Gun Show Fever

Yes there have been a lot of obligations I have talked about lately and those of leisure time are certainly not the least. So, on May 3rd, Brendan and I are planning to go to a Gun Show in Middletown, NY to meet up with a few friends of mine, friends I made during my career. Once we get there we will be teaming up with Pete K., Charlie K, and Rob – Charlie’s brother-in-law. All in all I am looking to have a really nice day. I have only seen Charlie once in the past 8 years or so, and that was just recently. I haven’t seen Rob in at least 8 years, and have not seen Pete in about a year. Charlie and Pete have also not seen one another in 8 years. At work we always got along well, and as Charlie would say it – if any of us met the other of the three of us, we would not make the other guy want to puke as meeting many others from our careers would make us feel like doing. Charlie always knows how to compliment a friend! As for Rob, we did not work together but he too is a good guy.

One thing we all have in common is our interest in forearms and shooting. You might think that to be a given for the three of us who worked together since we worked for the same federal law enforcement agency. What with carrying firearms being a mandatory part of the job, many people just seem to assume that means that cops and other Les all like firearms. Nothing could be further from the truth. I had collateral duties as a range officer and firearms instructor for about 14 years in the Customs Service. I can remember many a day when a shooter would show up for quarterly qualifications with an unloaded gun in his or her satchel, or backpack, or purse. Here was a federal agent, on duty, carrying his or her pistol unloaded in a bag. Go figure. Then to see some of our coworkers shoot, it was pitiable. Despite some of them having been on the job for many years, they really could not hit the broadside of a barn on some days. That actually made my duties as an instructor more enjoyable because I took great pride in helping out the poorer shooters, getting them not only to qualify for the quarter in question, but also getting them to the point where they started shooting better with reliability.

One of the reasons some of the other agents were poor shots was that they wanted nothing to do with firearms. Not all of the poorer shooters fell into this category but most of them did. Of course this is not to say that some people who basically loathed having to carry a gun for work were not good shots. Some of them were indeed excellent shots, and one has t wonder how they did it with their apparent loathing for guns and lack of practice. Oh well, whatever the case, Charlie, Pete and I were firearms enthusiasts for sure. So was Rob; and of course so is Brendan. This will be the first time Brendan meets Charlie and Rob. He may have met Pete at another type o show to which we both go – a Reptile and Amphibian expo. Funny but for all the years I knew Pete at work, I never realized until after he retired that he too was into keeping reptiles sand amphibians.

As for this show, I am sort of hopeful that I’ll have enough cash on hand to give Brendan enough to buy himself a rifle. He is 18, turned 18 in December, so he can now buy a rifle on his own. I don’t have to buy it, and give it to him for a gift. I don’t expect to pick up anything fancy, or I should say I don’t expect to pick up anything myself. As for Brendan, I am hoping we find a good deal on a Mosin Nagant 44, or maybe on a Yugoslavian SKS. Of course one never knows what one may find at one of these shows; but sadly a bargain is usually a hard thing to find. Bargains seem to be pretty much a thing of the past at gun shows, and I guess we can thank over pious anti-gun legislators for that. Then again we could possibly find a bargain and I am hoping such will be the case.

I am sure there will be some bargains to be had at this show, even if we don’t find one for ourselves. I say this because I am thinking of bringing along 2 or 3 rifles to sell there. With the money I get for them, Brendan should have at least $200 to $300 in his pocket for his purchase should he find something he likes. That is of course if it is still legal for me to bring some rifles there to sell. I think it is, but I’ll check with the show promoter to see what they know about it. The rules for transferring a rifle or handgun have become ridiculous over the past few years, and have done absolutely nothing to keep guns out of the hands of criminals. I think life imprisonment of violent felons who use guns in commission of a crime, a death for those who kill during commission of a crime would be a better way to deal with the problem; and since the gun bans, gun registration, gun licensing and all that crap has not worked – well isn’t it time to try another approach to curbing violence. I sure think so! But I digress, so back to the gun show. If it is legal for me to sell them there, I’ll have a Mosin Nagant M44, a Marlin Levermatic in .22LR, and a J.C. Higgins in .22LR for sale. I figure the 22s can bring me $75 to $100 each, and the Mosin Nagant maybe $50 to $75. That would do nicely to have Brendan make his own purchase.

I have to admit I am really looking forward to going to this show. First of all I have not been at a gun show in a couple of years I guess, and I have not been to one with Brendan for a bit longer. Then again, I have not been to a gun show with the other 3 guys in over 8 years. I guess you can say I have a case of gun show fever; but now all I have to do to get over it is to sit back and wait for May 3rd to roll around. Then a drive to Middletown, and i should be cured, at least till next time it sets in.

All the best,
Glenn B

Interrupted Obligations

There I was working away on the front door frame feeling good because I had sanded it down so it looked not as good as newly cut wood, but pretty darned close. I then started to fill some small holes and cracks, well I should say almost started. I opened the tube of wood filer I had on hand, and low and behold someone else had used it already and cut the nozzle tip down to nothing. So, when the cap was replaced it did not make a seal having only a tiny nub of tip left. Yes you guessed it, the putty was dry for the most part. I got 3 small holes filled and the rest of it was not workable. Hopefully Linda will listen to her voice mails before coming home and pick up some wood putty from the local hardware store. I am none to happy I had to stop the job, I hate interruptions for crap like that. Things like that, the little ones, make me loose my cool big time, funny because I handle big problems much better. My solution though was to sit down, take a breather, write this, and now to go and make myself lunch. Now that sounds like a winner of an idea.

Later for you, and later for the Cherry or Ipswich Pine Finish for the front door frame; and that will be a decision to be made once the frau gets home.

All the best,
GB

Animal Obligations

Well $98.00 later, a shot, some pills, and Mimi is not barfing right now; but then again she stopped right before we got to the vet. I walked her to the vet so that was not a mess in the car. Hopefully she will get better without further incidents. Animal care can be expensive, but if you have a pet you should take care of it properly.

We met a nice lady at the vet who had rescued three kittens from a construction site. Their mother had abandoned them. She is caring for them now, and they seemed more than a handful for her. It was kind of nice to see that someone would care for three kittens like that without raising the flag of PETA or some other wacko animal rights group, and just take them home to give them food and shelter, then to the vet for a checkup, all without making it a federal case against the construction company, or in favor of spaying/neutering, or against cat ownership in general. I wish her luck in adopting them out.

Now what was it I was supposed to be doing around the house today??? While I figure out what chores I need to get done I'll say: Later for you all, and later for a gun blog.

All the best,
Glenn B

Household Obligations- a never ending joy

A productive day at home is what I was expecting to have today. I took the day off to refinish the front door and door frame, to paint the side door and frame, and to get a haircut so I'd look nice for the wife tomorrow on our anniversary. I also figured I'd be making up for my lack of production as of late on this blog as to a gun post or two. Now the new dog is barfing all over the place, and we will soon be off to the vet. Hopefully we won't be there too long, but who can tell - she seems pretty sick. I am also hoping it is only a stomach bug that will pass quickly, but the wife told me that Mimi grabbed a raccoon skull we have in the basement and was mouthing it last night, then started getting sick. I am hoping she did not ingest any toxins. I kind of doubt that had anything to do with it, but one never knows what chemicals they use to preserve those things (it was a store bought one) bought for my son. Needless to say, I checked the basement for other things that might appear appealing to her as chew toys.

Once I get home, I guess I can add the chore of going to Home Depot to pick up a carpet cleaner to my list of to dos! The list only gets longer, or so it seems.

All the best,
Glenn B