Hope You Had A Decent Year...

 ...and I hope 2026 is better. Have  a safe and fun New Year's Eve and a very happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Christmas Shopping Dilemma

   I decided to get one more gift for my grandson, even though I had already completed all of my Christmas shopping save my tradition of doing in store shopping on Christmas Eve.

 

I was in the process of ordering him a gift card. They have fairly generic one, one with the Carvel logo, ones for celebrations of things like birthdays, and seasonal cards among the ones they offer for sale. They had a nice one for Channukah that said Happy Hannukah and had a picture of a mennorah on it. I thought thag was appropriate especially as it reflects as a religious theme. The Christmas themed gift card however had no indication of a religious theme. It showed Santa and had two words on it, "Happy Ho (or maybe ot said hos). That struck a nerve. I readily admit, I am far from being very religious but I do celebrate Christmas. I think Christmas is ALL about the gifts. On the first Christmas, God gave mankind the gift of his only begotten son who was born in a manger, that lodging was essentialy gift from the landlord, then the wise men gave Jesus gifts of gold, silver and muir. Over and over again, in the New Testament are examples of gift giving, many given to others by Jesus. A few of the most notable were the wine from water, loaves of bread and fish to feed the multitudes, the gift of life to Lazarus and fimally the ultimate gift of Jesus giving his own life to save us from sin. How wonderful would life be if we all, each and everyone of us  gave more gifts to one another. 

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

She Will Never Live This Down

A lieutenant of the WA State Patrol repotedly was pulled from her official vehicle by what I am guessing was a nut case or someone under the influence of mind altering drugs and the guy then allegedly drove off in it. He reportedly was caught and arrested later. 

 

My guess is her fellow troopers will crown her with a new  less than complimentary moniker that will remain with her for the rest of her career. How she let him approach her vehicle so closely without having the door locked is beyond my understanding. He certainly seems to have locked it once he got into it though. It boggles the mind how a Washington State Patrol⁷ lieutenant did not have enough sense to have the door locked. Watch the video and see more at this link: 

 

https://www.foxnews.com/us/watch-video-shows-suspect-push-trooper-ground-before-stealing-patrol-cruiser-christmas-day

 

 All the best,

Glenn B 

 

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS

 Wishing all who celebrate  a very Merry Christmas. I hope your Christmas was filled with love, peace and good tidings and that the gifts you gave made those who received them smile with joy. Of course, most of all, I hope you had a blessed one.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

I Almost Forgot To Wish You...

...a happy Festivus, for the rest of us. I got it in here just under the wire. Hope you enjoyed our special day, aired your grievances, set up your aluminum poles, and showed off feats of strength while enjoying time with loved ones.

More about the origin of Festivus here, it was indeed a real thing before Seinfeld

 

 All the best,

Glenn B 

Riding The Bullion Tiger

Silver spot has hit $70.71 as per Kitco. I think if it hits $80.00, I may sell 25% of what I have. Then, if it goes down substantially, while I am still breathing, I probably will buy back the same amount that I sold. Me thinks, the bubble will burst sooner or later and prices will crash, or at least fall by a large amount with in short time.

 

As for gold, Kitco, today, shows it at $4,476.80. I doubt I will sell any of what little gold I have, but if the price goes high enough - who knows. If I do sell any, my plan would be the same as it was for silver.

 

Sooner or later, even the Gold Bullion Tiger will be put down. For now though, I am enjoying the ride even though the tiger I am sitting on is a relatively small one. I must say while still small  my overall bullion holdings have risen remarkably in value. Just since the end of this past September, the value of my bullion that I had in September  has gone up by an amazing amount, that excluding a half ounce I bought since then. Yeeeehaaa.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

Does Life Ever Get You Feeling Down

Feeling down, in the dumps, singing moaning the blues, see life as a shaite sandwich and each day just another bite of it, then give this a watch and a listen. 

Then again, maybe you are one of those who feel superior to others, quite the self important type of arrogant snob, and thus probably think of yourself as the end all be all. Well, you'd be wrong and if you think not, then once again, I say, give this a watch and a listen:

 

It made me smile and that means I feel at least a bit better now that I watched it. How about you?

If for some reason you could not pull up the video by clicking on it above (That's on YouTube) you can always cut and paste the link. If you have never heard this song,listen to it now; even if you have heard it before, it is worth listening to again. 

By the way, I checked him saying that light moves at 12 million miles per minute; he was not spot on but not at all far off as light travels through the vacuum of space at 11,176,940 miles (source, varies slightly per source). Damn, the universe as we know it is huge and who knows how big for sure, I mean there is ever so much we do not know of it.

 Now, if you were not impressed by that song, sung by a member of Monty Python, watch this video of someone singing it, someone who probably knew a bit more about the universe than almost anyone else, if not actually more than all others. I am amazed he sang it.

 

 

 All the best,

 Glenn B 

Happy Chanukah

 A happy Chanukah to all who celebrate it. Yes, I realize that Chanukah in 2025 has been savagely marred by the terrible attack in Australia and it will make celebrating this joyous holiday much harder to enjoy but Chanukah is a celebration of victory, of rededication of the holy temple and of hope for the Jewish people that their faith would survive. Thus, I can only wish you a happy one despite the terror of that attack.

 

More about Chanukah here: https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/102911/jewish/What-Is-Hanukkah.htm

 All the best,

Glenn  B 

The Latest Boomers

 I had the high bids on these three firearms today at the Hessney.com Sportsman auction:

Beretta 1935 in 32 Auto, this one supposedly in 90% condition and fully functional.

A Ruger Mark I, this one supposedly in 98% condition and fully functional.

A J.C. Higgins Model 44 in .22 WMR, I am 99% sure this is the same as a Marlin 57M. This one is supposedly in 98% condition and fully functional.

Kind of wish I had been outbid on the Ruger because having the high bids on the three of these is setting me back a pretty penny right before Christmas but I guess, such is the fortune of a firearms auction junky. At least I do not have to sit at my laptop for several more hours waiting for other lots I have bid on to come up. Most of my other bids have been outbid and if any on which I currently have the high bid also wind up out bid - oh well, I doubt I will bid another penny.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Ammo Purchase Accounting

 The year is almost over. Thus my ammo purchases⁷ for the year are probably complete but that may change with another order or two yet to come, who knows.

 

Anyway, I just checked my Target Sports USA orders for the year. I made a total of 14 purchases from them (13 ammo purchases and one Ammo+ membership); that is just over one per month on average. My invoice totals amounted to a grand total of $3,239.36, or an average purchase price of of $231.38. If nothing else  I figure ammo is a good hedge against tough financial times. Of course, it will also be an excellent tidbit added to the inheritance my son and daughter who will receive it sooner, or I hope, later.

 

The total number of rounds I bought from TSUSA so far this year was 8,690. I picked up a case of 1,000 rounds of Wolf 7.62X39mm soft point; a case of 1,000 rounds of PMC 5.56X45mm 62 grain, green tipped, FMJ ammo; four cases of 1,000 rounds each of various brands of 9mm FMJ ammo; 1,000 rounds of Remington Target .22 LR; 140 rounds of .35 REM; and some: .357 M8⁷agnum, .380 ACP, and .32 Auto.

 

 If for nothing else, when added to my overall ammo inventory, I am well set with ammo for the Zombie Apocalypse, first contact with violent space aliens, an invasion by China, or to help put down an insurgency.

 

Being I am an Ammo+ member at TSUSA, I saved 8% on my orders which worked out to a savings of $259.14. That is not bad considering the Ammo+ membership cost me $110.24, including tax, for a one year membership. Considering that TSUSA often has the best prices on ammo when you consider all things like cost of the ammo, tax and shipping, the ammo club membership is a nice way to save even more. To me, it seems well worth the cost; that is if you buy enough ammo to make it worth your while. An added  benefit is that membership gives you free shipping on any amount of ammo you buy from them. Normally, without the membership they give free shipping only on ammo purchases by the case.

 

I do not receive any form of compensation from TSUSA, or from any other source, for this post or my other blog posts about them. I simply like to share, with other law abiding firearms enthusiasts, what I think are their excellent prices, info on their Ammo+ membership and other info, like them shipping fast, and having good customer service. They are my first in line go to online ammo dealer and I rarely shop elsewhere for ammo if they have what I want in stock.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Pearl Harbor Day

 Take a moment or two today to think of all those who lost their lives or were otherwise injured on December 7, 1941 when the naval base at Pearl Harbor was attacked. Over 2,000 Americans lost their lives that day; several ships, the biggest and most powerful, of our naval fleet were sunk or badly damaged in that sneak attack on the United States by the Imperial Japanese Navy. That attack led to Predsident Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) asking Congress to declare war against Japan on the following day when he opened his speech to them by saying:

 

"Yesterday, December 7, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan."

 

 

 

This video is worth the watch, the whole thing. The response to FDR's speech was unified and amazing. Congress, it seems most everyone, if not every single member of Congress, actually applauded when FDR asked that Congress declare, that since the attack, a state of war has existed between the United States and the Japanese Empire. Sadly, I think even if we were if there was a secret & brutal attack on the USA today, and President Trump gave a similar speech in response, my guess is almost half of Congress would boo him because the Democrats would be afraid to lose their support from the loons on the left who probably would support our assailants. It's that bad today as I see it.

  

Anyway, it certainly was an infamous date. What happened on December 7, 1941 not only was a terrible attack but it brought the United States of America into World War II. Now, I for one, and maybe you too, would think it only right and proper if  someone, whoever made up the Pearl Harbor webpage which is linked below - at the National WW II Museum, New Orleans - could have gotten it right but apparently he or she does not know what FDR actually said as they call it 'the day that will live in infamy" (source: https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/topics/pearl-harbor-december-7-1941). That evidently incorrect wording is right there on the page when it pops up. It really is sad, in my opinion, that a museum commemorating Pearl Harbor seemingly could not get that right. Historians getting history right, even the small facts, is important or at least I think so. Once they start getting the small facts wrong and getting people to believe them by passing them off as truth, it seems to morph into the so called historians getting the big facts wrong as well, and thus misleading folks on the truly important facts.

 

Regardless, the attack on Pearl Harbor was indeed terrible and what followed were the even more  terrible consequences of that attack culminating in Japan's surrender but only after two atomic bombs were dropped on Japanese cities of Hiroshima & Nagasaki. So, as I said, take some time to think of the sacrifices made by U.S. Service members and civilians that day, and during our involvement throughout WW II, and give thanks for those who made the ultimate sacrifice and for those others who fought for and preserved our freedom.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

We Had Best Hope President Trump's Tariff Policies Are Upheld By The Supreme Court

President Trump and his policies, since back in office this year, repeatedly have been challenged by extremely liberal U.S. district judges. The good thing is that, in most cases and I do mean in the high majority of them, the president has been found to have acted legally under the Constitution by the Supreme Court justices.

Well, he had best hope for the sake of conservatism and the Republican party that he was right about enacting tariffs. Why? Well, because companies that evidently would rather give their business to foreign countries, like Red (communist) China, are suing the Trump administration for the amounts they have paid in tariffs saying it as illegal for Trump to have imposed them. Now companies, such as COSTCO, are suing President trump over his tariff rates. This was in the news a few days ago at https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/costco-files-federal-lawsuit-challenging-trumps-emergency-tariff-orders-on-imported-goods. Of course, Costco had another option rather than suing President Trump and his admin over tariffs. That other option would have been to buy the products they sell from companies based here in the United States of America. In other words from companies that give jobs to American citizens (something that probably would assure higher quality goods than those received from our enemies like China), pay income taxes to the USA, and overall would promote a better economy at home especially by way of enticing companies that manufacture overseas to move manufacturing back into our country. Yet, Costco and any other company suing over tariffs, has not done that but rather has chosen to support foreign nations, again including our enemy Red (communist) China. (If you wonder why I repeated "communist" in parenthesis, it is because I have been asked by several young folks, when I use the term Red China, why I use it. They evidently have no clue due to lack of a proper education in world history; well actually due to the lack of education in almost every field except maybe gender studies.)\

 Costco seems to me to be taking the less than American way out, in fact I believe they have definitely taken the easy way out or at least the one they expect to be easy. I hope they are wrong and that once again, the Supreme Court upholds President Trump's policy on this issue. I am a bit doubtful though that they will and if they do not support him and this policy it will be to the great detriment of our nation. Most folks do not realize that the government of the United States of America mostly funded itself by way of tariffs, that was up until 1913 when the income tax was reinstated (originally the U.S. income tax was commenced after the Civil War) by way of the Revenue Act of 1913; that act also greatly reduced tariffs on imported goods. It was a democrat who proposed that law, one Oscar W. Underwood. (I think you would have guessed it was a democrat, even if I had not told you. Democrats and taxes on American citizens go hand in hand, remember it was President Joe Biden who said that the government was going to spend more, thus increasing the deficit, and that taxes would be raised to pay for his spending!)

The president who signed the Revenue Act of 1913 into law was also a Democrat, one of the five worst presidents, in my opinion, the U..S. has ever seen -  Woodrow Wilson. It was something that was unnecessary to keep our coffers full but that indeed put the thumb of the government pressing down on the citizenry and legal resident aliens harder than it had ever done before. Ever since the Revenue Act of 1913, taxation and ever increasing tax rates have been and remain the mantra of the democrats today, and my guess is will remain so until someone like President Trump can once again, through tariffs, fund the government without robbing the people of their hard earned income. Do tariffs make prices go up - only on imports or goods made here manufactured with imported parts. If manufacturing returns to the USA, those prices will drop like a ton of bricks and tariffs are guaranteed to make companies return to our shores to produce more domestically than in third world shitholes hellholes like Red China, Turkey, Mexico, and elsewhere.

If the Supreme Court rules against Trump having been legally able to introduce tariffs and to choose the tariff rates, then they in effect further will decimate the already faltering economy left behind by President Biden. In that case, the Republican party as a whole will suffer because it will be seen as a major mistake made by, and a major failure of, President Trump and his administration. If they Republicans lose the faith of the American people, our whole nation will suffer for it. That is because, it will take what probably will amount to hundreds of millions, if not billions, to pay back companies like Costco while at the same time allowing them to keep having the products they sell manufactured in places like Red China. Made in the USA used to be a symbol that had folks expecting, and then receiving, high quality goods. That is something a made in China label will never achieve. Let's hope that President Trump got it right once again and that he indeed had authority to initiate new tariff rates.

All the best,

Glenn B 

How Many Days Are Left For Christmas Shopping Or Will It Be How Many Minutes Until The Stores Close

 As I type this, there are 26 days, 6 hours and 16 minutes and some seconds until Christmas and guess what! I have almost all of my Christmas shopping over and done with. I only need to think of what to get for my grandson and then shop for it. I'll probably do that online but since my daughter told me "who knows haha" in a text she sent to me, that may take a while.

 

Now, if you read that carefully, you may have noticed I said "I only need to think of what to get for my grandson". As usual I plan to keep on shopping even after I pick out and purchase my grandson's presents. It's not that I need shop for more gifts for family or anyone else but that I plan to buy at least a couple more things for some folks. As usual, I will keep a long standing tradition of mine going as have done ever since I was a youngster still in Catholic grammar school under the tutelage of those vicious tyrannical attack penguins known as nuns of the Dominican order. At first, I'd go Christmas shopping with my brother, 5 years my elder. Then once I hit 9 or 10 years of age, I was allowed to cross the local side streets and by 11 or 12 was allowed to cross busier avenues and off I went on my own to shop on Christmas eve. As best I can recall, I have done that each and every year since then with the possible exception of Christmas 2011, a bit more than a month or so after my final cancer treatment. Those treatments were brutally debilitating so maybe I did not do it that year,  then again maybe I did. If I had to bet on whether I did or not, I'd figure it at least 60/40 in favor of me having done so and I'd bet that I did.

 

The bottom line is once again, I will go shopping on Christmas Eve, at least barring any unforeseen circumstances that prevent me from doing so and any of them would have to be virtually insurmountable. I absolutely love the madness of shopping then, and let me assure you if you are going shopping in NYC on Christmas Eve, as I did for many, many years way back in my youth, the stores are madhouses, each and every one. Yet, I love it, its like a mini adventure.  

 

Where I live now, I have not experienced that hyper type shopping. It is the type shopping that gives you a super adrenaline rush at the precise gotta grab now moment within a millisecond of seeing IT before THEY beat you to it. The they being 7 or 8 lunatic fringe hardcore shoppers, almost always lunatic married women, who saw the it, the same wanted by all item as you did, at the same exact moment as you saw it, when some 300 pound walrus of a half drunken slob husband moved something on the countertop, shelf or clothes rack and exposed exactly what you and all those psycho housewives had been searching for. 

 

If you have never experienced the moment that you leap and dive into the middle of the discount counter at the same time as the claws of those zombie-like women are grabbing for the same thing - you have no idea of what a true super charged adrenaline rush does to you. The thing is, if you grabbed it first - good for you - but if you missed it and one of those wacko housewives got it first, then search begins anew. As luck or lack of luck will have it - you go through that process again and again in each store you visit, sometimes several times in the same store before you get what you wanted to buy or wind up so burnout from all those repeated adrenaline rushes with only a few minutes before the store closes that you settle for getting something, anything as that simply becomes, by lack of luck, the gift you need. 

 

While they may not have planned it that way, I think the Rolling Stones may have sung a song about shopping on Christmas Eve, or at least some of the lines fit right in with shopping on Christmas Eve and perfectly describe the madness you go through trying to find that perfect last minute gift. It gets even crazier when you hear the voice coming out over the loudspeaker saying: Attention Christmas shoppers, the store closes in 5 minutes, please bring your items to the cashier right now and you haven't found it yet! Just grab something, anything, miraculously more times than night you will get exactly what you need; and remember, those workers want to spend Christmas Eve at home as much as you do. 

 

Yes, shopping on Christmas Eve in that madhouse rush, at the last minute, is an amazing adventure indeed; or at least it can be depending on whether or not you got what you wanted or settled on something you needed. I can't wait, the anticipation is killing me, it's almost as bad as the actual shopping.

 

 

 The video, according to the info at YouTube, is from a live recording in London back in 1968 when I was thirteen and was doing my Christmas Eve shopping in the early years. Hell, Mick Jagger and the Stones were all in their younger years as well. I wonder if they ever shopped on Christmas Eve.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Happy Thanksgiving

 

Happy Thanksgiving to all. This is truly a holiday that can be celebrated by all. A time to be thankful for what we have in our lives and to share it with others. Things like your faith, lack of faith, nationality, race, political stance are of importance but today something is just as important, if not more so - that is being thankful for life and what is your lot in it. Who or what you thank is up to you, that you are thankful is the key.

This is probably my second favorite holiday and is right behind my favorite which is Groundhog Day.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Rootin-Tootin, I Went Shootin

 I went to the range on Sunday, last week, or was it the week before. Cannot remember which but wrote this up shortly thereafter and then forgot to post it. Procrastinating once again as usual. Yet, as if to confuse my self image as THE Great Procrastinator, I went to the range again the day after as well! I sighted in the scope on my Savage Axis at an indoor range. Granted only at 30 yards but I can figure out how to set it to 100 yards when afield. Thing is, any shots I take are likely to be 50 yds. or less so having it okay at 30 yards is not far off. No bait, no tree or tripod stand, just still hunting or a ground stand.

The order of shots by the numbers was 3, 5, 4 and 1. I figured 1 was good enough and stopped twiddling with the scope.

Then I shot my Ruger Redhawk at 15 & 25 yds., 6 rds. at each distance each.

The rds circled were at 25 yds. I was happy even with the flyer in the 7 ring. I did not get the moniker of Ballseye for nothing!such a nice memory for me, not for the other guy.

Fired my Beretta 92FS as well - 6 shots each at 25 & 15 yds, then 15 rds. at 10 yds.

I will likely shoot a 92FS for my upcoming annual LEOSA qualification. I shoot better with my five 92 series Beretta pistols than any other handgun. Heck, I shot better with one on this range trip than I did with the rifles! 

 Last was my Marlin 336, iron sights at 30 yards.

No clue as to why that image reversed when the others did not. Figured group that was okay and ran out my paid for hour at that point. Maybe not great but none too shabby for an old man's blurry vision is how I see it. Then again shooting the 92FS was sweet and the 44 MAG was a blast.

 All the best,

Glenn B 

The Latest Boomers...

 ...that I have added to to my arsenal collection of firearms are three revolvers. They are all blued steel, two with wood grips (real man's guns) and one with plastic grips. I got them from Hessney.com, my favorite auction house. It is always a bit of a gamble when bidding for any items in an online auction, especially when the terms state the items are "as is - where is". Yet, there have only been a very few times, as compared to the total number I have gotten from them, when I have been sorely disappointed with the guns I have purchased from Hessney.

 

This time around the three I had the high bids on were: 

 

Charter Arms "Under Cover" .38 Spl. D.A. Revolver, with 2" barrel, and I must say it looks better when in my hands than it did in the auction photos. In the pictures, it appears that the bluing on the cylinder is faded as compared to the rest of the piece. The truth is, that must have had to do with the lighting when they took the photograph because it just is not so when viewed directly. It is a really nice revolver and I got it for a decent price considering that is looks "as new".

 

 

 

 

There is very little noticeable wear on this one and it seems to function properly; although I have not yet taken it to the range. I am hoping to get in a range trip with all three of the latest acquisitions later this week. Yes, I know, I am THE great Procrastinator but lately I have been going out shooting more frequently; so, I may actually get it done this week. I was hoping to get away with paying only $150.00 plus the buyer's premium of 13% but was bid up by someone to $200 plus the premium. Not a bad price for this one in its current condition. I was especially attracted to this revolver because the first revolver I ever owned was the exact same model back in the early 1980's, when I was in the Border Patrol. It made for a nice sized pocket back-up gun; shame on me as back-up guns were verboten but it certainly packed more punch than the Beretta 950BS in .25 AUTO that I also used for that purpose after I sold that Undercover model. I sold the first one because of a flaw in its construction, when doing combat reloads and ejecting the spent casings the cylinder started to ride up over the cylinder stop. That absolutely was unacceptable, for a carry piece, and I am hopeful this one will not do likewise. There is no evidence of this already having happened with this one, but then as I said, it looks 'as new' and to have been fired very few times if ever at all. This Charter Arms Undercover is now the fourth Charter Arms revolver in my collection of firearms. I also have a Pathfinder in .22 LR, an Undercover with a 3" barrel also in 38 SPL., and a Bulldog in .44 Magnum (the 'Son of Sam' gun, though mine if a different version of the same model). They were all manufactured by the original Charter Arms company.

 

Next up is a Harrington & Richardson (H&R), double action, model 929 in .22 LR with a 6" barrel. It also looks as new. I fact I do not think it was ever fired before I got it, with the possible exception of it having been fired in the factory for testing. It too, while not being fired by me yet, seems to function properly. I picked it up for $125.00; I think a very good price for it. It lists at $235.00 in 100% condition and if there is any noticeable wear on this one it is at least in 98%+ condition. One at 98% lists for $205. I base those price estimates on the Blue Book of Gun Values. Those of the same model and version, with a 6" barrel, have sold, within the last year, on GunBroker.com, for more than I paid. They include one listed with pitting selling for $171.00 and another in much poorer shape than mine selling for $310.00. Go figure as its listing said it had finish wear, freckling and was missing the crane screw that kept the cylinder in place when it was swung out; it noted that the cylinder would fall off of the revolver if swung out without that screw being in place! Hard to believe that some folks would bid that high on what used to be a very inexpensive handgun, especially when offered in that poor a shape but evidently that is exactly what one person did - there was only a single bid on it earlier this month. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am thinking the H&R 929 will prove itself to be a fun range gun and maybe even a good squirrel hunting handgun or just a fun plinker.

 

Finally, there is the Harrington & Richardson Model 999 Sportsman in .22 LR with a 6" vent rib barrel, adjustable rear sight, walnut grips, that was listed as unfired in the box. The box also included the manual and other papers. While the revolver appears to be in new condition and seems to be in working order, the box has not made it through the time since manufacture in the same condition; it is rather dingy, yet in is in decent structural shape. This model does not have a swing out cylinder but is a break-top model, I figure everyone who is into revolvers should own at least one top-break model. 

 

It is a gun that I have wanted for a few decades now and I finally coughed up the cash to get one. They used to sell for around $99.00 as best I can recall but once manufacture was ceased in 1986, the price on them went up considerably back then and has kept going up. I paid $375.00 plus the premium for this one. Of course, one also needs to add shipping and the FFL fee for each of these three to arrive at the final, in my hands, cost for each. Did I pay too much? Maybe, I did, but as I said I really wanted one and figured they are becoming scarcer and scarcer, especially in like new, unfired condition, so I jumped on it at that price. Considering that the Blu Book of Gun Values lists ones in 100% condition at over $500.00, maybe I did okay. Also, there is one currently (as I type) up for auction on GunBroker, it has a high bid of $449.44 and has seven days remaining until the auction ends. It is said to have light handling marks, evidently does not come with its original box nor with the manual and other papers. Yep, I did okay, or so I think.

 

  

 

 

 

 

It too should make an excellent range and plinking gun and a good squirrel slayer if I ever again decide to hunt bushy tailed rats. I must admit, it looks almost too nice to shoot; yet, I am 99.9% positive this will not be a safe queen and I have a good amount of .22 LR ammo, over 5K rounds, that needs at least to mostly, if not all, be used up before my time on this earth comes to an end. 

Safe shooting.

 

All the best,

Glenn B

Sometimes Trump Should Just Keep His Mouth Shut Or At Least Tone Down His Arrogance

 Let's face it, President Trump's ego is huge. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with that so long as it is kept somewhat in check and used to  good effect. The thing is, the ego all too often leaks out to the world through a blabbermouth and to bad effect. There is no doubt, President Trump most definitely can be a blabbermouth. That can be okay, in fact it can be an excellent asset when the right words come out and President Trump very often,if not usually, says the right things, something most politicians are afraid to do. Then again, it can be a terrible disadvantage to just blurt out things, especially nasty and arrogant ones. Take for instance his latest verbal tirade, against one of his most loyal supporters, in which he called Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-GA a traitor. (More at the source.) They may have had a falling out over politics (according to her over the Epstein file) but my best guess is that she is not a traitor, neither to the president nor to the USA, not by a long shot. I tend to agree with her that him spewing out such vindictive balderdash could lead to acts of violence against her by wackos; although, I must admit, I think that would be more likely if she was a Democrat and a Democrat like Schumer had said that about her. 

 

Regardless, President Trump having said so shows his weakness and that weakness is his inability, at times, to control his mouth by keeping it shut or at least by thinking seriously about what he is about to say and then saying it without anger fueling his speech. Right now, all I think he has succeeded in is letting the world know that he has a totally disrespectful and mean-hearted attitude toward her; lest anyone forget he called Kim Jong Un, the leader of our enemy North Korea, a nice guy or something to that effect. Whether or not his attitude toward Greene is justified is of no to very little concern as to how he expressed it to the world. He could have just said he is dissatisfied with her, he no longer trusts her and given his reasons in a much calmer manner - you know, in a respectable manner if only because that would be the conservative way to handle the situation. 

 

In the end, doing it that way would have the same effect - she'd be out of his circle of allies. Now though, he has added something more to that - a potential risk to her safety and making himself look like a tyrannical prick, that being at least, in my opinion, is what others will think of him because of how he is handling the situation. It also will be further fuel for those on the left to claim he is a hateful man bent on destroying the USA and thus TDS will only be enhanced causing more of a potential risk to all conservatives.

 

Of course, the other thing he may accomplish by being so nasty is that other in hi administration will come to think that if they do not constantly kiss his arse and always agree with him, then he may treat them just the same. In effect that may well cause them to keep their ideas to themselves and all he will gain is a cadre of lackeys while potentially losing any good ideas that those in his administration may come up with. 

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Happy Veterans' Day

 To all who served in the military armed force of the USA, I hope your holiday is a happy one. Many thanks for your service.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Happy Anniversary to Me

 I retired 14 years ago , after just over 32 years of federal law enforcement service, on this day in 2011. It also was, as best I recall, my last day of radiation treatments for cancer. My last day of chemo was November 8th.

 

How time has flown at least when you look back on it.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

A Concerning Moment

Yesterday, a moment or so before noon, I heard what sounded like fire engine sirens that had started to blare like crazy.  the thing was the sound came from a stationary point, not from firetruck speeding to a fire. Then, maybe half a minute later, I heard something I have not heard in Texarkana ever before and otherwise have not heard in decades. Right at noon, what sounded like an air raid siren also went off. That was from the local high school, across from the dog park where I was walking Skye, my pooch. After about 3 minutes of nonstop siren from the school, I got somewhat concerned, in fact enough to  bring up the news on my phone. That was because, it had been sounding off for so long and it reminded me of the air raid siren tests run every day in NYC back in the 1960s. Do you remember them? They probably had them all over the USA back then. 

 

With all the shit going on in the world and it being the first time I have ever heard that alarm here (I have been in this area over 6 years now), and it going on for three minutes or more, I wondered if we were under attack. Of course, there was nothing to worry about in the news, at least no immediate threats, and the siren stopped right after I checked the news. Boy oh boy though, it had me wondering. 

 

That, I guess, is due to my having grown up during the worst part of the Cold War! I remember air raid drills in St. Pancras RC School, we students had to: immediately become and remain absolutely silent, listen to directions either over the loudspeaker or from a nun or lay teacher in the classroom, get up and follow a nun or teacher, cover with a jacket if you had one, get to shelter in the school basement pr if no time then in the classroom, get under a table or desk, and then pray. Supposedly we would survive a nuclear bomb blast by doing that.

 

What a memory was triggered by that unexpected blaringly loud warning noise yesterday. I have to wonder, if they just started doing it now (and as I said, it was the firsf time I have heard it here in six years) why now!  

 

Anyway, my routine in the event of a real air raid today would be a bit different. If not there already, I would head home, don protective gear, grab defensive gear, grab water & a bit of food and meds (everything in a go box) and find below ground shelter. As I said, I grew up during the worst part of the Cold War and besides that, come Hell, high water or the Zombie Apoalypse, I want to live too see many more days &  ights.

 

 All the best,

Glenn B 

It Was Probably A Mistake To Buy Gold Now...

 ...but yesterday, I purchased ten 1/10th ounce gold coins from SD Bullion. Besides the already super high price of an ounce of gold, they add a premium, and the premium for coins smaller than an ounce if substantially higher than it would have been if I had purchased a one ounce coin, by about $180 more. The only advantage to buying smaller coins that I can see is if our economy tanks and bullion is then used as currency. Having coins of lessor weight and thus value helps assure that you do not need to cut down larger coins and helps assure that if you are ripped off, you may lose less in value because you only carried what you needed. For instance if someone was was charging the value of 1.4 ounces of gold for a product, you do not need to bring two one ounce coins to the bargaining table and then need to try to cut one precisely; instead, you can bring the exact amount in smaller coins, like a one ounce coin and four 1/10 ounce coins. Then if ripped off, your other bullion is hopefully still stashed away safely.

 

Anyway, unless gold goes up substantially, I will lose out on this purchase but then I am not buying while hoping to make a killing on a price increase. I am buying to have something to fall back on should the dollar's value collapse and a loaves of bread start being sold at hundreds of millions of dollars apiece. Think that could never happen, think again! It already did happen in pre-WW II Germany.

 

 "A loaf of bread in 1922, Germany cost 163 marks. In September 1923, it cost 1,500,000 marks and at the peak of German hyperinflation, a loaf of bread cost 200,000,000,000 Marks." More at the source: https://www.historydefined.net/german-hyperinflation/. No one expected it then and very few think or expect that it could happen now; yet, the truth is, as some say, shit happens.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

Ballseye's Predictions

 I have a few predictions for the coming year, actually for the rest of this year and all of 2026. I am not wishing that any of these come true for anyone, I am just guessing that these things will happen, some only if other things I mention happen first. Most are prophecies of the gloom & doom type but some are also much nicer in outcome. The predictions of Nostradamus have nothing on mine.

 

1. Someone, of leftist, liberal, democrat ilk, will again attempt to assassinate President Trump and will succeed in at least seriously wounding him putting him in the hospital and out of commission for at least a three months.

 

2.VP Vance will take over the presidency, after the above takes place and he will be as strong & decisive as Trump was while in that position.

 

3. Illegal aliens from China (Chinese military personnel), admitted by the Biden administration, will attack our country from within doing great damage to our electrical grid. 

 

4. China will invade Taiwan and shortly thereafter will surreptitiously invade the United States of America in a sneak attack much worse than 9/11.

 

5. North Korea, Pakistan, Cuba, Venezuela, Iran and others will ally with China and also attack U.S. interests.

 

6. Russia will attack at least one, if not more, eastern European members of NATO and will bomb Ukraine with multiple nuclear weapons. 

 

 7. Tens of thousands of U.S. citizens will ally with our enemies and a civilian militia of conservative types will unleash a fury upon them with the blessing of whoever is president at the time.

 

8. The U.S. will be forced to retaliate with nukes and WW III will kill over half the human population on the earth.

 

9. Japan, Australia, the UK (minus Ireland), Israel, several Arab nations, some few countries in South America, all of eastern Europe (outside of Russia & its current allies) and the remainder of western Europe will ally with the USA. 

 

10. India will attempt to remain neutral. Canada will attempt to do likewise, and will abandon the USA causing a civil war that ousts its current liberal government.

 

11. Nancy Pelosi will be killed by an assassin who beats her with a ball peen hammer and then shoots her to make sure the job is done. The assassin will be transgender with severe delusions of self importance and femininity who believes he is pregnant because, he claims President Trump raped him in the Lincoln bedroom.

 

12.  Mamdani, if he becomes mayor of NY, will be assassinated by someone hired by Soros in order to gain sympathy for socialism in the USA. Riots, by leftists, will ensue even though it will be proven that Soros was behind it.

 

13. The monarchy in the UK will come to an end.

 

14. Ballseye will win the largest Mega Millions prize ever and War III will break out the very next day eventually causing the U.S. dollar to crash (just my luck). 

 

15.Gold will hit $7659.17 per ounce within eight months of today (October 28, 2025).

 

16. Silver will hit an all time high of $185.00 per ounce around the same time as gold hits the above value.

 

17. The democrats will overwhelmingly win the 2028 election by way of voter fraud and the election results will be cancelled once the fraud is discovered. A new election date will be scheduled but on that day, riots will break out and marshal law will be declared; thousands of rioters will be killed or wounded. Schumer will be discovered as the mastermind behind the voter fraud and will commit suicide, in a federal lock-up, shortly after his arrest.

 

18. Once WW III is concluded, an actual Zombie Apocalypse will follow shortly thereafter. 

 

19. Ammunition prices will increase ten fold during WW III and go higher in the ZA. 

 

20. Ballseye (me) wakes up and realizes all of his predictions were part of a terrible nightmare. 

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

Note: If you have not figured it out yet, this is a humorus fantasy post. I do not wish ill on anyone mentioned above, am not advocating any type of violence, nor suggesting or hoping that someone, anyone, does anything mentioned above, except for me waking up and then finding out I won the largest Mega Millions prize to date. (And that I will live in good health and fitness, for at least many years, to spend a lot of it it, leaving the remaining tens of millions to my son & daughter.)

No Kings Protest Fake News - Hahaha

 The linked video contains a promotion but other than that, this guy makes a lot of sense. The thing about the video of the size of the crowd in Boston, is not surprising.

 

 

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

No Kings Day - Last Saturday In Texarkana

Well, there was supposedly going to be No Kings protests nationwide on, October 18, 2025 and that reportedly (according to local news media) included one in Texarkana, AR & TX at the federal court house (as spelled on the building face as opposed to courthouse as found in a dictionary, go figure) and post office. The courthouse/post office sits more or less evenly divided on the border of those two states. I took Skye there after our morning visit to the dog park.

 

We got there around 1025 to check it out; it was slated to commence at 1000. Mind you I did not say, I was planning to participate in the protest, we were there just to attend and watch the goings on from a safe distance. As usual, when I go almost anywhere where it is legal, I was armed for self-defense. I figured to get some photos of grungy anarchists being arrested and such but if someone was to attack me, I wanted to be ready to keep myself from being harmed. Anyway, I would probably have been far enough away not to attract any psycho protestors, and there certainly seem to have been many of them (leftists) running rampant and attacking people for no legitimate reason as of late. Of course, it is always best to back-off from any violent confrontation if you can do so. Avoidance is key to not getting hurt but if you cannot back off then I think fighting back as opposed to hoping for your attacker to suddenly become merciful is the thing to do. Your opinion on that may differ but it is definitely my opinion that people who attack you are usually not looking to dispense mercy but rather are seeking to harm you. I have digressed, so back to the protest.

 

Guess what. There was not one protestor there when we arrived. So either it was a no show event except for Skye & myself, or it was the possibly the briefest No Kings protest ever - lasting less than 25 minutes if it started on time. Now, if you have read what little I have written about Texarkana, the veritable pimple on the joined backsides of AR & TX, then you know, I have little love if any for anything at all about this sad excuse for a twin city. Yet, since no one showed up for that protest, I now have developed a bit of a healthy respect for the folks who live here. After all, they were smart enough not to attends and I am guessing found themselves better things to do in the town that two governors forgot.

 

The first pic, shows that Skye & I were at what I thought would be a safe distance from the courthouse to observe the expected shenanigans, if in fact there had been protestors. The second shot was taken from just a bit closer to see it better.

 

 

That little red, white and blue sign in front of the federal courthouse, is the dividing marker between states. If you are on the viewer's left side of it, you'd be in TX and if on the right then in AR. As you can see, in the second photo, there is no graffiti on the building, no ANTIFA slogans or BLM balderdash and not any No Kings propaganda at all. It is as it should be. Thank you Texarkanans! 

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

 

I've Got An Itch...

...and I think it may need scratching in the form of a road trip. I have a couple of appointments I need to keep this week and at the middle of next week. After those, I'll be free through the first couple of days in November. If I do travel, I'd like to be back to my place so I can vote on November 4th.

 

Trips that my little gray cells have been mulling over are: Le Claire, Iowa to stop by Antique Archaeology; Carlsbad, New Mexico to visit Carlsbad Caverns; Dodge City, Kansas just to check out an old Wild West hot spot; Big Bend National Park, Texas to check it out; Galveston, Texas to do a bit of salt water fishing (I miss that from when I lived in NY, did not do it often but went now and then and it was always fun if I caught anything, sometimes it was fun even when I did not catch even one fish); Reelfoot lake State Park in Tennessee to do some fishing. 

 

Being a fan of American Pickers, I'd love to visit Antique Archaeology in Le Claire, Iowa to check out their shop and maybe pick up something neat. The thing about that trip though is that I just checked what inventory they show, on their website, as being in stock. It's not much; so, I sent them an email asking if that is it or if they have more and can send me a list of their complete inventory. I'd rather not drive 11 hours only to find out that what little stock they show on their website is all they have available. Second choice would probably be either Big Bend (never been there before) or Carlsbad Caverns (been there twice before and loved it) or a trip to both an maybe also to Silver City, New Mexico. 

 

Of course, if I do take a road trip, I may just hop in my car with Skye, my mongrel, and head in whatever direction my little gray cells decide to point my nose or in whatever direction Skye decide to point her snout. I made several trips like that in my younger years, but without a pooch, way back some 45 to 50 years ago - some by bus but most in my cars (got my first car in Las Vegas in the summer of 1977 as best I recall). Those follow my nose trips were always interesting and fun. Of course, I also made plenty of road trips with preplanned destinations. I'd rather not drive too far on any trips nowadays; driving is not quite as much fun for me as it used to be but I still enjoy it if the trips are not too long. Longer trips, like my son's and my trip to Deadwood, South Dakota this past spring are not out of the question of to where I might drive drive, but I prefer having someone else with me to share the driving when I need to drive more than what I can do per about eight hours drive time a day and six hours would be better when I am the only driver. 

 

I am not yet certain that my itch will last long enough to actually get me started on a trip; heck I have been hoping to go on a solo trip for a couple of, or a few, years now but I keep putting it off.That has been because I am THE Great Procrastinator. I am guessing the itch will last and spur me onto a small journey though because I am pretty much bored to tears. Where I live is certainly not a very interesting area. I only live in this pimple on the backside of Arkansas because there is no state income tax and because I am close enough to where my son lives to visit him and his girlfriend fairly often but still far enough away from them not to be a constant pain in their arses.

 

As I already said, I would not be able to leave before about eight days from now due to appointments I need to keep but after that I am free until very early November. If I can find someone to pick up my mail while I am gone, I may go on a bit of an extended trip; if not then for a week at most. Time will tell.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

I May Give Up Vending At Gun Shows

 I may give up vending at gun shows after the one I attended this past weekend. I sold an almost mediocre amount of items on the first day, Saturday, mostly at my usually low prices. (That means probably all at a loss except one item which I sold for more than I bought it.) Note I said almost a mediocre amount of items were sold by me; in reality, and I hate to have to say it, the amount of things I was able to sell was quite low. Then in total on Sunday, I made only two sales, a Gen3 AR15/M4 30 round PMAG for $10.00 and one box of brass cased 7.62x54R rounds, also for $10.00. Both were sales tax included, and yes I pay the sales tax to the state of AR at 10.25% for the area in which I sold the things. 

Most items I sold were sold at cost or somewhat under my cost. I sell stuff not so much to make a profit but to get my money back or at least get close to it by getting rid of things for which I have a surplus. That way, I bring in cash I can use to buy another gun or two without having to take money out of my savings account. Of course, I'd love to make a net profit but that is not my goal. I most definitely am not a dealer making a living off of things that I sell at gun shows. I am merely a firearms self defense enthusiast and a certified firearms instructor trying to get some cash to buy more guns to foster my firearms instructor and self defense skills by getting new to me guns, that allow me to learn more about firearms. This time though, after paying $140.00 for two tables, with the poor sales, it is getting to the point where if I keep this up long enough, I will bankrupt my firearms fund because the amount of items I sold was truly dismal.

Every vendor, to whom I have spoken over the two days of the show, told me they did not do well. I understand that, especially considering  how high are some of their prices but I just do not get my low sales with my low prices. For instance, I have an unfired, as new, in the box with manual, Keystone Arms Mini Mosin Nagant that I priced at $175.00 and I'd have taken $150.00 for it. The lowest price on ammo seek is $240.00 as of this past weekend. I had lots of lookers, but no one offering cash for it. Oh well, life goes on, at least for now

Another for instance, I sold 9mm ammo yesterday at a bit under cost, $10.00 per box, tax included. Tax included makes it around an additional 10.25% under cost for the buyer and that much more of a loss for me after I pay the sales tax; and I do pay the sales tax. One guy bought all 8 boxes of the 9mm which was nice but it was still a loss for me. That loss is okay by me, it was surplus, believe me I have thousands of rounds more of 9mm. The thing is, before that guy jumped on it and bought the eight boxes I had for sale, others wanted me to lower my price. I guarantee it was the lowest price on 9mm at the show by far and a good deal lower than the online price considering if bought online, you would need to pay sales tax and shipping fees and in places like NY you'd also pay an FFL fee to transfer the ammo to you. 

Almost all my other ammo had a really good price on it, especially compared to other show vendors prices for theirs. Someone else yesterday also asked me to do better on 22 LR ammo I was selling. Sadly, I had mistakenly overpriced that and lost a sale. Shit happens. 

As for other dealers at this show (and other shows), wow some of their prices are insane on ammo and guns. I suppose they are in it to earn a living or at least as a sideline in which they try to make a net profit. Then again, $800.00 for a run of the mill SKS (or similar) is crazy. As I said, I sell guns and ammo trying to break even or come close to breaking even, so I can get some cash to buy different guns. It beats me keeping money in the bank, that I ultimately wind up using to pay for other things instead of firearms related purchases, then wind up not having enough money to buy anything firearms related. So, when I have the excess cash, I buy - buy - buy. Then when I need the cash to buy a gun, I sell - sell - sell whatever I previously bought and have in surplus, or am tired of having, to get enough cash without going into my savings. The thing is after table fees that keep rising and after sales tax, and income tax (if there was a rare net profit at a show on an item or two), it is becoming prohibitive for me to keep vending because I rarely make a net profit on most things I sell. I sometimes do okay though and break even which is okay by me and rare times now and then actually have a small net profit after a show and sales taxes, and that is good by me but still have to pay income tax on that.

 

It just gets very frustrating when I pay those table fees and sales taxes and wind up selling at a fairly big loss because the amount of sales I made were so low it just makes it not worth my money, time or effort. This past weekend's show was a perfect example of that. In plain English - it sucked. It almost makes me wish a demoncrat majority was in office and that the were threatening restrictive firearms laws be legislated.  Sales would skyrocket if such as the case. Just look at Obummer and Biden, they did wonders for guns sales. Of course, no matter how poor my sales, I would never wish another democrat majority in political office in the USA, that would be a disaster for our nation. I much prefer to be loyal to the USA and the Right instead of to the leftists, socialists and commies of the democrat party. That stands true even if it means less sales and money being made by me.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

 

Another Firearms Related Purchase...

...is being packed and should be on the way to me soon. As Frank Fritz (RIP) of American pickers was ever so fond of saying, "The time to buy it is when you see it"; so, when I saw them on eBay, I submitted an offer. The them are three magazines for the Beretta 92FS Compact L, Type M, pistol. They are 8 round, single stack, magazines. While not impossible to find, it is not easy to find them very often. To find them at an almost decent price is next to impossible in my experience. I check GunBroker, eBay and some other auction sites now and again but if I do find any, the price is usually prohibitive. The one I found, maybe  a month ago was listed on GunBroker for $125.00. I kept checking to see if the seller would come down in price but he did not. 

 

Yesterday, I checked eBay. I found a seller who was offering six of them, all OEM, and lightly used, or so says the seller. The asking price was $115.00 each. I saw there was a 'make an offer' option and tried that at $75.00 each. I received an email, this evening, saying the offer had been accepted.

 

Under normal circumstances, such a magazine might sell for $35.00 or a bit more. By normal, I mostly mean  them still being produced by Beretta or under license from Beretta. The thing is, they have not been made by Beretta, nor by Mecgar under license from Beretta, for several, if not many, years now. In addition, I do not think the Beretta 92FS Compact L Type M pistol was very popular, thus there were nowhere as many Type M single stack magazines produced as were the regular double stack 15 round mags. Being they are somewhat on the rare side, their price has gone up considerably, and that is true not only for ones in new condition but also for used mags. In fact, ones that are new old stock are quite rare indeed. 

 

 I was pleasantly surprised that the seller accepted my offer without making a higher counter offer. That made me wonder if I should have first offered a lower amount but as far as I am concerned $75.00 apiece is a decent and fair price all things considered. Now, if they actually are in the condition claimed in the item description, I will be ecstatic. Time will tell. 

 

Once I receive them, I will have about three or four OEM mags for each of my two Beretta 92FS Compact L, Type M pistols, for a total of six or eight Type M mags, that is at least if I remember correctly how many I already own. I'd like to have purchased more, maybe all six the seller was offering, but buying more from the same seller right now would be a bit too much of a strain on my finances than I'd like to make right now. So, these will have to do, at least until the next time I see more being offered when I have some cash to burn.

 

All the best,

Glenn B