My New Year Resolution - No More Guns!

   Well, I may be done buying guns after midnight. You see, my New Year resolution this year is to never buy one more gun, not one more box of ammo and not one more gun accessory during this whole year. I'll let you know how that works out but I should mention that as best I can recall, I have never stuck to even a single New Year resolution. I figure they are all wishful BS so I usually don't make em but this year I need some way to save up cash to bring my somewhat depleted life savings back up to where it was prior to this year's spending of $15,843.18 at online auction houses, online ammo dealers and gun shows. Then there was spending at places like Academy Sports, firearms insurance, cleaning supplies, all which I am guessing totaled up to a a couple or a few grand more. Now that amount may be prohibitive for some and easy on the pocketbook of others but when it comes to my funds though - I've gotta slow down or sell a lot more stuff at higher prices than the prices I normally accept for guns & ammo. Since I am not likely to sell at higher prices (I sell to recoup money spent, so I often sell at cost or a bit above to pay for the tables, also sell at a loss all too often) , I guess my New Year resolution is the key. Time & my bank account will tell how that works out.

 

Damn, I just found another $709.79 so the total for which I have accounted is up to  $16552.97! Woe is my bank account. 

 

Maybe I'll hit that 812 million dollar Powerball tonight. Being the sole winner of that would be just grand but I'd be happy to split it ten ways, even 20 ways, heck even a 40 way split would still be nice and would still be nice after taxes.

HAPPY NEW YEAR - drink and or get high responsibly but remember getting high - on things like weed - is still illegal federally and could wind you up in jail (that is maybe unless you are Hunter Biden), so  just have a drink or two and use a designated driver if available. Party but be careful out there, you don't want to hurt yourself or someone else.

All the best,

Glenn B

 

Maybe The Best Advice For The New Year

Tonight, if you are healthy & hale and none too snockered, just a moment before midnight, stand up and lift your left foot just a bit off the floor/ground. Do not put it back down until it is after midnight. That way you are certain to start the year on the right foot. 

All the best 

and happy New Year,

Glenn B

The Case of The Missing Wallet

 Well, I was in West Palm Beach yesterday morning but last yesterday afternoon, I wound up in North Port, FL at a friend's rental house to help her prepare it for upcoming guests who will be renting it for 2 months.  Shortly after we got here I realized I did not have my wallet. So, I called my uncle to look for it in his apartment and to look in y rental car still parked at his place. He said it as not in either place. So, I called Texas Roadhouse in West Palm Beach, last place I remembered having it out - not there either. I was somewhat concerned or should I say almost in a panic because I was wondering how in hell I'd get through check-in for my homeward flight next week without ID and with two pistols in my luggage!

 

Well, today, my cousin went to her Dad's house and she looked again for me. She called me to let me know, there it sits right smack in plain view on the front seat of my rental car outside of my uncle's apartment. My cousin could not understand though how her dad did not see it. Oh well, he is 90, so I suppose his vision is on its way toward being like his hearing (which is stone cold deaf without his hearing aids). Regardless, I am a happy camper again.

All the best,

Glenn B

on Vacation

I am on Christmas vacation in West Palm Beach, FL, been here a few days already. Blogging will be minimal while I am here. Have a Merry Christmas, Happy Chanuka or Happy Festivus (which as I recall is tomorrow).

All the best,

Glenn B

Unread Emails

 Wow,I clicked I have not opened my AOL email account since January 13, 2023. In that time just over eleven months, I accrued 6,000 emails- all unread. I received an email from AOL at my outlook account last night; it said my AOL email account would have everything in it deleted if I did not open it by sometime this coming March. So I took a look and was a bit surprised to see how many I had received in that time. I checked off the box to select all, then hit delete. It only deleted 100 of them. What I had to do was to check select all, then keep scrolling down to assure more than 100 would be deleted. I deleted about 1K at a pop;so, did that about 6 times. I did not look to see if any were important or not, if it's important I should receive it in my outlook account. What I did notice at a glance was that most appeared to be spam.I sincerely hope no one of any importance to me had been trying to reach me at that ancient email account. If so, oh well, I guess they'll have to find another way.

 

Just a fun fact: that was about 545 emails a month over 11 months or about 17.75 per day. To break it down to hours and then to minutes that I had not looked at my AOL email, I used this website to do some calculating.  I am not saying they are correct or not because other sites has differing results, each being different from one another. This was their result:

 

337 days 23 hours 15 minutes (about 17.75 emails per day)

8,111.25 hours (roughly about .73 emails per hour)

486,675 minutes

 

Damn, I am sure other folks get more than me but it is still mind boggling to think people, companies and whatever or whoever kept sending me that many unread and thus unanswered emails.

All the best,

Glenn B

Out Of All My Christmas Presents Ever...

 ...this one is the most unique, at least for me. You may have seen in one or more of my posts that I sometimes do not know what day it is. That's because unless I have an appointment, I do not usually need to know. I am retired so I do not need to know if it is a day I need to go to work (ha ha hardy ha ha), I do not need to know when it's laundry day, I do not need to know its the weekend (every day can be whatever day I want so every day can be Saturday or Sunday), being retired and not having many 'which day is it dependent obligations' means I do not care what day it is for the great majority of the time. I do try to remember when the liquor store is open (closed Sundays) and when it's Tuesday now & then so I can get Sonic's two for the price of one cheeseburgers but there is not much more when it comes to me needing to know what day of the week I am in and I often just do not know.

 

Now if a question arises as to which day it is, for whatever reason I need to know, I look at my cell phone to find out. Now though, I have a new way to figure out what day is taking place. 

 

 

 

One of my brothers-in-law sent me a wall clock. This one has a twist, it is not marked off in hours & minutes. Instead of hours and minutes it is marked off in days of the week. I don't know if this clock will be a curse or a blessing but I almost certainly will now readily know which day I am in. It was nice not knowing because I don't need to know but really except for knowing what day it is, this clock changes nothing. I love it.

 

All the best,

Glenn B

Did not buy any guns today but picked up my Chinese Military Type 56 SKS from my local FFL today. I had the high bid on this in the BrandUsedWorks.com auction on November 26th. It looks new. The only two minor faults I found with it, on first glance, are that the bayonet looks rusted but then again on closer inspection it seems it may be a dried protective coating and not any rust at all. I will find out when I clean it. The other thing is a small amount of finish wear at a spot on the right side of the barrel where a rivet in the front leather sling strap rubbed against the metal. Otherwise, like I said it looks new, like it just came out of the factory (and who knows, with all the sneaky stuff the Chinese have reportedly been doing in our country as of late and with the borders wide open - maybe a Chinaman brought in a few thousand of them recently).

Sadly - gone are the days when one of these went for $155.95 shipped, that was the price I paid for each of the first three SKS rifles I bought, they were Yugoslavian SKS rifles with a grenade launcher. I purchased them back in November 2002. I paid considerably more for this one than I paid for all three of those Yugos combined but yet, I guess it was a decent price relative to how much they sell for now.

 

I've not really given it more that a cursory look. I still need to take a good look down the bore, field strip it, clean it and remove any cosomoline if I find any, put it back together and shoot it. That may not be until January as I am going t be very busy over the next few days getting ready for a trip to FL to visit my uncle in West Palm Beach. So, I may not have the time to make a range trip. That's okay though, it gets me back into my comfort zone as THE Great Procrastinator.

All the best,

Glenn B

 

 

Buy Ammo Now - Ammo Prices Set To Soar (This is apparently not BS)

 According to an article at MSN, Vista Outdoors - the parent company of Federal Ammunition, also the parent company of other ammo manufacturers -  has announced that on January 1, 2024 (happy friggin New Year), they are going to raise ammunition prices substantially. Vista Outdoor has reportedly sent a letter of intent to raise prices to their customer base. In the letter, they reportedly said: 

 

"Due to world events our suppliers have notified us of unprecedented demand for and an anticipated global shortage of gunpowder, and thus has increased our prices substantially," Vice President of Sales, Sporting Products Brett Nelson said in the letter. We must therefore raise our pricing to help offset those increases." 

 

More at the first source and at the second source and at this third source.

Damn, with all the shooting going on in the Ukraine and with lots of U.S. ammo going there, I guess this was the inevitable outcome. It probably happened sooner than later with the addition of the conflict in Gaza. 

I would suggest that if you are in need of ammo or gunpowder and other reloading components - you may want to start buying as soon as you read the articles and verify to your satisfaction the linked reports. I am going to hate to spend money on ammo when I, like millions of others, are buying presents for Christmas but such is life - life stinks at least under Bidenomics!

All the best,

Glenn B

 

 

Happy Chanukah

 I wish all of you who celebrate it a very happy Chanukah. For those not of the Jewish faith, and who'd like to kno about the celebration, go here for more info: https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/102911/jewish/What-Is-Hanukkah.htm.

 

I wish there was a larger community Jewish here in SW Arkansas. I'd love to be able to shop for some Jewish delicacies such as baked breads, knishes and a really good bagel! Most of all, I'd love to find a place that makes potato latke (potato pancakes - how I miss the ones my mother made smothered in applesauce, I miss them dearly and am not Jewish - NY had/has foods of the world over that are to die for). In February, I will miss hamantaschen - heck I miss em now. Great three cornered filled cookies that I used to buy in Willimasburg, NY in February during the celebration of Purim & Queen Ester.

All the best,

Glenn B

 

 

Most News Is Sickening And Or Disheartening...

 ...thus I have little I want to write about because it all sucks. On the nicer side of things it is Channukah and the Christmas Season. 

 

Being The Great Procrastinator, over the years I have often sent out Christmas cards a few days before to a few days after Christmas. In the last couple of years I've actually gotten them out on time. This year, I started writing them tonight -that may be an early record for me. Damn, I may lose status as THE Great Procrastinator!

 

Anyway, I hope all of you are enjoying the season. I have been enjoying late Fall SW Arkansas weather in the 50s & 60's almost every day. If it snows this month, I hope for it on only two days in this neck of the woods - Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. A few inches of the white stuff would be nice.

 

All the best,

Glenn B

My Son's Birthday Is Coming Up Fairly Soon...

 ...and his birthday present should arrive at my place tomorrow. It's a __________ . Oh no, I ain't telling because the male heir sometimes reads my blog - so tough noogies, he has to wait to find out. So if he thought I was about to blab it, I am laughing because no I am not. As Ralph Kramden would have said about him thinking I might blab it now:

 

.  

All the best, 

Glenn B

That's A Fact Jack

 

 

I also stand with the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Finland, Norway, The Netherlands, Poland, and a bunch of others, even France.

 

All the best,

Glenn B