I am all about me, and my stuggle to get to Heaven or get laid... or something.. like that...

  Just an old fat white man in the corner of forgotten blogdom, keep on walking, riding or speeding by... nothing to see here.  The big goal of last week was reached I finished the twenty mile bicycle ride (expresso,com) on Saturday and the total mileage of ninety for the Express Alps award, six days on the machine grinding the miles out. Felt tired enough that I went home without my normal ten kilometers of rowing (no Zumba instructor to distract me). Great week, since coming back from family Thanksgiving in San Diego and constant snow or rain here in the Great NorthWest, life has been fine.

  So imagine my amazement since they put me in a box, labeled it and called me names --- AGAIN? I was just cruising by on Facebook and I noticed two of my 'Friends' had shared a post that one had put on her blog. I have no idea who Mark Morford is, just like he (it is a he isn't it?) has no idea who Earl is... not this Earl anyway. But I don't put him(?) in a box and label him (Stupid Liberal from San Francisco and you know what that means, wink, wink).  But then I have such a fine following I don't make money expressing my stupidity... my mission is to make the world a wonderful place as it was designed to be.

  Mark Morford wrote this about Black Friday Gun sales (Earl doesn't believe in Black Friday, Cyber Monday and many other things but you know it is just Mark being wrong again). Such a petty poutter, Mark thinks he really knows me - well, I don't thing of myself as a Scared white guy, those are the ones I would put a twang in my voice and say 'scared 'yellow' are you?' but then Mark would jump on that as evidence that I have a problem with Asians and I should get out more...  As soon as I win the Lotto I will, Mark. The Lotto the greatest weath leveling government program for taxing the poor and mathematically challenged and disadvantaged.

  Well it is time to go to church, pray for lost souls like Mark and his normal readers, they haven't a clue. It the weather was better I could go to the range and shoot after, but I have some good stuff to make my wife's life better at home to get done. So I will, but Mark, we will be praying for you and the rest of the lost boys.

I want to tell you about how it was in my end of the world event...

  The one that caught everyone sleeping, or seemed to... but I couldn't, the power was out. Facebook was dead, and you thought blogging was dead. Facebook doesn't work on wishes nor prayer. So, no one got my take on what was happening. Being at the center of my universe didn't mean that Watters was coming to put me into his World for Bill O'Reilly to make money from youth watchers. He knows that he is stuck with older and middler-aged men as his base audience. Add a few thinking women and that is the core. But the media frenzie was still trying to figure out the qualifications for the new ambassador to Hungary. If you spelt that as Hungery you are a product of the culture that thinks 'wanes down' is proper English.. I am so poorly educated I think marriage is between a man and a woman, or two or three or ... still between opposite sexes.

  So my wife welcomed me home, I had the wine, brandy and food stuffs she requested and she heated the  soup on the burner on the back porch. I was back from the civilized portion of Tacoma that still had electricity... and traffic lights and no Ferguson Protestors trying to look like deer in the headlights. Since the YMCA did such a fine job of wearing me down, or is that waning me down? I napped after the soup.

  I couldn't get the part needed at Home Depot, so I cannibalized another item with similar parts and repaired the broken and made the other look good. Function starts with looking good, right? The garage door doesn't open from the outside without power either... and the door bell... no one will miss me when we are gone. Since no one will see my missing posts on the internet over Facebook.  Think I should meet and have a final dinner with my cousin, hope the power is on at the steak house, tomorrow.

How do I look, really?

  At the airport in San Diego, awaiting the loading call my wife said there was an old man that looked 'Exactly' like me. Being so in love with my own image, I always welcome photographs where I am a model of masculinity or some such thing...  so I looked and was dismayed, oh, this is what I look like to my wife now?  The old man, was old, walked a bit strange, wore clean clothes and didn't look like a hero and wasn't smiling at the beautiful young lady nearby.... ah, I will have to workout harder and more often at the YMCA, I can't look like that when I am in public.

  So I am on day two of my improvised plan to make me into the image of my mind... yesterday was a vigorous exercise period, rowing and bicycling, three sets of each - total of 26.15 miles in one hour and twenty-five minutes (don't I wish I ran that mileage that fast? YEAH!)  When I got back home I felt wonderful, knowing I would be burning extra calories while puttering around the home. Also knowing that how I look is important but not anything to cause concern nor sleepless nights. My most important features are an easy smile, silly grin, and calm listening to your end of the conversation.

  Still I like to look dangerous and competent, so without the wonderfully distracting ladies around I give you my best angle.

How to spend Thanksgiving...

  Go to be with those you are most thankful for... and enjoy the blessings, and be thankful.

Left the dark and gloomy home in the night, parked car, met friend, dropped off at bus stop and rode the express to the airport only paying the Senior rate, a buck and a quarter! Get on flight, get off flight (yes, I slept) and meet son and grandson right there when we landed - flight was early and son and grandson were, too. Lots of bright blue skies and SUNshine, won't need that rain jacket until Friday.

Normal November in the NorthWest...

 Grey and wet, cool and calm, mushy turf and leaves, squishing beneath the boots, while watching the final mole mountains being birthed...

  My harmony with the universe is gone, up early to support my wife's adventure into kim-chee making at the church, so I go early to the YMCA, and find my locker room blocked off for cleaning - I won't get locker 82, so the heck with the workout, leave a couple of light complaints with the other few old guys that talk to me and go get a hair cut (I wonder why I even try) and pick up more LDL busting drugs... sigh.

  Two strangers are about to meet, they are watching and they know a lot about each other within ten feet. I hand my military ID card to the guard and he looks the vehicle over and the card and says "Does it get any easier?" (There is a cry for help if I ever heard one) and I respond 'What?' and he repeats "Does it ever get any easier, Sergeant Major" ah, he has a real question with some expectation that an old man might know the answer.... hmm, so I respond "No, it never gets any easier, but it is always interesting." and as he hands my ID back he agrees. "Yes, it is always interesting." with a smile and thoughts about better times. Both of the strangers thinking of the interesting times and better memories ages apart..

  Still grey and wet in the great NorthWest, and I am happy that my wife knows I like hooded coats for the adaptation to reality - rain pounding on my head. Lovely lady she is.

Winterization... time is freezing but the thaw will come..

  Finished ironing the togs from my last Appleseed of the season - family, holidays and weather have my priority now. But I have some thoughts I should share about Appleseed.

  This is a great time for getting all your gear in top shape, cleaned and lubricated rifles, leather slings preserved (tong oil and saddle soap?). All targets, tee-shirts, and forms inventoried and boxed up - yes, I know I have heard we are re-branding, and although I won't bet on it, I am certain I have at least six to seven major RWVA/Appleseed operations before re-branding is finished fact, sometime after the NRA convention.  I have received my red Instructor short sleeve shirt, and the new flags of the Revolution tee-shirt, so with all the other stuff I own for Appleseed, I am covered. And Dickies brown, or sand colored carpenter pants speak Liberty to me (5.11? never heard of them - some yuppie outfit?).

  Winter is a fine time for reading, writing and studying - everything one wants to know about the Revolutionary War has been written by the British and the Americans - start making each of the three strikes a twenty minute presentation in at least two formats. You have to tell the tale to your audience, you must watch them to find what works - keeps their interest and perks up their curiosity. Liberty Seeds in the minor key would be good with small audiences. Not that it would support Appleseed and our day, 19 April, 1775, I think all instructors should know that Canada and Mexico have both had challenges in their History, some of which had to do with Mother Countries and much to do with colonialism and paternalism. One more person telling me that Canada didn't have to have a revolution to be as the United States is will be a tipping point. Canada stands as a fine symbol of English enlightenment and the problems with budgets - and like I said, Canada has had conflicts internally to make them how they are now. And Canada never ever wanted to be like the United States, just have a good relationship - neighborly.

  Lock in your schedule for 2015, like anyone except Coupeville and Douglas Ridge Rifle Club know what Appleseed activities they are scheduling now. So send out the letters asking, make personal contact, do presentations and answer questions and get ahead of the calendar as much as possible. Get one Instructor Boot Camp early, helps frame your knowledge with the rapidly changing ways to tell a tale and all the basic fundamental knowledge. You will also be able to make known your skills and weaknesses among your peers, with their skills and weaknesses. Might even make a friend or two, and homemade cookies are awesome.

   I want everyone to get really older looking over the Winter, for sure it is easier than getting younger over the Winter. And I have heard very few dandy young fellows tales -  although I read about Daniel Boone having two ladies that manned the loophole in Boonesboro (against the Shawnee and Mingo) because they shot better than the men, that was the attack before 1773-4. And since we aren't going to get younger, we have to get in shape for getting in the dirt, demonstrating all the positions, transitions and steady hold factors.  My advice for shooters, is five days a week, an AQT on the wall at the end of the hall, an empty rifle and a sling and go through the forty shots dry practice, six steps of making the shot, calling the shot, rifleman's cadence, and two extra sitting positions - one of which should be kneeling, with transitions! Getting up and down must get easier, but only with practice. Break your movements down, make the same solid smooth move each time. That is only thirty minutes, and no one is looking, although it would be better with a partner - you can video record it for self analysis.

   Don't forget a little stretching, exercise unused muscles (thumbs for texting just don't cover much in shooting). I think the touch toes, squats, push ups, side benders, squats, and arm circles and sit ups and did I mention squats? You can figure it out, along with your normal work, school and family and friend and fellowship activities. Plenty of time until that next performance, right?

   If you have real cold, frozen Winterseed and hearty crew and shooters - do have a Winterseed and give lots of those patches out - take tons of pictures and share them with the folks that haunt the forum never saying much, because someone has said it better, louder or repetitiously.  Have a most happy Winter, many holidays, and opportunities to excel await and I will see you after the waking from hibernation.

Another great Appleseed weekend, six instructors, ten shooters...

  The weather was COLD and chilling, but not wet and the Sun shown brightly upon us - we could hang. For a spur of the moment journey into the neighboring state to assist in the Appleseed with an eager young instructor that I now know was a member of the Falcon Brigade and the Eighty-Deuce paratrooping division, during the troubles in the former Yugoslavia. Imagine, he only lives a few blocks away from me.

   Many of the shooters were from one of the instructor's work place, and he said something about trying to get the other eighty workers along for Appleseeds in the future. Sounds like a great plan. His wife would earn her Rifleman patch twice this weekend and help in the future encouraging of the ladies and friends and family - getting them to a firing line somewhere some Appleseed event time. Two other shooters would earn their patch also so thirty percent is excellent and the marked improvement in everyone's shooting by the end of the second day brought smiles to everyone's faces. Link to After Action Report here.

   Of important note (who is telling this tale?)

I, because I am diligent, was able to find the flint that flew off the Brown Bess while Katie was firing it. There was only one, so that makes me a hero, saver of civilization in the moment of need. That firing the Brown Bess was a highlight of the weekend, looking at those large holes in the target helped solidify the telling of the events of Lexington and Concord in the minds of instructors and shooters.

A great time to be on the Appleseed Trail, and making up for the challenges of last weekend's wonderful weather - the crew and shooters in both events make the reason for my efforts worthy of participation. But one has to be there to understand what standing for Liberty means. Hope you do, stand and understand for it.