And what do you do when all the world is shopping?

I went off to shoot this morning, at Range 15 of Joint Base Lewis McChord, only forty-eight rounds, the last twenty four aren't covered up, the earlier ones are and most of the earlier ones were under the bull, somewhere. Met some nice people, talked a lot about Russian ammunition, then as I walked the line there were a more than a few of the Soviet Union's contribution to the war on global gun controllers.

I did my normal heroic Earl firing a rifle poses, and I did video of my performance to review later. Mostly, I was just having fun, posting targets and walking the range, the rains had blown away for a bit.
Just enough that after a lunch with my wife, I went out to cut the front yard for the first time in a bunch. If the Sun were out more the grass would have been higher.

Men's Bible Study at Rudy's home tonight, I will keep out of politics, economics and jokes. I should be just right in prayer and comment on the lessons. Y'all be the best.


Should have shown a before and after picture of the back of the target stand. You would be , impressed, or not. Fifty yards first eight, all others at 100 yards, prone.

Day after, rebuilding...

Too much to be thankful for, contact with loved ones far away, and re-thinking what is truly important. I spent too much time looking at video from the Desert Storm/Shield days. Both sides of the world, back at Bragg and out in the sands of Saudi and rocks of Iraq. I have actual footage of our first invasion of the state of Iraq.

We were so much younger then. Notice the watch on my left arm, the compass on my right? Learned that from Panama jungles, works in the sands of Saudi, too. Same pocket folder I carry now, older model Leatherman multi-tool, on my belt that you can't see. There is a loaded M16A2 out of the picture close to hand along with the webgear and helmet. I take no joy in talking to a camera, it never looked like my wife.

My home smells of old people...

I noticed that while helping my wife making the bed, this is the last use from those sheets, but the kingsize pillow cases will stay forever! Need new pillows. As I put the clean folded sheets back in the linen closet, I find some other really old sheets - that need to be gone, too.

Since I am down to only one cable connection and I have a large broken television - I start thinking of buying a new flat screen for watching video and dvds, and if I am going in that direction I ought to look at a blue-ray player... understanding that the Blues sound better.... so with tons of 'Buy Me! for you' commercials haunting the airways, I am more likely to yield to temptation and grow the economy of Asia a bit. Nothing electronic is made in America, except electronic dollars backed by the power grid. They don't exist when the power is gone.

Since I have a couple of televisions not hooked up, I put one on a VCR and can watch one of my hundreds of movies when I want. Now the weight of that broken television is too much, almost and will be a struggle - if I can find someone that wants a broken one. Life is tough, then I realize I have too much, and that is why it seems so tough - well, that kills that buy something. Better keep looking for a job. Work is good!

I had to laugh, when I first arrived in the 82nd Airborne Division, the Thanksgiving Day feast was awesome. Total dress up, chow down, everyone there all the commanders, families and food! The servers and cooks would get Friday off and had a three day weekend as their reward. There were only two days off for goodness in the old Army (19th Century) - your birthday (which the lower the rank the less likely to be awarded, but a good sergeant would make it happen) and Thanksgiving - a day the entire Army would take off and celebrate (if possible). But then in the good old days the troopers lived in platoon bays, the NCOs in two man rooms and everyone used a common latrine and showrooms.

Fast forward to making the Army just like a civilian job, two to four man rooms with personal bathing facities, snack bars and no battery messhalls. And give the troopers four day weekends and cars - they are gone, mostly to back home as they can. The Thanksgiving feast is still big stuff, and the command and NCOs dress up and bring families and dine well, but it isn't Thanksgiving on the Yalu in 1950 before the Chinese Communists send those volunteer divisions against the United Nations in the frozen Chosen.

What does happen is a lot of deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the units are tightening up again and Thanksgiving away from homebase is special - the President could drop in, you never know. That is nice. But back home, they still want the big feast, the unit dining together and the good stuff that civilians hardly understand. So today, through the miracle of Facebook, I find the 3rd Brigade of the 82nd posting pictures of their Thanksgiving Feast. Wednesday! Yes, the modern Army can provide, all the beauty of the unit dressing up, coming together for the celebration and still giving everyone a four day weekend. Considering how long they have been fighting in the far corners of the world, I think that it is a great idea! Airborne! All the Way!

Preaching to the choir... almost...

Make bacon and eggs with toast and coffee for breakfast with my late sleeping wife, and we talked about what to do after she retires. She has no experience with having nothing to do all day, and needs to make sure she doesn't end up like me. She has many ideas and some of them are interesting to me, but attitude needs always to be positive to hear well. Today we talked about gyms to visit or use. Talk is cheap, my only complaint of worth about the YMCA was that we paid for more than we used. Which was our fault, not the Y's. We determine that we will explore the options and pick one in December. The sounds of love at work, adjusting to change.

Off to church and combined service, packed house is always a good sign. It was combined so we could be special for Thanksgiving. The Pastor had a fine sermon and told a little story about his son and his school, then another one about homeless fellow met in Portland. All the stories were geared to the Thanksgiving theme and worked well. Attitude being the first thing, I really enjoyed the service, since I had come to worship and not to be entertained, amused nor patted on my back. There was a dinner after, with all the trimmings. So we ate and talked, and I got amused and started teaching. One man thought that the stock market was gambling, so I had to explain why stocks are good and derivatives are bad, and salesmen aren't to be trusted. Personal examples of investors were sitting at the table, and they testified.

Then our Sunday school teacher showed up and asked my opinion of a Walther 9mm, postwar manfacture and a price from Cabela's. So I asked a lot of questions, gave my opinions and talked him out of the temptation. But the conversation was a keeper, and he made sure I knew he wanted to go shooting with me at the East Gate range (which is Range 15 where I normally shoot). After we were done the Pastor came up and said hello, which surprised one of the men - that he knew our names. But I assured him a Korean pastor knows everyone's names, and if he wasn't looking at us he might have to be told which Korean lady we were married to, or our first male child's name. Anyway, it was my chance to tell the Pastor I enjoyed his story about his son and their relationship. He missed the relationship thing, and thought I was speaking about the broken English, and I told him that was a bad term the proper term is Korean English. Then I told him we had been talking about shooting and when his son was old enough I would be happy to teach him gun safety and marksmanship. That got a bit of wide-eyed panic in his eyes, seeing he is sure that Christians don't shoot, or that Guns are tools of the Devil. He didn't say so, but my wife was sure it was in that direction. Still gun talk at church, the promise of a shooting date, influencing the future economic activity of church members and worship of the Lord and celebrating Thanksgiving - which for believers is a daily activity.  Time for a nap?

You will pay the price, because it is fair...

I know that there are people that are sure the government is correct, that government officials won't lie or bear false witness, or be foresworn. Really, I know you are out there. I also know there are many of the opposite take. I will remain knowing there is a little truth in most thoughts.

I had a fine opportunity to get off the cable news feed yesterday and see 'Lincoln' by Spielberg and I really thought it came through very well. I was very impressed with all the actors, the photography and the writing and direction. I recommend you all go to see it, especially you Democrats, Republicans and those that still trust government to fix your problems. A real political eye opener.

I spent most of the evening reading The Wolf by Richard Guilliatt and Peter Hohnen, and aside from the best of real steam punk World War I naval action (and it was pretty good), the comments about the British Admiralty denial of truth for their best guess that wouldn't cause public alarm. Secrets and censorship and suffering because of lack of trust in the citizens and their good sense. Now I assure you that the other governments were engaged in suppression of their own citizens for the same different reasons. It didn't save the Tsar, the Kaiser or the King of England, empire breaking was the result.

There is mounting evidence the pace of disruption of the force is increasing, more regulation, more threats to improve our lives through more laws, drugs, sex and rock'n roll. You may disregard any threats from me, I own none of y'all and don't think I could possibly feed and cloth you. I also deny my ability to think for you, make you holy, whole or sane. You are going to have to be what the good Lord gave you and all that you have made of yourself. Take care out there, God loves you more than you realize, or you do know and are content to work on His Kingdom.

Your life is all about how you find it...

I love 'inside' jokes like this. Too funny because they are too true. The real heroes are lost; for the moment passes quickly and the fear is always coming back. I was thinking recently that the Wizard of Oz has had a greater influence on the awarding of medals to insure courage then the guys who worked hard to win, the ones that know what it takes, and pay the price.

I read Gates of Fire, and was in awe that the author captured the true Spartan warrior - his boldness, his professional competence and then during battle  - captured the bravery, then the tired, then the saving of self, the fear, and the overcoming it to fight effectively but hopelessly to the end. About my own life and how I feel 'great' about somethings and not so much about others has to do with what I know about me, my conduct and how short of my goal I fall.

I once organized a twenty-four hour relay race, and there were three teams of ten, and we started running and passing the baton and recording in pictures and script the event. But one of the memories was that going through the heat, the darkness of the night, the stiffening muscles, the longer to finish your mile and the shorter the rest between your chance to get up and do it again, the jokes between runners and recorders, the visits from wives and girl friends - looking at us like we were a little bit crazy. Periodic checks from the command structure to make sure we weren't going to turn this into an embarrassment. And then as the last hour finally showed up, the drive to run just a shade  faster, pass the baton quicker, to look good for the gathering supporters. That was when the battalion commander showed up with his staffers, he was a very fine commander, and he even ran that last lap before the bell to pace those last runners. We set no records, we hurt no one, we all left victorious and worthy -- sure we never needed to do that again.

Lots of challenges in the world, and trying to find good things to do and say, and to be a real help is better than wallowing in misery. I wish y'all luck, I will go see Lincoln today.

ZimbabweZombie Project...

I don't believe there is a great conspiracy out there trying to destroy an America that was too big and too proud. I think that there are lots of little conspiracies of little people that don't know what the consequences will be for their petty efforts. They don't study History and have been on a really stupid economic model. It all comes from thinking government can provide everything - never has been true, and the other idea that because someone is in charge they must be followed and must be right.

When Africa was gaining independence, various countries from the end of World War II, there were problems. Seems the black Africans were still very tribal, the Communists provided education and weapons, European nations and business wanted to continue to exploit the riches of the Continent for their profits. the white Africans wanted to continue to build their business, farms, or efforts to self govern. And the Internation Monetary Fund and World Bank wanted to help (always for their own profits and power).  The goodness of the civilized West decided the how when and why independence would be gained and would work, most of them were living in Europe or English speaking America... and they were trying to correct the impression of the miserable exploitation of black Africa by Europe.

I like looking at the various African nations, they haven't done as well on their own as they could have remaining a strong link with Europe - but they lived their history and their anger is often strong. It only matters to the people of Africa, how they treat me - I don't have enough time left to visit and see their wonders, and there are many. There are also dangers and dirt and bugs, which don't get experienced on video feed. Such a clean pretty picture.

Well, if one does no more than listen to Oprah's experience with her school, the Rwanda genocide, and the driving the whites out of Zimbabwe (which seems to be a popular model to destroy the Republic of South Africa) one can see the framework of the destruction of the good old United States of America. Everyone divided against each other, to exploit others, to take what you want for free, to behave badly and cause it is fun, exciting and you don't look far enough into the future. What awaits is authoritarian rule (with harmless voting) to control the population as it gets regulated (strangled) and ruled unmercifully (read raped and robbed). or the zombies are going to run free killing and eating brains because there isn't a strong independent minded population - willing to sacrifice for the common good and the future. I am sure that the zombies won't eat well, most of the population has shown a decided lack of brains, sigh.

There are millions of great Americans in the world, but they never want to be in charge of more than they can control. The others are the ones to watch closely - they cannot be trusted. Don't worry about taking notes, if the best win they will be busy building a better future, if the worst win - if they remember how to write they will tell the story to their own glory. Oh, you notice that it is happening even now? Yep.

Oh, I know that there are millions of good brains out there for the zombies - just they are too well mannered and now even politically correct to whack a mole or behead a zombie in anything except a video game.