Get a Room, you two!

Farewell?

Does that mean the bloggage stops? :(

Weekend Caption/Photoshop Contest

Sticky until Monday -- Scroll Down for New Stuff

Got a caption or photoshop for this unsourced photo? You could win a coveted Blog Ad on my side bar!

Leave a caption or photo link in comments, or Email a pic to me at the address in my profile. If you're sending a large animation, please provide a hot-linkable URL.

You need not own a blog to win! I'll advertise your favorite charity, web site, or even that Speedo swimsuit that you're too embarrassed to wear.

Check out the links in Drinks Ordered for photoshops!

Judging begins Monday PM.

Winner(s)!

Wyatt "Timmeeee!" Earp wins with:

"Demon, GET OUT!" in the Nayum of Jeezusss!"

Wyatt keeps his ad; Timmeeee, send me some Ad Fodder ASAP!

Other Ongoing Contests:

First In! (I won 1st Place here last week!)
Gone Rick Motel
Outside the Beltway
Support your Local Gunfighter

bRight & Early
Right Pundits
Public Pondering
WILLisms

I'll Bet

...he still doesn't know the color of her eyes.

I hope y'all don't miss the pic filename. I thought it was rather clever.

I'm Ron McDonald, Beeyotch!

300k!

After 3,343 posts!

The 300,000th referral came from Texas Fred's American Conservative Forum (find the link on his blog after reading his fine political commentary). Here's a one-week Blog Ad for ya, Fred!

The 300k+1 referral was a Canadian actually G00gling some specifically non-Pr0n-related!

I wish I could have been more helpful.

Make a Movie Meme

Now that Peter Jackson has made the Lord of the Rings trilogy, my dream of seeing my favorite book(s) made into a movie has been realized. Until today's awesome computer graphics came to be, basing a movie on Tolkien's masterpiece would have been a disgrace, or at best a cartoon. If you had all of Hollywood at your disposal, what book would you turn into a movie?

I'd do Niven-Pournelle's Footfall. Unlike Mote in God's Eye (another favorite), I wouldn't have to digitally render an entire alien planet, just a spaceship and the aliens, who curiously resemble baby elephants. Think of the merchandising opportunities! Think of the space battle! Think of the liberals in the audience cheering when we nuke Kansas!

Setting the story in modern times, I'd use a mock-up of the International Space Station and, of course, cast Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle as themselves, science fiction writers who get enlisted into a think tank to cope with the alien invasion. I wonder why no one's thought of this before?

I'd cast an Obama-lookalike as the wishy-washy POTUS who wants to negotiate with the Fithp from a position of weakness. I'd appear in a cameo as "Hairy Red," if Larry and Jerry don't object.

What book would you adapt into a movie? Why? How?

Well, Escuuuuuuse' Moi!

Seventeen people, including a child left in a critical condition, were injured when soldiers fired live bullets instead of blanks during an open day display in Carcassone, France, regional officials said.

Sez the Sydney Morning Herald

h/t ACTS Forum

Packin' Heat

Ya know, I almost never carry concealed. When most of my shopping trips have a stop inside the Air Force Base or the rare social appearance drags me to a brew pub, I gotta leave the shootin' iron behind. On trips to Phoenix, I just wear my match gun in the open; the only places it gets seen are gas stations. Since I left today's match feeling rather well (and not pukey from dehydration and nerves... I'd pounded a bottle of water on the drive back), I decided to treat myself to Subway on the way home. I pulled in right next to a police car in the parking lot. The officer was chowing down in the back of the restaurant. I don't imagine anybody in line behind me gestured frantically to the officer or that he'd hurried through his meal, but he followed me out at a respectful distance. I wonder if he ran my licence plate number.

I'd like to think it was all just coincidence.

Schooled by a Septugenarian

None of the Pima Match poo-bahs could make it for match set-up... or even show up with some stage designs, so us poor schmoes had to open the prop shack and get cracking ourselves. We put up two awesome stages and decided that after we shot these two, we could take a break, then tweak the plans and move stuff around into two more stages to shoot. I pooped out after two stages, but didn't feel bad leaving early: I got lotsa rifle work done (and there wouldn't be much more in Stage 3 or 4) and since the match fee had been waived, I wasn't losing anything but the chance to go home totally exhausted.


Jerry (above) kicked my ass, psychically at least. I might have won Stage One, but Jerry soldiered on after I wussed out. I guess everybody figured out by now that I'm a transplant. Aaron (right) is a transplant too, but he's younger, and that helps in the late June heat. He'll probably win the match.

Have a Happy One!

Dawg!

Have you ever heard that a dog "knows" when an earthquake is about to hit?

Have you ever heard that a dog can "sense" when a tornado is stirring up, even 20 miles away?

Do you remember hearing that before the December tsunami struck Southeast Asia, dogs started running frantically away from the seashore, at breakneck speed?

Do you know that dogs can detect cancer and other serious illnesses and danger of fire?

Somehow they always know when they can 'go for a ride' before you even ask and how do those dogs and cats get home from hundreds of miles away?

I'm a firm believer that animals - and especially dogs - have keen insights into the Truth.

And you can't tell me that dogs can't sense a potentially terrible disaster well in advance Simply said, a dog just KNOWS when something isn't right .. . when impending doom is upon us . . they'll always try to warn us.... !!



h/t Palmer

Going Green

I'm watching the skies this afternoon with concern for tomorrow's Pima 3-Gun Match getting washed out by monsoons... if they can't set up on Saturday, they might cancel the Sunday match. Next week's July 4 Match in Mesa will happen rain or shine, but the Catalina range road crosses several sandy washes that a hard rain can render impassable.

Lots of folks are surprised how green the Sonoran Desert gets in the summertime. Tumbleweed is blue-green until it breaks off and turns brown, and low-growing spurge covers the brown rock like a mat. Woodland camouflage works just as well as desert cammies... unless you're trying to be seen. Then you can just strip to your panties and pose with an M-4.

Oh, the trouble one goes through to give gunny cheesecake the proper context!

Recommendations?

I've always had faith in Sony products (I'm on my third Sony TV set in 26 years), but I'm open to suggestions.

Might as well get one with a camera in it. Don't really care about MP3 players or games. Better get the headset thing 'cuz homey ain't coordinated enough to yak and drive....

Update: I got a Sony of my Owny on the way.

Cowboys and Chinamen

Here's a delightfully non-PC flash game you can play on your PC, Cowboys and Chinamen! Somebody G00gling for the cheat codes to this game found my Ghost Rock post. Dude, you don't need cheat codes to beat this game!

Click to Play!

Flour Power

One night this week I was watching a show on Discovery or THC all about bread. That got me thinking about the opened container of white flour I've had for several years(?). I've only used it to make a batch of fried chicken maybe once every 6 months. Figured if there's nothing crawling around in it, it ought to still be good. I didn't have the yeast stuff to make bread, but I bet myself I could make a batch of biscuits... so I did. Ugh. That's what I get for having a neither a recipe nor any skill at baking. The biscuits were edible, but nothing I'd feed to company, so I put them in the fridge. This morning I whipped up some S.O.S. using turkey sausage -- and smothered a couple biscuits with it. Better!

21st Century Calling

I think it's finally time to get a cell phone. I won't be quite the hermit I used to be when I start college classes in August, but here's the rub: all my friends in AZ use Verizon and all my family in PA are on ATT. Which carrier and plan do I get? Do I get a camera phone? Or just get a minimum-use Cricket?

Why doesn't ATT have a coverage map? (Update: found one) Are they that good? Or that bad?

I'll probably end up getting a new laptop while I'm acclimating myself to the new century. Sh*t. I'd hoped to avoid ever using Vista.

It is Monsoooon!

Toad-choker, gully-washer, a whole buncha rain and hail! That's what hit today. It made the lights flicker and the computer reset, so I turned everything off and sat down with a book (sent to me by the author! I probably won't get around to finishing it until I'm home on vacation).

I'm kinda happy about the rain, since I've been stingy about watering my plants. Still, those damned weeds are gonna be coming up soon. Gotta take the good with the bad.

Papa Cap

Now THAT's an Endorsement

First from his mouthpiece rag...

Then, from the Benevolent Despot himself.

I wonder who Mugabe's picking?

It's an Individual Right!

A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.

Wikipedia's been updated to include DC v. Heller.

And they still bitch.

I R a writer

Seems I shouldn't have been nervous about the writing assessment. I kicked sand all over it, took its lunch money, and screwed its girlfriend. There was no writing involved, just proofreading and some analysis... which I can do in my sleep.

Good thing I don't have to lean on Firefox 3.0's spellchecker much.

This can't end well...

Quote of the Day

When I was crossing the border into Canada, they asked if I had any firearms with me. I said, 'Well, what do you need?' -- Steven Wright

Think they'll buy it?

I'll save this for my resume'.

Starting 2mor-o

I'm taking the writing placement test tomorrow to qualify for WRT101... I wonder how I'll do. I had to write like a sonuvabitch in the USAF, then there was 18 months of technical writing for an unnamed software company. After that? Almost 4 years of blogging for a very uncritical audience -- and it's not even a "writer's blog." I'll probably be in real trouble if it's done with pencil and paper.

Cowboy Blob, Occupation: Studnut

Stopped by and registered for classes at the Community College today, with an AAS in mind -- so I'm not a liberal arts major, Jon! I signed for the Digital Arts and Film degree... I need to dig up another course to break the 12 hours needed for full-time GI Bill benefits. Still don't know what core curriculum I'll pursue, but who knows, maybe I'll be the next Michael Bane!

Update: I may have signed up for two prerequisites for the wrong degree, but I think they'll be useful anyway (if the VA thinks so). All the other classes were closed.

Tactical 3-Gun

Jerry the Geek tried his hand at Tactical 3-Gun, kinda what we do at our ACTS matches, except they use shotguns, have a complicated scoring system (the price you pay for recognizing power factor), and some really arcane stage instructions. Now, I wouldn't mind a shotgun component in my tactical gun fun, but I think their match is unnecessarily complicated; fun dissipates with frustration! Jerry thoughtfully offered some constructive criticism.

One thing I like about the ACTS format is that it's so simple, we usually don't even number the targets. You sometimes don't need the stage description for anything but starting position.

• Be safe.
• Shoot the hostiles.
• Use cover or movement.
• Don't shoot the hostages.
• Switch to your other weapon (or not).

Some stages are more complicated, but that's the game in a nutshell.

The stage at right was the only one I submitted this month. (I have a porch template saved for that bay.) Incidentally, it was the most penalty-laden stage across all 11 shooters, thanks to all the no-shoots and targets hidden from the starting position. As Karl did, most of the shooters dropped to cover right away and engaged every target they could see before advancing. The rest charged and shot the close left guy on the move and used the door and windows to get a better view of the previously hidden hostiles. Freedom of choice! Karl would have shot this almost cleanly, except that he didn't recognize a target as an unengaged one. Bang!, 35 second penalty for a not-hit hostile. Of course, in real life, bad guys fall down and spew gore when they're shot, but we're on a budget....

Ironic?

Weekend Caption/Photoshop Contest

Sticky until Monday -- Scroll Down for New Stuff

Got a caption or photoshop for this unsourced photo? You could win a coveted Blog Ad on my side bar!

Leave a caption or photo link in comments, or Email a pic to me at the address in my profile. If you're sending a large animation, please provide a hot-linkable URL.

You need not own a blog to win! I'll advertise your favorite charity, web site, or even that big, shiny, candy-like, red button on your spaceship that erases History.

Check out the links in Drinks Ordered for photoshops!

Judging begins Monday PM.

Winner!

Detective Wyatt Earp at SYLG wins with:

"WOW! THIS IS THE BEST HEROIN I HAVE EVER HAD!!!

Thanks for playin', y'all!

Other Contests this Week:

Support your Local Gunfighter (I got a scoop on this one!)
Gone Rick Motel
Outside the Beltway.
bRight & Early
First In!
Right Pundits
Public Pondering
Wizbang
WILLisms









Not the winning Photoshop:

Funny Bone?

Cactus League Match

Oops, every single Cactus video suffers from a smudge on the lens!

League Poobah Terry dredged up four stages, some dating back to 2006 for this fun match. And it was only 100 degrees! (We finished by 11 am).

The Simmons replacement scope (knock on wood) is holding up well; I'm not quite happy with my zero, but that's my fault for not being 4nal enough at the range last week.

Bob's gonna have a sucky score, as you can see (left). "Aim high up close!" Well, they weren't that close, but aiming higher would have helped Bob.

Video (Riotgun)

Video (Carbine)

Pima ACTS Match

Oh, it was only 110 degrees... we started an hour late. We finished late, but we paced ourselves. With 11 shooters, we stayed in one squad to ensure the Range Officers had lots of rest and hydration time... and we needed it.

I was eager to try out the SOCOM-16, but all my style points for shooting .308 were hoarked by Karl, who shot a beautiful M-1 Garand (center) and a P-38. Rob might have gotten style points if his locally produced hushsticks (one at top) hadn't jammed their way into last place (cheap ammo!).
The SOCOM worked great! I didn't want to impose on anybody in the heat, so I just got video of three of Karl's four stages.

Video

Oh, No Thou Di'int!

h/t to BinkerMom

Groovy

Or should I say landsy?

It's a Good Thing!

It's a good thing I rechecked the combat zero on the SOCOM; I used to have to go up 21 clicks on the rear sight to reach it -- now, only five. Only fired one magazine through it. Not a hitch so far!

Friday Fertography - QuickTime

Squiggy is just getting over a cough. Mistress Lisa the Biker Chick sends. I Heart Lisa.

Another Senseless Teen Gun Death

The Brady Bunch will doubtlessly cluck over this as a "child fatality." Other sources cite Sands as a "man" or even a "break-in artist." PC sumbitches.

H/t to reader Palmer

Summer's Here!

Yay! Dish Network must have listened to my gripes, since they added an interactive feature that appears "On the Eights." It's probably cheaper than hiring a met goon to stand in front of a blank radar map for this part of the summer. Eight percent humidity!

This is a two-match weekend; throw in a range day before then to re-zero the POFMaster's scope and to re-check the iron zero for the SOCOM-16, which I'll probably shoot at Pima Saturday. Gotta give Jake another chance to beat me -- maybe he'll bring an AR this time.

Terry the Cactus Poobah is gonna trot out my old stages for Sunday re-runs, which is great. My creativity wanes when only 10 shooters are likely to shoot in the heat any given summer match: the Masters, Grand Masters, Jon, and me.

A Face for Television but....

I like Laura Ingraham, Tune in daily but nothing drives me from Fox at 5pm ET News to CNN Headline to Fox News Channel's News faster than Fox anchors "Just In...with Laura Ingraham." and guests' propensity for talking/shouting You can also catch her all over each other in their "Fair and Balanced" debate. on the Ingraham Angle Laura is taking her temporary stint on FNC's "Just In..." segment on the O'Reilly Factor as marching orders to continue this annoying practice. every Friday. Arrggghhh!! Go back to radio!

Geoffry, No!

Word of the Year 2008

h/t SondraK

For Mommy's Little Ho

I like it

...though there's room for some howitzers in there, too.

from Chairforce.com

Full Bore

Weekend Caption/Photoshop Contest

Sticky until Monday -- Scroll Down for New Stuff
Not the winning caption:

U.S. President George W. Bush (C) speaks with a couple dressed in traditional Slovenian costumes at Brdo Castle after the U.S.- E.U. Summit in Slovenia, June 10, 2008.
REUTERS/Srdjan Zivulovic (SLOVENIA)

Got a caption or photoshop for this Reuters photo? You could win a coveted Blog Ad on my side bar!

Leave a caption or photo link in comments, or Email a pic to me at the address in my profile. If you're sending a large animation, please provide a hot-linkable URL.

You need not own a blog to win! I'll advertise your favorite charity, web site, or even that pair of lederhosen with the run in them.

Check out the links in Drinks Ordered for photoshops!

Judging begins Monday PM.

Winner!

AlanDP of Blogonomicon wins with:

"Hansel and Gretel are surprised and overjoyed as President Bush offers to help with Slovenia's disturbing vowel shortage."

Thanks for playing!

Other Contests

Gone Rick Motel (I got 1st Place last week!)
Support your Local Gunfighter (2nd Place there last week!)
bRight & Early (2nd Place there last week!)
Outside the Beltway
WILLisms
Right Pundits
Public Pondering

Double-Barreled Pump Shotgun

Also video at Les Jones' place.

Because You Suck -- Candy

From ColtCCO:

“But this is not just any gummi, this is HK gummi. Contained within this bag are about 12 pieces of little, red, “HK” gummis. I estimate these to be worth about $6500. Why so much? It’s all about the quality. Each 2 gram gummi is milled from a 4000 kilo block of gummi billet on a $7.5 million euro CNC machine made specifically for this purpose. Each is hand inspected, placed in its individual serving packet and stored in carbon fiber cases made for HK by the McLaren F1 team. A little known fact is that these packets were designed to fit in the buttstocks of HK416 and 417 rifles."

Read the whole thing!

Keep Your Head Down

My other best-friend-named-Chief just volunteered for the place with the R and Q in it. This is the same guy who volunteered for Albania! Oh, the places Korlings go... guess that's how you make Chief.

There is a resemblance:

Miss You, Dad

Stuck in an Elevator?

Thanks to Ace's online Convservative Babe Poll, I had to make these (my choice of beverage with Julie differs from theirs):

















That's Julie Banderas, Michelle Malkin, and Patti Anne Brown, BTW.