This from someone in my office that has been afraid of guns for most of her life.

We need to schedule a time for you to show me how to shoot THE GUN.

THE GUN belongs to her husband, and I do not yet know what it is.   But he keeps it loaded on the nightstand for home defense.  She has come to the very reasonable conclusion that she needs to actually learn to use it rather than just know that it is there.

SCORE!

She was home alone recently and heard noises that frightened her.  She told herself that it was okay because she had her bat that she has been keeping close by and THE GUN was on the nightstand.  But wait.  She doesn’t know anything about THE GUN.  “Do I need to take it out of the holster?”  “Does it have a safety?”  “How do I pull the trigger?”  etc.

Yes, we are talking very elementary gun handling skills here.  So she asked me to show her how.

Understand that this is a woman that has been absolutely terrified of guns all of her life.  She has good reasons to be afraid too.  There was some childhood trauma that I won’t elaborate on.  This is enough fear that I’ve seen her become noticeably uncomfortable just looking at one of the holsters that Michael makes.

So to say that we are going to start slowly is an understatement.  You know what I’m not going to do?  Hand her my snub nosed revolver and 5 rounds of .38 special telling her that’s the perfect gun for a woman.  There has been a lot of talk about that lately, in case you haven’t noticed.  I happen to really like my snub and will even shoot .357 Magnum out of it from time to time.  (I like the fireball.)  But it is NOT A BEGINNERS GUN!

Not for women, men, cephalopods anyone.  Well, it might be okay for cephalopods, but I’m not exactly anxious to teach a squid to shoot.  Octopus maybe, but not a squid.

In fact, we aren’t even going to start with a gun at all.  I’m serious, this one must be done SLOWLY.  We started today with a book.

This is so she can feel familiar with terms and concepts without dealing with the anxiety I have already witnessed from her.  For this particular person, I want to break it up into more easily digestible pieces.  It would be a sensory overload to head her straight to the range and shout over hearing protection.  The last thing she needs to have fear and anxiety associated with the learning process.

Next, we’ll look at a dummy gun.  We’ll go over the 4 rules.  We’ll talk about stance and grip and sight alignment.  Once she feels comfortable with that, we’ll look at THE GUN.  I’ll show her the same basics on that as well as discussing any specific things about that particular firearm.

And then we will head down to the local range.  I will bring along a selection of things to try out and the range has an excellent selection of things to rent.  Yes, the DAO snubby will be in the bag, but it will not be thrust at her like it is what she must shoot.  I do not currently own a handgun in .22LR, but I will either rent or borrow one. Also in the bag will be my 627PC.  That revolver was my first gun.  It has a nice long sight radius and smooth trigger pull even when shot double action.  The big N frame soaks up recoil nicely.  She’ll also have the opportunity to try out my M&P9c that I carry every day.  I will have a variety so she won’t feel intimidated by anything that she may encounter in the future.

First thing I ever shot was a Model 629 loaded with .44 magnum.  Not what I recommend doing with any new shooter.  I’m a stubborn one though and decided that day that I would conquer that beast.  I shot it all of twice that day, but I have lost count at this point of how many rounds I’ve shot through hubby’s model 29.  Don’t underestimate what that petite woman will be able to handle.  But really, don’t start a new shooter on any kind of magnum.

We will work our way up to and around THE GUN.  My hope is that by the end of all of this, she will see it as another useful tool and not something she needs to refer to in all caps.  Maybe she’ll even want a firearm of her own.

I’ve found with new shooters and particularly women, that doubling up on the hearing protection in the indoor range makes the whole experience more pleasant and helps to reduce the dreaded flinch.  Heck, I double up my hearing protection most of the time.

This particular woman is a special case.  I would not normally drag the new shooter experience out to several days in such small chunks, but you have to cater the experience to the shooter.  Some will need the basic safety briefing then you show them how to load it tell them to point it that-a-way, others will need more sensitive instruction before that first shot.  The point where that hammer falls on that first round should be exhilarating, not frightening.

She has decided that I am the one she trusts to teach her, and I will not betray that trust by scaring her.  We should all remember that when someone asks us to teach them.  They are trusting us to be their guide into a new world.  We should commit to guiding them in gently and with all the knowledge we can impart.  I would love for her to decide that it is fun and something she wants to do regularly.  If it’s fun, she’ll practice.  Teaching someone to shoot is more than just showing them how to make a gun go bang.  Don’t teach them how to use a gun; teach them to be shooters.

It seems everyone is talking about the EPA’s move to ban traditional lead ammunition.  In addition to reminding us to comment to the EPA, Stranger reminds us that we really need to be telling our Congresscritters exactly what we think about this idea.

Here is the NSSF press release.

Tam has the right idea here.

* There is anecdotal evidence that the banning of traditional ammunition would have an adverse impact on government bureaucrat populations.

Or there is also my initial response to this news.

If you come for the lead ammunition, you might just get it.

This administration has done a delicate dance around the firearms issues.  Don’t be fooled.  If they can’t take your guns away, turning them into clubs would be the next best thing.  Any effort to eliminate ammunition (or even make it prohibitively expensive) is an assault on your freedoms.

Follow all those links up there in the post.  People have a lot to say about this subject.

Directions have been sent out. If I missed you, let me know.

Dear Hollywood celebrities,

You exist for my entertainment.  Some of you are great eye candy.  Some of you can deliver a line with such conviction that you bring tears to my eyes.  Some of you can scare the crap out of me.  Others make me laugh.  But you all have one thing in common, you only have a place in my world to entertain me.  That’s it.

You make your living pretending to be someone else.  Playing dress up like a retard*.  You live in a make believe world in front of a camera.  And often when you are away from one too.  Your entire existence depends on my patronage.

I’ll crank the organ grinder; you dance.

I don’t really care where you stand on issues.  Honestly, your stance matters far less to me than that of my neighbor.  You see, you aren’t real.  I turn off my TV or shut down my computer and you cease to exist in my world.  Once I am done with you, I can put you back in your little box until I want you to entertain me again.

I don’t care that you think the BP executives deserve the death penalty.  But I bet you looked cute saying it.

And you?  Really?  I’m supposed to care what the director of fluffy tripe made for gullible people thinks of those who realize global warming is a scam?  Get back into your bubble.  I’ll let you know when I’m in the mood for something blue and shiny.

Make me laugh, or cry.  Scare me.  But realize that the only words of yours that matter are scripted.  I might agree with some of you from time to time, but it doesn’t matter.  In my world, you exist solely for my entertainment.

So, shut your pie hole and dance, monkey!

*that’s a reference to a quote and not a commentary on the mentally impaired.  I’d never use that term for someone who didn’t choose to be mentally impaired.  But some people make the choice to not use their mental faculties and are voluntarily slow.  For those, the term is appropriate.

–and after all the linky (thanks Ambulance Driver, AEPilotJim,  Firehand, LawDog, and Borepatch) I realize there was a glaring lack of comma.

I give you today’s question to ponder.

If you sort your M&Ms by color, are you OCD or RACIST?

Discuss.

Since hubby has become self-employed, we’ve had good weeks and skinny weeks.  Last week was a skinny week.  It happens.  We’ve got plenty of food in the freezer and didn’t starve. All the utilities are still on.

It has become apparent that Michael is going to need a laptop that is devoted to the business.  He needs something portable so he can use it in both his studio and when traveling.  Since the business is internet based, he simply cannot afford to be out of t0uch.  We had looked at several inexpensive used models, but decided that it would serve him better to purchase a new machine with a warranty and support.  We shopped around and found a machine that should be very competent for several years for a reasonable price.  A price which we currently cannot afford.  I mean with real money.

We were approved for a line of credit at the electronics store and there is plenty of room on the business credit card to go ahead and make the purchase, but we didn’t.  We learned a long time ago that going into debt is unsustainable.  A lesson, it seems, many bureaucrats need to learn.  Take the new school in LA for example.

We are all well aware of the fact that the state of California is broke and yet they can spend $578 Million on a luxury school.  Lets write that number out: $578,000,000.00.  All while the school district is laying off teachers and facing a budget short fall of $640 Million.  Hmm…  I think I have an idea where some of the money may have gone.  Just a guess.

They can’t afford it, but they bought it anyway.  They don’t even have a new revenue stream coming in the foreseeable future.  Nope.  It’s just more debt that they are pushing off onto their children.  And as if that wasn’t bad enough, they are asking the federal government to bail the state out of its money troubles.  Now remember kids, the money at the federal government is yours and mine.

Honestly, I wouldn’t have a problem with them setting up some luxury school if they could afford it.  But that’s not what they did.  They are asking for my money (you know, that same money that can’t purchase a much needed laptop right this minute) to put a restaurant quality pizza oven in the school cafeteria.

This week looks to be a much better week.  We should be able to catch back up on bills and be purchasing that new laptop soon.  You know, when we can afford it.  Because we aren’t bureaucrats with our hands in your pockets.

As most of you know, we’ve got a kiddo heading into middle school this year.  It’ll be his first year riding the bus to school so we bought him his very own cell phone.  As expected, he couldn’t get his nose out of it the first couple of days.   I’ve gotten text messages including pictures of my parent’s cat.  He has played with it so much that he needed to charge it 3 times the first day.

And that’s okay.  It’s new.  He needs the opportunity to explore it and get to know the capabilities.  That said, now that he’s had a few days, we are coaching him on what is the appropriate way to use it.  Like so many other things, it is a useful tool and should be handled responsibly.

We took a walk down to the bus stop the other night so that he would know where it was.  On the way, we spotted different things and quizzed him about what he had seen.  Sure, that car was turning into a driveway, but it is still important that he notice it was there.  We also talked to him about the phone explaining that when he got off the bus, he needed to stick it in his pocket for his walk home.  We told him, “Keep your head up and pay attention.”  We don’t want him to be the type of person Tam is talking about here.  The received text message will still be there when you get home.

We are not training our son to live in any sort of fear, but only to be aware of what is going on around him.  You can’t react to something that you didn’t observe.  Too often, I watch people go about their lives in their little bubble.  Sometimes it’s the cell phone.  Sometimes it’s the ever present ear-buds.  And often it’s just some internal distraction that prevents observation.

Flipping open your cell phone so you can text your friends prevents you from seeing the man waiting on the corner.  Or seeing the unlatched gate where that aggressive dog lives.  Putting on your headphones prevents you from hearing that car screeching your direction.  Your eyes and ears and early warning devices.   Don’t let technology take them away from you.  What you miss may not be dangerous.  It could be a friendly greeting from a neighbor or the sight of kids in the park.

Maintaining an awareness of the world around you can certainly help in keeping you safe.  It is not the the only thing.  As Caleb points out, situations can change in the blink of an eye.  You need to be able to react quickly and appropriately.  Had he had his nose in his cell phone, that night could have played out far differently.

Our society with it’s instant contact and answer has ironically made many of us islands.  We will check that email or text the exact moment our pocket buzzes at the expense of missing that neighbor just waiting for acknowledgment.  We communicate with our thumbs and miss the waves and smiles that only real life can bring.  The text can wait.  It’s not worth missing the real life contact.  And it’s certainly not worth being oblivious to a potential threat.  Really, is your social media worth your life?

So the hubby and I went to see The Expendables last night.  Wow!  I’m so glad the tickets were free.  Here is hubby’s excellent, spot-on, spoilerific review.  I have very little to add.

It was entertaining.  We laughed and laughed and talked about it for the rest of the night.  If all it takes for you to enjoy a movie is blood, gunfire, and bravado, you’ll love it.  Particularly if you’ve got no particular need for plot, character development, and anything closely resembling reality.  Just so long as you can stand an hour and a half of basically watching Sylvester Stallone make a pathetic attempt at proving he is still some kind of bad-ass as opposed to the poorly preserved hypocritical bigot that he really is.

Here is a movie where the most nuanced, well-developed character was played by…Jason Statham.

I’ve got no beef with Jason Statham, but he’s not exactly versatile.  As hubby has pointed out previously, he’s got one expression.  Really, he’s only good for action and eye candy.  And I believe this is the first movie I have seen him in that he wore his shirt for entire length of the film.  I disagree with hubby, he’s got 2 expressions.  Jason Statham happy, sad, mad, serious and Jason Statham shirtless.  The talent was really underused in this flick.

But he did have one very satisfying scene where he beat the crap out of some guy that really deserved it.  He also beat up jerk wads friends who probably had it coming just for hanging out with the guy that really deserved it.

So hubby and I were giggling where I’m pretty sure it wasn’t supposed to be funny.  We just looked at each other when the credits started rolling and busted out laughing.