We're so Proud

I see that Louisiana's favorite embarrassment has been arrested in Germany. That's right, folks, David Duke, our former legislator, gubernatorial candidate, and Ku Klux Klansman was arrested in Germany.

David Duke, the former Louisiana lawmaker, white supremacist and Klu Klux Klan leader, has been arrested in Cologne, Germany, according to multiple news reports.

What was he doing? We'll leave that for you to decide.

Duke was reportedly scheduled to speak to a right-wing nationalist group, before German authorities arrested him.

David was featured prominently in the gubernatorial election of 1991, where he made the run-off ticket against Edwin Edwards. We had the opportunity to choose between a crook and a racist for Governor. As our long-time political pundit, John Maginnis said,

Strychnine or arsenic, Louisiana? Pick your poison. That's about the only way to look at the state's gubernatorial race, which took on a noxious taint last week when former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke began battling roguish ex-Governor Edwin Edwards for the keys to the executive mansion. The campaign threatens to bare the cantankerous soul of a state that is often derided as America's banana republic, a Third World realm of corrupt and crazy politicians, wild parties and bizarre customs. Yet even Louisiana has never seen anything this weird. Says John Maginnis, publisher of the Louisiana Political Review

For the record, we chose the crook, who was eventually indicted, convicted, and sent off to the federal hoosegow.

Edwards is out, and David is back in the news. It almost seems like old times.

Leak

I drive a 2001 Ford F150 King Cab, and I've had great service from that pickup truck. Last week two of the kids and I were heading to town in a blinding rain and the kid in the back seat remonstrated that water was leaking down the back of his neck. "Oh, really? Well, move to the other side of the truck." He moved to the other side of the truck. "It's leaking here too." So, he sat in the center seat.

Sure enough, I had a leak somewhere around my back glass. I took it to a buddy this afternoon, a buddy what runs a glass shop. We looked for the leak. Turns out, the back glass on that truck is bolted in and the bolts were loose. Damned glass was about to fall out. We tightened everything, still leaking. Well, hell. He got out some heavy-duty, by-Gawd sealer and did his glass-specialty thing on it. Told me to watch it for a few days. It oughta be fine, but if it leaks, bring it back. No charge.

I had left a deer rifle in its case on the back seat. Soaked. I took the rifle out, and it's okay. A spritzing with oil, a good wipe down, and the rifle case is in the dryer.

Louisiana has been in a drought, and I don't know if we've gotten enough rain in the past year to tell if I had a leak. I'm glad I found it before I ruined a rifle.

Chickens

Milady sent me for a chicken last night, a whole fryer, so that she could boil it for stock and made dumplings. I always approve of chicken and dumplings, so I went to the store.

When I got out of the Army in 1979, my first job was working in a plant that processed chickens. We slaughtered them by the truck load and my bosses taught me that a proper whole fryer weighs 3.5-4.0 pounds. They insisted that the growers produced a chicken that, when processed, would weigh 3.5 lbs.

Last night, digging through a pile of what Wal-Mart calls fryers, I was stunned to find that the smallest bird there was over five pounds. They had another pile of hens down the aisle, and I guess those were over 8 lbs. Chickens have gotten bigger in the 30 years since I was in the business. Another thing I noticed this morning as we were de-boning the boiled chicken is the absence of dark meat. That bird was white meat from his drumstick to his wishbone. Chickens are changing, and not for the better.

In my mind, the perfect frying chicken weighs about 3.5 lbs and has been allowed to run around, so that the leg and thigh have dark meat. That's not the chicken that the growers are producing these days.

Sunday Sloth

Thanksgiving is officially over. The last of the travelers checked in on Facebook to tell us they are home, the house is quiet, and PawPaw is enjoying his third cup of coffee. It's a grey, overcast morning with the temps in the 40s and normally I'd be at the church by now, except that we're not having our traditional service this morning.

We share a pastor with another church and he asked a favor of us. We all wanted to have an eating-meeting this morning, but he is obliged to be at his other church for 11:00 services, so he asked if we could delay our service today until noon, at which time he could attend, and we'll have an abbreviated service and break bread thereafter. We approved the plan and I don't need to be at the church until shortly before noon. We'll eat at about 1:00, then come home for a quiet afternoon.

We got some heavy rain yesterday end last night. The deer were bedded, I'm sure and they'll be out looking for feed this afternoon. I might slip out to my close stand this afternoon and sit until dark. Then too, I might decide to sit in my recliner. It's too early to tell. The main question, is if I shoot a deer late this afternoon, do I want to be processing a deer on Sunday evening? Choices, choices.

In preparation for the noon meal, Milady is making chicken and dumplings in the kitchen and the house smells like wonderful.

Sunday Morning Dawg

Taking his leisure after a hectic Thanksgiving week.

Tomorrow, we go back to work, to the hectic, to the workaday world.

Compromise

Driving back from the deer lease this morning, I learned that the NBA owners and players have probably struck a deal so that there will be an NBA season this year. The first thing I thought was that I should get some tags. I've never shot an NBA.

Then I realized that the station was talking about basketball, and I tuned them out. No one with a brain gives a damn about basketball. Little boys play it in the winter when it's too cold to go outside, and girls play it. It's a silly little game, and one without a lot of class. I certainly don't see any class in the professional players, unless we're talking about the criminal class. I don't watch it, don't care to follow it, and damn sure don't go to the games. I go to the occasional high-school game, but when I do, I'm in uniform.

Basketball is even more mindless than soccer, but at least soccer is played outside int he weather. They're both silly games that girls play. Neither should be considered a sport.

Live From The Stand

I'm jn the woods this morning. My nephew is in my box stand and I'm scouting, slowly. I'm on a little knoll overlooking a drainage with pines on the hill and hardwoods in the bottom. This looks like a great place to put a ladder stand.

Family Thanksgiving

We're back from the family Thanksgiving celebration, culminating in the annual skeet shoot in the pasture. Those kids shot two boxes of clay pigeons, 90 targets each, and I finally had to call cease fire because we were out of targets. Then, we moved downrange to the 25 yard line and did some pistol shooting near the berm. Everyone who had a pistol took it to the line and made it available to the general assemblage. We had just about every caliber from .22LR to .44 magnum and everyone who wanted to try them out got the opportunity. Sigs, Smiths, Rugers, Charter Arms, you name it, we shot it.Crimson Trace, single action, double action, revolvers and semiautos, we made them all bark.

My newest daughter in law had a tee-shirt made for the occasion. She's a graphic artist and makes Tees for a living, and this is the design that she devised. You can click on it to embiggen it.

Before the shoot I had walked to the back of the property and checked my game camera. I've got a deer stand on the land and a feeder set to feed at 4:30 p.m. Looks like it's getting a little business.

I'll tell my nephew to go sit on the stand tomorrow at 4:00 and stay there till dark. He might meet that little doe.

All in all, it was a very good day.

The Great Turkey Drop

Something to while away a few minutes while you're suffering from Turkey Overload. From the old sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati, the great episode where the boss wanted to do a promotion for the station. It's comedy gold and one of the iconic clips of the era.

As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly. HA!

Turkey Gumbo

I talked yesterday about turkey gumbo, and I thought I'd share with you a picture of my cooking apparatus.

Yep, that's a standard turkey fryer and that pot is full of gumbo. Gumbo can be cooked all in one pot, or it can be assembled, like a kit. I assembled this one, first having cooked a huge roux on the stove inside. I de-boned all the turkey, boiled the carcass for stock. sauteed the vegetables, sliced the sausage, then realized that I didn't have a pot in the house that would hold it all. So, I took out my turkey fryer and assembled the gumbo in the turkey fryer pot.

Then, I got it to a slow simmer and let all those flavors mingle and combine for several hours. The pot weighed close to forty pounds. That's a lot of gumbo.

I never got a head-count, but I'm sure I served over 40 people last night. We fed them well, with gumbo, a big salad, and iced tea. Some folks brought desserts. After everyone left and we were putting away leftovers, I had just enough gumbo to fill a gallon tupperware container. It's in the fridge. We'll eat it this weekend.

Later this morning, we're going to Momma's where we'll feed those same 40 people. Momma puts on a huge spread for Thanksgiving, turkey, ham, brisket, and the table will groan from the weight of the side dishes. Momma has my sisters helping, and I provided the smoked turkeys. It's our traditional family Thanksgiving meal and I come from a huge family.

Afterwards, we'll repair to the pasture to shoot skeet with the nephews. I'll try to remember to take a camera.

Boiling Bones

I'm boiling turkey bones for stock. Thanksgiving is always at Momma's house up the road, but we decided several years ago to host a pre-Thanksgiving supper at our house so Momma wouldn't have to cook the evening meal for the horde. Tonight, I'm cooking a gumbo, a big ole turkey gumbo, with country sausage and lots of onions, bell peppers and celery.

I bought a couple of smoked turkeys from the high school; one of the clubs smokes turkeys and sells them as a fund raiser. At any rate, I've peeled the meat from two turkeys and the carcasses are in a stock pot, rendering to stock. I've already made a huge roux. In another hour or so, I'll start slicing sausage. The family will start assembling this afternoon and we'll eat at 6:00. I'll feed probably 40 people this evening.

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all.

Green Gasoline?

This is the first I've heard of this, and it's darned interesting.

"Green gasoline" is coming to Cenla. Local and state economic development officials announced Tuesday that biofuels company Sundrop Fuels, Inc. will build its first production facility near Alexandria.

Whatever "green gasoline" might be, the production plant will be built near Alexandria, LA, my hometown. It looks like they're going to use forestry products to make gasoline.

The plant will use woody biomass and natural gas to produce liquid fuel -- billed as the world's first "green gasoline" -- ready to drop into a gas tank. Vehicles don't need to be modified to use it, and it doesn't need to be blended with petroleum-based gasoline the way some biofuels do.

Really? When I saw this, the first thing I thought was that this was some "green" initiative that would lose government dollars. Not so, says our governor.

"They don't need government loans, they're privately funded, they're ready to go," Gov. Bobby Jindal said. "Not only are these great-paying jobs, this is a great market for our timber industry, and it reduces our dependence on other countries for our energy needs."

The hell you say, governor. No government money, completely privately funded? There must be a profit motive. A profit motive is great for business. I hope they've done their homework and make a gazillion dollars. But, the question remains, what will this cost at the pump?

The result is a process that converts nearly 100 percent of the biomass used into fuel (other processes discard up to 50 percent), is much more environmentally friendly than petroleum-based fuels and produces a product that is as affordable or more affordable than petroleum-based fuel, officials say.

More affordable than gasoline? That sounds great, but so far what I'm seeing in the article is pie-in-the-sky. We'll see, but it's not going to use government dollars, it's privately funded, and if they lose money that's one of the freedoms of our system.

I hope the best for them, I really do. The new plant should be a big boost to our local economy.

Rain, Blessed Rain

I went this morning to Momma's place to change the batteries in the corn feeder and to install a new tarpaulin on the tripod stand. I was assisted by grandsons. When we got there, the wind was calm and the sky cloudy. By the time we had walked to the back of the property and installed the tarp, a light sprinkle was beginning to fall. We went tot the feeder and as I was changing the batteries, the deluge began. I told the kids to head to the truck, I stood in the rain to check the timer. Before I got back to the tripod, the bottom fell out.

Soaked, we were all soaked. I'm proud to see the rain. Dry clothing and we're ready for the rest of the day.

Hunting with Grandkids

Quinton and I went out to the lease this morning. We stopped at a local convenience store that caters to the early morning hunting crowd, and we obtained a couple of bacon/egg/cheese biscuits to eat enroute. Got a cup of cocoa and a cup of coffee and headed for the woods. By the time we got to the woods, he had eaten two biscuits and was ready for a nap. Just about daylight he fell asleep in the floor of the box-stand on a pile of jackets. Thankfully, it wasn't cold enough this morning to need a jacket, or the kid would have had to sleep on the bare floor.

That's my ever-alert hunting partner. We stayed in the woods till 9:30, then headed toward the house. Just before we left, I snapped this pic from the window of the blind. That box-blind is my second-favorite place in the whole world.

Milady has the boys working right now, sorting the toys in the kid's guest room. As in the judgement sorting that we're all to face one of these days, there are two piles of toys in that room. Separating the sheep from the goats, as it were. Those that make the grade will remain. Those that don't, well...

Live From The Stand

Posting live from my deer stand. PawPaw is all by hisself this morning. 65F under cloudy skies. It's peaceful and quiet in these woods this mornin, like the woods are ready to exhale.

Sunday Morning Dawg

I didn't have time to get a picture of a dawg this week. Our camera was busy with wedding photos and while I"m sure the dog was included in some of the shots, my photographer-daughter took the SD card to edit the photos.

SO, without new material, I reached into my archive to find a short video of the dog freaking out when Milady comes home one afternoon. It's an oldie, but a goodie.



I'm sure there will be new material next week.

Election Results

We had elections in Louisiana yesterday, and all over the states, people were watching the returns. I voted, of course, but I didn't watch results nor returns. I got up this morning early to go deer hunting and I looked at the paper.

I see that Cranford Jordan has been elected sheriff of Winn Parish, with 60% of the vote. This is Cranford's first term, although he's been a cop for lots of years. I've known Cranford since 1981, and he's a good man. The sheriff's office should do well with him at the helm. Congratulations, Cranford.

Steve McCain has been elected Sheriff of Grant Parish, following a contentious race. The incumbent sheriff didn't make the run-off, so the voters were clearly ready for a change. Steve's got his work cut out for him, but I"m sure that he's the man to bring healing to that parish. It was a very contentious race.

My parish had a change of Sheriff too. My old boss, William Earl Hilton, was elected with 54% of the totals. Hilton has already been sheriff four terms, and sat the last one out. This year, he re-entered the fray and won yet another term. So, if I say, tongue-in-cheek, "New sheriff, same as the old sheriff", there's a whole lot of truth in that statement. William Earl originally hired me into this agency, and I consider him a friend.

There ain't nothing like Louisiana politics.

Wedding Mode

We're in pure wedding mode here at PawPaw's House. This place has been busy, busy for the past couple of days. My elder son is marrying his bride and between the cooking and the planning and the plotting and the rehearsing and the sewing, there hasn't been much time for anything else.

We'll be at the church at 11:00, then back at PawPaw's House for a reception, light lunch, and party. The couple leaves for their honeymoon at about 2:00 and things should start to settle down. PawPaw will spend an hour clearing the refuse, then ensconce himself in the recliner for a nap.

While I'm happy for the couple, I'll be glad to be back to something that resembles a normal schedule.

Gunny and Glock

I love this



I'm loving it.

Optics

Naw, I'm not talking about rifle scopes or binoculars, yet even spotting scopes. I'm talking about the optics of someone shooting bullets, real bullets, with a rifle, at the White House. Park Police: Suspect arrested in WH shooting might have spent time at Tea Party Rally. Can you imagine the outcry? Those gun-toting, Bible-thumping right-wingers are shooting at the White House.

Oh, wait, that's not the headline. Park Police: Suspect arrested in WH shooting might have spent time at Occupy DC protests

Never mind.

Busy week

Lordy, lordy, is it Wednesday all ready? Where have the days gone.

We're in pure panic mode here at PawPaw's House. We've got a wedding on Saturday, a church wedding with the reception here at the house. The ladies are plotting and planning and doing last minute cleaning, clearing and panic-ing. It's going to be quite the fiesta.

School is busy too. We've started both basketball and soccer season, and PawPaw is well engaged in those activities. Tomorrow night our school is hosting the basketball jamboree, so I'll be at school from 7:00 a.m. till it's over tomorrow night. Then on Friday, the rehearsal supper and on Saturday, the wedding.

My mother's older sister passed away this afternoon, and there will be a funeral in the mix. My thoughts and prayers go out to her children.

I'm told that we're doing Thanksgiving next week. They're not going to postpone it just because I'm busy. If I get a chance, I might do a little hunting, but right now that's iffy.

Life intrudes on us all, sometimes.

The OWS Protestors

I've been watching the Occupy protestors with the detached interest of a visitor at a zoo. Interesting, but nothing to make me change a damned thing I do. It's like watching a bunch of high-school kids trying to emulate life. It's a pale reflection of a real protest.

But, as they pack themselves into urban parks, I've become convinced that they have no clue how to camp out. I am interested in their lack of concern for things like sanitation. Good field sanitation practices are necessary to prevent the spread of disease and from the news reports, disease is starting to affect the various protests. Good security is important to prevent crime, and it looks like crime is becoming a problem at the protests.

These protestors seem to be protesting about corporations and capitalism, yet the tents they use, the cell phones they use for twitter messages and facebook entries are manufactured by corporations, many of those companies produce those products outside the US. The protestors simply expect that food will be provided and that clean, potable water will keep them hydrated with no thought of how that water gets to them.

Winter is quickly approaching and the weather is not likely to cooperate. I've been camping all my life and I know what is necessary to sleep in a tent. These folks don't have a clue.

It is interesting, from a detached zoo-visitor perspective. Checking in on them to see what the animals are doing. I've read studies that if a researcher will put too many rats into an environment, then cut off the food, the rats will become cannibalistic. If you've ever read the book Animal Farm, you know that it was written as a cautionary tale, not as an operations manual. Yet we see many of the same behaviors exhibited. It's interesting.

If you've got a few minutes, go watch Bill Whittle's Three and a Half Days. It's a great video, with lots of good parallels to the Occupy movement.

If my kid was at an Occupy protest, I would have already sold his bed, taken his clothing to Goodwill, and changed the locks on the house.

Sunday Morning Dawg

The dog loves flour tortillas. Really, he does. Loves them with all his heart. When Milady and I go to a Mexican restaurant, I bring the dog a couple of tortillas.



That dog eats things I've never seen a dog eat.

Federal Fusions

I got my bullets in the mail today, the ones I ordered from RMR Reloading. Jake, the proprietor of Rocky Mountain Reloading, vouchered them as Federal Fusion bullets, which I've never seen before. Jake told me that these bullets are made by ATK, a corporation that owns several ammunition lines. They sell ammo under names that we're all familiar with, to include Federal, CCI, and Speer.

Evidently, Fusion bullets are plated rather than copped jacketed in the traditional cup-and-core process that we're familiar with.

They've got a base unlike anything that I've seen in traditional reloading components. Neither flat-based nor boattailed, they're sort of a hybrid and should act like FB bullets.

Doesn't that look odd? Still, they're good looking bullets and should work just fine in our rifles. It may be a while before I get a chance to play with them. The hunting season is in full swing around here, and the holidays are fast approaching.

I'm sure that I can find something to use them for. .30 caliber, 150 grain bullets won't last long around here.

At the lease

I got home last night at about 11:30 and by the time I lay down, it was midnight. I slept quickly and got up at 4:00, headed to the lease with a grandkid in tow. After sitting in the stand without success, we decided to do some scouting. I wanted to look at a drainage to see about deer sign. If deer like thickets, they'd love this place. I'm just going to have to figure them out.

Grandson Ethan in that thicket. After we had scouted it, my cell phone rang and my brother-in-law asked me to come up to the camp and help him cook.

What were we cooking? Barely edible stuff, like fried white perch filets, french fries, corn on the cob, hush puppies, stuff like that. I don't know why I bother with these people. They don't know how to eat.

We scratched little dogs. And sat on the back of pickup trucks and told lies.

Now, I think I'm going to get a shower.

Duty Calls

It's Veteran's Day and I'd normally be off, but I've got to pull my boots on in another hour and go to work. The school is hosting a debate tournament and the place is about to fill up with all manner of teenage geeks. I'll be there till about midnight, come home, sleep quickly, and get up to be on the deer stand tomorrow morning.

Watching over a debate tournament is quiet duty. And, the hospitality room is simply phenomenal. Those sponsor-mommies fill the room with delectable comestibles. There's always soups, salads, chilis and gumbos available for sampling.

The Sunday Dawg is already posted, and my sister will be quite pleased. It's a video Dawg.

Ya'll have a nice day.

Intercollegiate Studies Institute - Educating for Liberty

I took a little test online from the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. Evidently, my High School education is holding up.

You answered 10 out of 10 correctly — 100.00 %
Your Ranking
Philosopher-King

In ancient Greece, this was Plato’s ideal ruler in The Republic; combines both wisdom and power.

If you have any comments or questions about the survey, please email americancivicliteracy@isi.org.


Intercollegiate Studies Institute - Educating for Liberty

Ten out of Ten. Who'd a thunk it?

Talking about Scopes

Like many of us, I use rifle scopes. Yeah, I use iron sights too, but the current practice in the US uses rifle scopes on deer rifles. Many rifles don't come with iron sights these days, so you've got to install something. A scope is the easy choice. However, when you're faced with a bewildering selection of rifle glass, it's hard to make up your mind.

Dave Petzal talks about the Trijicon Accupoint. Several years ago a member of our lease bought two of these on sale at Gander Mountain. Paid $500.00 apiece for them. Loves the scope. I was able to look through it while he was showing it to the members. It looks like a fine scope. However, I don't have $500.00 to spend on rifle glass. So, let's talk about lower end scopes that I really like.

The Weaver Buck Commander rifle scope is one that I picked up this summer, looking for glass to put on a short-action Savage. Midway has it for $189.00 and I really like that little scope. It's got finger adjustable turrets that reset to a zero with no tools required. I haven't used it hunting yet, but I really like it on the range. Very precise crosshairs and a thick duplex that should be just fine in the early morning. It seems to be a fine little scope.

The Redfield line is back, and this summer my son was looking for a scope for his .30-06. We went to Academy and looked at several scopes, he picked this one. American made, lifetime warranty, and you can find them for about $200.00. That's hard to beat.

If you want something with a little higher power range, take a look at the Simmons Whitetail Classic. This is a 20-power variable that performs all out past its price point. Seriously. (yeah, yeah, I know what you've heard about Simmons.) I've got one on a .243, and my second son has one on a heavy barreled 7mm magnum. It's held up well for five years, very accurate, and you can check your pulse in the reticle. Midway USA has it on sale right now for $109.00, which is a hell of a deal. It's a lot of scope, and ours haven't given us anything but fine service and small holes, way out there.

Another sleeper in the high-magnification market is the Swift Optics line. My family likes the 6X18 model and we've probably got a half-dozen of these things on as many rifles. My copy is mounted on a .223 right now, but my younger son has one mounted on a heavy .308, and my brother-in-law has three, one on a custom .260, one on a heavy barreled 7mm-08, and one on a beanfield .270. They've all given great service.

Last, but certainly not least, is probably the simplest scope in the lineup. It's been a standard for years, and it's what's mounted on my favorite .30-06. The Weaver K6. Simple, rugged, plenty of magnification, no knobs, dials, bells, or whistles. You set it and forget it. When that buck of a lifetime shows up, you simply put the crosshairs on the target, squeeze the trigger, and go get your buck. I use this scope out to 300 yards, simply because I don't have any range longer than that at my disposal, but I've never had a problem hitting a reasonable target with this scope.

You don't have to spend a lot of money on a rifle scope, unless you want to spend it. If you're on a budget and bewildered at the choices, all these scopes are PawPaw approved.

Raising Grandkids

The grankids are over here often enough that I can make sure they are properly entertained. The other day, my second son and his little one were standing in the front yard and I took little-bit and put him in the bed of the pickup. He though that was the coolest thing ever. He could crawl around, pull up on the sides, play peekaboo, and generally amuse himself while Dad and I leaned on the side of the truck and talked.

My son noticed the fun the kid was having, and reflected that maybe he should clean out the bed of his pickup. After looking in the back of his truck, I concur.

The Proper Response

So, if you haven't been following the scandal at Penn State, the one that sank Joe Paterno's career, the link is a good place to start. Let me say for the record that this isn't a child abuse scandal, this is a child rape scandal and anyone that tells you different is full of crap.

So, I talked to my coaches today and told them that this is a great learning experience, that we could all learn from Joe Pat's mistakes. "Listen up," I told them in my best old-cop voice. "If you ever come in to the locker room and find someone raping one of the kids, the only proper response is to call the police. Immediately. Pick up the phone, dial 911, and get the police here.

"If I get here the next day and find out that you didn't call 911, I'm going to personally arrest you for Accessory. Take your sorry ass to jail. Got it? Good. Class dismissed."

RMR Reloading

There's a guy over on the Firing Line forums, he calls himself LongDayJake, and he runs an outfit called Rocky Mountain Reloading. He's a small outfit and he sells bullets. Pulled bullets. As he explains at the forum:

pulled means that they were once loaded into factory ammo. For some reason, the factory rejected the batch (usually because of split casings, bad primers, or consistency issues). The rejected ammo gets sold to contractors who pull the bullets out and sell them.

Jake's one of those small contractors who buys defective ammo, pulls the bullets, and sells them.

I ordered some bullets from him. Federal Fusion, .308, 150 grain. They're coming int he door at 18 cents apiece. Not bad for good bullets. Because he's a small contractor, his stock is often fairly low and his inventory changes quickly, but he ships fast. I ordered the bullets Monday night at about 5:30. By 8:00 I got a shipping notice with a tracking number. I expect that those bullets will be here later this week.

If you're looking for a good deal on bullets, give Jake a chance. I see that he's got several common calibers in stock, but who knows how long those bullets will last? I checked today and he's sold out of those Federal Fusions. He's got some .308 Sierra Prohunters in stock and if he has them when I get paid next week, I'm going to order a bunch of those.

RMR Reloading is PawPaw approved.

Herman Cain's Troubles

I'm watching Herman Cain and his troubles with women who said that he sexually harassed them, and I'm thinking about Bill Clinton. Bill had his trouble with women, too. Not just Monica and the Oval Office, but trouble with several women over the years.

Im also thinking about our local ex-governor, Edwin Edwards, and his legendary womanizing. If Edwin was nothing else, Edwin is an alpha male.

Bill Clinton is an alpha male. Herman Cain is an alpha male. Bill Clinton pretty much got a pass, Herman Cain is having to answer for his actions. That's good. Herman Cain is a Republican and we should be the adults in the room. I'm also wondering if there is a double standard being applied.

I'm wondering if these allegations are going to hurt Cain in the primaries. Only time will tell, but it's good that we're getting them out of the way early. I'm also wondering about the women that I've known, worked with, helped, mentored and disciplined, and I wonder if any of them would come forward to accuse me of misconduct if I ever decided to run for office. I've always tried to comport myself with dignity, honesty, and be fair to everyone that had to answer to me. I don't think I've ever harassed anyone, but I bet that Cain didn't think he had ever harassed anyone either.

It's an interesting question.

Poverty? What Poverty?

This just out from the Christian Science Monitor.

When the Census Bureau started counting food stamps and tax breaks as income, the poverty rate went up, not down. Some say the new poverty rate is a nuanced picture. Critics say its a ruse.

There is no poverty in the United States. If a person in poverty has a house, a car and a television, and three squares per day, that doesn't look like poverty to me.

Sociologists say the new numbers give greater nuance to the portrait of poverty in the US, highlighting the degree to which government programs are keeping struggling Americans afloat. Critics counter the numbers are engineered precisely to make government assistance appear indispensable and to pave the way for a broader redistribution of American wealth toward the poor.

There shouldn't be any nuance in accounting. Either it is, or it isn't.

I've been told that regardless of your income level in the United States, when you get off a plane in Africa, you're wealthy.

There is no poverty in the United States. Most of those programs are designed to keep people on the dole, to make them dependent on government largesse. To provide a perpetually aggrieved socioeconomic class who depends on government redistribution. There is no real poverty in the US.

Not just for weirdos

Instapundit linked to this article on Yahoo, where they talk about online dating. It's not just for weirdos anymore. Thanks, guys. Weirdos, huh? I met Milady online, through the Yahoo! personals. I enjoyed the online dating experience.

When I was single, I had been married for 25 years and found myself single. I lived in a small town and I wanted to experience folks I hadn't yet met, so I filled out an online personal, had a friend take a current photograph and posted it on the profile. Then waited.

I didn't have to wait long. I got some interesting responses and I had some really good dates with some interesting women. If you're considering such a thing, there are a few tips. First, be brutally honest with yourself and your prospective date. If you're looking for a relationship, let them know. If you're looking for a pleasant Saturday night, be honest about that too.

Meet for the first time in a public place. A bar or restaurant. A coffee shop might be a good idea. Print out a picture of your potential date so you can recognize him or her when she shows up. Be prompt. Observe all the societal pleasantries. Don't be afraid to walk away. If the picture and the profile don't match the person, then they're willing to lie to you. I don't tolerate that in any form. Be pleasant, tell them you wished that they had been honest, and walk out the door. I followed those rules for the better part of the year and had a good experience with online dating. It was fun and I met some really interesting folks. I also walked out on a couple of gals who couldn't post a reasonably current picture, or lied outright on the profile.

One day I net this lady online and we started chatting, then decided to meet at a bar for a Super Bowl party. We had a few laughs, watched the game and talked to other patrons. Began seeing each other on the weekends, and eventually fell in love. We met during Super Bowl 2001 and married in 2003. I feel like I married my best friend.

If you're single and reading this blog online, you've got everything you need to begin online dating. It's not just for weirdos anymore.

Weight Watchers

In July I consulted with my physician and he told me that I was getting older and fatter and I'd have more problems with weight if I didn't lose some of it. So, I talked with Milady, who is a Registered Nurse and the Font of all Wisdom in health related matters. She agreed with my Doc, and we cast about for the best regimen for an old fat man to follow.

We settled on Weight Watchers, and I've been following it online religiously, watching what I eat and trying to step up my physical activity. When I began this program I weighed 100 lbs more than my recommended weight, which I take with a grain of salt. (Yeah, right. 156 lbs.. in Yemen, maybe).

But, the plan seems to be working. I've lost 10% of my body mass and the inches are coming off, slowly but surely. About 1.5-2.0 lbs per week. Some weeks I screw up and gain a pound, but that only makes me redouble my efforts. I just now set a new goal, the first one having been met. I'll be svelte and sleek in another year, if I don't get run over by a garbage truck before then.

This is the first time I've blogged about the program, and it will probably be the last. Once you get in the habit of logging what you eat, it starts to make sense why you're gaining weight, and if you lie about it to the computer, you're only lying to yourself. Some of the actual food values are hard to find, especially the regional dishes, (try finding some of the stuff that a Cajun eats on a generic food chart). Still, it's doable.

If you're looking for a relatively painless weight loss plan, take a look at Weight Watchers. I'm a convert.

Fall Back

I awoke this morning at 6:00 a.m. as is my wont on Sunday, only to realize that it was actually 5:00. Oh, joy. We've fallen back.

Yeah, I knew in my frontal brain that the time change was early this morning, but my subconscious clock just doesn't care. It still gets daylight and it will get dark and the way we keep track of time is a distraction. Still, the requirement is there to regulate civilized life, to keep society humming along. We still keep appointments on a schedule that is determined by a mechanical device I strap to my wrist. So, I just now changed it to read 6:33 to reflect the current societal reality and strapped the damned thing to my wrist.

So, why do we change our clocks twice per year? I recall as a child that they were concerned about energy usage, but Wikipedia cites studies that say the amount of energy savings are minimal, if any.

The U.S. Dept. of Transportation (DOT) concluded in 1975 that DST might reduce the country's electricity usage by 1% during March and April,[7] but the National Bureau of Standards (NBS) reviewed the DOT study in 1976 and found no significant savings.

However, we continue to move our clocks about, a twice per year waltz that seems locked in our collective experience. I'm not sure it makes any difference, but we continue to do it.

Sunday Morning Dawg

It's been a beautiful weekend, and we spent most of it outside.

It's been a good weekend to be a dawg. Sunny skies, moderate temps, and I brought home a couple of sausage biscuits that the kids didn't eat. The dog loves sausage biscuits.

Saturday SEC

After watching grandkids last night, Milady and I settled in with the two youngest and one step-granchild. I woke the step-grand at four a.m. and we went to the deer stand, where we ate sausage biscuits and drank cocoa on the deer stand, but no joy on the deer. A fog rolled in at daylight and I couldn't see a thing. The deer could have been doing the hoogy-boogy on my pipeline and I wouldn't have known it. Such is the thrill of hunting in the Louisiana swamps. At about 9:00 we climbed down and I taught him to drive the Mule.

Got home and helped Milady with the young'uns until their parents picked them up about noon. Then we felt the quiet of the house and fell into bed for a well-deserved nap. Met some friends for supper and now we're home to watch the biggest game of the SEC regular season. LSU vs Alabama. As I'm posting from Louisiana, you know where my loyalty lies. Milady is an LSU grad, but her family hails from Tuscaloosa.

Watching Grandkids

While our kids go to a party, we're watching grandkids tonight.

This kid is pulling up on everything. In another month or so, he'll be walking.

The Lady Hunter

Savage introduced a new rifle today based on their successful bolt action line. The Lady Hunter. As always, you can click on the picture for a better view.

The Savage Facebook page says that it will be offered in long action and short action, initially in eight chamberings. MSRP is listed at $819, and it features a shorter length of pull, higher comb, shorter reach from pistol grip to trigger, slimmer fore-end and lighter front-end weight.

Some might not like that roll-over comb, but if you've ever shot one, you know how much it helps with recoil. That forward slope pulls the rifle away from your face in recoil and helps with perceived muzzle rise. It doesn't bust you in the chops like some rifles.

I also note that Savage has done away with the god-awful, butt-ugly cocking indicator/bolt release on the right side of the receiver. Newer models I've seen have a button near the trigger guard to release the bolt. Much more elegant.

I bet that rifle is a shooter. It might be just the ticket for small statured people. They don't have all the specifics yet on their website, but I can wait.

Simple Supper

There's a new place between work and home, Guillory's Specialty Meats. It's an old fashioned butcher shop and we've traded with them several times since they opened last month. This afternoon I stopped at the grocery for baking potatoes, then went over to Guillory's Meats for a select ribeye.

Brought them home and marinated the steaks in a little Lawrey's Garlic Marinade, then scrubbed the potatoes and popped them into the microwave. After Milady got home we dropped the steaks on the grill until they were a nice medium rare.

That's an easy supper and a good butcher shop that stocks good steaks is an asset to the whole community. Every time I go into that place, it's busy. He sells everything from fine steaks to pork chops to chickens and bacon. While I was talking with the checkout gal today, she told me that the owner is putting in his own smokehouse and they hope to expand the product line. I can't hardly wait.

Savage Arms

Savage Arms is previewing its new product lines on Facebook. They started at noon today and so far they're rolled out three new items. The first is an upgrade to their Hunter line of rifles. These come as a package with Nikon scopes, which is a serious upgrade. The second product line is a pump shotgun set up for security work. It's got a ghost-ring sight and they claim that it has a rotary bolt. For those of us old enough to remember the Winchester 1200/1300 line of pump shotguns, the rotary bolt on those was very smooth and very fast. They claim that street prices on the shotgun will be about $260.00, which isn't bad for a pump shotgun with good sights.

The third piece they previewed is a micro action bolt gun they call the Rascal. It comes with the Accutrigger and peep sights, and looks for all the world like a .22LR.

Now, if they'd come out with a left-hand Axis or a left-hand Stevens 200, I'd buy a couple for grandkids.

Sheriff Speaks His Peace

The Sheriff of Spartanburg County thinks that women should get a concealed weapons permit. It seems that some low-life has had a long history of attacking women and the criminal justice system can't keep him locked up. The scumbag attacked another woman this weekend, she was simply walking her dog in the park. The Sheriff's answer:

Wright said, "It's too bad someone with a concealed weapons permit didn't walk by. That would fix it." He said people are tired of doing the right thing and criminals getting away with their actions.

He said several times, "I want you to get a concealed weapons permit."

At one point, Wright held up a fanny pack and said, "They make this right here where you can conceal a small pistol in them. They got one called The Judge that shoots a .45 or a .410 shell. You ain't got to be accurate; you just have to get close."

I tend to agree with the Sheriff.

Random Ramblings

We're in that lull betwixt football and basketball at the school house, so I'm able to take a short break in the afternoons. It's like the calm before the storm, but I'll take it.

I've settled on my hunting loads for this year, but a thread over at one of the forums got me to wondering... We all know what a great cartridge the .30-30 is, and how much game it has accounted for over the years. I feel like a big part of that success is that the cartridge throws a big slow bullet at a reasonable velocity and the ammo companies have had many, many years to perfect that old bullet. Think Remington Core-Lokt, or Winchester Power-Point. For that matter, the likewise offerings from Speer, Sierra or Hornady. Those are great bullets. I wonder what would happen if I'd load some in the .308? Kept to moderate velocities, they should work just fine, and those bullets have a long bearing surface. I'm thinking 2200-2400 fps, those bullets, sighted 2" high at 100 yards, they'd be close to dead on at 150 and down just 4" at 200. That might make a dandy little deer load for youngsters.

Another think I've been thinking about is putting a Scout mount on one of my Winchester 94s and trying a forward-mounted scope. I know that it would take some gunsmithing, primarily some drilling and tapping, and I have the perfect candidate rifle for the experiment.