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Thubten Comerford joined the Navy, as did our co-host Josh, to get away from home. Coming out as a gay man did not go over well with his family at the time and life just started getting too limited. There was a Navy recruiting station by the Santa Monica College campus and made it quite convenient. The nuclear power program was most interesting to Thubten and he signed up. A prestigious program to gain entry, Thubten finally had a subject that demanded his full attention and he liked both the mechanical challenges and the physics challenges. However, the college party "hangover" stayed with him through the nuclear school program and eventually brought him down, landing him in the regular party of the Navy. He was in the amphibious transport dock out of Shreveport. And through it all, he NEVER went to sea during the Navy. Thubten was a little too spit 'n polish for some people and looking for other gay sailors, so a lot of the time he was constantly concerned about being carted off to the brig. The pressure got to him and he went to his Ex-O to ask what to do about the quasi-harassment he was receiving. With no support from the Ex-O, he asked for a discharge. Receiving none, he was arrested and interrogated but kept his mouth shut, then went to the Commodore and finally received his discharge. Becoming a serial entrepreneur, Thubten realized his real calling was in marketing, and his Navy background also gave him the discipline of following through on everything he started. It also gave him the confidence he could always provide for himself and his family. But currently, his obsession with cooking, entertaining and preserving food has taken him to his kitchen show and his current line of pickled products. The preserved foods was particularly thrilling, as he sold a case of pickles to a friend who gave them to friends who went mad for them. A realtor wanted them to give as gifts, but wanted them in a gift basket, creating a new product line for his company. So it has all rolled out naturally, just like Thubten's food.\n\nVeteran Founder Podcast with your hosts Josh Carter and Cynthia Kao\n\nWe record the Veteran Founder Podcast inside NedSpace in the Bigfoot Podcast Studio in beautiful downtown Portland.\n\nAudio engineer, mixer and podcast editor is Allon Beausoleil\n\nShow logo was designed by Carolyn Main\n\nWebsite was designed by Cameron Grimes\n\nProduction assistant is Chelsea Lancaster\n\nTheme music: Artist: Tipsy Track: Kadonka Album: Buzzz Courtesy of Ipecac Records\n\n10% of gross revenue at Startup Radio Network goes to support women entrepreneurs in developing countries thru kiva.org/lender/markgrimes\n\nListen to the Veteran Founder Podcast every Friday at 1:00pm pacific time on Startup Radio Network at startupradionetwork.com