When you get lemons... make the best of it, limey...

  So I didn't have sweat pants, so I turned around and went to the range.



And I shot my M1 and admired other fine shooters and weapons. No one was killed, wounded, nor felt fear during the entire time I was there.  Should have invited the clueless to watch, and maybe shoot a round on target.


Just forty rounds for me, finding my zero, synthetic 1907 sling marked from CMP.

I do like to look and talk to the other shooters, not enough to bother them, but it is part of the learning experience. 


The Blues are playing loudly in my home, pardon me, I am going to take some down time reflecting on how Mad Max Fury Road worked, and why there were so many males in that one tyranny. It doesn't work that way, really, and most of those shots couldn't have happened - ah, fantasy violence. Do you think a sip of whiskey would help?

your America is just so evil, bad, frightening and soon to die from suicidal tendencies...

  We watch the news and we all feel the pain of death and destruction, and if the news wasn't enough we watch comedians tell racist jokes, or bad jokes in poor taste, or we just say 'everyone says it' as if that were okay. Everyone being a quorum. Or our entertainment if it isn't soft core sexual romance, or hard core almost pornography, or action movies which mean killing forty-two bad guys in ninety film minutes while telling the tale of a dying spy trying to re-establish a love life with his wife and daughter, a family love with the daughter.  America is a terrible place.  Except it isn't.

  Yes, there are some terrible evil people in America. There are some terrible businesses, there are some scientists that publish their best work, which doesn't stand up to peer review. There are some really drunks in America, some strung out dope addicts, there are people you never want to meet, places you never would want to work, and certainly you wouldn't move into 'that' kind of neighborhood. There are pastors that stray, flocks that get fleeced and everyone knows about 'that' church and the type of worshippers whispered about there.

  So sad, that isn't my America. In my America they aren't afraid of guns, bad guys and poor folks. In my America, they do the best they can everyday - no matter what is on the news, who just died, and who was born. In my America they don't fit a category, not a single category, because they change as fast as the wind in Oklahoma or as slow as the ice in Alaska. In my America they find their truth and live it, every day, they believe others are always going to be doing better and bigger things than they will, because they aren't proud just persistent.  In my America, most aren't as intelligent as I am, but almost everyone is more loving and connected to others, I have a lot of work to do on my shortfalls.

  In my America, a smile and a real laugh shared, is more important than that often cited number from Wall Street - pick your favorite.

  In my America, there are troubles and there are things to fear, but there is so much more that is honorable, good, kind, brave, cheerful, thrifty, clean and worshipful - in my America there is more to be thankful for than there is to flee from, or complain about.  Now, I hope you are living in my America, or coming to visit, because I want good things to happen to us all.  Be with the LORD.

Luke 8:14 distractions... now where are those...

  I was going to write about distractions Saturday, they had been piling up and were becoming bothersome - since I really do live on little victories, in my life and in the way I train my troops. No one comes in the military as a superhero, they may have characteristics but the military will take the others and grind them all to fit the mold.

  But I did get distracted and wrote about something else. So when I went to worship the Bible verse the pastoral candidate built his sermon around was about the sower and the seeds. And verse 14 jumped out at me. Mainly because the publisher had stopped the citation at verse 14 in the bulletin, although the Pastor got to fifteen like we all should.

    Luke 8:14 As for the seed that fell among the thorns, these are the ones who, when they have heard, go on their way and are choked with worries, riches, and pleasures of life, and produce no mature fruit.  

   I am not producing mature fruit, and I am pretty mature, but always distracted. I have discipline, I weigh myself every morning, and as I walk back from the kitchen (where the scale is) I think of something else so by the time I am at the computer cave, I have not the last numbers of the weight, the first one hasn't gotten to one nor three so the two is solid in my mind.

  One return and two spaces later, I made my breakfast, said good bye to the wife off on her hiking, brought the sprinkler in from the hose, photographed the roses, eaten breakfast to the music of EDM, and am scheduling my dry fire position practice, listening to the morning news and preparation for going off to the YMCA, to return to mowing the lawn later and other distractions as needed.

  I have something to write up for Fred of the RWVA and my own thought processes. I have to mull over plans for July adventures, there are numerous really good things I should be doing, and I will as soon as these little distractions are back on the shelf out of sight and out of mind... but I could call Hal and ask when we are doing 'lunch'. If I only had a cellphone or such...

What is truth? what is true? How do I know?

  Questions, wonder, test and verify... I am not a child amazed by the family magician's parlor tricks, or was I educated to become accepting of the leader's message and his primary circles 'good' intentions. Does the larger community of men, mean that we don't have to try as hard to find our way, there will be a sale on GPS locators at Cabela's, and everyone knows that the satellites won't ever go down in our life time. Although, they really do go down, it just doesn't get reported and there are duplicates coming along, better ones.

  Questions asked by old men at the YMCA, about the military and the Military cable offerings, and I wonder just a bit if the cooking shows or Martha Stewart don't have the same problem? They tell us information, the things they are highlighting, using, the techniques and we the audience is supposed to believe in them. Smoke and mirrors, magic?

  If the dollar is so sound, how do those crisis points happen where the government must step in? And when they make the movie about it, the ten books about it, the talk shows and speaking circuits -- will we really know what happened to Enron? Why hasn't that happened to EXXON or BP?

   Okay, those are big things too far above our pay grade. So why if I had a good public education with lots to learn and full of stuff I use in my life, why can't the schools provide that now? Or is the truth that they do and can, but the lens on the culture is tiny and people want to make money from my fears (I have only grandchildren to be concerned over and they have real parents that will make them wonders - no matter the public schools).  There is that to consider, like Mike Rowe suggests, the push for college for everyone isn't working nor necessary, life long education is, and schools for crafts and other stuff will be of more benefit.

   Once, poetry and music were used to remember things, now you have a smartphone and are constantly in touch with plans and people -- or are you? The input from others might only be a software program on a machine, or banks and banks of machines, telling you how much you are really loved... what is true, how do you find the truth, or is the constant noise too much.

There are more errors and bad stuff on my new system than ever...

  No, it isn't broken, just troubled and restless and doesn't love me. Kind of like the government.

   It is Father's Day month and I thought while looking for pictures of my father that it is really about family. One of the best things I have ever been is a father - with all my imperfections and stupid and general flaws in behavior - I am a father and that works for me. Since it was one of the big ones on my list of things I wanted to be that makes me successful.

  But for me, just to sire a child wasn't enough, there had to be a marriage and a family, cause I was part of one growing up, and I like some traditions. If there is a common link between my father, me and my son - we marry well and we marry great women from a very different culture, it does make for interesting times.

Commom folk, the little people, the meek and those a peace with... your world...

 I turned into my regular fat old man on the way to the YMCA this morning, after a wonderful solid night's rest in my own bed. Kind of a splash of cold water - after being one of the center of attention this weekend at an Appleseed.

  You see, there at the Appleseed, I am an expert, I have shot Rifleman, I tell the real History of April 19th, 1775,  and I am respectful but demanding in the shooter's learning the rifle safety and marksmanship - just to 4 Minutes of Angle.  That can almost swell my head to larger than any hat size. I make new friends, marksmen, and patriots (actually only show them there is more out there than they were paying attention to) and for those brief two days I have become almost as important as Captain Parker that fateful day. Do a good job and I feel like a hero.

  Today, I have to reorganize my home life, pack the Appleseed stuff away, iron the Rifleman 5.11 shirts and work trousers by Dickies. Sharpen my halberd, which I did demonstrated during Sunday lunch as I added to the shooters' knowledge of yesteryear. Never did get the musket out to shoot, since it was really hot.

  I am happy to be special for the Appleseed for those common people that come to the shoot, to learn, to improve and to maybe join the call to Liberty. They aren't special, except that they come to get better. As I watch some television reporter/commentator that knows not the NRA, the Federal gun laws nor has ever tried to buy a firearm at a gun show--- telling the watching world what she knows about all of that (just displaying common leftist ignorance and rumors - and I thought she was smarter than that - but she sounded just like my brother).

   The British regulars didn't think much of the common rabble, mob, rebels and such, their officers had even a lower opinion... and both were wrong. Doesn't it seem funny that as soon as Liberty is achieved, the larger organization begins to whittle away at it or enclose the people in enough 'protections' for their own good that one might find more freedom inside a prison, where there isn't anything left that they can take from you?

Divisions, all good Generals want lots of divisions...

  My reading of Washington's Crossing by David Hackett Fisher, brought a lot of information and thoughts to my mind. About how important leadership is in time of troubles, steady, calm and courageous leadership. And of course some more Continental Soldiers that would stick around and soldier properly.

  One new piece of information was reading how General Washington bemoaned the backcountrymen that didn't know a thing about rifles. I think he was probably correct, how many times have I met shooters with the most excellent equipment; rifles, sighting systems and slings, ammunition, and they barely qualify because they aren't shooting well, they think the shot done when they jerk the trigger...

   And one would have to just look at the evidence that trained Continental Soldiers that fought about the same as the Redcoated Regulars had a lot to do with General Washington's final successes.  He just couldn't get them to replace the fallen, sick and wounded, or just tired fast enough to build more divisions. When he got down off his high horse, and sat and discussed operations with his staff and generals of his divisions, he started accepting some reality after crossing the Delaware after the retreat across New Jersey. He was going to go to war and win with what was available, he would work harder to get more divisions, lengthen the enlistments, and train the Continental units better in the best European traditions, but he had missions for the backwoods boys under Morgan, and the militias could work with his Continental Divisions just don't expect too many miracles from them, they weren't Saints and calling them Hosts was a real stretch. Some seemed more a social club, the richer Associators actually bought their horses, horse pistols, sabers and carbines and then even some light cannon.  They would assist General Washington by crossing the Delaware when he called it off for weather, and alerting the Hessians that militia were troublesome before the General would get it right and cross to make his famous attack.  But they weren't the only militia crossing the Delaware and assisting the General or just making life miserable for the Hessians and the other scattered British troops trying to forage and winter down in New Jersey.

   Fascinating reading, will have to get back to it when my print copy shows up with better map views than my kindle give me.  But the author calls attention to the fact that Tidewater Noble as George Washington was, with his type of society and polish, thrown in with the rabble and riftraff of a rebel people becoming a flexible and even more polished in his leadership skills and his definite handling of his subordinate leaders - often sent far from headquarters to perform impossible missions.  He aided them with what he could, encouraged them, but kept his eye on the prize.
  
   He could only defeat the British Empire and gain independence by, keeping an army in the field, not getting captured, nor defeated into surrender. And once in awhile he had to win, which often meant fooling the enemy, doing things unexpected and allowing your subordinates enough rope to make a victory possible. The whole battle for Princeton is great to read about, not that I would have liked to be one of the many soldiers marching that night and running into the enemy on the road, surprise!

   If the mililtia hadn't existed it would have had to been invented, General Washington needed local forces and friends to make up for missing maps, to provide early warning and information on roaming British units, to cut off some of the Regulars' rations (they never had time to put in crops).  A lot of supply ships would fall to privateers, which made those goods available for the Continentals. Those little independent minded but all for the cause of Liberty, militia units and leaders would be evidence that the Crown would not rest well in the thirteen colonies, soon to be thought of as states.

   To my mind, even gentleman George Washington, could have learned how to herd cats with enough time. Read about his lack of love of Congress and you will see it.