Father’s advice to his son…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
                The following is a father’s advice to his son just moments before he gets on the bus that will carry him off to join the Navy.


                “Son, you are getting ready to embark on a great adventure as many of the men in our family have done since your great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather did many            hundreds of years ago.

 


                There will be many dangers ahead that you will encounter. Remember your training and obey your commanders, this will keep you alive during the arduous days of battle. Always stay with the plan, if you deviate from it you will be in grave jeopardy.


                When the time of battle is over, be wary as you go into the towns and cities ahead because there are many hidden dangers lurking there. There will be many temptations to lure you away from your brothers in arms and this could put you in danger even if it seems safe at the time. In every town there will be a street that will be most treacherous of all there will be strong drink to dull your

senses, loud and crude songs to suppress your hearing, and wild women of ill repute to enable your enemy to catch you off guard. My advice to you as a former sailor is simple – Whatever you do…


                FIND THAT STREET.”
Now the ‘funny’ part is today at lunch a couple of us were talking, and one of the guys sons is currently stationed in Japan, and he was bitching via email to his dad about how the “Honch” didn’t live up to his dad’s sea stories… He said he dug out a picture of the Honch back in the day (one that the wife didn’t know he’d kept), and sent it to his son via email.  Apparently the son responded that it wasn’t ‘fair’… That is was obiously a LOT more ‘fun’ back in our day 🙂 

New Rules for Old Farts…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
Another one from the mil-email… This one is SOOOO true…

If you remember when health insurance was optional, you are an old fart.


If you are polite to strangers, you are an old fart.

If you’ve ever changed a typewriter ribbon, you are an old fart.

If there was only one fat kid in your class, you are an old fart.

If you think “Occupy” is a verb and not a noun, you are an old fart.

If you just want to be left alone, you are an old fart.

If you remember when only sailors had tattoos, you are an old fart.

If you remember when civil rights meant equal rights, not reverse discrimination, you are an old fart.

If you’ve never uploaded naked photographs of yourself, you are an old fart.

If you know how to spell, you are an old fart.

If you ever waited to hear your favorite song on the radio, you are an old fart.

If you remember when being radical meant hating the government, rather than relying on it, you are an old fart.

If you know how to get there better than that GPS contraption, you are an old fart.

If you’ve ever felt shame, you are an old fart.

If you still feel a twinge of dread seeing a phone number with a lot of “9″s and “0″s, you are an old fart.

If you think a nice warm day is just a nice warm day and not proof of impending doom, you are an old fart.

If you ever paid for your own condoms, you are an old fart.

If you know how to fix mechanical devices, you are an old fart.

If the phrase “turn of the century” makes you think of the year 1900, you are an old fart.

If you had a blue mohawk in 11th grade, you are an old fart.

If you remember when Top Gun actually sat in the plane, you are an old fart.

If you’ve ever bought something with cash, you are an old fart.

If you don’t go all the way on the first date, you are an old fart.

If you remember when being a Democrat meant being anti-communist, you are an old fart.

If you remember when “books” were made of paper, you are an old fart.

If you’ve ever played pinball, you are an old fart.

If you remember when sex scandals would ruin a starlet’s career, you are an old fart.

If you’ve ever gotten on an airplane without first being searched, you are an old fart.

If you even know the meaning of the word “bipartisan,” you are an old fart.

If you you don’t have a Facebook page, you are an old fart.

If you do have a MySpace page, you are an old fart.

If you’ve ever used the word “gay” to mean carefree or joyous, you are an old fart.

If you still haven’t scraped that “I believe you Anita!” sticker off your bumper, you are an old fart.

If you kept a few leftover French francs and German marks the last time you visited Europe, you are an old fart.

If you think self-esteem is earned rather than a birthright, you are an old fart.

If you remember when the media at least pretended to be impartial, you are an old fart.

If you ever ate at Sambo’s, you are an old fart.

If you still have some bell-bottom pants way back in your closet from the first time they were cool, you are an old fart.

If you remember when every quarter had an eagle on the back, you are an old fart.

If you hold the door open for ladies, you are an old fart.

If you remember when tech support answered without an accent, you are an old fart.

If you can’t remember why you used to laugh at the phrase “You bet your sweet bippy,” you are an old fart.

If you remember when being on welfare was embarrassing, you are an old fart.

If you know what VHS stands for, you are an old fart.

If you admire successful people, you are an old fart.

If you know what “the blue dress” refers to, you are an old fart.

If a teacher ever smacked you on the knuckles with a ruler, you are an old fart.

If you ever paid for pornography, you are an old fart.

If you think school should be taught in English, you are an old fart.

If you still think music comes on these black vinyl disks called “records,” you are an old fart.

If you played with toy guns when you were a kid, you are an old fart.

If you’ve ever visited a public library, you are an old fart. (Breda excepted)… Just sayin…

If you remember when Apple was a small struggling company, you are an old fart.

If your debate coach taught you to see both sides of an argument, you are an old fart.

If you still have some of those 8-track tapes in the garage, you are an old fart.

If you love your country, you are an old fart.

If you remember when budgets were measured in billions, not trillions, you are an old fart.

If you want to go back to measuring budgets in billions like we used to, you are really an old fart.

If you remember when campus revolutionaries fought against The Man, and weren’t yet The Man themselves, you are an old fart.

If you’d welcome a death panel at this stage, frankly, you are an old fart.


And on THAT note, enjoy the rest of your week…

Appleseed AAR…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
I will just say I highly recommend it!!!

Five instructors, 4 men/1woman; all very knowledgable and patient! 15 students ranging from 8 years old, two 10 year olds, three women, up to me as the old fart…

I’d estimate each instructor had put in 120+ hours to get to the top level, and they give up an average of 1-2 weekends a month to do this, so COMMITMENT in addition to the expense and loss of family time means these folks truly care.

And they are all volunteers!!!

Basically a 4:1 ratio student to instructor, lots of good demo’s on both the M1907 sling and the M-1 style web slings.

I shot with an M1907, since that is what I’m more used to…

They teach the military way to rig both slings, so if you’ve had that training, you’ll be a leg up, otherwise, go look for Blackfork’s videos on you tube about sling rigging!

They worked with folks to find the best ‘positions’ for prone, sitting/kneeling, and offhand (standing) positions.  Having said this, they didn’t try to ‘force’ you into the classic military positions, but worked to get you comfortable (yeah, I ‘know’ comfortable and prone/sitting don’t necessarily go together) and provide constructive criticism where they noted problem areas.

The targets were reduced for the 25m range, and challenging enough to make one work HARD to do things right.  Yesterday was primarily working the basics, a little bit of ‘timing’ (yes, the qualifications ARE timed), and a practice Army Qualification Target (AQT). 

You will need at least two mags, and if you’re shooting an AR, get some 20 round mags.  If you’re shooting .22s or other, try to get at least one 10 round mag.

I’d gotten sloppy on a couple of things, and they pointed those out to me; one of my ‘worst’ was not chicken winging enough on the offhand and dropping the rifle butt too far into the shoulder (Too many years of shooting higher power rifles). 

The history of the battles at Lexington and Concord were used to break up the day into manageable chunks, and give folks a bit of a history lesson (sadly one that is no longer taught in school).  Apparently today’s text books give about 3 sentances or maybe 3 paragraphs total…

Sadly, today I wimped out, I was simply hurting too badly in the neck/back to even try to shoot. I was not about to jeopardize others by doing something stupid to ‘manage’ my pain and lose attention to detail.  On the positive side, I did get some errors brought to my attention, and things to work on, AND info for my surgeon on how badly my back/neck are really screwed up…

The “reference” books are presented below:

I’ve ordered both of them, as the last two days have rekindled my interest in that time, and I know that I’m going to have to ‘teach’ my grandson the real history… Sigh…

Again, HIGHLYrecommend you go do an Appleseed, it will be worth you time, regardless of your proficency level (well, unless you’re somebody like Blackfork), and you’ll learn a bit too!!!

Thanks for the invite .45ACP, truly enjoyed meeting you and your lovely wife! And thank you for doing this for all of us!

Appleseed, first impression…

Posted on by March 6, 2013

Professionalism, patience, lots of experience! These folks are GOOD!!! And the learning experience is not just about shooting, but also the history of the shots heard round the world.

My shooting, on the other hand, just flat sucked… About every 4th try I could actually string 4-5 shots together.

More Later!

Makin a list…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
And checking it twice…


Watch, wallet, spectacles, tes…er… wrong list…


Appleseed receipt- Check


Gun(s)- Check

Marlin 780 (Thanks Carteach!)  Mag-1 (order didn’t come in)
       ACCURATE AS HELL

Savage MK II (Thanks Bernie) Mags-4

Good, but not as good as the 780
NM Garand- Nuff said…

BUG- Yep…

Slings set up, thanks to Turner for the quick turn around!

Ammo- um…er… Oh yeah, hiding under the guns

Tools/cleaning gear/eyes/ears- yep

Ability to shoot- Order didn’t come in… sigh

Maybe a couple of others will be down there tomorrow, if nothing else, I’ll finally get to meet .45ACP+P, so the trip’s gonna be worth it anyway!

I’ll try to get a post up with my impressions later in the weekend. In the meantime, go read THIS from Marko over at the Munchkin Wrangler. He hits this one out of the park!

Y’all have a good weekend, and shoot em good!!!  🙂

Don’t screw with Seniors…

Posted on by March 6, 2013

Score one more for seniors!


When told he couldn’t wear a bathing suit in the lobby, this gent did the logical thing…



Remember, don’t mess with old people. They’re already angry, don’t get embarrassed, don’t care, and you have absolutely no chance of winning.

YGTBSM!!!

Posted on by March 6, 2013
Panetta disarms Marines in a combat zone!!!


Article HERE



Less than a week after a US staff sergeant allegedly massacred 16 civilians in Kandahar, American soldiers were banned from bringing guns into a talk by Mr Panetta at a base in Helmand province.
Around 200 troops who had gathered in a tent at Camp Leatherneck were told “something had come to light” and asked abruptly to file outside and lay down their automatic rifles and 9mm pistols.
“Somebody got itchy, that’s all I’ve got to say. Somebody got itchy – we just adjust,” said the sergeant who was told to clear the hall of weapons.
Major General Mark Gurganus later said he gave the order because Afghan troops attending the talk were unarmed and he wanted the policy to be consistent for all.
I’m throwing the BS flag here- Afghans normally DO NOT have weapons when in the presence of high ranking officials, USMC/USA/USN ALWAYS have been authorized to carry weapons in a combat zone… 
“You’ve got one of the most important people in the world in the room,” he told the New York Times, insisting that the decision was unrelated to Sunday’s killings. “This is not a big deal.”
WTFO???

And video from Breitbart saying the same thing HERE.
This crap is going entirely TOO far, if they don’t trust our own troops, the stay the F**k away from em…

A Little Humor…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
A blonde wanted to go ice fishing. She’d seen many books on the subject, and finally getting all the necessary tools together, she made for the ice. 

After positioning her comfy footstool, she started to make a circular cut in the ice. Suddenly, from the sky, a voice boomed, 

” THERE ARE NO FISH UNDER THE ICE.” 

Startled, the blonde moved further down the ice, poured a thermos of cappuccino, and began to cut yet another hole. Again from the heavens the voice bellowed, 

” THERE ARE NO FISH UNDER THE ICE.” 

The blonde, now worried, moved away, clear down to the opposite end of the ice. She set up her stool once more and tried again to cut her hole. 

The voice came once more, 

” THERE ARE NO FISH UNDER THE ICE.” 

She stopped, looked skyward, and said, 
“IS THAT YOU LORD?” 

The voice replied, 

“No, this is the manager of the hockey rink .”


And before I catch a ration for this one, I got it from a BLONDE! 😛


And I’ll leave you with this one…

Um… howinthehell can you POSSIBLY believe something like that is appropriate to wear in public???  


Sigh…

How to sing the Blues…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
Another one from the Mil-email… Pretty damn funny…(attributed to Memphis Earlene Gray with help from Uncle Plunky)

                1.  Most blues begin “woke up this morning.”

                2.  “I got a good woman” is a bad way to begin the blues, unless you stick something nasty in the next line:

                     “I got a good woman

                       with the meanest dog in town.”

                3.  Blues are simple.  After you have the first line right, repeat it then find something that rhymes, sort of:

                    ” Got a good woman

                      with the meanest dog in town

                     He got teeth like Margaret Thatcher

                     and weighs 500 pounds.”

                4.   The blues are not about limitless choices

                5.   Blues cars are Chevvies and Cadillacs.  Other acceptable Blues transportation is Greyhound Bus or southbound train.  Walkin’ plays a major part in the blues lifestyle.  So does fixin’ to die.

                6.   Teenagers can’t sing the blues.  Adults sing the blues.  Blues adulthood means old enough to get the electric chair if you shoot a man in Memphis.

                7.   You can have the blues in New York City, but not in Brooklyn or Queens.

                      Hard times in Vermont or North Dakota is just depression. Chicago, St. Louis and Kansas City are still the best places to have the blues.

                8.   The following colors do not belong in the blues:

                                a.  violet

                               b.  beige

                                c.  mauve

                9.     You can’t have the blues in an office or a shopping mall: the lighting is all wrong

                10.   Good places for the blues:

                                a.  the highway

                                b.  the jailhouse

                                c.  the empty bed

                          Bad places:

                                a.  tanning salon

                                b.  gallery openings

                                c.  weekend in the Hamptons

                11.    No one will believe it’s the blues if you wear a suit unless you are an old black man.

                12.   Do you have the right to sing the blues?

                         yes if:

                                a.  your first name is a southern state – like Georgia

                                b.  you’re blind

                                c.  you shot a man in Memphis

                                d.  you can’t be satisfied

                        no if:

                                a.  you once were blind but now can see

                                b.  you’re deaf

                                c.  you have a trust fund

                13.    Neither Julio Inglesias nor Barbra Streisand can sing the blues

                14.   If you ask for water and Baby give you gasoline, it’s the blues

                          Other blues beverages:

                                a.  wine

                                b.  Irish whiskey

                                c.  muddy water

                        Blues beverages are NOT:

                                a.  any mixed drink

                                b.  any wine kosher for Passover

                                c.  Yoo Hoo (all flavors)

                15.  if it occurs in a cheap motel or a shotgun shack, it’s a blues death.  Stabbed in the back by a jealous lover is a blues way to die.  So is the electric chair, substance abuse, or being denied treatment in an emergency room.  It is not a blues death if you die during a liposuction treatment.

                16.   Some blues names for women:

                                a.  Sadie

                                b.  Big mama

                                c.  Bessie

                17.  Some blues names for men”

                                a.  Joe

                                b.  Willie

                                c.  Little Willie

                                d.  Lightning

                     Persons with names like Sierra or Sequoia will not be permitted to sing the blues no matter how many men they shoot in Memphis.

36 years…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
So I’m on my search for a .22 rifle for next weekend, and I’m at my local gun store wandering the aisles, and trying to figure out what I want to do…

I notice a couple of older gents (well, MY age, alright…) and they are also circling the place too.  I realize one of them is watching me, and I keep thinking I’ve ‘seen’ him before somewhere…

I finally ‘think’ I’ve placed him, so I walk up behind he and his friend and say, “Flight, Radar, do you have ANY idea where you’re going?”

He snaps around, looks at me, and says, “Dammit, I ‘THOUGHT’ that was you! I was waiting to hear you say something to somebody!”  We shook hands and ended up pounding each other on the back, and probably had the gun store folks wondering what in hell was going on!!!

He was one of my pilots 36 years ago, out in WESTPAC back in the day.  He’s also retired and still consulting to ‘various’ organizations, the ‘little ones’ are now grown, married and he’s a 5 time grandpa!

We spent about 20 minutes just going back and forth on folks we’d served with and who was where, and what they were doing.  And then he brought up ‘the flight’…

We were deployed to Misawa AB, Japan on a 6 month deployment.
In August of 1976, two Americans had been killed at the DMZ in Korea during a tree cutting, so all the American forces were on higher alert, and we were pretty much restricted to the base…

September 20, 1976 was a routine patrol flight, up around the North end of Hokkaido, chasing bad guy submaines… “Gene” was the PPC, and we were minding our own business; sitting on a sonobuoy pattern and basically boring holes in the air, when a rather ‘interesting’ radio call came in to ‘warn’ us of a possibility a MIG-25 headed our way…

Truly a WTF moment…  Since we were well outside USSR airspace, minding our own business, etc…  Flight decided to descend, figuring we’d be below the cloud deck and we didn’t think they would try to shoot us down. 

We finished the mission and RTB’ed, only to find out a MIG-25 had landed at Hakodate airport not long after we’d received our little message…  Track reconstruction and later interviews with LT Victor Belenko confirmed he had,  in fact, probably passed within 5nm of us, and was at or below our altitude!!!

We never saw him, and he apparently never saw us…

Of course that racheted up the tension as the Japanese refused to give the MIG back for something like 60 days, and allowed US intelligence folks to basically dis-assemble the airplane (If I remember right, they finally gave it back to the USSR in 30+ crates).  There were all kinds of threats made against American flyers, and the Soviets said they were going to capture a US crew as ‘hostages’, etc…

Made for a rather ‘interesting’ rest of the deployment, and pretty much screwed us out of any good deals (like the Osan trips), and pretty much kept us flying our asses off… sigh…

His friend is a retired Marine Col, and he was just shaking his head, and commented he’d been III MEF at the same time and he was on alert to ‘go’, if things got any worse.

We both had to do other things, but we exchanged phone numbers, and I’m sure we’ll be having a drink and or dinner pretty soon!

36 years… Damn how time flies…