This is the post...

...in which your host does The Happy Dance™

so anyway, I stopped at Walmart on my way home from work this evening (because it had been almost 48 hours since I had been in a Walmart) and as per my usual, my first stop was the ammo case in the sporting goods section.  When I go there, there were a couple of clerks off-loading a cart full of ammo.  Jokingly, I asked if they had any .22LR, expecting to be laughed at.  The Walmart dude looked at me and said "The 330 round box or the 550?"

"The 550 round box.  How many can I have?"

Yes, my phone's camera sucks

The last time I was able to purchase .22LR was early in December. 2012.  The weekend after Thanksgiving, 2012, I bought a 550 round box of .22LR on a whim.  Days later, the Sandy Hook shooting occurred, and in the aftermath, all the ammo went away.

Today was the first time I've seen .22LR on the shelf in 15 or 16 months.  If the .22LR supply is returning, I see a Mossberg 715t in my near future.

more soon

Saturday Night Video

...current conflict edition

so anyway, I saw this somewhere earlier in the week, and decided that it was tonight's video.  Ace also had posted this, mid-week:
Read more »

Quote of the day

InstaPundit edition...

so anyway, this:

"I love the people who say you could never deport all the illegals, but who think you could lock up all the gun owners." - Glenn Reynolds

Go see what he' talkin' about here.

Molan Labe, and all that.  I will not go to "Camp".

more soon

Another Member of The Tribe

First Time Shooter Report

so anyway, back on Friday 11OCT13, a couple of colleagues and I went to the Island Lake Shooting Range to shoot the Sporting Clays range.  One of my colleagues was a mid-twenty-something young woman who had never fired a gun before.  (Yes, I know, taking a first time shooter to do sporting clays borders on cruel.  I didn't set it up, it just happened that way.  She's a Virginia Tech Engineering grad.  She dealt with it.)

On the first station, eight clays were presented.  She dusted the eighth, and was totally geeked.  By the fifteenth shot (out of 50), she was soliciting advice: what am I doing wrong? / why do you do that thing when you shoot? / can you see where my shots are going? / etc.

It was glorious.

We got "timed out" on the course and didn't get to shoot the last station.  The range staff came out and picked us up in a golf cart and carted us back up to the clubhouse.

We settled our bills (in compliance with my long-standing policy, I covered her range fees.  First time shooters shoot for free) and made our way out to the truck Fusion.

She was walking on sunshine.  About halfway back to the car, she turned to us and said "Next time, can we do rifles or pistols?"

Yes, Ma'am.  We can do both. All day.  

She has added pics of her shooting to her FaceSpace page; and has gone on about how many "Likes" she's received; and how she's told the "Dis-likes" to piss off.

We just added another member of The Tribe.  She's hooked.  I mentioned that Hello Kitty guns are available, she punched me in the chest.  (Again, Virginia Tech Engineering grad.  She holds her own)

more soon

Range Bag Loaded

I have a back-up plan...

so anyway, I've got all my range gear prepped and loaded up for tomorrow.  I expect to be set free from The Stoopid Business by 3:00-ish PM.

If it's not raining, I go to Island Lakes to pop some caps, both long gun and sidearm style.  Raining?  I go to FireArms Exchange and turn money into smoke and noise (and little 0.357" holes in paper).

It's good to have options...

I told you I have a back-up plan.

more soon...

P.S.: (Both Island Lakes and FireArms Exchange have been prominently linked here. Do your own damned Bing search, dammit) 

Recoil Therapy

I has a happy.....

so anyway, I managed to get some range time in late this afternoon, long gun style.  I had planned on shooting the Ruger as well, but I was having too much fun with the SKS.  We'll get to that in a minute.

First of, the venue.  Island Lake Recreation Area, one of the Michigan Dept. of Natural Resources not quite "State" parks. (42°30'52.55" N 83°40'34.07" W for my fellow Google™ Earth freaks).  It is spectacular.

$10 buys you all day access to the range

The range(s) are operated by a private outfit, but I haven't drilled down deep enough yet to provide any 411.  I'll get back to you on that.

The Island Lake Shooting Range is very professionally run, with one small caveat.  I show up in the clubhouse (there's no other word that describes it) with my shooter's bag full of shooter's shit and a SKS slung over my shoulder.*  Tits McGorgeous signs me in and takes my money.  Did I mention that I had a SKS openly slung on my shoulder?  I did?  Good, we can move forward.

So, I get down to the firing line to be told by the Range Officer that my rifle must be in a case to enter the range.  OK, "his" range, his rules.  But don't you think that Tits McGorgeous could have mentioned that shit (that my rifle had to be encased) when she checked me in?  The front desk should know the rules.

Speaking of range rules, their policy is six rounds at a time.  I showed up with a collection of magazines that hold considerably more that six rounds.  I spent a fair amount of time emptying ex-cap mags and loading stripper clips in six round increments.  Next time, I'll set the rifle up with the stock 10 rd box magazine and load out the stripper clips with 6 rd each

Anyhoo, mild inconvenience, overall, a great range experience.  I know now.

Second, I shot a lot better today with the SKS.  I had forgotten what a laugh-riot the SKS is to shoot.  I was having so much fun, half way through my second reload, I get tapped on the shoulder by the Range Officer and told to reduce my rate of fire.

 I'm still not posting any targets, but 50% of my hits.were in the black at 50 yards using iron sights.  Most of the slop was my lack of recent hands on run-time with the rifle (I hadn't shot it in years), and I still haven't figured out the eyesight thing.  Part of it was environmental: I was dressed for the air conditioned office, now I was outdoors, in direst sunlight, on an 83°, very humid afternoon and sweating like a pig.  Remember, kids: dress for success...

The other lesson that I quickly re-learned about the SKS is that the metal parts on the fore end (especially the gas tube) get really freakin' hot really fast.  I'll be adding a leather glove for my left hand to my range bag.

more soon

* In retrospect, I should have knowd.  The reason I left the case in the car is that as I was unpacking my stuff from the trunk of the Mighty Commuter-Mobile, there were a couple of shot-gunners returning from the range carrying uncased shotguns.  They opened their trunks, re-cased their shotguns.  I was thinking "good idea, why mess with taking the case when I can just sling my rifle.  One less thing to mess with on the range."

Turns out I choose poorly.  Still, Tits McGorgeous should have said something.

Notes from the week of 10JUN13

(insert sub-title here)

so anyway, let's dispense with the formalities and light this candle:

On Monday, our favorite Democrat strategist / pollster Pat Caddell had an interesting post up over at Breitbart's Big Government.  His intro reads as follows:

"The sordid revelations from the Obama administration are coming at a pace that can only be described as, well, fast and furious. So let’s lay down some markers here, as a sort of road map for the months and years ahead:" 

And he proceeds to do so.  The whole thing, it must be read.

Also on Monday, Senator Rand Paul had a most excellent op-ed in the Wall Street Journal:

"What is objectionable is a system in which government has unlimited and privileged access to the details of our private affairs, and citizens are simply supposed to trust that there won’t be any abuse of power. This is an absurd expectation. Americans should trust the National Security Agency as much as they do the IRS and Justice Department."

Again, read the whole thing.  I actually posted on the two pieces mentioned above here.  But you knew that, already.

On Tuesday, I had a link from Stephen "VodkaPundit" Green that I did not have the opportunity to blog.  Pity, that.  The link was to trollthensa.com/, whose plan was to have everyone e-mail or call using this script:

"     Hey! How’s it going? I’m all right.
    My job is so shitty I wish I could overthrow my boss. It’s like this oppressive regime where only true believers in his management techniques will stay around. I work marathon-length hours and he’s made all these changes that have made it the worst architecture firm to work at in Manhattan. Like he moved the office to the Financial District and fired my assistant. She was the only one who knew where the blueprints were! I need access to those blueprints to complete my job! F my life, right? And he keeps trying to start all these new initiatives to boost revenue, but seriously we just need to stick to what we do best. There’s only one true profit center. I seriously feel ready to go on strike at any second.
    I just read this article about how these free radical particles can cause the downfall of good health and accelerate aging. These could actually cause death to millions of Americans. If these particles are flying around undetected everywhere, does that mean we’re all radicalized?
    Have you seen the second season of Breaking Bad? I just finished it. I couldn’t believe that episode where they poison the guy with ricin! That was the bomb! I won’t say any more because I don’t want to reveal the earth-shattering events to come.
    Oh! So I’ve been planning a big trip for the summer. I’m thinking of visiting all of the most famous suspension bridges in the United States. So probably like the Golden Gate Bridge, The Brooklyn Bridge, and the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. I’m gonna bring my younger brother and I know he’ll want to go to bars, so I’m thinking of getting him a fake drivers license, but I hope that doesn’t blow up in my face.
    Okay, I gotta run! I’m late for flight school. I missed the last class where we learn how to land, so I really can’t miss another one. Talk to you later!"

So, yeah, now I'm on just about every list I wasn't on before for posting that.  Serious you guys, I gots nothing left to lose...Molan Labe

On Wednesday, Ace had the goods on some shit-bag prog-tard (BIRM) trying to lie his way onto the Zimmerman jury.  I posted on it here.

http://www.rampantinjustice.com/  I saw this earlier in the week, but didn't watch it until Friday night.  It will piss you off; I recommend removing all breakable items from you immediate vicinity before watching.

Goldstein:

"Here it is in plain, clear English: The ruling class plan to defeat the TEA Party and the small-government base of the Republican Party is to import enough new progressive voters to offset the influence of we, the people. Whose only function will be to subsidize the people and programs that insure our own subjugation to the State."

We were 'sposed to get a big reveal from Glenn Beck by the end of the week, but it didn't happen. 

DO NOT click on this link to the NSA PRISM Profile Server

Ragin' Dave has a solution to the Guest Worker situation.

Bob Owens channels his inner Led Zeppelin with When The Levee Breaks in which he revisits What You'll See in the Rebellion:

"After a number of carefully-planned, highly-publicized, and successful raids by the government, one or more will invariably end “badly.” Whether innocents are gunned down, a city block is burned to ash, or especially fierce resistance leads to a disastrously failed raid doesn’t particularly matter. What matters is that when illusion of the government’s invincibility and infallibility is broken, the hunters will become the hunted. "

 more soon

2A on the AM

Radio, that is....

so anyway, this may come as a surprise to you, but there's actually a conservative talk radio station in The Peoples' Republik of AnnArbor.  It's true!  WAAMTalk1600 broadcasts from the belly of the Beast and generally operates as a thorn in the side of the progtards, libtards, and University of Michigan professors (BIRM).

To further annoy the bleeding-hearts, WAAM recently added a program called Trigger Talk Radio to their Saturday morning line-up.  The show is on from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM Eastern every Saturday, and podcasts are available of past shows.

You can read the bio of the host, Dick Cupka, here.

WAAMTalk1600 has a "Listen Live" link at the top of their homepage (as Glenn would say "We'll it is the 21st century, after all") so you can listen from anywhere you have inter-web net-tube access.

The show is always interesting, and I learn something new each week.  The 04MAY13 show was particularly interesting, as the discussion was about the usefulness of putting you guns into a "Gun Trust", mainly for transfer to your heirs, but there are other reasons to do this as well. The next time your Doctor (who, if you like him, you can keep him...) asks the ACA-mandated "Do you have any firearms in your household?", you can look him in the eye and say "I do not own any guns" without perjuring yourself.

Give it a listen on Saturday morning.

more soon

Epic Rant on a new-found blog

You must read the whole thing...

so anyway, via Ragin' Dave of Peace or Freedom fame, we learn of Lurking Rhythmically.  She has a gun control rant up that you simply must read.  Culling out an excerpt really would not do it justice, so just go read it already.

Well, OK, if you simply must have an excerpt, try this:

"Because fuck you, that's why."

The astute reader will note that Lurking Rhythmically has been added to the blogroll in the sidebar.

more soon

Like Socialism, Gun Control has never worked anywhere it's been tried

see also: Chicago....

so anyway, I can't remember where I saw this today, but you need to watch this.  Fair warning: it's safe for work, but it contains some graphic images that may make you tear up (or get really pissed off).  It's a little over six minutes long describing the aftermath of Australia's gun ban.
Read more »

WOOT! doesn't even begin to cover it

I'm finally LEGAL...

so anyway, as of about 3:30 this afternoon, I can legally carry a concealed firearm.

Slightly redacted

I stopped in to the Post Office to check my mail whilst running errands this afternoon, and found a letter from the County Clerk in my mail.  My heart sank, I had just dropped the application and was fingerprinted like a common criminal on 04MAR13, they told me at the time that it would be the end of April "before a decision was made".  Receiving something from the County Clerk's office in less than three weeks was shocking and spoke of pending doom.

I cut open the envelope to find a single sheet of paper and (surprisingly) a card.  The card was my CPL ID card, pictured (albeit redacted) above.  The letter from the Clerk was basically "here it is, you're good to go, let us know if anything is incorrect".

So, kudos to the Washtenaw County Clerk's Office for under-promising and over-delivering.  I had dread fears of applying for a CPL in The Peoples' Republik of AnnArbor*, and expected a flaming metric ass-ton of grief over petitioning the local government to exercise my fundamental human right of bearing arms.

I've coveted this for decades.  I'm finally legal.

more soon

*I do not live in The Peoples' Republik of AnnArbor, I'm just outside the wire.  The Peoples' Republik of AnnArbor is the County seat.

Connecting the dots

it's quite simple, really...

so anyway, watch this:
Read more »

Success!!!

I take my victories where I can find them...

so anyway, I was tasked with stopping by the local Walmart to pick up a few things this evening, and as per my usual, my first stop was the ammo aisle.  The Sporting Goods crew at the local Walmart all recognize me by now, as I walked up The Guy said "Still nothin'.  All we got in were a couple of boxes of .38 target rounds."

I can shoot .38.  I bought both boxes

So, (NEO, I'm lookin' at you) range day is back on, albeit wheel-gun intensive.  I still need to prove out my home-made gun-smithing job on the Tokarev M213 (Chinese copy of a Soviet design that they stole from John Moses Browning) 9mm, but I'm running low on 9mm (but I still have more than the local Walmart, 'cause they gots nothin').

more soon

The Post in Which I Totally Rip Off Ragin' Dave's Material

it happens.  You mad, bro?...

so anyway, my brother-in-blog Ragin' Dave of Peace or Freedom fame has a couple of posts up that require your attention:

Firstest: this:  This is what I would like to say, in which Dave brings us the words of one Michael Z. Williamson:

"First they came for the blacks, and I spoke up because it was wrong, even though I'm not black. 

Then they came for the gays, and I spoke up, even though I'm not gay.

          Then they came for the Muslims, and I spoke up, because it was wrong, even though I'm an atheist.

          When they came for illegal aliens, I spoke up, even though I'm a legal immigrant.

Then they came for the pornographers, rebels and dissenters and their speech and flag burning, and I spoke up, because rights are not only for the establishment. 

Then they came for the gun owners, and you liberal shitbags threw me under the bus, even though I'd done nothing wrong.  So when they come to put you on the train, you can fucking choke and die."

( emphasis mine)

Read the whole thing.  Oh, yes, the whole thing must be read.

Secondest will have to wait until tomorrow night.

more soon

20130218 2305

Lack of Resources (Updated)

is harshing my mellow*...

so anyway, I recently had arranged to meet a friend at the range for a little "recoil therapy" after work.  As it turned out, I had to cancel because The Stoopid Business™ demanded more than ten hours of my time that day.  I called my friends and cancelled, and promised to re-schedule the recoil therapy session.

Now, I'm not so sure that I'll be rushing back to the range any time soon.  Witness the ammunition shelves at the local Walmart.

I'm not in a big hurry to turn the ammo I have into smoke and noise unless I know that I can replace it.  I do not have that confidence.

Every time I'm in a store that sells ammo, I check the shelf and buy anything that I can shoot.  I haven't been able to buy any ammo for over two months.  It almost makes me want to go out and get something that will chamber those .22LR Stingers or those .177 HMR rounds.  Having no discretionary funds prevents me from doing so.
.
So, until I can replenish ammunition, it looks like I'll not be getting any practice in.


more soon

* h/t to Cold Fury for the turn of the phrase

20130216 1310

Mark your Calendar

and pack a lunch....

Click through.  Forward it on.  Be there.

more soon

Preparations for the coming Zombie Apocalypse

I can check another item off the list...

so anyway, I "test drove" my "carry rig" around the house today and it was simply fabulous.

The sweet little "slide" holster can be found here.

I wore the rig all day around the house, and went about my regular Saturday routine.  Very comfortable; the holster is very versatile: inside the waistband, outside the waistband, right hand, left hand, and small of the back.  It was so comfortable that I almost forgot to lock it back up when I went to Walmart.  I grabbed the list and was off to the store, and it was only when I got into the car that I realized that I was carrying.  I can't wait for the day that the County issues my CPL.  First place I'm going to carry?  Whole Foods (but that's a different post for a different time).

I chose to test drive it around the house as the acid test of being able to keep it concealed all day.  You see, here at Casa de Miguel, I am constantly subjected to an excruciating level of pedantic nit-picking and scrutiny in everything I do.  Had The.Oh.So.Progressive.Missus™ or any of the kids spotted it, The.Oh.So.Progressive.Missus™'s epic meltdown would have been visible from space.

Serious You Guys, as soon as That Fuckin' Guy issues the Executive Order banning the People having guns, The.Oh.So.Progressive.Missus™ will be on the phone to the local police department demanding that they come pick them up.  There's a reason that I keep the various iron locked up in very in-accessible places.

more soon

The times, they are a'changing

more and more people are "getting it" every day

so anyway, on my way home from my Sunday errands, I stopped by my regular "licka stow" (h/t James Lileks, it's an obscure reference to a Prince movie that has always cracked me up).

The clerk-guy was finishing up his smoke outside when I pulled in, he ducked back inside as I exited the Mighty Fusion Commuter-mobile and had my usual order sitting at the register when I walked in.

"Is that gonna do it, today?" he asked.

"I'm afraid not" I replied, "Today is different.  I'm from the Government, and I'm here to confiscate any and all firearms on the premises."

He blinked twice, then smiled.  "If I thought you were serious, I would have shot you dead." (Like I said, I'm a regular at this particular licka stow; they know me.  Otherwise, I'd be dead now.)

"That's all I need to know" I said, then we had a good laugh and then talked for a bit.  He had much to say about the current Administration and the pending abridgment of our 2A Rights,  Keep in mind that this conversation occurred just outside the wire of The Peoples' Republik of AnnArbor.

People are (finally) waking up.  About goddamn time.

more soon

Best quote I've read all year

so far....

so anyway, this will end up on the sidebar soon:

"An unarmed man can only flee from evil, and evil is not overcome by fleeing from it." - Jeff Cooper

True, that.

In other news, the 9mm 115gr. JHPs that I bought the other day at Walmart will not dry cycle in my (currently inop) Chinese copy of a Soviet design (that the Soviets ripped off from John Moses Browning, PBUH).  That little Chi-Com fucker has never liked anything but FMJ or ball; I'll take the Dremel™ tool and polish up the ramp this weekend to see if  I can make the Norinco Tokarev M213 (doesn't that just scream quality?) eat what I feed it.

more soon

A Day Well Spent

Woot! does not begin to cover it....

Yes, this document has been mildly altered

so anyway, yesterday I did the training day required for a concealed pistol license.  A day well spent, says I.

I've been meaning to get my concealed carry permit for years, but could never find / justify the time to do an all day training class, as they were always offered on weekends.

I did suffer an embarrassing moment, as I had a mechanical failure after my first shot.  My first shot from my  Tokarev M213 was in the 10-ring, then that little Chi-Com fucker wouldn't cycle.  It ejected the first spent case, but when I applied my booger-hook to the bang-switch nothing happened,  Hammer back, everything looked ready to go; bang switch: nothing.  I'll be taking it apart to see just what's the matter tomorrow.

The bright side of this event is that the range comped me a Glock 17 to complete the course.  I had never shot a Glock before, I was favorably impressed.

more soon