Half Asleep

I'm sitting here half asleep and trying to figure out what I want to post. I know there're things I want to put up here but I'm not so sure I can do so coherently at this point. I apologize in advance if I write something that leaves you scratching your head trying to figure it out.

I've had a pretty Thanksgiving holiday. Got to see mom and dad, my grandparents, aunt and uncle, cousins, and an uncle who I hadn't seen in a couple of years at least. Bro and his better half made it in as well, as did little sis, if only for Thanksgiving day.

Dad's been trying to get sick pretty much all day today. It's made him a little grumpy but he realized it and tried his best to moderate himself. Did a pretty good job, too.

He and I had mom try out several pistols that I brought with me this time. Dad had asked me to bring some so that she could get a feel for which one fit her hand the best. She ended up really liking the Star BM. I offered to give it to them but dad insisted on paying me for it. I showed dad how to field strip it but I'm hoping that mom will take some time with me in the near future to learn how to operate and care for it. It's in need of a re-finish right now as most of it is gone off the front and backstrap but I did have a couple of extra magazines for it. I plan on checking at Gander the next time I'm in LR to see how much they'll charge to either re-blue or parkerize a pistol. If it's close to reasonable, I'll probably take it back with me over Christmas to have that done.

I'm quite impressed by the amount of light that the tritium vials in the XS Sights Big Dot put out. I've noticed the past couple of nights that there's enough that there's a small patch of light washing around the rear sight. I plan on stopping by D, R, and T's tomorrow on the way home. I hope that I'll have the opportunity to try the new sights out while I'm there.

Frustration and Gratification

Well, it seems that I was a bit hasty about announcing my employment. My boss did indeed receive an email stating that I had passed my background check and that I was good to go. However, it seems that the background check that had come back was for another gentleman who had just been hired whose middle name is Barrett. My background check results did not come in until yesterday and therefore today was my first day on the payroll.

The only real problem that resulted from the miscommunication was that, since I thought I was off contract, I didn't send my time sheet in to my employment agency until this morning. Which means that it will be a week from Thursday before I get my next check. Things are going to be a bit tight what with the holiday travel I have planned and it being the end of the month but I'm pretty sure I will be able to squeeze by.

On another note, I made several purchases over the past month and a half that have all come in recently. The first is my Blade-Tech holster and magazine pouch for my Glock. I'm satisfied with the workmanship in their products, as always. My only gripe is that the mag pouch is set up so that the mag can only be inserted in one direction and it just happens to be opposite of the way I prefer to have the mag seated. But that's a rather minor annoyance.

I also received some XS big dot sights for the Glock. I've not had a chance to shoot with them yet. I'll post an update once I have.

Lastly, I've gotten an ACE lightweight stock for my AR. It's very close in length to the setting I had the CTR stock set for and doesn't yank whiskers out of my face every other time I shoulder it. Should have used a lube on the foam padding while installing it. I ended up taking out a couple of chunks. Figure I'll just get some electrical tape or black duct tape and patch it up. In order to match the stock, I also picked up a black Magpul pistol grip (the non-modular one) and put the old black handguards back on the upper. It's a true EBR again.

Wheee!

Well, it's finally official. I am now a direct, full-time employee at my workplace. After a year of contract work, I'm now getting salary and benefits. It'll be nice to finally have health insurance again.

My new debit card has arrived. My last one had to be canceled because of some dill-hole in Austin, TX (supposedly) fraudulently charging $0.15 to my account. That's right, fifteen cents. I figure they were waiting to see if I noticed and then charge more later. Oh well.

I up and joined a gym today. A couple of the fellas at work go there regularly and suggested I try it out. It was especially tempting because our company has a corporate account with them which means I get a discount. Paying less rocks. I'm currently planning on going three times a week. I'm hoping I can last this time 'round.

Last, but not least, li'l sis has (finally) been given a store in Jackson, TN. We're all ecstatic that she's been promoted but I'm a little disappointed that she didn't get one closer to me. I can live with it, though. Now she just needs to see about getting her concealed carry license since she's where she's gonna be for a while. Told you I'd pay for it, Binker, and I'm sticking to that. Give me a yell and we'll figure out when and where you can take the class.

Cracks Me Up

I don't know what it is but every few months I see another link to the Lolcats page and I just have to browse for a while. And every time I see a new picture that just cracks me up. Take this one for instance...



I just about died.

What is Libertarianism?

I've had several people ask me recently, "What exactly is libertarianism, anyway?" I've attempted to answer these rather succinctly, as these folks weren't looking for a dissertation, with the phrase, "We should be allowed to do whatever we want so long as we don't interfere with the rights of others." I wasn't really satisfied with that answer and so I've plunged into the Wikipedia entry on Libertarianism. What I've come up with are a couple of quotes from that page that I believe to hit the high points of the libertarian philosophy (at least as I see it):

"...individual liberty, constitutionally limited government, peace, and reliance on the institutions of civil society and the free market for social order and economic prosperity..."

"Libertarians are committed to the belief that individuals, and not states or groups of any other kind, are both ontologically and normatively primary; that individuals have rights against certain kinds of forcible interference on the part of others; that liberty, understood as non-interference, is the only thing that can be legitimately demanded of others as a matter of legal or political right; that robust property rights and the economic liberty that follows from their consistent recognition are of central importance in respecting individual liberty; that social order is not at odds with but develops out of individual liberty; that the only proper use of coercion is defensive or to rectify an error; that governments are bound by essentially the same moral principles as individuals; and that most existing and historical governments have acted improperly insofar as they have utilized coercion for plunder, aggression, redistribution, and other purposes beyond the protection of individual liberty."

Veteran's Day Sale

Blade-Tech is having a Veteran's Day sale in which just about everything is 25% off. I have several of their holsters and a mag pouch and I'm very pleased with the quality/price point ratio even when they're not having a sale. In fact, I'll probably order an item or two for my new Glock while I'm at it.

Go check it out.

Tastes Like Chicken

I'm gonna have to eat a little crow here. After my Double Action Friendly I Ain't post, I went and bought a used Glock 21. Well, I say I bought it but actually TM was the one to talk the guy down to $350. TM then set me up with a new 3.5# trigger bar, grip plug, 13 round magazine (the original was only a 10), and a new slide stop as the old one was missing the vast majority of its finish. And I gotta say, I'm quite satisfied with the trigger. It's kinda like a soft two-stage trigger on a rifle with a really long first stage. And I hit with it just as well or better than with my Witness.

Think I'll keep it.

Also, TM let me know that CDNN is running a sale on G21 (non-SF frame) 13 round mags for $14.99 each. (In looking the link up, I noticed that they're now $16.99 and out of stock to boot! Gee, I wonder what brought that on? < /sarcasm >) They're marked "Law Enforcement Use Only" but they're perfectly legal for those of us in states that are still (relatively) free. I picked up two and a holster while I was at it.

Remember, Remember...

...the Fifth of November, the Gunpowder Treason and Plot. I can think of no reason why the Gunpowder Treason should ever be forgot.

And remember, it ain't just some line from a recent movie.

Put Up or Shut Up

Well, if the one-eyed monster can be believed, it appears that Barack Obama will be the next president of these United States. Much as I'd like to comment on this event, I'm going to keep my mouth shut.

"Why," you may ask? Because I didn't vote. Or perhaps I should amend that. I was unable to vote. I submitted my change of address form near the end of the deadline for this election and apparently that form was lost in the mail. I was thus unable to vote in my old county as my photo ID shows my new address in my new county.

But just because I won't comment on the results doesn't mean you shouldn't. If you're reading this, by all means, share your thoughts on the matter.

I will say that I pray the good Lord that He will aid Mr. Obama in the leadership of our nation. It's a tough job that may well be tougher for Mr. Obama due to his race. I certainly don't envy him.