Back to last Saturday's fun. You can see what this is.See that greenish oil bottle... my enemy! The object of my aim and by golly, as DH promised by the end of my first lesson on
how to shoot... I was able to hit it and make it dance. Weee
Okay... not every time, but often enough to please me.
He showed me how to load and unload it, how to sight and taught me the safety rules... safety first. He is a real stickler for that. I was in those good hands up there.
A patient man and very calm. A good teacher. Do I need to tell you that I had an absolute blast? Pun intended. He laughed at me when I collected all my spent shells for keepsakes. I have every single one. I don't know why I didn't stop to get a photo of the holes in the bottles. Too excited I suppose. I was too.
I have never fired a hand gun before. This one is a
Colt 6. I took every single thing he told me very seriously. Listened as he watched and told me "low" or "right" and adjusted accordingly. I could not believe how easy it was with good instruction. Not that I am a good shot. But I was able to be successful. This one is a .22... not very large. Light in my had compared to others.
DH said that my aim was close enough, even when off a bit that I would certainly hit a heart if I was aiming at it. That is the idea. I will soon live alone and I often travel alone. Not that I have been a big gun fanatic. But I see nothing wrong with them either. A bit of protection if handled with responsibility and caution is fine. I am interested. Funny how that has come about of late. Not that I ever want to harm anyone or anything. DH pointed out that if you are willing to point a gun at someone... well, you have to be prepared to use it. So there is that. A huge responsibility.
He showed me the firing ranges for hand guns and rifles. Also fascinating to me. Noisy. I like the smell. I am going to get my license. Ha... can you imagine that Bear? But that is the point here. This is the first time its been a possibility in my head. I haven't known anyone who would teach me... and never thought to ask before either. Next time I get to fire the .357 and some others. YAY! My second lesson depended on how well I did this one and kept the safety rules. I was a careful and serious student.
DH is a marksman with experience in teaching others how to shoot and care for the guns and ammo. He has many interesting items. I enjoyed seeing them and touching them. Now that sounds weird, but you know you see them in photos and it's not the same. I got to feel how heavy they were or not. Got to look at the differences in how they are loaded and unloaded. We watched a couple of good videos on the development of guns over the years. Very interesting. Yes, he is licensed. They are kept locked up in a safe when not in use. No way a child could ever come across one. That is what matters most to me. He is a careful man.
But I have to tell you this much... hope it doesn't piss him off. Naw... he has an excellent sense of humor too... his gun room is pink with white lace curtains with embroidered butterflies on them. I raz him without mercy about it. But I also promised to help him paint it when time and weather allows. He has not lived in his house for long. But isn't that a hoot?
DH can also use two bullwhips at one time and handle them with skill... other weapons too. What fun. But you cannot meet a nicer or more gentle person. Well you know I'm a fan of the man. He's added a great deal of fun to my life.
So that was the middle of my Saturday... and I was tickled pink to be able learn. Thrilled to be able to take the photos that I took and have shared... as well as those that I won't share. DH's privacy is an issue that I respect.
But I have more to share for tomorrow too. Roads. Yes, roads and their stories.
So come on now... here is controversy... how do you feel about guns? Hand guns? Rifles? Hunting. Self protection? You cannot offend me. All opinions are welcome on Funch... you know that. Speak your peace... or is it piece?
Below, because it refuses to be moved up... is a stump that has had the holy heck shot out of it by many. I thought it looked interesting. I loved the experience and learning something new. Very cool beans!
In sppite of being a vegetarian, I am not actually opposed to hunting for food. Howver, I find killing animals for sport appalling. Besides, if you really wantied it to be sporting, you'd lay down your weapon. I am not opposed to target pratice in any way - it hurts no one. How ever, I believe in very stringent gun controls - a complete ban on assualt weapons, background checks and registration for any gun, required safetiies on all guns, and strict rules about where guns ought to be allowed to be carried - not in national parks, for instance, and certainly not in places that serve alcohol. In general, I think the prsence of guns increases the risks of someone ending up dead. And I think parents whose children manage to shoot themselves or someone else with a gun the parent has allowed intot he home should face legal charges.
ReplyDeleteYou asked. :)
A funny gun tale: I've never been much of a shooter. Once I was visiting a friend in Maine who was determined to teach us to shoot his rifles. He took us out and pointed to a "white target" on a tree. Did I mention I'm fairly nearsighted? I am. Anyway, under his instruction, I took careful aim, pulled the trigger, and blew away his snow-covered birdhouse. Unoccupied, fortunately. Oops.
ReplyDeleteRe: guns in general. It seems to me that's a real city mouse/country mouse issue. Country folk associate them with hunting and recreation, primarily. We city dwellers mostly tend to encounter guns under less pleasant circumstances. You get different perspectives based on your experience, no? I'm not sure there's a clear answer, fer or agin.
I did get a good laugh from this headline from The Onion: Guns Only Kill People When They Are Used For Their Intended Purpose. It doesn't answer the question, but I liked it.
Is this your roundabout way of saying that I should stay indoors from now on? And possibly replace all windows with bullet-proof glass?
ReplyDelete;)
My one and only gun shooting story:
ReplyDeleteI had just met my future father-in-law. The man loved guns. My husband, f-in-law, my trusty, faithful dog and I were out in a large field and f-in-law decided to teach the City Girl how to shoot a shotgun. I picked up that bad boy gun, aimed, shot, darned near dislocated my right shoulder and shouted S**t! Missed by a mile. That can survived that day. But my trusty, faithful dog ran behind me, hugged the back of my legs and cowered until I put that gun down. That dog was no how, no way, going to get out in front of me and a gun, ever. Never again.
Don't like guns. Also a vegetarian who understands that if you hunt for food, fine. Otherwise, please put that gun down. There just might be one very frightened dog cowering somewhere behind your very bad aim.
I think it was Chris Rock who had a routine about five hundred dollar bullets.
ReplyDeleteThis might actually work.
You go to the practice range and buy ten bullets for five thousand dollars. After you have used all ten bullets at the practice range, the used bullets are collected, and you get a refund, minus a small fee. You buy ten more bullets and practice some more. As long as you and your bullets stay and the practice range and don't hurt anybody, you keep getting your money back.
If you want to go hunting, you buy some bullets, and you go out and maybe shoot a deer. You remove the used bullet and take it somewhere for a refund, minus that small fee. If you try to shoot the deer and miss and hit a tree instead, again you remove the used bullet and take it somewhere for a refund, minus that small fee.
If you go hunting and shoot at a deer and miss and don't hit a tree and just lose your bullet, then you've lost your five hundred dollars, and it serves you right for going hunting when you are such a bad shot. Maybe you will go back to the practice range, or maybe you will just give up hunting.
If you go hunting and hit someone's dog or cat or a guy minding his own business watching TV in his own living room, you are also out five hundred dollars. And hopefully the bullet will be used to identify your gun so that it can be taken away from you and you can go to jail.
As for how I really feel about hunting, I don't like it, but I don't think it is that bad if you eat what you kill, don't hit people's dogs and cats and people minding their own business watching TV in their own living rooms. I think it is disgusting that people go hunting just to have their picture taken with some dead thing and then maybe mount the animal's head on a wall.
As for having guns in the home, I have mixed feelings about it. You are much more likely to accidently shoot someone you know than to shoot the bad guy you bought the gun to protect yourself against. On the other hand, unknownst to me, my dad got a gun to protect us against threats made against us by an uncle. We are all okay, and the uncle went to jail on an unrelated issue.
No one seems to know what happened to the gun.
We have also had a gun stolen, and I don't think that the police paid much attention. I think that one day one of us will be arrested for killing someone with this gun that we haven't seen for more than ten years.
What I really want is a phaser. Stun. Kill. Cut. Disintegrate. Just depends on what you need at the time.
terrific post. i'm glad you had such an excellent teacher and you were such a careful and serious student. both sides of that equation are so important.
ReplyDeletei'm sure from reading me know i am fine with guns for hunting, self-defense or target shooting. i don't hunt but my husband and two of my kids (including my older daughter) hunt. the kids started going when they were 12 but we had them target shooting well before that. also, my mother's day present last year was a 9mm. i', an absolute stickler for proper handling though. no room for mistakes.
secret agent woman-- I did ask for it. However, I actually agree with you on some points. We have it in our power to keep kids safe... a loaded gun that is not locked up away from children is inexcusable. "All guns are loaded." is what DH keeps telling me. Yes, prosecute parents who do not properly store guns away from kids... if someone gets hurt or not.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I will ever hunt more than a target. But I do fish which is barbaric too... you hook them, hang them and soffocate them.
(I do catch and release... but I eat fish that have been tortured.)
I've also been known to eat crab and mud bugs that have been boiled alive and clams that have been steamed to death.
I agree that we need strict rules and laws on guns too. Nothing wrong with that as long as it's sane.
Cricket-- A couple of good chuckles here... from the Onion and your wanton slaughter of an innocent fowl dwelling!
ReplyDeleteMo-- I think you may be far enough to be safe. I'll warn you should I make it across the ocean. Ha. But bullet proof windows is a good idea.
ReplyDeletePeggy-- I can see that in my head! I had a bassett that used to hide from firecrackers.
ReplyDeleteI would not be allowed to shoot if there was something... anything between me and a target. In fact, that would be the end of lessons. DH would come unglued. But I get your point. Funny story.
laughing-- I want a phaser too. Let me know if you find a working one.
ReplyDeleteChris Rock slays me.
lime-- You and DH would get along very well.
ReplyDeleteI learned to shoot when I was a child and have had respect for guns and rifles ever since. I've had a permit for many years and own many myself, my current favorite is a Smith & Wesson 636 with lasar sights.
ReplyDeleteI can't imagine living alone and not having a weapon for self defense.
An interesting addendum to the discussion, from Freakonomics, by Steven Levitt & Stephen Dubner :
ReplyDelete"Consider the parents of an eight year-old girl named, say, Molly. Her two best friends, Amy and Imani, each live nearby. Molly's parents know that Amy's parents keep a gun in their house, so they have forbidden Molly to play there. Instead, Molly spends a lot of time at Imani's house, which has a swimming pool in the backyard. Molly's parents feel good about having made such a smart choice to protect their daughter.
But according to the data, their choice isn't smart at all. In a given year, there is one drowning of a child for every 11,000 residential pools in the United States. (In a country with 6 million pools, this means that roughly 550 children under the age of ten drown each year.) Meanwhile, there is one child killed by a gun for every 1 million-plus guns. (In a country with an estimated 200 million guns, this means that roughly 175 children under ten die each year from guns.) The likelihood of death by pool (1 in 11,000) versus death by gun (1 in 1 million-plus) isn't even close. Molly is roughly 100 times more likely to die in a swimming accident at Imani's house than in gunplay at Amy's.
But most of us are, like Molly's parents, terrible risk assessors.... the risks that scare people and the risks that kill people are very different."
Just thought I'd throw that in.
Cube-- I don't think I've seen one of those! I'll have DH show me one. I never would have thought that I would enjoy this so much. But it is truly interesting and I like the challenge and focus required.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your support.
Cricket-- Excellent point, actually. I think we are far more careful with those things that scare us.
ReplyDeleteA man who robbed for a living once told me that people are actually more frightened of getting cut than they are of getting shot, so he prefered to use a big ugly knife. I thought that was interesting too. He wasn't robbing me, he was my diner guest and neighbor.
However, he ceased to be a robber at knife point when he was shot at very close range by a shot gun in his chest. Man those were some scary scars!
It is fun shooting at paper targets, but plinking (shooting at cans or other non-paper targets) is even better.
ReplyDeleteCube-- Yes... plinking? Love that term. It was fun to make the bottles jump around. I had so much fun.
ReplyDeleteYou know Cube, we enjoy so many of the same things. Too bad we're kitty-corner to each other on the USA map. :-)
I am so glad to hear of how much fun you are having with DH. He does sound like such an interesting person.
ReplyDeleteI can't say much about guns as I have never been around them, never shot one. They just aren't a part of my life and I am very fine with keeping it like that :-)
laura b.-- Yes I am having fun. But that has probably ended for a time... weather and car issues.
ReplyDeleteDH is interesting. I look at him sometimes and laugh... because he just looks like any other guy on the street. But he does and has done some fascinating things.
Then I think... there's a lesson for you... all those other guys who just look like any other guy are probably just as interesting if you knew them.
I believe in guns and gun ownership. But why oh why aren't little children not allowed to own them?? they are the most vulnerable of all and should be allowed to protect themselves. I suppose little kids will have to be satisfied with a large hunting knife for protection. It's quite unfair though...
ReplyDeleteLooks like fun, I've never fired a gun, or even held one for that matter, but I'd love to learn how. The thing is, I think that on average, owning a handgun puts you in a greater danger of hurting a loved one (by accident) or getting shot by your adversary when otherwise they might have just stolen your car or stuff but left you unharmed. I totally agree, if you are willing to point your gun at someone who is going to hurt you, you better be able to fire it.
I also think the amount of guns in this country and the easy access to them has helped fuel the drug trade in Mexico, as a lot of those drug gangs get their gun supplies from us gun shows and gun shops.
Sebastien-- You crack me up!
ReplyDeleteYes, but here again comes into play that you have to follow the rules and be responsible. It is not responsible to shoot first and be sorry later. Nor would I ever shoot at someone if I could avoid it and stay safe.
It was sure fun to learn and I hope to continue.
On the drug issue... many of those guns were given by our government to drug dealers below us. You get what you reap.
Nice, fill a stump in nature with lead and leave it to her to have to deal with, we sure are getting evolved here.
ReplyDeleteNot that I disapprove of guns, or even controlled hunting for things to eat. But I do disapprove of hurting nature with processed lead and busting up glass bottles and leaving them lying there. Get or make some paper targets, and take them with you when you leave the area.
Gun control is using both hands. And I suggest that you never take a handgun to a rifle shootout.
I'm okay with a pistol, but I'm a lot more accurate with a rifle so they are my weapon of choice.
Oh, and never show up at a shootout with just a knife, for personal protection I always have a gun near me. It's a sick planet and you just never know when you will need one.
He stuck a knife toward me and said, "Give me your wallet". I put my hand in my pocket and pulled it out and pointed my gun at him and said, "Fuck you".
ReplyDeleteHe changed his mind.
I want one of those old-fashioned phasers where your target turns a brightly glowing white, slightly expands, and vanishes.
ReplyDeleteBilly B.-- Who says we did not clean up after ourselves? We did and they were plastic containers, not glass.
ReplyDeleteThe stump is long dead, don't waste time morning it. The inside is rotted to mush.
DH is a responsible person, including the environment. I've got a little pile of lead too. DH even makes his own ammo. A frugal man and its one of the things I like most about him... yet he is extremely generous with me.
dmarks-- Hahaha... reminds me of that commercial where the kid says "Neutralize him!"
ReplyDeleteVery cool that you had a blast shooting guns. Glad to hear it. And since you asked here is what I think about guns. Personally I don't have one or plan on having one but I think people are entitled to their right to bear arms. I think if you take guns away from people then the only people that will have them will be the criminals.
ReplyDeleteShife-- Hey there! Yeah, it was very cool. I agree with what you said about criminals would still have them even if other people did not.
ReplyDeleteI have never owned a gun. Yet. But X had two... I sold them in desperate times. Felons can't have them anyway. Kept my kids warm for a while anyway. ;-)
I didn't say the stump wasn't dead, I said it is now full of lead that nature has to deal with. I'm not impressed with DH, he's just adding to the problems.
ReplyDeleteLearn to shoot and then don't shoot anymore, that's what I do. Mostly, once in a great while I'll shoot a few rounds just to check my scope to make sure it is still on target.
But I don't just shoot out fifty rounds just for the hell of it because it's fun. He isn't a tree hugger, and neither are you. You're both just lying to yourselves but can't see that.
Mr. Shife is just another idiot that refuses to grow up, his emotions beside the point.
ReplyDeleteMaybe DH could fix your car instead of filling stumps with lead? I'm just wondering if anyone there has the brains of a half way decent mechanic.
ReplyDeleteBilly B.-- You are making assumptions that you don't have any knowledge to back up about a person you do not know. Say what you want about me, at least you have met me.
ReplyDeleteBilly B.-- Why do you feel compelled to attack my friends? Are you trying to piss me off?
ReplyDeleteShife is a good man, a good husband and a good father. I respect those qualities. I like what he writes and his support here.
I have met few people who are as good a person as DH.
You have been good and generous to me as well. Do not put me at odds with you. I owe you and will not forget that. I do not want to fight with you. Do not insult my people please.
And yes, I know, I hardly know Shife. But I like him. Let this drop please.
Ananda - Well said! And I'm with DMarks!
ReplyDeleteI would never feel comfortable owning a gun, but I think they're fun to shoot at targets with people who know what they're doing. I couldn't kill an animal though, but it doesn't bother me that people do...As long as they follow the rules.
ReplyDeleteC4C-- Thank you my dear friend.
ReplyDeleteI am not familar with the kid who says "neutralize him".
ReplyDeleteThere was a cough medicine commercial where a kid advises to "vaporize him."
I still think it is a funny commercial. You can watch it on YouTube.
years ago i told my daughter to keep away from men with guns and bullwhips.
ReplyDeletelaughing-- That's the one! I had it wrong. Yeah, I love that commercial.
ReplyDeletebilly pilgrim-- hahahahahahaha!
ReplyDeleteThat made me laugh right out loud... but honey... you have no idea how much fun that is! Then again, I should admit that when he saw a photo of Bear and said she was pretty... my response was to say... you stay away from my daughter! But that was just for shits and giggles.
The Bear is pretty like her Mama Bear.
ReplyDeletePeggy-- Yes, Bear is beautiful... but I think more than I ever was. But thank you!
ReplyDelete