Don't Try This at Home

Release the Dog of War

Snake

You could make a lotta boots outta that....

These Dreams

AFSister blogged about some dreams she had. This reminded me of one of the most weird dreams I've ever had. I've only had it once, but it sticks with me because of its vivid nature. You know how folklore says that if you dream you die, you don't wake up from the dream? I know that's not true, because it's happened to me more than once. Most notable is the dream of falling from a great height...you're supposed to wake up right before you hit the ground, otherwise you die, right? Not me! I've hit the ground and felt my skeletal system pulverized by the impact and my organs splatter from the groundstrike's energy, only to crawl away in agony. That one I've had more than once. The most interesting of these dreams had a link to a show I'd seen several weeks before on the History Channel on the capture of Wake Island. In this dream, I was a Marine or a civilian contractor who's been captured by the Japanese and was bound kneeling before my captors. Instead of a swift beheading sword, I was executed by a sword-stroke across the neck which resulted in my bleeding to death. My spirit continued to resist the Japanese occupiers by seeking to sabotage their operations on the island. I remember warning other spirits not to step on the grass, because that might tip off the Japs to our existence. Not that I knew what the Japs could do to us spirits that were already dead, but we stayed off the grass and messed with their radios and dampened their artillery charges. Yeah, weird, I know.

I Think Banedad Tipped Me to This

New stuff here.

Yesterday Was Little Sister's Birthday

I'm sure she's happy I didn't go through all the trouble Basil did. Maybe next year....

Last Gun Pr0n of the Year

First Gun. In December, 1980, I bought the first gun of my adult life. I'd already been given a Remington Wingmaster when I was 16, but I wanted a pistol too, and at last I could afford one. Dad signed the paperwork, since I wasn't 21 yet, but I did all the shopping, finally picking out a Dan Wesson revolver at the Four Seasons Sporting Goods Store in Jim Thorpe PA. It was a perfect first gun, since it could fire inexpensive .38 Special ammo for practice, yet handle .357 Magnum defense loads. Another cool selling point was the easy-change feature for barrels/shrouds and grips. It came with an 8-inch ribbed barrel and over-sized target grips, which I've since added six- (shown) and four-inch barrels, and the comfy combat grip shown. The trigger felt more like a high-quality cap gun than a powerful firearm. It's super-accurate: I used to shoot the necks of bowling pins with it with positive results. The magnum rounds pictured are just for show; I shot so many .38 Special target rounds through it over the years that I need to do a heavy-duty cylinder scrubbing before it will chamber full-length magnum cartridges.

The smudge on the underlug is not an imperfection or wear spot; it's a reflection of the camera in the bright blue finish. I think I've got four or five boxes of .357 that must be close to 10 years old. I've shot thousands of rounds of 9-mm, 40 S&W, and .45 ACP in that time...I need to make time for a Beefy Revo range day.

How Can I Get Anything Done?

ESPN has had every college football miscellaneous bowl game on this week. I think when the Ralph's Florist Petunia Bowl comes on, I'll finally turn the TV off and try to get stuff done. But until then....

Fun from Xmas Past: 2001

What better activity for a Christmas Day than plinking little plastic army men in the back yard with pellet guns! Fresh off the plane from Frozen Chosun, I was quick to soak up the sun and start to let my hair grow.

Jon and I brought along our Benjamin Sheridan .20 cal. fun guns and laid waste to dozens of plastic grunts and a tank or two.

Nuther Fixation

Not a lot of great blogging ideas running through the noggin this week. Gave blood this afternoon. The new donation center reflects an infusion of cash into the Red Cross, probably thanks to Hurricane Katrina. Comfy new donation couches, T-shirt giftie for donors...and a few extra young ladies working there. Not that I'm gonna be a flirt while some lady phlebotomist is trying to find a good vein. It was just...nice.

Fire Good

Yes, people in Phoenix (Phoenicians?) have houses with fireplaces! Just in case that Ice Age comes along and drives winter temperatures down enough to make people put on sweaters and long pants....

Gave Jon lots of help working on his Christmas single malt scotch and Irish whiskey (oh, yeah, I'm off the Wagon until after New Years). Slept great! Whisked back to Tucson in the hands of the Goddess of Acceleration to find two sleepy weasels with an empty food dish.

Binker Joy

Merry Xmoog!

Mooglie and Rustle had a wonderland of paper and cardboard to romp through.

My Christmas Present

Ruger Vaquero/Bisley in .44 Magnum.

I tried to give you all a hint with the Cowboy Gun post...only the little Uberti enabled me to reach the hammer one-handed, a feature of the Bisley hammer style. The Ruger is the same caliber as my Winchester, a desired situation for Cowboys. And I wanted to buy another one just like it, a dead give-away for a Cowboy gun.

Now I gotta spring for some new leather.

Jeep: Bouncy and Fun

Yes, indeedy do.

Merry Christmas, Y'all

Tomorrow, I'm journeying to Phoenix to celebrate Christmas with friends. I hope that all of my readers will enjoy fellowship with family and friends on this holiday and feast upon a bounty of plenty.

Enjoy!

Road Worrier

Gadfly at Mental Floss describes a crazy stretch of highway that I know rather well. I haven't had to bust any caps yet, but it's only a matter of time.

Fixations

This Explains the Ringing in my Ears

Mystery Gun Update

1. I paid $385 for a new firearm, tax included.
2. It's in a caliber I already own.
3. I have at least one firearm of this make, but not this model.
4. I went back to the show to see if I could find one exactly like it. Fortunately for my finances, I was unsuccessful.

Good guesses so far:
SiG Mosquito
Uberti 1890 Police in .357
S&W .357 revolver

Any more guesses?

Where in the WORLD do you people find those sub-$400 SiGs?????

Mea Culpa

Sorry, folks, I completely overlooked Sunday Ferret Blogging. Guess I was just excited about the Big Shoot (for which they failed to post scores for either Rifle or Shotgun! Grrrrr!).

Here, have a double-shot of tube rat goodness.

BoG is Back! Long Live BoG!

Ed Cameron completed the latest modifications to Box o' Gun this week! He sandblasted the rust off my beautiful, but unfinished baby, cut cocking serrations on the forward slide, and installed a nice mainspring magazine well, blended expertly to the gun. Jon and I probably threw even more business Ed's way by talking to some shooters new to the 4th Sunday 3-Gun Game. Jon has a custom single-stack Les Baer Premier II which has felt Ed's magic touch, but it doesn't have the dark, fascinating history mines does.

Jon and I were also walking, talking Springfield Armory commercials. When we finished up early, I caught up with some regulars who were ogling my SOCOM-16 earlier and let them know I had a few magazines I was willing to let them unload through the muzzle. Jon offered up his full-size M1A for comparison and some Eugene Stoner acolytes may soon convert to an "elegant weapon of a more civilized age," if Santa Claus has anything to say about it.



Believe me, I am not a gun snob. There were lots of shooters new to the league's 3-Gun practice match and I almost hugged the guy who brought a Ruger Mini-14 (not pictured...this is a Maxi-14 :). I did squeak out a "Pity the Fool!" comment, but it was refreshing to see that not everybody is slavishly devoted to the AR format. Does that mean I'm going to leave my Bushie Shorty at home on 1st Sunday matches? Lot on your knife!

Today was young Piter's first 3-Gun match. He has done 1st Sunday matches with us before, but juggling multiple potentially loaded weapons on a hot range was a new challenge. Jon RO'd for him and gave him a stern critique for his habit of crossing himself with a loaded firearm on the draw; the evidence here will be retained for educational and rehabilitary counseling.

He actually horsed the big Para .45 around rather well and really impressed me with his mad REM870 skillz. Damn...if only I got to do this shit back when I was 17....

The Cactus League Course of Fire Committee accepted all of my Xmas Shooting Gallery stages I'd submitted last week. It was fun watching all the contortions at "Just Around the Corner." I might be sporting some bruises tomorrow for a sloppy body/stock weld today.








The Bag o' Rejected Toys was a heavy-duty bag filled with extension cord...very substantial! Jon puts on his combat face as he charges the table where his riotgun was staged. That half of the bay held the "stiffer" Texas Star of the two the league owns, and Jon was ready with high-brass #5s with which to engage it (last match, it totally kicked his ass). I had no trouble with low-brass #6s, but I aim.

A good time was had by all! Now for January...

A Racist Post

For as much as I've had a giggle for every misstep the Eagles have taken this sorry year (the rest of my immediate family roots for Eagle Green unanimously), I've got to come to the defense of their QB over the slanderous remarks by the Philly NAACP (a racist organization) Black-Man-in-Chief, J. Whyatt Mondesire. Sure, he's probably just spewing controversy to sell newspapers or get name recognition for political office, but acting the fool is not the kind of recognition he should be seeking. Does eschewing the hair-trigger scramble and perfecting his pocket-passing skills (whereby prolonging his career) make him less of a black man? He does wholesome soup commercials with his mother; does he lose black cred for that too? After all, his Viking counterpart Daunte Culpepper got a knobber lapdance from some ho's on a floating bordello...yeah, Homeslice! THAT's what I'm talkin' 'bout! Be careful that my homey Donovan doesn't try to get some of that black cred back by busting a cap in yo ass! Would that make you feel better Jay Y-et? If it doesn't kill you, you both get raises in black cred.

[/racist]

Personally, I'd sit down with Donovan for a bowl of fajita soup and a beer. We might not have much in common other than a love for football, but he seems like a fine human being and he does not deserve to be labeled a "mediocre player" or less of a black man. He's an injured future Hall-of-Famer on a mediocre team. Why is running so important to being a black man? Sounds racist to me.

Okay...a Blog Ad for the best Gangsta McNabb album cover graphics or text. Use this cover, or make one of your own. In comments or Email to cowboyblob---at-ya-hoo-dot--com.

Phlegm me tell you something...

I should be better...but I'm not. I feel better, have an appetite, and only maintain a 101 degree temp. But when I try to lay down to sleep, my lungs begin to sound like the submarine in Operation Petticoat. So, then I need to sit up, hug my ribcage like it was trying to go somewhere without me and cough up some colorless matter into Cowboy Blob's Ever-Growing Mountain of Kleenex. I know...Ewwww. But the lack of color means no infection, right? I mean, I've coughed up some green blobs during the worse bouts of bronchitis I've had. Okay, I'll stop this gross talk...Lt. Crandall is coming by for my sponge bath.

Five Weird Habits

Another meme I got tagged with by somebody I forgot in a fevered blogreading session this week. South Park Pundit tagged me today, so there is no escaping it:

What do I know from weird? I'm an asocial hermit who has had only one roommate in twenty years. How can I tell other people don't microwave corn and water in a cup, then stir in instant mashed potatoes? Maybe others buy movies on DVD, but don't watch them just in case a friend on a rare visit wants to watch a movie. I am a man most in need of a garage sale, but ya know someday I will want to get on that Nordic-Trac and do 30 minutes of aerobic exercise.

Update: Okay...I use my washing machine as a dirty clothes hamper and the floor in front of the dryer to stockpile my clean clothes. My two chests of drawers contain clothing I might not wear for 6 months. There...hope you feel better.

Yuck Update

Boy, was I scared of getting bronchitis (I'm prone to it), but now the aching muscles in my chest abused during my explosive coughing fits hurt more than my lungs do. Saves me a trip to the ER or wherever civilans go for "sick call." I'm running a 101 degree temperature (wonder what it was Monday!) and I'm starting to get my appetite back. Next time I go to the commissary, I'll have to splurge and replace all the six-years-past-expired meds I've been taking. Except for the Vapo Rub. How can that shit go bad? What a scam.

Only took two naps today and ate some real food. Some bland, but real food. Got a coupla containers of chili in the freezer that are waiting for me to get all the way better. That and spicy Italian sandwich fixins that I'll roll up in a tortilla. I better pound some water now.

Cowboy Action Shooting

Reader Ssssteve (new blogger at First with Flair) opened up a tin of wuzzat by asking what Cowboy Action Shooting is. Yes, it is a shooting contest. One with a dress code and a restriction to 19th Century technology! Although I've rubbed elbows with dozens of CAS participants, I've never gotten around to trying it, so I won't even pretend to be an expert. Here are some links:

Getting Started

Single Action Shooting Society

Lotsa link to follow at the latter.

Cowboy Gun Pr0n

While I'm enjoying living on the Starve-a-Cold, Starve-a-Fever Weight-loss Plan, I might as well beef up my Gunblog content. I've mentioned some of these pieces previously; here they are in their full glory. The scattergun, or my "Elmer Fudd Gun" Stevens 311A, does multiple duty as a nightstand gun, Bunny Whacker, and candidate cowboy gun. One of my New Years Resolutions is to finally try Cowboy Action Shooting.

The gunbelt and right-side holster I bought from a leather shop in South Korea. It fits my pistols perfectly, though the cartridge loops are funky. .44 is very tight and .38 just falls in to the rim. The crossdraw holster is from Dillon.

The rifle is Winchester 94 AE in .44.

The shiny Blackhawk in .38/.357 was a Christmas present from Lil Bro. The blue one is engraved "Made in the 200th Year of American Liberty," not very fancily. The slender one is a Cimmaron, made by Uberti, and chambered for .38 S&W or .38 Special. It doesn't have the transfer-bar safety that the Rugers have, but CAS guns start the stage with the hammer down on an empty chamber anyway. The feature I like most is the reduced size that allows me to draw back the hammer without moving out of my shooting grip.

Yuk Too

Not much has changed today. My cough isn't as hair-trigger as it was yesterday, but once it gets going, the painful hacking is prolonged. I've taken twelve or fifteen naps today, all the while trying to keep my head elevated. I've had some green tea with lime juice, but nothing solid. I've waxed my moustache with Vicks Vapo-Rub; so far that's kept my slight congestion under control. Something must be breaking, since I'm sweating like a pig instead of chills and body aches. I hope this shit goes away before Friday!

Yuk

For the first time since I retired almost 4 years ago, I've caught a cold. So much for my hermit lifestyle keeping me isolated from cold germs; I should have worn rubber gloves to the gun show and wiped down the new toy with alcohol when I brought it home. Yeah, that wouldn't have raised any eyebrows. Woke up with a scratchy throat and runny nose. Had a Cloroseptic cough drop and a cup of tea for breakfast. Leftover tuna loaf for lunch, which came up shortly afterwards. For dinner, improvised chicken soup (ramyon chicken flavor packet boiled in water with boneless chicken breast pieces, a spoonful of peas and a handful of frozen french fries. Ate the broth, mostly. I hope there was some chicken fat in the mix, because I think that's what makes chicken soup so good for colds.

I threw a saucepan full of water on the stove and started boiling...ought to add some humidity to the house. I hold my head over it and breathe in the mist...it's really cleared up the rattle in my chest.

Image stolen from the Happy Carpenter, where I'll have to return. He looks like my kinda blogger.

The Magnificent Brides for Samurai Brothers

Len at One in a Row tagged me with the Seven Meme.

Seven things to do before I die:

1. Save a Life right before.
2. Win the Supersitition Mountain Mystery 3-Gun, Super Senior Division.
3. See my niece get married.
4. Graduate Film School.
5. Make a hit movie.
6. Retire on the proceeds of my hit movie.
7. Meet some lady I can stand who can stand me.

Seven things I cannot do:

1. Drive 55.
2. Do a forward somersault off a diving board.
3. Picture Michael Moore without a red laser dot on his forehead.
4. Flirt very well.
5. Clean a litterbox without gagging.
6. Sing in public.
7. Resolve to send this to seven other bloggers.

Seven things that attract me to Blogging:

1. Gives a hermit a chance to communicate.
2. Better than watching Katie Couric.
3. Milblogs and Gunblogs.
4. It's free! Thanks, Blogger!
5. Warm fuzzies from Sitemeter.
6. DaGoddess, Risawn, Kit, FL Cracker, Sondra, Mauser*Girl, Pam, AFSister, etc.
7. Fame and Fortune Attention.

Seven things I say most often:

1. "Range is going hot! Does the shooter understand the course of fire? You may take a sight picture with an unloaded weapon. Load and make ready. If the shooter's ready, nod your head. Standby...."
2. "Open and show clear. Hammer down. Holster it. Range is safe!"
3. "Hello? Sorry, I'm not interested."
4. "Hi, Ed, This is [Blob]. I'm calling to check on the status of my .45. My home number is...." *
5. "While I'm calling in artillery, could you get me a cup of coffee?"
6. "Ve vill make zem do ze Schpandau Ballet."
7. "Howdy-Howdy!"

* Update: Speak of the Devil! Ed informed me that I can pick up BoG this weekend. I actually got through on my third try over two weeks (he was out of state for personal reasons).

Seven books (or series) that I love (not in order):

1. Lord of the Rings (Tolkien)
2. River of the Dancing Gods (Chalker)
3. The Corps/Brotherhood of War (Griffin)
4. Chanur series (Cherryh)
5. Thomas Covenant (Donaldson)
6. The Motie books (Niven/Pournelle)
7. The Jack Ryan books (Clancy)

Seven movies I watch over and over again:

1. Band of Brothers
2. Henry V
3. Saving Private Ryan
4. Patton
5. The Princess Bride
6. The 13th Warrior
7. Sergeant York/To Hell and Back (these two I don't own, but I watch them every Memorial Day weekend on cable)

Seven suckers I want to infect:

1. Big Sis
2. Lil Bro
3. Lil Sis
4. Mom
5. My Kommunist Kousin
6. Jon
7. Kirsten

Another FerretBlogger!

Meet Scooter! Welcome to the Blogroll!

If It's Not a Yogurt-Covered Raisin...

We ain't gettin' outta bed! Brrrr!

Last One of the Year

The Carnival of Cordite #41 is up!

Merry Christmas, to Me, A Contest For You

This morning I went to the last Tucson Gun Show of the year out at the Fairgrounds and I had some cash (emergency moolah for the trip) burning a hole in my pocket. I should have put it all back in the bank to plop into my IRA at year's end, but I peeled off some fifties just in case I encountered something I really wanted. If you can guess what I bought, you win a Blog Ad on my sidebar for a month. Leave your guesses in comments...you get only two guesses ever, so don't waste them all at once. Name the make, model, and caliber. If nobody's guessed it by Christmas, shame on you all!




Hints:

1. I paid $385 for a new firearm, tax included.
2. It's in a caliber I already own.
3. I have at least one firearm of this make, but not this model.
Update: 4. I went back to the show today to see if I could find one exactly like it. Chaos, you may have one more guess.

By the way, here's the URL for the gun anime source page.

Pigtails and SIGs, Oh My!

The Titular Green Beret

Has passed on. LTG (R) William P. Yarborough , a legend in the Airborne Community, was Commander/Commandant at the "John Wayne School for Boys" a/k/a the US Army Special Warfare Center/School for Special Warfare at Fort Bragg NC, where these special warriors became "Green Berets" thanks to a visit from President Kennedy. Forgive me for the John Wayne remark; I just finished re-re-re-re-reading W.E.B. Griffin's Brotherhood of War series of paperbacks, which includes a fictionalized account of the founding of the "snake-eaters" by a "BGEN Paul T. Hanrahan." General Yarborough's life was just as (if not more) fascinating as his fictional counterpart.

Rest in Peace, General.

And as for the books: Brain Jell-o. I can slurp through one in a night or two. Not very filling, but the taste keeps coming back for more.

h/t to Blackfive

I Suspect a Bias Against Wheelguns

Yule Shoot Great!

Here's the December 3-Gun Practice Match stages as I've submitted them to the Course of Fire Committee. This month's match has been rescheduled for the 3rd Sunday. Sadly, there were no useable submissions from my readers, though it would be cool to shoot the Twelve Days of Christmas...but think of the round count!

Stage 1: Rabid Reindeer and Hell's Elves

Starting position: Seated in Sleigh A, loaded pistol in holster, hands on steering wheel; Bag of Rejected Toys on back of sleigh. (Riotgun, loaded with safety on, staged on table)

Pistol

At start signal, engage T1 through T4 from inside the sleigh and T5 and T6 from outside the sleigh on the way to Table B. Place Bag of Rejected Toys on Table B before engaging Texas Star and P1 through P6.

Pistol/Riotgun

At start signal, with pistol engage T1 through T4 from inside the sleigh and T5 and T6 from outside the sleigh. Place Bag of Rejected Toys on Table B and ground unloaded pistol. With riotgun, engage Texas Star and P1 through P6.


Stage 2: Feel Their Presents

Starting position: Standing facing downrange at Xmas Sahuaro A, ornament in off hand, strong hand tucked in weakside armpit. Empty pistol in closed and latched guncase, first magazine in closed and latched ammo can. (Unloaded carbine staged on table)

Pistol

At start signal, hang ornament on XS, and retrieve pistol and first magazine from guncase and ammo can, respectively, under the XS. Engage P1 and T1 (clamshell) through T8 from Table B and T9 through T14 through Barrel C.

Pistol/Carbine

At start signal, hang ornament on XS, and retrieve pistol and first magazine from guncase and ammo can, respectively, under the XS. Carry unopened rifle ammo ammo can to table. Engage P1 and T1 (clamshell) through T8 from Table B. Ground unloaded pistol, open rifle ammo can and load and engage with carbine T9 through T14 through Barrel C and T15 through T18 over the barrel.


Stage 3: Collector Plates

Starting position: Seated at Table A, loaded pistol in holster, eating utensil in each hand touching rock on the plate. (Riotgun, loaded with safety on, staged on table)

Pistol:

At start signal, engage plate rack (P1 through P6) and T1 through T8. Proceed to Box B and engage Texas Star and P7 through P10.

Pistol/Riotgun:

At start signal, engage plate rack (P1 through P6) and T1 through T8. Ground unloaded pistol on table. Proceed to Box B with riotgun and engage Texas Star and P7 through P10.


Stage 4: Just Around the Corner

Starting position: Standing at Table A, loaded pistol in holster, hands on Xs.

Pistol:

At start signal, draw and engage targets T1 through T5 from Table A, T6 through T10 from Box B around left edge of barricade and from Box C around right edge of barricade T11 through T15.

Pistol/Carbine:

At start signal, draw pistol and engage targets T1 through T5 from Table A, T6 through T10 from Box B around left edge of barricade and from Box C around right edge of barricade T11 through T15. Ground unloaded pistol and engage same Table A targets with one headshot each, and Box targets with two shots each with carbine.

Rootin-Tootin Shootin Toons