It’s probably already been mentioned about shipping glass items but I’ll just add my story. The soldier I sent to is someone on my LJ that I know from another message board. A few other people on my LJ sent him packages, too. One well-meaning gentlemen sent him a beef summer sausage stick, the kind that doesn’t need refrigeration until opened. He also included a small jar of mustard to go with it. Well, somewhere along the line the mustard jar broke and somewhere along the line some of the broken glass pierced the summer sausage packaging. As it was not refrigerated it started to rot. By the time it reached the soldier’s base it was not smelling very good. The soldier was ordered to pick up the package immediately and everyone was pretty curious about the contents. Needless to say everything else in the shipment was ruined, too. If you don’t want to eat cookies that taste like deodorant you sure wouldn’t want ones that taste like rotten meat and mustard. I think he buried the package in the desert.
So keep in mind that glass can break and treat it like a leak-able item and double bag and seal it.
I had considered sending the soldier a Maxim magazine but I wondered if it would have offended the locals, even though the women in it are not naked they are still scantily clad.
Maxim is fine, they sell it in most Post Exchanges. Alcohol is a big no-no. Don’t do it, seriously. Some commands may wink and look the other way, some may press for punishment. Also, heat, stress, and a lack of privacy coupled with constantly carrying a firearm with ammo does not always go well with strong drink.
I know there are a lot of ways to sneak alcohol in, but it is a violation of General Order number one. Therefore it is a crime to possess alcohol in Iraq. I thought providing information on how to commit a crime is forbidden on this thread.
Alcohol is forbidden in Iraq. Any soldier possessing an alcoholic beverage will be charged with a crime. That could be the result of you sending alcohol in any of the ways mentioned.
All discussion of how to send alcohol to soldiers must stop, this minute. It’s not only illegal, it could get a soldier in trouble.
And not only you, IntelSoldier. Lieu and blondebear - no more discussion of this. Keep the discussion to items that our troops can receive.
I once sent a soldier several bottles of Sriracha sauce (the Thai-style hot sauce with the rooster on the label). It was a hit - the guy was looking for a way to make his bland rations more palatable.
Another vote for spices, barbecue sauce, hot sauce, etc. Yeah, the food is good, but being able to jazz it up the way you like was comforting to me. And add me to the list of guys that liked newspapers–especially if they were from somewhere I knew. It was comforting to read about Brooklyn or Bridgeton, NJ even though I’m from Bergen county.
Tripler
Hell, I’d even take the Great Falls Tribune on some nights!
What about cigarettes? If I’m sending a package to the “Any Soldier” program to be shared and passed around, are smokes allowed? Appreciated? (God knows I would appreciate them…)
How about homemade spice mixes? My father makes an incredible BBQ rub… Award-winning stuff. Would there be anyway to get it to someone over there who could put it to good use? Or is it a more-or-less catch-as-catch can deal?
My brother told me not to bother with Tabasco- it was included in every single MRE- breakfast, lunch & dinner. The case of Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies was a really big hit in Afghanistan in winter- but they might melt en route to an Iraq posting.
I imagine so, yeah - Which I why I was asking if there was a way to get it to someone who could put it to use - I imagine a field kitchen or something similar might have the time and space to actually put it to work. Is that possible, or is it too much logistical effort?
What about a book of brain teasers or some kind of crossword puzzle and the like? That, and a couple of Poker decks? I second sending Gatorade, you can buy rather large tins of it in powder form. You might send a sports bottle that says how much it holds on its label also. One scoop of the Gatorade powder makes one quart, which is 32 ounces. So, if you can find a sixteen ounce bottle that would be half a scoop.
Think about Afghanistan, perhaps. When Little Bro was there, they were pretty settled and even had a full-time Afghan cook. They ate better than some Americans ate last night!