special thanks to Letters of Note, which posted both letters. The post In 1990, Marge Simpson ‘wrote’ to Barbara Bush for ‘criticizing her family.’ It got an apology. appeared first on Upworthy.

Chris Becker’s father had a beagle named Rosie. After his father died more than a decade ago, Rosie stayed with Becker’s father’s girlfriend in Maryland. Over the years, however, Becker lost touch with the girlfriend and the dog. This summer, a rescue shelter in Florida called him. Cindy Mucciaccio, president of iHeart Dog Rescue, told WPLG Local 10 that a woman had contacted the rescue about a dog someone had given her. “She wanted to surrender it because she couldn’t keep her,” Mucciaccio said. The rescue took Rosie in, and her microchip led them to Becker. He’d assumed she was still in Maryland, and nobody knows yet how she ended up in Hollywood, Florida, about a 15-hour drive away. Rosie is 12 now, and he almost didn’t know her. “I initially didn’t recognize her because her face is so gray, [but] when I saw those eyes, I recognized those eyes,” Becker said. Representative image of an older Beagle relaxing on a porch. Photo credit: andrew zorotoo’s Images via Canva. He flew down and met her at Cool Cuts in Pompano Beach. “I was really excited to see her, especially knowing where she just came from, and someone obviously took care of her. She’s happy,” he said. Becker is going back to Maryland with two dogs. In addition to Rosie, he also adopted Storm, who arrived at the shelter emaciated. Storm still needs a lot of care, but he and Becker bonded right away. “Thanks also to Chris for adopting Storm. May he be healed of his present condition. Wishing him the best and happy years ahead!” one YouTube commenter wrote under the station’s video. The post A man lost track of his late dad’s beagle for 10 years. Then a Florida rescue scanned her microchip. appeared first on Upworthy.

Dr. Jesse McGuire has been playing the national anthem on the trumpet before professional sports games for decades. He has played it sick, in pain, and with a nosebleed. But he’s never experienced what happened on September 19, 2026, when he got halfway through the anthem before an Arizona Diamondbacks game and his trumpet suddenly hit a sour note. He stopped and tapped the instrument. Then he tried the note again with the same result. Uh oh. There he was, standing in the middle of a hushed baseball stadium, thousands of eyes on him, his trumpet gone kaput. Nightmare fuel for anyone. Unbelievable display of improvisation. His trumpet gave out in the middle of the national anthem, so he just kept going without it. pic.twitter.com/DUQ2pFO0dw— Dudes Posting Their W’s (@DudespostingWs) September 20, 2026 From panic to poise But McGuire didn’t panic, or at least not for long. When it became clear the trumpet wasn’t working, he immediately grabbed the mic and picked up right where his trumpet left off, singing, “…through the perilous fight, O’er the ramparts we watched…” The crowd, momentarily confused, soon joined him for the rest of the anthem. The whole performance ended in cheers. “In 40 years of playing, I have never missed that high note,” McGuire told NBC News. “My entire reputation was at stake. So I couldn’t quit. I had to keep going.” It’s one thing to keep going when something goes wrong mid-performance. It’s another to do what McGuire did. The U.S. national anthem is a notoriously difficult song to sing, especially the soaring notes in the second half. It’s a feat even if you’ve trained and prepared for it. To improvise in a moment of unexpected disruption by pivoting to singing in front of a crowd of thousands—and on live television, no less—marks a seasoned professional and a pretty darn impressive human. The key to grace under pressure Many people don’t choose to be performers for a reason, and it’s not just because of the talent and technical skill involved. It’s the potential for something like this to happen. Being in the spotlight in front of a crowd is nerve-racking for most people, even under the best of circumstances. (Public speaking isn’t listed as people’s number one fear for nothing.) Even if you’re well prepared and have your nerves under control, there’s always a possibility something could go awry. The thought of having to figure out what to do in the moment, with all eyes on you, is enough to keep people comfortably in the spectator seat. What, then, makes people like Jesse McGuire perform well under pressure? According to sports psychologist Josephine Perry, it’s all about cultivating mental flexibility. “Mental flexibility is vital for coping well with pressure because, if you want to perform brilliantly, you need the skills to handle whatever is thrown at you, especially the unexpected,” she writes. “In sport, this might be a last-minute course change or finding out a scout will be watching your match that night. On the stage, it could be the understudy having to step in during the interval. In office work, it could be a last-minute request to join the team for a new business pitch. Cultivating your mental flexibility will allow you to better manage these kinds of moments.” Five steps to gaining the mental flexibility to perform under pressure Jesse McGuire has spent decades building the mental flexibility and confidence that let him shine in an unexpected moment of pressure. But Dr. Perry, who has written multiple books on performance, offers five tips for developing the ability to perform well under pressure. 1. Separate yourself from your thoughts When we feel pressure, negative self-talk often creeps in. “It is essential to remember that the thoughts you might have when feeling under pressure are often not actually true,” Perry writes. She suggests noticing your unhelpful thoughts, not to dwell on them, but to be aware of them. Imagine they are like passengers in the back of a bus you’re driving. You can hear them, but they won’t influence how you drive or where you are going. You can also create distance from your thoughts by adding “I am thinking” before the thought. So instead of “I always flub my words,” you would change that thought to “I am thinking that I always flub my words.” That helps keep the thought from feeling like a fact. 2. Practice labeling your feelings more accurately Perry points out that those passengers on our mental bus use emotive language to get our attention. But the language we use to name the emotions we’re actually feeling matters. Most of us have a pretty limited list of words for feelings, so she suggests using this list of 135 emotion words to be more specific. For instance, you might label a feeling as “anger” and respond accordingly. But you might actually be feeling frustration or exasperation, and naming it more accurately might lead to a different response. 3. Replace forms of self-talk that increase the pressure When we feel pressure, we tend to “should” all over ourselves. “I should be able to,” or “I must do ABC,” or “I have to be XYZ.” Such harsh expectations only add to the pressure, so Perry suggests replacing those words with “notice,” “awareness,” and “opportunity.” Tell yourself you have the opportunity to do something instead of saying you should or must do something. “In moving towards this gentler language, you can adjust to the demands of a situation without allowing emotion to take over,” she writes. “It will help you focus more on process (the way you perform) over outcome (in terms of success or failure) and allow you to look at what you can do to live in line with your values, rather than fearing or avoiding potential failure.” 4. Break some of your own rules “Overly rigid thinking and routines can all increase feelings of pressure,” Perry points out. “Increasing your mental flexibility is the antidote, and one way to do that is by deliberately challenging your usual way of doing things.” That might look like something as simple as taking a different route to work or something silly like dancing to the music in a grocery aisle. It can also mean not doing something you normally do, like leaving your phone at home when you go for a walk or not wearing your watch for a week. 5. Identify and remember your values “The final and most fundamental step to performing well under pressure is to know why the performance matters in the first place – this is where your values come into play,” writes Perry. For McGuire, playing the national anthem may matter to him as a performer, a sports fan, and an American. If it were only about showing how well he plays the trumpet, the malfunction he experienced could have thrown him off completely. Knowing it was about more than that and tapping into other values surely helped him pivot quickly once the trumpet was removed from the equation. How wonderful to see such an example on display. The post His trumpet broke halfway through the national anthem. So he grabbed a mic and started singing. appeared first on Upworthy.

To quote the great poet Robert Frost, “Nothing gold can stay.” When it comes to Crayola, apparently, a more accurate saying is, “Nothing maize can stay.” (This could have been the public relations campaign when they decided to get rid of the yellowish color, along with seven other classics, in 1990.) But truth be told, the Crayola company (which, of course, makes the crayons so many of us have used for decades to create fabulous refrigerator art) rarely changes its color lineup. In fact, since Binney and Smith Company released its first box of eight crayons in 1903, it has officially retired only 13 colors, many of which were brought back by popular demand. Crayola Hall of Fame On Crayola’s official site, they share a timeline of what they call “retired colors,” which they began in 1990. “For the first time in Crayola history, eight colors were retired and placed in the Crayola Hall of Fame: blue gray, green blue, lemon yellow, maize, orange red, orange yellow, raw umber, and violet blue. Eight new colors were added: cerulean, dandelion, fuchsia, jungle green, royal purple, teal blue, vivid tangerine, and wild strawberry.” Thirteen years later, they did another retire-and-replace, this time with only four colors. “Celebrating a century of bringing color to the world, Crayola introduced four new colors named by Crayola fans! To make room for the new hues, we bid farewell to blizzard blue, magic mint, mulberry, and teal blue. The four new colors that were introduced are: inchworm, jazzberry jam, mango tango, and wild blue yonder.” At the time, Crayola fans were so outraged that they voted in a “Save the Shade” campaign to ensure burnt sienna “stayed in the pack.” Dandelion, where have you gone? Crayola retired another color in 2017. “To mark National Crayon Day on March 31st, we announced Dandelion was leaving the pack. To honor this iconic color, we sent Dandelion on a retirement tour to his favorite places. His replacement, Bluetiful, was announced on May 5, 2017.” In early 2026, however, Crayola appeased the masses and brought Dandelion back to the pack! On Threads, a five-part discourse began after a user named John Paul (@notjohnflores) explained how important the colors seemed to be to Crayola customers. “In 1990, Crayola retired eight crayon colors. Grown adults formed protest groups,” he wrote. He then shared the crayon colors: “Raw umber, lemon yellow, maize, blue gray, green blue, orange red, orange yellow, and violet blue went into what the company called the Crayola Hall of Fame.” Picketing the headquarters What happened next was a heartfelt, yet hilarious response. “Two groups formed to fight it. RUMPS, for raw umber and maize preservation, and the National Campaign to Save Lemon Yellow. They picketed the headquarters,” he shares. He then notes that Crayola listened to their pleas, even though they were partly in jest. “Crayola brought the retired eight back for a short run in a commemorative tin. It sold out. Nobody at that company expected adults to care about a crayon they had not held in thirty years.” The Thread drew hundreds of comments, with people sharing the colors they miss or feel they can’t do without. One emphatically shares, “I will clutch my pearls for periwinkle. That was my favorite.” Another shares how the colors helped shape their taste, so to speak: “I loved ‘midnight blue.’ I found super cute LEATHER pumps a few weeks ago in the exact shade. Do I wear heels anymore? Nope. Did I buy them? Yup.” And this Threader warns, “If cerulean disappears, I’ll never buy a product again.” Obsessive collection One commenter notes that a customer was so enamored with the crayon color Dandelion that Crayola invited her to the headquarters. “Have you seen the girl who is obsessed with Dandelion? She has a massive collection and Crayola invited her to tour the company and then they brought Dandelion back, I’m sure because of her.” If nothing else, this story makes it clear that Crayon colors are serious business for all ages. The post Crayola has retired just 13 colors in 123 years. The first 8 led to protests. appeared first on Upworthy.