I do not talk to much about politics or major gun issues on my blog because, well, I don’t have any credibility in that area.  Even if I have an opinion and even if I can articulate it, I don’t have much knowledge or experience to back it up, so I prefer to leave that to those who can like Tam, Weer’d, or pretty much anyone other than myself, but yesterday I got an email asking me to help get the word out on the debacle that is NBC.

I had not heard of the people sending the email and was not sure what to think, so I asked around and conversed a little with the woman who sent the email and since I do believe that what NBC appears to be doing is dangerous not only to our Second Amendment rights, but to our entire way of life, I decided that I would step out a little and post the link. 

Clearly, I do not have enough background to add any validity to Remington or this case, but I do think it is at least worth my tossing this out there for you all to decide for yourselves.

While we are at the beach I was inside cooking dinner when my family started yelling “Come here, Mo, come here.”  Of course, I ran outside and saw this…

E was trying to shoot into the little black circle on the hot tub mat.  She says she wants to be an expert shooter like mom.  Isn’t it nice when kids still look up to their parents based on love and not so much talent.

Again, today I am in the kitchen when I hear, “You have to come here and see your daughter.”  I did and this is what I saw…

I have never talked to her about knife fighting, so I am not exactly sure where this came from, but I am kind of thinking I don’t need Arete with her around.

Last night I got an email from Mrs. Groundhog.  She won $300 in our first Give-A-Way and she decided to use the money to attend 3 courses.  The first one was this last Saturday.  This is what she had to say with some minor editing for clarification from me…

I took my first training class on Saturday and it was wonderful.  We were supposed to be at class at 7:45 and it was a 2 hour drive to get to class. We made it a few minutes late but all was well.  There were 12 in the class with 4 instructors.  We had a couple of hours of classroom instruction before going to the range.  Groundhog(the hubby) even said he  learned some new stuff and he has been shooting for years.  Then out to the range.  I have some bad habits that I needed to change.  I flinch which my husband has told me about many times.  They kept trying to correct my stance since I stand strange.  Unfortunately, when I stand correctly it hurts my bad knee.  They showed me how to adapt how I was standing so it is more effective without being painful.  And most importantly, they told me what we had suspected for a long time, my beloved Glock 17 is too big for my hand and that I need a new pistol.  Neither Groundhog nor I had ever been taught how to appropriately fit a gun so now we know what to look for.  For the class, I borrowed one of theirs, a Springfield 1911.  They recommended that I try the brand new Smith and Wesson Shield.  They said I might need to go down to a 380 to get the best fit for my hand. I want to get the new pistol before I take the next class; just doesn’t make sense to do otherwise.  It will probably be sometime this summer before I can go back.  ( With the contest money, I will be able to take 3, 4 hours classes. They recommend you take a class, practice those skills and then come back later for the next class.)

Is anyone else crazy excited????  I am about to burst out of my skin with joy!  We helped get her on her way and look how much valuable information she gained in just one class and she has 2 more to go!!!  Of course, the real credit goes to her for taking the initiative to get training.  So, so proud of you Mrs. Groundhog!!  You are doing superb!!!

A week or so ago John asked me if I would be interested in coming to work for him.  The job description went something like this: Low pay, lots of misery.  Heavy commitment.   I don’t know about you guys, but for some reason I read that and thought…PERFECT!!

We talked back and forth for a while and still do not have all the details worked out, but basically I am going to help him in anyway I can: web site, publicity, that kind of thing.  I also will helping out with his classes by helping him set up, switching out targets, etc.

Clearly this is an amazing opportunity for me because I get to be around guns, I get to learn from someone I greatly admire, I get to help someone who has helped me tremendously and I get a few bucks to put into my ammo fund or perhaps an AR someday or if I don’t screw it up and he keeps me on, maybe both! There is no chance I am going to screw it up, but that was kind of funny.

There will be a lot of new and exciting things happening for FPF Training in the next few months and I am thrilled to be a tiny part of it.  Of course, I am going to be an endless advocate telling you countless times that you should really consider taking a class from John, but that is nothing new.  I have been doing that since day one the only difference is now I get a few dollars to do so.  I think it’s a win-win. Probably more win for me, but if you actually take a course you will see that you are the one that will come out on top.

This weekend will be my first official time helping out at the range, but the class is small and there isn’t a ton for me to do yet because I still have so much to learn, which means I will also be able to participate in the training.  I think I might have mentioned a time or two or twenty that I love to train.

Bought my first pair of 5.11 tactical pants for the occasion

It is a very exciting time!

Feeling extremely blessed at all the wonder opportunities that have come my way.  Not sure I deserve them, but I darn well know I am gonna appreciate them and do whatever I can to earn them.

At the suggestion of a friend, I decided to change the picture at the top of the blog from my Glock to my new everyday carry, the M&P.

He also suggested that maybe I take the picture with the slide closed.  When he said that I had to laugh because, of course, I would not take a picture with the magazine out, slide open now, but back then I was terrified of my gun.  I was terrified of making a mistake. I thought if my gun was not on me then it had to be empty with the slide open.  I still store my guns without a magazine inserted and the slide open, but not my carry gun.  Actually at the time I took the picture of the Glock, I probably wasn’t even carrying with one in the chamber.  Silly girl.

Anywho, there you have it…my everyday carry set up.  Actually, I go back and forth pretty regularly between my The Holster Site holster and my Remora, but I am vain and I really like the “AGirl” wording, so I chose that holster for the picture.

We are home after a fabulous week at the beach.  Here is a little of what we did.

Easter Mimosas

Kids racing dad…dad won

Me sun bathing

Of course my M&P came along for the fun

Dad and E kite flying

Not really a pet

This is Squirmy and Betsy

Lobster bake

Me smooching on my man

I really like him

Unless you are sick. I woke up this morning not feeling super chipper. My neck was a little stiff, my glands a little swollen and achy, so I did what any normal person would do, I went for a run. I adore running along the beach. Not in the sand, but on the street right next to it. The sound of my shoes, the quiet, the ocean…paradise. My daughter’s friend is training for her high school track team, so they came along. I felt pretty good until I stopped, then it was downhill from there. Which doesn’s really make sense in terms of running because going downhill is easier than up, but the point is, I felt icky.

I have been determined not to let my body’s attitude beat me, so I continued on with our days plans to visit the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, shopping and make a delicious lunch of homemade sushi, but I did opt to stay home and rest this evening.

I had no intention of being cooped up, but at least it’s Tuesday and there are new episodes of NCIS and NCIS LA!! Travelled 6 hours to watch TV, read blogs, post on FB, and text friends…thank God there is a gorgeous ocean view right outside my window!

After a very busy morning and afternoon, my family is having a bit of a rest, so I am doing what I always do when I have a few extra minutes on my hands, I read all of you. While hanging out at Brigid’s place I read an awesome post about protection without a gun and in the comments I read…

Guffaw in AZ said…
Paranoia presumes mental aberration – no real threat.
Thinking defensively when there’s a real threat, or possible real threat.
That’s realistic.
Great Post!

I love that comment.

I can’t figure out how to link and all that with my iPad. Hopefully the link works. If not search Home On The Range, it’s worth it.

Our family had a glorious Easter. I know “glorious”, not one you hear a lot, but it really is the word that best discribes our day. I also use the word dandy on an almost daily basis.

Every single moment of yesterday was perfect. Nothing extraordinary happened, but something about this place, all being together, the food, the wine…I was in the absolute best mood.

My husband made the observation that last year at this time I was the farthest thing from relaxed. I had just started carrying my gun, it was the first time I had carried it out of Virginia, I was still very very jumpy and I was still trying to convince myself and my family that nothing more than a not nice guy had taken a few bucks from me. I re-read a post I wrote while I was here last year and I talked about how nothing bad really happened that day in the parking lot. That I wasn’t even sure if the guy had nefarious intent. My husband said he knew at the time he read that post, that what I was writing couldn’t be true. That there was no way for me to be as rocked to the core terrified because some guy asked for money, but he didn’t ask me about it.

I did leave here last year more calm and more at ease. I felt more comfortable in my skin and more comfortable with my gun.

This year I am doing dandy, but my poor husband really needed this vacation. His work has been mighty stressful. He just opened a new office in a new market for his company and I am sure you can imagine the pressure associated with that. I wouldn’t say we have ever said I “need” a vacation, but this year, he needed one. I have loved seeing him relaxed and rejuvenated. We are only on day 2, so I have high hopes for the rest of the week.

Another upside to this place is that all the sun and fun wipe our kids out. I truly enjoy them, but I also truly enjoy when they are asleep. Last night they settled into watch a movie and were asleep by 7:30. Our older children decided to do the hot tub thing and my husband and I decided to sneak off and watch a movie. This has become a brand new favorite activity for us.

Since my husband loves me, he said he would make me a martini and then try to find a death movie for me to watch. That’s his way of teasing me about the fact that I now watch things other than “What About Bob”. He found the movie 300 on TNT.

I realize most of you have most likely already seen it. My husband is currently laughing his ass off at me that I write about movies 4 years after they were released to a group of people who probably saw them the weekend they were released, but I am waaayyyyy late to the party, so ya all are just gonna have to relive them all with me.

I had never heard of the movie and I had no idea what it was about, but our only other option was Yogi Bear and since Yogi doesn’t get shot in that movie, I opted for 300.

By the time we got settled and figured out which of the 900 remotes went to the TV in our room and then how to work it, we had missed about 25 minutes of the it. I am trying to watch as my husband is trying to explain what happened leading up to this point in the movie and I was a little confused, but by the end of the first commercial, I caught up.

I was surprised at how much I liked this movie. It didn’t have guns, but it had a whole heck of a lot of warrior mindset. No surprise here, I loved the queen. The movie was chuck full of quotable lines, but my favorite was…

Persian Emissary: “Our arrows will blot out the sun!” Stelios: “Then we will fight in the shade.” 

I really want to see it again from the beginning without an overly excited man in my ear giving me a history lesson at the same time.

Formula for a super fabulous day…beach, family, food, wine, Easter Egg Hunt, hot tub, more food, more wine, and a death movie.

Both of our latest Give-A-Way winners wrote me a little note to share with all of you.  I am so excited for them and for the opportunity to be an encouragement to them as they embark on this new adventure of self reliance and self protection. 

From winner #28
I entered this contest because I have recently purchased my first gun, and now I want to become the most proficient at using it that I ever can be. Seeing how the state of the world has become so violent and crime-riddled, I didn’t feel safe any longer, even in my own home. That’s when I realized that I had to let go of my old fears of owning and shooting a weapon, and take the proverbial bull (barrel) by the horns. You see, I was a student of Yoga, a pacifist, and against the death penalty, and guns didn’t seem to have any place in my lifestyle. All of that has changed as this world has changed so much as to be unrecognizable from my childhood world. We could safely play outdoors at night then, unafraid of monsters lurking in the shadows who would hurt us.

After studious searches over the internet, I decided on a Glock 19, 9mm semi-automatic handgun as my first gun purchase, and a Browning Buck Mark .22 handgun for practice and fun, as my second gun. The Glock 19 seemed like a gun that could protect myself and my family if the need ever arose and we were invaded in our own home. I just wanted to at least having a fighting chance should someone decide to break-in and physically harm me or mine. Being that I am a mere 5’3″ and handicapped with life-long rhuematoid arthritis, I wouldn’t have stood a chance if someone wanted to overpower me and/or harm me. I know from personal experience what it’s like to be assaulted and violated in the worst way. I was once held captive at knifepoint for hours, and raped by someone whom I knew and thought I could trust. I never ever want to be so helpless again and brutalized at some madman’s whim. I am ecstatic that I’m going to be able to take the classes to learn how to shoot the gun, and clean it, and to act responsibly and legally with all aspects of gun ownership. With all the support and encouragement here at A Girl And Her Gun’s blog and FB page, I am taking control of my life, standing tall and facing my past and future fears of the known, and the unknown … and I’ve never felt stronger nor more capable of changing my life, than I do right now with all of you and your support and friendship. Thank you for making this possible. I can hardly wait to set-up the classes and get out to the firing range.

Kindest Regards,

Mazie

And from winner #20