The SigBoy Chronicles

Sigboy Sneaky Sack

2011-07-16T04:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, Okay, I know it's more of a bag than a sack, but it sounds better.

We all know that chest rigs are cool, but when can you wear them? No matter what happens you run the risk of looking like a mall ninja, and nobody wants that.
What can you do to keep the Grey man image, but still carry enough gear?

Just put it alll in a sneaky bag.
It consists of two zippered pockets and the external mag pouches.

External mag pouches-
1 pistol mag
Flashlight
2 AR mags

First Pouch-
Pistol (in maxped holster)
M6 light/laser combo

Rear Pouch-
TQ
Pressure dressing
4 123 batteries
Pistol mag
AR mag
small fixed blade knife

The bag is a Maxpedition Active Shooter Bag with Mag front

Currently I'm only using this as a car bag, with the pistol and everything in it except the rifle mags. It goes in and out of the house everyday, and it has not gathered any undo attention. It also is very handy to carry into hotel check in at the end of a long day driving. I've never had anybody look twice at it.

Do Blogs Have a Soul?

2011-07-15T10:04:00.000-07:00

Thanks to SnarkyBytes, we have a new meme that reminds me I have a blog.

Wander Lust

2011-06-06T06:41:00.000-07:00

The time has come again for me to give into my wanderlust. To pick up these wonderful Texas roots that I have planted and to travel to the Pacific North West. To trade Tornadoes for Volcanoes and Earthquakes (I've missed earthquakes). The decision was not an easy one to make, Mrs Sigboy actually pushed this one very hard. Her health should be better in the mountains (and contrary to popular opinion, I'd like to keep her alive at least a bit longer). But everything fell into place once I finally gave into it and allowed myself to follow that star that always seems to be pulling me anyways. The pull towards the next great adventure, to see and learn new things, to not live my life constrained by what society says you must do.

As you read this, the Sigboy caravan is heading north, enjoying a family vacation as we make our way to Spokane. Many stops are planned, Rushmore, Little Big Horn, maybe even an old gold mine or two. But the leaving of Texas will be bittersweet.

To all my Texas friends that I am leaving behind, know that you are the best group of people I have ever met in my travels. From liberals to conservatives, religious zealots to hippy's, door kickers to zombie hunters, from college students to the old and infirmed, you have all touched my life and made me a better man for it. Never have I lived in a place where I felt so welcome and appreciated. Never did I think that I would live in a place where mother's would come up to me and thank me for the influence that I have had on their son's life. Never have I felt more at home then I do here. Thank you for your hospitality and your open arms. Never have I felt like I truly contributed to society, and been blessed for it. Thank you for letting me be a Texan, at least for a little while.

My friends, until fate brings us together again. I leave you with the words of Tolkien, who captured this far more eloquently then I could.

"All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king."
J.R.R. Tolkien

Lack of Practice

2011-06-02T06:28:00.001-07:00

Last weekend, a few friends and I hosted the Second Annual Zombie Fry, a weekend event full of shooting drills and practical classes. I will post a larger AAR later, but for right now I want to talk about me.
I have not been shooting as much as I like, and as a result, my dryfire has fallen off as well. It was very evident this weekend that my skills had slipped. Sure, I had a great time, and even learned a few lessons. However, I was not happy with myself in any way.

Here is one of the stages we shot. Start at 7 yards, draw and engage 4 steel targets with two rounds each. Run 75 yards back to your rifle, and engage the same 4 targets again.

This stage is awesome, you are able to get your heart rate going with the run, and we intentionally did not paint the steel, this made them harder to pickup in the background.

But you notice that my pistol handling looks slow. When it came to the rifle, I didn't get it loaded and into service quick enough (granted you missed my sudden slide into my rifle after the run). All things that are easily remedied by practice and dry fire.

It's time to get back on the training. I have let myself go. Will you help me hold myself accountable?

The Man in The Arena

2011-02-17T05:32:00.001-08:00

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

I Won!

2010-12-18T14:44:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Riverwalker and his stealth survival blog for hosting his Stealth Survival Holiday Special! After entering myself in the comments about 50 hobillion times, I won!
The prize was a free Guardian Deluxe 2 Person Kit from Stealth Survival and 1800prepare.com!
I also get to do a quest post on his blog. I guess that means I'd better get writing!

Assange vs Obama

2010-12-17T13:06:00.000-08:00

Now I know that this really isn't Obama. Why you ask? Obama is wearing a suit jacket in the Oval Office. We all know he doesnt do that!

Via Jeux

Hey! I Have a Blog!

2010-10-26T17:20:00.001-07:00

At the dinner table today Sigboy Jr asked what song I would be if I could choose. I decided to turn it into a MeMe.

I give you The Highwayman, The Devils Right Hand

Mrs. Sigboy wanted in on the action as well.

Shhh! Be Wery Quiet, I'm hunting Wabbits.

2010-09-07T18:30:00.000-07:00

Per the Firearm Blog, It looks like Wilson Combat has a new compensator and silencer out. It incorporates a Lock ring down on the comp, no more screwing silencers on and off. It looks very, very slick. The comp also looks like it will limit muzzle rise very well.

Right now I use a Micalek comp on my 16" AR, it is very noisy and I don't dare use it indoors in fear of going deaf. But outside, it works great, almost zero muzzle rise and very quick transitions.

I have been looking for something better, something that I would not be afraid to shoot indoors and that I can still use in competition. This just may do that. Now how do I sell the wife on the $1055 price tag and $200 excise tax?

But I can shoot awot of wabbits...

Girding Ourselves Tighter

2010-09-03T18:32:00.001-07:00

Matt G has a post up about taking his daughter and her bestest friends out to Ft Worth for a special dinner tonight.

The Money quote:

I, of all people, recognize that the world is actually a safer place than we give it credit for being, and I don't much think about these things, until I get put in charge of Other People's Children.

But when I take a group of kids downtown on a Friday night, I gird myself a bit tighter.

It is not often that words as honest as these are spoken. I know that when parents entrust me with their children, whether it be boy scouts or my daughter's friends over for a visit, I know how important their safety is. I take it very seriously, and personally. I would much rather take a bullet and/or neutralize a threat to any child in my care then make a phone call to a parent when their child has been hurt.

"Hello, Mrs. Soccermom? This is SigBoy. I have some bad news. Your child was raped, murdered, or even worse while I was responsible for them." I could not live with the shame that would incur. I could not live with myself, at all.

No sir, not on my watch. I will gird myself tighter.

Single Issue Voters

2010-08-26T08:35:00.000-07:00

I don't normally link other bloggers, but this is a convincing argument, and an example of a damn fine blog post.

Phil writes:

The unmistakable lesson here is that, to secure liberty and civil society, the first Americans had to become laser-focused on their right to possess firearms. But are we to believe that the same approach is somehow required today? In this year of burgeoning government, political corruption, and shrinking personal freedom, the answer is yes. As Charlton Heston explained in his speech to the National Press Club in 1997: “The right to keep and bear arms is the one right that allows rights to exist at all.”

Until Second Amendment rights gain full and irrevocable standing in 21st century American law, we remain in the lingering shadow of General Gage and his tyrannical strategy of public disarmament. In 1775, we quickly became a “one-issue organization” to preserve freedom. Today, the remarkable degeneration of our free society demands the same unique focus.

Go read the rest, it's worth your time.

Tempering A Broken Heart

2010-08-25T17:08:00.000-07:00

Last week I had the pleasure of hosting a very good friend of mine that was visiting from Canada. Unfortunately he was suffering from a broken heart and had recently tried to lose himself in a bottle. Luckily, he bought my logic that the Texas heat would kill him if he decided to stay in said bottle and sobered up for his ten day visit. I tried the usual lines, it wasn't meant to be, she was a skanky whore anyways, you know, the usual. It seemed to work for the most part, occasional bouts of anger and severe emotion plagued him. Luckily he held it together and I like to think that I sent him home in a better place (a little recoil therapy never hurt anyone).

But I digress, I also spent the time remembering what it was like to be in my early twenties and prone to heartbreak. Tempered thru the lens of time and quenched by a loving wife, I only have two heartbreaks of note. One that I deserved, and one that I never should have involved myself with in the first place. They both are wounds that can still be opened, perhaps by my own weakness, or by the simple power of old vivid emotions. Luckily, they are nothing like they used to be. Time may not heal all wounds, but the pain does fade into obscurity, leaving behind only the value of the lessons learned. Wether it be the knowledge that you should immediatly dump a woman that drunkenly propositions your best friend, right in front of you. Or the fact that relationships are a two way street and involve mutual likes and dislikes. The neccesity of being equally yoked in a relationship (granted thus generally doesnt come until a few years into marriage).

Finally, the fact of the matter is that there is an eternal companion out there for everyone. This quest is often fraught with peril, the twists and turns can be daunting. Not to mention having to deal with bandits and the occasional harpy. There may or may not be dragons, and nobody knows how long the quest will take, or how many miles you will have to travel, but I promise that there is a princess and a castle at the end.

Descahin, I love you like a brother. I know that it will get better and soon this will all fade into a funny story. You don't have to believe me, you just have to trust me.

Big Brown Truck

2010-08-24T07:42:00.000-07:00

I have the coolest friends.....My thank you gift for hosting my Canadian friend.
5 pmags with 150 rounds and an extra case of 223!

Cursed Guns?

2010-08-23T18:13:00.000-07:00

Many years ago I bought a cursed gun. It was a Ruger Super Blackhawk, stainless, in 44 Magnum with a 11 3/8 barrel. The previous owner had met his demise from a shotgun in the hands of a jealous husband. I gave $500 to his father for it. I kept it for about 4 years. There was nothing particularly noticeable about it, the only oddity was that every time I carried it hunting, I never saw, or shot, anything.

I traded it off for my STI on my wife's birthday in 2007. I did a spectacular job of covering up a $1500 pistol purchase. Needless to say when she found out, she wasn't happy. I understand that this was my own doing and not the pistols. The curse revealed itself in another way. Every major match I shot that pistol in led to gun problems costing me my trophies. No amount of money that I dumped into it seemed to make a difference. Two weeks ago, my patience wore thin. Doing mag change drills in the living room I broke the grip. The very next day I traded it off. I was going to go simple, take my 2k in gun trade in and go buy a Glock or a Spingfield XD, a few small changes, a trigger job, a pile of mags and I would be set. Of course, trade in values on a broken pistol were not what I expected them to be. But I think I made out pretty good on the deal:

I traded my STI, 7 mags, and holster for a Tangfolio (basically a matched out CZ75) in 40 S&W, 4 mags, a Bladetech holster, and 2000 bullets. So far I like it more then the STI, a solid metal frame makes it run alot smoother, and I noticed that it was easier to pick up the front sight during recoil. I have only put about 300 rounds thru it, but so far I am pleased. It was explained to me as a gun that even 'I' couldn't break.

My hope is that the money I lost on this deal is enough contrition to break the curse. So what say you? Any cursed gun stories?

Gosh Darn Hippies!

2010-07-27T19:05:00.000-07:00

You are 0% hippie.

Ok, you conservative soul. Do you even believe in global warming? Loosen that necktie a little, and try some organic food. It actually does taste better. And go to a farmer's market--they're fun.

Are you a hippie?
Take More Quizzes

Get off my lawn!

Shooting off the Dust

2010-07-19T05:06:00.000-07:00

I went with some friends to the local LE range this weekend to get some trigger time in. 500 rounds later and I'm back in the groove. I did some one shot draw drills with the STI, ran some drills on some plate racks. I also put my AR through its paces. Then it happened, the worst thing possible. My Fed buddy pulled out an 11" full auto AR that he was just issued. Boy that really brought back some memories, I'd almost forgotten the smell of rapid fire out of an AR. Luckily I still have the ability to keep them all on target at 25 yards.
But, the best part of the day was the pepper popper bay, there was one bay with 5 poppers in it. They were huge and you could go really fast! I am guessing that they are about 12" across, spaced at 7 to 15 yards. I did alot of good target transition practice on them. I was clearing the 5 poppers in about 1.7 seconds from the draw. Good times!

Lucky Gunner Giveaway

2010-07-18T16:51:00.000-07:00

Looks like Steve over at The Firearm Blog is in the middle of a monthly giveaway from LuckyGunner.

Now Steve is a stand up guy, I read his blog every day and I count on his unbiased opinion for most things firearm related.

As for Lucky Gunner, I was playing with a full auto 11" AR this weekend. I know what ammo costs and how quick you can burn through it. They have some very lucrative ammo prices. I have also heard that their customer service is top notch.

Firearms in Family History

2010-07-10T08:18:00.000-07:00

Great Grandpa Albert c.1919

We all know those stories. The family history stories that involve firearms, most people have them. Jay G has his families police revolver, some families have the firearms from WWII. My family story is a bit older than that.

Rumours surround this mythical rifle. It was bought by my Great Grandfather from a stage coach driver on the last stage into Salt Lake City. It was one of those right place/right time deal. The last coach pulled into town and he was there when the stage coach driver decided he didnt need it anymore. It was a Browning High Wall single shot rifle with a bull barrel. He didnt know what caliber it was, but a 32/40 Ballard fit. It shot well, even if it did blow out the cases. Later it was determined that it was actually 30/40 Krag. There are two generations of hunting stories with this rifle. From Deer to Bears and even a Moose.

Only one problem. Nobody had ever even seen it; It dropped off the radar about 50 years ago. Nobody was surprised my Great Grandfather had 12 kids (at least I know he had 12 boys, there may be more...). Luckily, it turned up last weekend, my Great-Uncle Ron had it up in Idaho. Later this month it will be passed onto my Father, and then to me. I will have pictures up when I get them, and I have alot of research to do, at this point all we know is that it's a real Browning from the late 19th or early 20th century(probably touched by JMB himself!). But it is a tangible way to touch my family history, lending a new life to all these old stories. I only hope that a century from now one of my rifles (I even have one picked out!) will illicit such excitement.

Beyond Target Shooting: AAR

2010-06-25T07:39:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I traveled to Bastrop, Texas (down past Austin), and took their one day class 'Beyond Target Shooting'. A friend of mine got some much needed training out of this class and I got to get together with some friends that I don't see very often, and meet some new ones. The class was a beginner level concealed carry class. It primarily focused on the basics of concealed carry and basic draw techniques and malfunction drills.

Topics covered included:
o Mindset and tactics to increase you’re situational awareness.
o Gear Selection
o Carry options
o Drawing from concealment
o Firearm care and maintenance
o Marksmanship fundamentals
o Malfunction clearing
o Various shooting drills to become more proficient and prepared with a handgun for personal protection.

It was a eight hour class and they covered ALOT of material. There was about 18 people in the class and 6 to 8 instructors. From what I gather, the Central Texas Training Group (CTTG) is trying to break into the world of firearms training. They consist of a nice range outside of Bastrop. Affectionately called 'The Farm', and yes, if you caught the reference to cheesy 80's novels, they did it on purpose. The cadre is composed of like minded and well trained people that are willing to pass their knowledge onto others.

The Good; The Bad; The Ugly:

The Good- The range is located in a beautiful area, they share the area with a SASS group, It is levelled off, grassy, and has plenty of mature trees for shade. Currently it is only one berm, with no real bays to speak of. I have been told that there is plans to change that.

The classroom portion of the class dumped alot of information. I consider this to be a good thing because even if you only retain 5% of it, you can do more research later on your own. I also enjoyed how they spoke on mindset and avoiding a fight if at all possible.

Range Drills were your basic draw and fire at the target. Alot of attention was given to proper draw stroke and presentation. Again, this was a basic class, but this is where you lay your foundation. Alot of shooters do not have a firm foundation. As such, they are never consistent and have problems with alot of more advanced techniques.

The Bad- You could tell that this was the first public class that this group had put on. Their syllabus could use some streamlining, brought more into focus with what they want to get out in the time that they have to work with.
They did cover what I consider to be some more advanced material. Namely one handed malfunction drills. I dont think that it was appropriate to this class and that time could have been better spent on other material. That and I am not so sure that I want to be standing next to the local mall ninja who thinks that muzzle discipline goes out the window because he gets to rack his slide on his belt.

The Ugly- There was a few safety range issues. Two students were not up to par with the rest of the class and they were pulled aside. While I agree that was the correct choice, one was on the right end of the line, the other on the left. They each had their own instructor, also a good call. The issue was the fact that the range master would call for a safe line, and they would still be hot. This posses a problem for trying to secure equipment that was forward of the line. It happened twice to me personally. When I hear the RO call the range safe, I am trusting in him to know that it is safe. It wasn't and I was a bit upset about that. What should have happened is that the two shooters should have been put together somewhere away from the rest of the class. But, with only a berm and no real bays, there was no good options.

All in all, I would gladly take another class with them, when CTTG finishes cutting their teeth on these classes and makes the planned range improvements, it will make for a good place to take a class in the Austin area.

Hungover

2010-06-22T07:18:00.000-07:00

Just like it sounds only different. For those of you that dont know I have been eating healthier and generally avoiding things like extra sugars and caffeine. A few months ago I went from 40 oz of soda or so a day to about 20oz every other day.

This weekend I payed for it. Sunday I went to a defensive pistol class down past Austin (AAR to follow). The nine hour drive home was a bit brutal. I hit a 20oz Mountain Dew at 10pm, followed by water, and a Monster energy drink that I nursed from about Midnight til 2am. I arrived home at 3:15 and slept til 8. That was when the company phone started ringing. For the rest of Monday, I felt like I was hung over. I tried to sweat it out with an intense workout, that made me feel better for an hour or two.

No more energy drinks for me. It's like poisoning your body.

I HAVE been that guy

2010-06-10T11:13:00.000-07:00

Salamander has a post up about this pic:

No, it's not the fact that it looks like a fistfight between Rush Limbaugh and Joey Buttafuoco, being broken up by David Arquette (but that really is David). It's Mr. Smooth there in the upper right hand corner.

Several years ago I was at a Goose hunting trip in BF SD, it's just like BFE only in South Dakota instead of Egypt, we arrived into town at about 1am, of course my passengers wanted to partake of the libations so off to the bar we went. The smoke hung in the air, the bar was vacant except for the bartender and two guys playing pool. They were obviously no strangers to this establishment, and they were obviously quite drunk. The three of us sat at the bar and ordered (I, of course, partook of the Roy Rodgers). Ten minutes or so into our drinks, the two gentlemen break out into a fist fight, dragging each other along the bar in a drunken fight of not so epic proportions. Non pulsed I grabbed my drink off the bar, lest I lose my cherry, and swivel the seat around to watch them writhe at my feet as the bartender splits them up.

The bartender throws them out, with a passing reminder that they were welcome back tomorrow, and we finish off our own drinks. The really funny part was when we left, they were in the parking lot, apologizing to each other and pledging their everlasting friendship.

I knew there was a reason I generally avoid bars....

So You Think You Can Shoot a Pistol?

2010-06-08T06:35:00.000-07:00

That question was asked of me at a friends farm last weekend. The second statement went like this: "Grab that Sig of yours and come on over here, I'm going to show you a thing or two."

I pondered to myself what exactly he had in mind. I wander over to the side of the barn where I find six full beer cans set out at about 15 yards (dont worry, it was just Bud Light). He tells me, "Shoot until you miss." I fire and miss low and left about a 1/2 inch. He shoots and misses by a foot. My second shot goes the same place, as does his. My third shot is on target, and I clear three cans. He misses again and I clear the next two when he complains, "You're not going to leave me any to shoot!" I let him shoot the last one and figure we are done with our little shooting escapade.

As Master Yoda would say, "Mistaken you were, hmmm?"

He walks over to the scrap pile and picks up a old aluminium sauce pot and tells me to shoot it twice as he throws it in the air. The pot goes flying and I shoot twice, hitting it both times. Now while I may not be shooting coins anytime soon, this was actually a fairly easy shot and after a bit of this I was asking him what part of it he wanted me to hit. I ran thru two mags of carry ammo during this escapade, and my wallet was starting to feel the pain of $1 plus per bang. We wrapped it up and went in the house.

As a parting shot, I asked him, "Did you really think I couldnt shoot a pistol."

"No," he replied. "I knew you could, I just wanted to see what you could actually do."

The Big Red Boar part II

2010-06-08T06:22:00.000-07:00

The short version of this story is only one sentence; No shot, no sign. He seems to have either left the area or ran into a farmer with his rifle handy. I did get to work on my farmer tan, I must say it's coming along nicely.

About the only excitement came later in the afternoon. I managed to kick up a coyote during the heat of the day. I only caught a glimpse of him as he disappeared into the tall grass. I rushed to go set up where I thought he would come out. I caught sight of him a few times, but was unsure of the exact species of the animal (I would feel really bad if I shot a fawn). He came out of the grass right where I thought he would, about 200 yards away from me. I paused long enough to confirm that is was indeed a coyote, he paused long enough to confirm that I indeed was going to shoot at him. He started running and I started shooting. I fired three rounds at him (Those three 338/06 cases are long gone. I really need to stop dropping those). The first round went over the top of his head and between his ears. He promptly changed direction, I adjusted my lead and shot again. This shot went over his back, my partner said that it was damn close, an inch or less, but a miss is a miss. He changed direction again and picked up the pace. I led him by eight body lengths and figured his distance at 350 to 400 yards. The shot went behind him. One day I will make that shot, and never have a problem with it again. Hindsight tells me that I need to quit shooting at the whole coyote and pick a spot. 'Aim small, miss small'

The Big Red Boar

2010-06-04T08:43:00.000-07:00

Several weekends ago I received a call, a large red boar was decimating crops and making a general nuisance of himself about 90 miles south of me. Grudgingly (raise your hand if you believe that), I headed south to see what assistance I could lend to this problem. A few hours of scouting told me where he was bedding down at, where he was eating, where he was wallowing and the routes he took during these events. But he was nowhere to be seen.

Most of the scouting was being done on four wheelers, now most of you know that I am not a huge fan of hunting on quads, but, this hog was causing problems and had to be found. It had recently rained several inches and there was a bit of mud scattered about. This led me to my fateful decision of the day, I left my rifle in the truck. Instead, I loaded my Ruger revolver with some super powerful loads that should put your average boar down. After all, who wants to clean a muddy rifle after a hunt?

We came across some VERY fresh sign in a field that still had quite a bit of last years corn stubble in it. Parking the four wheeler, I walked some brushy stuff along the edge of the field, the tracks were fresh. I knew that at any moment I was going to smell him. My revolver was in my hand, at a low ready, thumb poised like a old west gunfighter, ready to instantly cock the hammer. A glint of movement caught my eye. Almost 100 yards away was this big red boar, making a run for the fence line, and safety.

What is that rule again? Never take a pistol when you can take a rifle? That choice was the only reason I wont be having home made sausage tomorrow morning for breakfast. But, this weekend I will try again, and maybe I will have some tusks to show off, and more importantly, fresh sausage.

Thought for the Day

2010-05-18T11:20:00.000-07:00

The corporate machine that I work for decided a few weeks ago to reorganize parts of the organization that I work for. They came into Kansas and told about ten people that they were moving their office to Sioux Falls. They all still had jobs, but on May 24th, they had to be in Sioux Falls if they wanted to keep them. 90% of them refused. I don't know what kind of severance package, if any, was offered; nor do I very much care. I have moved across our beautiful country a few times, it's not really a big deal. But, this is not today's point. The people that I work with in Kansas have become difficult to work with, almost hostile in their actions. I can understand that they are a bit bitter, perhaps afraid of change and the unknown. I can honestly say that if they were always like this I would have a hard time dealing with it. I almost think that they are upset at all the people this didn't effect, like me. But, I am also smart enough to know that next month it may be my turn. If that happens, I will either accept their transfer offer or refuse it, but I don't think it would change how I did my job.

My Question is this: Were my co workers always like this? Is this their true nature? Or is it like a cornered animal, lashing out at anything they can out of spite?

Oh, The Horror

2010-05-07T11:58:00.000-07:00

alternate title: Somebody better clean this up before we open.

This was put together by my friend, ZDigger, who never grew up and does cool things with Lego's.

Mr Murphy Wins Again

2010-05-03T11:21:00.000-07:00

I had planned continuously. I had pored over maps, checked my backpack, I even bought a new tent. What was I planning? Nothing less than an epic backpacking hunt in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of Kalifornia. 8,000 plus feet of elevation in a wilderness area loaded with trophy Mule Deer, provided of course, that you were willing to earn them with sore muscles, alot a sweat, salty tears and perhaps even a bit of blood.
The 2010/11 hunting regs were released last week and I called Fish and Game to clarify some issues about my Non-resident status. The ~~bitch~~ professional young lady that answered the phone (Seriously, she did not want to even deal with me. Keep refering me to the new regulation booklet, like that was any clearer. Hello? I called the 'help line' number.), explained to me that if I did not get drawn, they would not be issuing refunds for the tag fees. I knew that getting drawn would be difficult, there was only 400 tags for this zone, but was I willing to give them $250 of my money on a gamble? Probably to only get a preference point in return? The answer, loyal reader, is a resounding 'NO'. For $80 more dollars and less fuel I can drive to Colorado and have a higher chance of success.
Now all I need to do is find a beautiful area of Colorado where I can backpack in and hunt Mule Deer.

Some Governors Do It In Movies

2010-04-28T07:57:00.000-07:00

Some do it in real life.....
How cool is the Texas Governor? Cool enough to stop a coyote intent on eating his dog with one shot from a small auto pistol.
From Yahoo news:

Perry told The Associated Press on Tuesday he needed just one shot from the laser-sighted pistol he sometimes carries while jogging to take down a coyote that menaced his puppy during a February run near Austin.

My Governor is cooler than your Governor.

"Taxonomy of Modern Dangers"

2010-04-27T06:12:00.000-07:00

Shameless stolen from Tam, whose snark never fails to get her on base. This is a homerun and worth passing around.

It occurs to me that some newer readers may not be up on the entire "Taxonomy of Modern Dangers" thing, so as a recap, here are several good reasons to carry a gun:

Zombies (of course)
Pirates
Ninjas
Vampires
Werewolves
Bears
Face-eating monkeys
Killer space robots
Hippies (generally peaceful, but can become erratic and dangerous during mating season)

Various hybrids of the above, such as zombie bears or ninja vampires
Remember: If you are prepared for the dead to walk the earth in search of human brains, then a hurricane or attempted mugging is no big deal.

Isn't this well spoken truth awesome? The only thing I can think to add is clowns.

2010 Pecos Run 'n Gun 'n the Sun

2010-04-20T11:01:00.000-07:00

I decided that before I committed to this, I had better ask Mrs. Sigboy for permission. The conversation went something like this:
"Honey, Phil just told me about a rifle match down in Pecos this August. It's a six mile running course with 4 or 5 shooting stations mixed in. They score it based on your run time and shooting score. You have to carry all your gear (including water) with you while you run."
"Six miles? In August? In the South Texas Desert? If you want to kill yourself, go ahead. Just make sure your life insurance is paid up."

I really didn't think that she would go for it. So now I am going to go and try and kill myself this August. Here is a copy of the 2008 info.

The only thing left to decide is what gear to use? Vest or Pack? I have also been told that there is a one gallon minimum water requirement. Round counts should be out shortly, I am assuming 80-100 rounds of rifle ammo, and I may take the J frame for snakes.

Now if you will excuse me, I have to get running.

Jump Rope

2010-04-16T03:52:00.000-07:00

In an effort to be more active, last week I bought a jump rope. A fairly nice leather one from Everlast. No, I dont have any plans to be the next Rocky, or even to film some sort of training montage set to awesome 80's music. But this sitting behind a desk is taking it's toll on me. I took my new toy home and procceded to embarras myself with my lack of jump roping skills. I would make 8-10 complete jumps before tangling myself up in the jump rope. Honestly, it was so bad that I wondered how I even possesed the ability to remain upright while walking.

I fiqured that I needed to practice more and that the skills to properly jump rope would come in time. A few days went by and I really wasnt improving. I became slightly frustrated, maybe I just didnt posses the skillz needed to properly jump rope, I never really enjoyed it as a kid, that would make sense, right?

I just have one more question for my three loyal readers. How many people know that they make different length jump ropes? And, how many know that the taller you are the longer rope you need? I'm 6'02, and apparently an 8ft jumprope won't get the job done. I went out and purchased a 9 1/2ft rope and everything seems to work fine.

The more you know........

Last Night at Boy Scouts....

2010-04-15T05:25:00.000-07:00

I'm almost considering making this a regular column, I just don't know if my sanity will allow it.

So last night at Boy Scouts we were learning the words to the Star Spangled Banner, and the history of said song. I also threw in some history about the War of 1812 to keep it lively. But, before we started I wanted to test the boys knowledge.

Who wrote the Star Spangled Banner?
Betsy Ross

Who was president during the War of 1812?
George Washington

What started the War of 1812?
The 13 colonies wanted freedom from England, oh, and tea.

Who was Francis Scott Key?
He was a British Naval Captain and fought John Paul Jones.

I have my work cut out for me, and this red mark on my forehead may be permanent.

Delusional Blunder

2010-04-14T05:47:00.000-07:00

Many years ago, while still living in the Peoples Republik of Kalifornia, I had a good friend that was in a hard spot. He needed some money for one thing or another and decided to part with the first handgun that he had ever bought, a Smith and Wesson 686 with a 6" barrel. 357 Magnum, of course, and I had to have it! It would be the perfect pistol to carry out in the desert while chasing quail. The only problem was the wife, and I decided that I would deal with that later. I paid premium dollar for that pistol, after all, he was a friend. I handed him the $500, took it home and hid it in the gun cabinet. After all, that's what married men do. Right?

A few weeks go by and all is calm in the Sigboy household. I am in need of a little trigger time and start loading up the guns. I'm prepping all my gear, a bit of a drive out into the Mojave desert and I will reach a state of bliss that can only be caused by lead and the smell of burnt nitro-cellulose. A poor lack of timing on my part led to Mrs Sigboy entering the bedroom. "What's this?" she asked, picking up the 686. She opened the cylinder to check the weapon, closed it again and raised the firearm, sighting on an imaginary spot on the wall. My mind went into panic mode. What was I to do? How could I get out of this dilemma? Most importantly, how could I get out of this dilemma and still go shoot?

The solution came upon me in a flash. "I'm sorry sweetheart, I wanted it to be a surprise." Wait a moment for a dramatic pause, and breathe. "I bought it for you and I wanted to take it out and make sure that everything was okay before I gave it to you." My poker face was on, I betrayed no emotion as she pondered my explanation.

A flicker of doubt crept across my mind. Finally she says, "I like it. When will I get to shoot it?" I was safe, or so I thought. She loved that pistol, and shot it well. On every foray we had she carried that pistol. I didn't get to shoot it very much. I carried it in the field even less. Every time I would try and pack it, she would say, "Why are you taking my pistol? You have your own!".

Let this be a lesson to all of you. When you try to cover your indiscretion by making it a gift, just plan on not being able to use it for the purpose you intended.

Fruity Oaty Bars

2010-04-08T16:16:00.000-07:00

After a long, and yet not very diligent search, I cobbled together my own personal recipe for fruity oaty bars. Why you ask? Simply put, I'm in touch with my inner Sci-Fi geek and I thought it would be cool. Or, if that's not good enough, I wanted to make my own energy bars for camping.

The search began with my ingredient list. Fruit and oats, how hard could this be? Well what fruit? I like cranberries, and apples, pineapples, cherries, raisins, bananas aren't an option due to certain health issues in the Sigboy household. I even considered prunes and dates, but I want everybody to eat them. I ruled out dried pineapple because I didn't know how it would take the oven, it would also probably be too acidic. Apples were a serious contender, but they also lost out because of the baking issue.

Without further ado, the recipe:
2 1/2 cups oats
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup finely chopped homemade honey roasted almonds
3 eggs
1/2 cup cranberries
1/2 cup cherries
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
2 teaspoons Vanilla
1 teaspoon Cherry extract
1 smidge of cinnamon

Combine sugar, vanilla, cherry extract and eggs in appropriate sized bowl, mix. Add oats, mix again. Add Almonds, mix some more. By now it should be fairly sticky and all items should be evenly coated. A mixer may work for this, but I didn't want to clean the wife's mixer, I just used a bowl. Add the chocolate chips and fruit, last time to mix, I promise. I added the fruit last because I didn't want it to get to beat up with all the mixing.

Grease a 9x13 pan, I mean hose it down (my wife doesn't clean up after my little baking 'experiments'). Spoon your mixture of fruity oaty goodness into the pan. Slide it into your oven at 350* (you did preheat it, didn't you? On a side note, turn the oven on before you mix anything. Than it will be ready). Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. 25 was just a bit to long in my oven, just check them at 20 and go from there.

Remove from oven and let cool (I mean it, let them cool), cut into bars and wrap, freeze for a longer shelf life. Finally, clean up your mess before your better half gets home. Just trust me on the last part.

Alright, it's taste test time, the flavor is good but the consistency isn't quite right. They are a little crumbly, they just don't quite stick together like they should. I'm thinking about maybe adding molasses or maybe another 1/2 cup of brown sugar. But I'm really at a loss now, and I'm hoping that my two female readers will come in and save me. So how do I make my bars stick together without ruining the taste? HELP!!!!!

Blow Out Kit

2010-04-08T07:34:00.000-07:00

The simple Blow Out Kit, small lightweight, and designed for only one thing, to stop all that red stuff from gushing out of you, or your buddies body when bad things happen.

I finally decided that it was time for me to put one of these together, I have other first aid kits (FAK), but I wanted something that I could throw in my range bag and forget about.
The list of contents is short, and contains only the basics to stop major trauma.
1.Olaes Modular Bandage. This thing is awesome! It is a pressure bandage, tourniquet, gauze wound pack, and occlusive dressing all in one. I personally think it is well worth the $8. It is also Latex free. Video here.

2.SWAT-T tourniquet. Relatively new on the first aid market, it is simply a wide rubber band. It functions a s a tourniquet, pressure dressing, and elastic bandage all in one. It is lightweight and more affordable than alot of your traditional TQ's. A real bargain at $10. Also latex free.

3.Nasopharyngeal airway. Keeps you breathing when the muscles in your mouth swell up. Probably not latex free. Instructions for use are here.

4.3" ACE Bandage. We all know what these are used for, splinting, sprains and breaks.

5.Triangular Bandage. Used for splinting.

6.Durapore tape. Always have med tape with you, almost as many uses as duct tape. I prefer the 1" size myself, if you want the 2", just pack duct tape.

Many who know me are surprised that I never put a Blow Out Kit together. I didn't have one the last time I got shot (long story), but I would like to have one around just in case there is a next time.

I Am Being Stoned

2010-04-01T16:30:00.000-07:00

Or, I will be stoned, depending how you look at it.

I am currently being besieged by kidney stones and life will be very interesting until I pass it. I went thru this about this time last year and it wasn't too much fun. Luckily this time I already have a one two punch of hydro-codone and Tramadol to get me thru it. Hopefully this time I can avoid spending $1000 at the Doctor, just for him to tell me that they aren't going to do anything about it.
But hopefully soon this health care reform will kick in and I can save all that money that I normally spend on medical bills every year.
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Sadly only half of this is an April Fools joke.

Trigger Time, Part II

2010-03-29T03:42:00.000-07:00

As the sun was setting, the light was just right to get some silhouette pictures, most of them didn't come out, but a few did. I kinda like it!

I really needed the break from the stresses of work, A few days out shooting does wonders for my attitude, and I'm sure that my bosses appreciate it.
One of the highlights of the trip (other than a new shooter!) was when I decided to start showing off a bit (It's a curse, I swear). I have a T/C Contender carbine in 357 Maximum, 18" barrel, magnaported, with a tiny 4x fixed power Burris scope. It was my thirteenth birthday present from my Father; that carbine and I have seen alot of miles together. With 38 Specials it has next to no recoil and zero muzzle jump. With 357 Magnums, it's a fun little toy, and with 357 Maximums, it is a very effective deer cartridge out to about 150 yards. When Descahin's girlfriend broke her camera, what did she want to do? Shoot it, of course. So I checked the zero on the contender and gave her a go, of course she hit it, and we were able to recover the camera pieces, and the bullet that shot it! After this a few of my buddies, who only appreciate black rifles, poked a little fun at my little carbine. This led to my showing off. I started shooting Skittle sized targets at ten yards, standing. A few rounds of watching me make the target disappear after each shot changed their opinion of my little carbine.

Trigger Time, Finally (and new shooter report)!

2010-03-26T06:15:00.000-07:00

After the real world interfering with my shooting schedule, I took a few days off to visit a friends ranch south of me. My good friend Deschain (from Canada, eh) brought his girlfriend down and we had a great time (until the weather crapped out, but that's another story). His girlfriend is an aspiring Law Enforcement Officer and had never fired a firearm. It was my sworn mission to rectify that problem. So we started her off easy:

Once I worked on her form, she became alot more comfortable and was really enjoying herself.

After she was familiarized with the basic principles of sight picture and trigger squeeze I move her over to a S & W LadySmith with a 5" barrel. She shot that rather well, and seemed to have no problems with the double action trigger pull. Another friend arrived with a Walther P22 and she shot that as well. I think we hooked another one, she is now talking about how much she misses Texas and wants to come visit again. More solid proof that all you need is one small taste of freedom and you are hooked for life.

Gauntlet Update

2010-03-23T07:07:00.000-07:00

I failed. It may have been the 14" pizza I ate on Saturday, I'm not sure. Regardless, I failed. Final weight was 212.8, I was down an even five pounds in four weeks. My charming wife has told me that I can go buy my T-shirts regardless. However, I am going to continue to drop weight and not buy them until I reach 205. At this rate, it will be about early June. Unless I go run, or stop eating pizza and fudge. Decisions, decisions.

Radar Detectors

2010-03-12T11:39:00.000-08:00

I had a interesting observation today about radar detectors. I personally think that you have a firm and unalienable right to use them. I also believe that by using them you essentially err on the 'ticket' side of officer discretion rather than the 'warning' side. Which made me realize something else about a society where freedom is paramount; just because it's legal, doesn't make it right. That is why when you a have a radar detector suctioned cup to your windshield, you will ALWAYS get the ticket.

Gauntlet, Part Three

2010-03-12T04:32:00.000-08:00

This week it was all my fault. I have been craving carbs and sweets. I want bread, cereals, cupcakes, candy, and a very large and fatty steak. I believe my body is trying to organize a coup. Of course, the spoil ourselves rotten lunch at Red Lobster Wednesday didn't help either (but my lovely wife said that she enjoyed it immensely), nor did the pound of fudge (she enjoyed that as well) I bought from a traveling road show at Sam's Club.

One thing that I noticed was that my clothes aren't fitting like they used too. My weight hasn't changed a whole lot, but my structure has. As the muscle starts to tone itself back out and the fat burns off, things aren't fitting the same. I had forgotten what a pain in the ass it was to fit my arms into most shirts. Case in point, last week we stopped at the JC Penny outlet store, I found a decent long sleeve shirt for $2, it wasn't a formal shirt, but would go well when you wanted to wear something more than a polo. It was sized XL, the wife approved of the colors and pattern, so we brought it home. After washing I tried it on. Fit? Not exactly. the shoulders fit (barely), but my arms didn't, one flex the wrong way and I was going to rip seams out. Oh well, it's off to one of my, um, slimmer friends. The moral of the story is that if I keep going down this road, it's going to be back to tailored clothes so that they will fit right. Is it really worth it?

Final thoughts for the week, I need to cut my food back even more. However I have a five day camping trip next week, and now it looks like everybody is bringing tons of food, so I may not reach my goal. Final weigh in, and post, will be on March 22nd.

Todays weight, 213.5 - Own 0.1 pounds, 5.7 pounds to go.

"Handgun Shotgun Rifle" (for bugout) meme....

2010-03-09T04:04:00.000-08:00

In continuation of the firearm list MeMe's. I have one I would like to propose to the rest of the Internets. If you had to leave your house RIGHT NOW because of some disaster, lets go with zombies. You do not know if you are ever going to return, and you only have room to take one rifle, one shot gun, and one handgun. What are they?

My three choices for BugOut, from what I CURRENTLY own would be-

Handgun: Sig P226 in 40 S&W, with light rail and night sights

Shotgun: Remington 870, 20 inch barrel, rifle sights.

Rife: Sako FinnBear in 30/06 with 3-9 scope and sling

I know that the first two on the list were the same as yesterday for my self defense list. But I dropped the AR in favor of my favorite hunting rifle. Why? Simply because I can hit anything I can see. Also, I am not carrying around one of those scary black rifles. Granted, if things are so bad that we are carrying around rifles, it shouldn't matter very much. Also, my handgun and shotgun more than effectively cover my short range self defense needs. This allows me to take a rifle with a bit more range and punch.

"Handgun Shotgun Rifle" (for defense) meme....

2010-03-08T03:54:00.000-08:00

So, via Tam, this old meme is going around.

One Handgun, One Rifle, One Shotgun. You are able to choose just one of each for self defense with NO modifications.

Handgun: Sig Sauer P226, in 40 S & W, with a light rail and night sights.

Shotgun: Remington 870, 12 gauge, 20 inch barrel, rifle sights.

Rifle: 16" AR, with A2 buttstock, you know, so I can hit people with it.

There you go, nothing fancy, just three firearms. Also please note that my Bug Out Guns are a little different than this list. Hmmm, I may resurrect that tired old list tomorrow.

Guantlet Update

2010-03-05T03:21:00.000-08:00

Today wraps up week two of my wife's challenge. This week has been really difficult for me to watch the diet. My fat and sugar cravings have been ridiculously hard. I'm sure that the bag of Jelly Beans that the wife brought home didn't help. Or the Girl Scout cookies. Next she is going to be making me her home made cream filled cupcakes (Devils food with vanilla frosting, please)! Yes you heard me correctly, my lovely and charming wife has resorted to guerrilla tactics to force me into not meeting my end of the bargain!
This challenge is scheduled to end on Monday morning, March 22nd.

And for those of you that are curious....213.6 Down 4.2, 5.8 to go.

Soda Can Stoves; Alternate Title: Who Needs Eyebrows Anyways?

2010-02-26T11:17:00.000-08:00

It was a slow day at work, actually slower than normal. I had a nagging problem with some of my outdoor gear. I had put together a daypack based on my Camelbak Mule (post next week, I promise). I wasn't happy with the fact that I had nothing to cook with in it. Lets be honest with ourselves, sometimes you just NEED that cup of hot cocoa out on the trail. So I had the brilliant idea to build a Soda Can Stove. Methanol, open flames and thin aluminium, what could go wrong?
I grabbed a few designs off the net, figured in my head what I wanted to use as a design, and started destroying soda cans. First, I needed soda cans. This made my children extremely happy because they got to have soda with dinner two nights in a row. Second, we marked them out, cut jets, and cut them open with scissors. The third step was to attach the pieces together and epoxy them. The final step was to fill them with Methanol and light them off.

From sodacanstove

I made several different designs, different heights, and different number of jets to determine what the most efficient stove. My conclusion was that it doesn't matter, they all boil a cup of 60 degree water in slightly less than four minutes. I did find that your jets should be smaller than 1/16 inch, and that you should have less than 16, 10 to 12 seemed about right.
But wait, SigBoy, you mentioned something about eyebrows!

I made one tall stove, epoxy'd it, cut the jets, filled it with fluid and lit the fuel. It burned for about twenty seconds before I heard a loud pop and I was suddenly on fire. As near as I can figure, the space where the two cans came together allowed alcohol to get trapped and create pressure as it heated. This pressure caused the two halves to separate spraying everything in a five foot radius with flaming alcohol. My pants were on fire, my shirt was on fire. I smelled the acrid smell of burning hair, and I came to the immediate realization that my goatee, mustache, eyebrows and hair was on fire! I quickly put myself out and inspected the damage. To save you the dramatic details, nobody will accuse me of having a uni-brow anytime soon, and I had to trim my facial hair down fairly short.

follow the picassa link on the center pic to find my the complete how to in pictures

Throwing Down the Guantlet

2010-02-19T06:03:00.001-08:00

Yep, she did it. Mrs. Sigboy threw down the gauntlet. I was looking at nifty cool T-shirts online at RangerUp, where two of them caught my eye. I was positively drooling over them. They would be an awesome wardrobe choice for most of the shooting matches that I attend.
Choice one:

Choice two:

Choice two is my favorite, not so much for the Missus; here is the shirt description:

There are two types of women in this world.

1) Women who want metrosexual sensitive men who cook gourmet dinners, wax their own eyebrows, paint their mate's toenails, and uses phrases like "Yes, honey bunny".

2) Women who like guys made of pure testosterone who live their lives jumping out of airplanes, kicking doors in, and shooting bad guys, never knowing when they're going to come face to face with the big Ranger in the sky.

P.S. Deep down in places they don't like to talk about at parties, the ladies in group one want us too.

Chicks dig shooters. Deal with it, frat boys.

My comment after reading this to my darling wife was, "Ah, the good old days." After which she promptly hit me. And than laid down the challenge.

"Ten pounds, you lose ten pounds, from what you weigh right now, I will let you get those shirts."

"Right now?" I asked, as I stood up from the computer and strolled over to the scale, stripping clothes off as I went. Now, I am by know means out of shape, at
6'02 I can carry a bit of weight around and not show it, but my management job makes it harder to stay trim. I jumped on the scale wearing only a T-shirt, socks and underwear. 217.8, thinking to myself, this is going to be easy, the only dilemma will be what size to order them in. "207.8, I get my shirts?" She nods at me. I have given myself four weeks to accomplish this feat.

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!

Tin Foil Dinners

2010-02-16T05:43:00.000-08:00

This weekend was my first official Boy Scout camp out. The boys planned out all their meals and the choice for Friday night was tin foil dinners. I had never before had tun foil dinners so a little research was in order. The Internet was a wealth of knowledge about how to wrap up a bland piece of hamburger meat with some potatoes. This was not exactly what I was looking for, if I wanted charred pot roast, I could just make it before hand and take it with me. But, part of this calling is the experience, so I decided to participate whole heartily
The one thing that was stressed in my research was that they had to be well lubricated. Butter and oil were your ally, do not be sparing with them. I kept that it mind as I made my two tin foil dinners; I figured if one failed there would still be another.

First:
The Classic tinfoil dinner. I used a garlic hamburger patty and doused it with red pepper seasoned olive oil. I precooked a russet potato for four minutes in the microwave, added carrots and onion, and topped it with a pad of real butter.

It came out alright, I should have cooked the carrots a bit before throwing them in, and added salt and pepper. The meat was perfectly done, but the flavors left a bit to be desired.

Second:
Barbecue chicken breast. I took one chicken breast, cubed it, and lightly browned in a skillet til about half cooked. I mixed in two slices of chopped bacon (remember, bacon makes everything better and I knew the grease wouldn't hurt), a healthy dose of onion, a heavy tablespoon of brown sugar, and a pad of real butter. Smoother that with the BBQ sauce of your choice and wrap it up.

It came out awesome, the flavors were great, and the added bonus was smelling it as it sizzled on the coals. Next time, I wont precook the chicken as much, but those that I shared with had no complaints.

So whats on the menu for the next tinfoil dinner? I am definitely doing the BBQ chicken again. I want to try something with sweet potatoes. Possibly Venison backstrap with apple smoked bacon. I am also considering a separate one for a vegetable medley.

Wintergeddon, Part 2

2010-02-11T11:29:00.000-08:00

The sky was clear and the stars shone brightly into the canyon. The red canyon walls were mere shadows against the starlit canvas of night. The fire had burned down to embers, occasionally flaring red with anger at a slight gust of wind. Orion hung low in the southern sky, a vivid reminder that others had come to this canyon long before me, if only he would share their secrets. Perhaps the knowledge would be to much for me, after all I generally learned all of my lessons the hard way. But, buried deep in my sub-conscious is the knowledge is that there is very little about life that I could not learn out here, beneath the stars.

We adjourned to our respective tents, cold sleeping bags awaited us, begging to be warmed by the heat of our bodies. I laid there, allowing my body to ease into the natural contours of the ground. The warmth of my down sleeping bag pulled me into a deep sleep. As dawn broke, I found myself curled deep in my bag. A strange sound assailed my ears, it was almost like the sound of a light drizzle, only more menacing. My comrade whispered from his tent, "Is it raining?"

"I don't think so", I replied. I wasn't sure what the noise was. Further investigation showed it to be sheets of ice forming on everything. This also included my muddy boots that I left outside my tent after a midnight run thru the mesquite. Luckily, the fire was there to dry them out.

As the sun rose, our strange fog filled and ice covered world became visible, overnight a thick blanketing fog had descended onto the Texas Panhandle and was hovering above our heads. All hopes of letting the sun come out and drying my tent were long gone. I would be packing it up wet and drying it at home. Mrs. Sigboy was going to love this.

We ate breakfast (where I discovered that my friend was a pie loving traitor) and broke camp. All that was left was one little four mile hike and Wintergeddon '10 would come to an end. The hike went with out incident, other than more mud and snow, and the freezing mist that hung in the air. My drive home was slowed considerably by the thick fog that only became thicker as I drove out of the canyon and pointed the truck towards home. My final thought as I returned home was that I was able to escape the cares of modern society, if only for a bit.

MA vs. CA, Round 1

2010-02-11T10:00:00.000-08:00

I grew up in California and for about 60% of my life, I was ~~interred, detained, forcibly held, tortured, a proud citizen~~ stuck behind the wire. I grew used to the nanny state looking over my every action. When smoking was banned in restaurants I thought it was awesome. But little did I know that was only the beginning, but I learned from the errors of my ways. Because of my California Conservative upbringing I had a steep curve to the top. I tell you this because Jay G of Marooned fame has ~~gone on a rant~~ discussed a new proposed bill that would force MA restaurants to be more diligent about food allergies.
The point is that they are trying to avoid ER visits by listing the ingredients that are in the dish and/or in the kitchen. Jay G says it better than I could:

"Look, if you have a food allergy so severe that mere contamination from preparation will pose a life-threatening risk, it is incumbent on YOU to be informed about the culinary practices of any restaurant you visit. If you are so susceptible to allergens and do not perform due diligence in checking out that your food is not properly prepared to avoid a reaction, then I'm sorry but you've earned the ride in the back of the ambulance."

One of the adverse developments to my wife's illness is some pretty nasty food allergies. The smell of Guacamole causes her throat to swell; touching bananas causes instant irritation, swelling, and redness. These are just two of many examples. My daughter is allergic to fish, so allergic that she had a reaction simply visiting the Long Beach Aquarium (btw, great place, go if you can). This precludes me from two awesome things while out to eat with the family, fish and fajitas. Seriously, fajitas with the itty-bitty shrimp, chicken, steak, a good spanish rice and fresh guacamole-pure heaven.
A simple word to the server is generally all it takes. Do I think that the government should force restaurants to list all this stuff? Nope. Do I think that the restaurant is responsible if my wife passes out on the floor because I ordered a steak burrito with extra guac? Nope.
People, we all have to be aware of our situations and deal with them accordingly. Government interference or forced compliance is no substitute for what should be your responsibility. You know what you can do and what you can't.

Success

2010-02-10T15:48:00.000-08:00

My first attempt at Chicken Fried Steak, complimented with ultimate mashed potatoes and broccoli.

Wintergeddon, Part One

2010-02-09T05:28:00.000-08:00

An Outdoors and preparedness charity group that I associate with (see how not saying Zombie Squad makes it sound better?) had their winter camping trip this last weekend. The local chapter that I am a part of decided we needed to plan one of those camping trips where it is cold, wet, miserable, and generally an awesome time; we succeeded on three out of four of them. We call this event Wintergeddon.

We had planned for a Saturday morning arrival, the original number of us was to be five. One last minute cancellation and two who didn't want to actually leave the
city limits left us with two, and we both arrived at the park at about 12:30. I had planned on making Venison Chili in a Dutch Oven over an open fire. Unfortunately, I forgot the Venison and had to stop at the small town grocery store in Quitaque (Kitty-Qwai) to pick up some stew meat. They did not have exactly what I wanted, but, in typical small town style, the butcher cut up exactly what I wanted. This led to my fashionably late arrival at Caprock Canyon State Park.

We drove down to our campsite and had our choice of appx 20 campsites to choose from; I would say that we did a very good job choosing the least muddy option. The fine red powdery caliche that forms most of the Palo Duro Canyon are and escarpment is some of the stickiest stuff I have ever see, and it can get everywhere when it is wet, not to mention reducing your friction coefficient to something approaching a Banana peel on a waxed floor. We dragged our bags out and pitched our tents. Every tarp that we had was put to use trying to protect equipment from the mud. I am glad to say that we were moderately successful at this.

With camp done, It was about 2pm and a small hike was in order, we planned a decent six mile hike and headed up the trail along the canyon wall. The weather was nice, about 35 degrees, clear skies and little or no wind. We departed with our small packs with a spring in our step, happy to be enjoying the outdoors. The recent snow and rain storms had not been kind to the trail. The erosion had washed the trail away in a few places, and made some of the switchbacks somewhat treacherous. Due to this we could not locate the second trail we needed and had to take the next trail. Now our hike was looking to be about 7.5 miles. It was no big issue, we had plenty of time, all that we had to do when we got to camp was start a fire and cook the chili. Of course, fate had to intervene yet again, and a unmarked trail, combined with a shitty map led us another mile out of our way. By the time we realized our error, the sun was dipping low into the sky. The terrain would not support an 'as the crow flies' path back to camp, so we hoofed it back up the trail and made it back to camp as the light was fading.

Character Flaw?

2010-02-04T05:05:00.001-08:00

I need to rant, that is what most of this post is going to be. You have been warned.

About a decade ago, maybe a little less, I made a decision. I decided that I was going to be the best at what I did, no matter what it was. It didn't matter if it was work or play. I was simply going to be the best. The plan worked. I became enormously successful working at several large truck dealerships in SoCal. I did alignment and suspension work, and because of it, was known and respected across the country. I was making a small fortune, and was at the top of my game. Than I decided that I wanted to play cop. That worked too, graduated fifth in my Academy class before deciding that I liked my wife alot more than I liked the badge. To save my marriage a change was in order, and in typical Sigboy fashion it was big. We sold the house and moved to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. I took a job as a Night foreman at another truck dealership. They had problems with their crew and needed to turn it around. Turn it around I did, bringing productivity up from 60% to just over 85%. No small feat considering what I had to work with. After I was done with that, they decided that they no longer needed my (expensive) services, so something new was again in order. That turned out to be tankers, fuel and propane tankers to be exact. It's fun, I got to keep things from blowing up going down the road.

So why am I telling you all this? The short version of my truck industry career? To set the stage for the next scene of course.

While in South Dakota, Mrs. Sigboy fell ill with a mysterious illness that manifested itself as severe allergies to, well, everything. Doctors could not figure it out, and I was given the options, move her out of here or watch her die. Seeing as how I liked my wife alot more than I liked South Dakota, it was time to move across the country, again. So we gave the house away, and the company I work for was kind enough to give me a promotion and a transfer to Texas.

I was promised the moon when they sent me down here, they wanted badly for me to take it. I was smart enough to know that there was no way it could all be true. But if half of it was true, I would be in a good place. I needed to start over anyways, and with the economy in the position it's in, it was a good plan to keep my job.

Almost a year and a half later, things have settled in at this shop. I have things as organized as they are going to get. It's a pretty good deal, my job is to keep about 13 trucks rolling thru Texas and Oklahoma, Five of them are stationed here with me and the rest are scattered about. I am very good at what I do and the drivers all know that they can count on me to do the right thing and keep them rolling, and it's really nice to have your boss 300 miles away. Both upper management and the drivers tell me that I am the best thing that ever happened to this yard. But it's not enough. I'm not happy. I'm not allowed to excel at what I do. I am to maintain the status quo, no more no less. any deviation off this line results in an immediate smackdown. If my shop is more productive than my boss's shop, I get a lecture, not productive enough, a different lecture. I suppose that what bothers me the most is that I do not feel that I am productive as I can be in this position, and nobody else seems to think I'm doing anything wrong. I have a cushy job, I do what I want, when I want. But I don't feel that it is enough. I can work at this job until I retire, collect my pension and do rather well for myself. But will I be satisfied? Is job satisfaction more important than job security? Is it a simple issue of changing my own standards of success? Perhaps I need to seek my satisfaction elsewhere. I don't know what the right answer is, I only know that something has to change soon, or I'm going to get myself in trouble, and I'm probably going to enjoy it in the process.
edit: I may have found the solution, thanks to Paule Kersey.

Balance

2010-02-02T04:22:00.000-08:00

I had a very successful hunting season, I have enough Venison to last a year, I was even able to share with my friends. I made the decision to send the Mule Deer out for a European mount. Carl, as he has been named has returned and has been placed above the computer desk next to Frank, I thought that having a Whitetail and a Mule deer would look good on the shelf. Something is wrong with this display, I can't move the desk, and I dont really want to move the speaker. I will, maybe I need a bear skull to go where the speaker is.

County Line Carl:

Frank the Fighter:

Bug Out Firearms

2010-02-01T10:03:00.000-08:00

Somebody save us, the gun blogs are fired up with the tired classic; what guns to you take when the zombies come and force you to flee your home.
First the obligatory link roll. Here are people that have already done this post:
JayG, TheFirearmBlog, and the original source is The Survivalist Blog.

So the question is, what firearms go with your Bug Out Bag? Luckily I have ~~wasted time~~ devoted alot of thought to this very problem. First, let me clarify my Bugout plan. I have no real desire to evacuate unless absolutely necessary. I have food, water and shelter at my home. I can think of few things short of zombies and/or total destruction that would cause me to flee. Should that day come, I plan on hooking up my hippy hating pickup to my camper and packing as much stuff into that as possible. This way I am taking my shelter with me and stand a lower risk of becoming a refugee. With this plan in place, there is a long list of firearms that will be traveling with me. They include about four pistols, two high power rifles, two shotguns, two 22 rifles, both AR's and about 400 pounds of ammo (thats about 181kg for those on the communist system). The food water and other consumables are beyond the scope of this post, we can cover those later.

The next stage of the plan involves no camper and just the pickup. This lack of room shortens the list to the following:
1) Sig Sauer P226 in 40s&w
2) Sako FinnBear in 30/06
3) Remingotn 870 12 gauge with 20" barrel
4) Ruger 10/22
5) Colt 22 pistol
6) Evil Black Rifle

But should the unthinkable happen and I needed to Bug Out with just what I could carry, I think that the choice would be my bolt action 30/06 and the Sig. If I had room and I thought that I could add the weight, I would add a 22 pistol and the AR.

Alot of people question my choice of a bolt gun over the AR, to me it is simply a matter of power and precision over rate of fire. I can do more with a bolt gun than I can with an AR, and the pistol fills in most of the bolt guns shortcomings. The bolt gun takes my effective range out to unrealistic distances for defense (If I can see it, I can hit it), and the pistol gives me a higher rate of fire.

I have one final question for you. When all these bad things happen, and some long haired hippy PETA lover lets all the lions out of the zoo, do you really want to shoot one with an AR?

These are my choices; what are yours?

Shoveling Snow-The Preperation

2010-01-29T16:54:00.000-08:00

Before you can shovel snow, you must prepare, both physically and spiritually.

I think I'm ready, right after my nap......

200th Post

2010-01-29T16:24:00.001-08:00

Fiqures, it's a meme.

Created by Oatmeal

Haiti, Part II, What Lessons Can We Learn?

2010-01-19T13:37:00.000-08:00

So there is looting going on in Haiti, perhaps the dead are the lucky ones. People are living in glorified camps, protected from the weather only by bedsheets. People are being raped, murdered or even worse. Help is slowly arriving, from countries all over the world. The desire of good people to help is staggering, and restores my faith that most people are basically good.
But the situation also shows how tenable society is, and how quickly it can break down into lawlessness. What? It can't happen here? What about Katrina?
So what is the solution? Why being prepared of course. Here are a few things to think about.
1) Do you have 72 hour bags for you and your loved ones? Are they easy to grab when you need to leave in a hurry?
2) Do you keep your vehicles fueled up? Or do they get parked in the driveway with an 1/8 tank of fuel because you didn't want to spend the extra money? If you think about it, it's gasoline, it won't go to waste and you are going to use it anyways. I try and fill up when I reach a half tank.
3) Do you have flashlights stationed at strategic points around the house? I am bad for this one, simply because my son likes to play with them and drain all the batteries.
4) Food and water. How much do you have? How much can you grab in a hurry if you have to leave? Do you have a way to purify water when you no longer have clean water at your disposal? Without these things you will die. I am not saying that everyone needs a years worth of food and thirty days worth of water, but it would be nice.
5) Most importantly, do you have a plan for getting your family out of the house and to safety? Do all of your loved ones know this plan?

I would like people to think about the simple things that they can do to make life better for themselves in a natural disaster. Simply because you are responsible for yourself and your loved ones. Natural disasters happen everywhere, and most can be truly devastating. From tornadoes to earthquakes, all have the power to destroy things. Being prepared can help mitigate the loss.
A Quote from a Yahoo news story:
"We need so much. Food, clothes, we need everything. I don't know whose responsibility it is, but they need to give us something soon," said Sophia Eltime, a 29-year-old mother of two who has been living under a bedsheet with seven members of her extended family.
This really chaps my hide, whose responsibility is it? YOURS! I understand that you live in the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, that is no excuse. Sitting around starving to death while you wait for somebody else to save you is no excuse. I am all for helping the victims, I am all for saving peoples lives, I am all for rebuilding Haiti. I am NOT for setting up another welfare mindset where people feel that they are entitled to something for nothing.
In conclusion, I feel that alot of this distress could have been avoided had people just been prepared. If most of them had three days worth of food, extra clothing, and other essential items, they would have been better off than they are now. Perhaps it may have even saved lives.

Those Who Came Before Us

2010-01-19T10:33:00.000-08:00

Bitter over at Snowflake in Hell got me thinking with this quote:

If you ever find yourself in Western Mass, go spend a day in Amherst. It’s a town that has its own foreign policy and a weekly anti-war protest that was happening years before I ever arrived and we were years away from Iraq & Afghanistan. But if you spend part of that day at a bar on the outskirts of town, you’ll see the transition first hand. Go in around 4:30 and you’ll see blue collar workers coming in to have a drink after a hard day of work. They clear out by 7 and then the college kids come in and the hip hop comes on. Talking to some of the students, you’ll find they have no clue about who was sitting in their seat an hour before, nor do they have any interest. You could argue it’s that way with all kids, but the difference is that in Massachusetts, those kids stick around as part of elite liberal crowd and they never learn to care about the guy who was sitting in their seat an hour before.

When I was in the Army, I was stationed inside the Beltway at Ft. Myer, Va. A mile or so off post there was a little cafe in Arlington. The food was awesome, and I swear they had the best corned beef hash in three states. But that wasn't the true appeal of this cafe. The people were. At 6am you had blue collar workers having breakfast. 8am was suits and ties, all reading the New York Times. This process was repeated all day, every day. They were(or are) a 24 cafe, and it was a great place to go grab a bite at midnight if you felt so inclined. The people always got along, even to the point of the punk rocker having a discussion with a suit, or a soldier with a hippy. This was all normal behavior, and I enjoyed watching (and some time participating in) the discussions taking place around me. It never became heated, or overly loud, a respectful atmosphere was always around. And this was inside the beltway! Now, I wonder if all that has changed, or if I'm just not hanging out in the right places.

Haiti

2010-01-19T07:26:00.000-08:00

I was away on business all last week and was not going to way in on the disaster in Haiti (or as it seems to be called in the great white north, High-Tie, I swear I can't make this stuff up). As I watch the scenario unfold in front of me like a bad TV miniseries, I cannot help but think how bad things truly are on the ground. I know from personal experience that the news media will exaggerate and sensationalize anything to get better ratings. They also report the truth from a very narrow perspective, this is why I wanted to avoid posting on this subject.

The title of the Fox News story: U.S. Troops Land in Haiti as Thousands Flee Capital for Safety, makes it sound as if the capitol has turned into something out of a Mad Max movie with looters and motorcycle gangs roaming the streets.

People in one hillside Port-au-Prince district blocked off access to their street with cars and asked local young men to patrol for looters.

It has gotten to the point where people are taking care of themselves, their neighbors and their loved ones. To my mind, this is the way things should be, numbers protect you from looters, and the other nasty crimes that seem to follow these disasters around.

Violence added to complications in places. Medical relief workers said they were treating gunshot wounds in addition to broken bones and other quake-related injuries. Nighttime was especially perilous and locals were forming night brigades and machete-armed mobs to fight bandits across the capital.

"It gets too dangerous," said Remi Rollin, an armed private security guard hired by a shopkeeper to ward off looters. "After sunset, police shoot on sight."

In the sprawling Cite Soleil slum, gangsters are reassuming control after escaping from the city's notorious main penitentiary and police urge citizens to take justice into their own hands.

These times truly do bring out the best, and worst in people. Some take responsibility for themselves and their loved ones, others give up and wait for help to arrive, becoming part of the problem instead of the solution.

The port remains blocked. Distribution of food, water and supplies from the city's lone airport to the needy are increasing but still remained a work in progress, frustrating many survivors who sleep in the streets and outdoor camps of tens of thousands.
Pockets of looting and violence also are hindering a slow improvement in getting aid to victims.

Obviously the system that is in place is only margainaly effective. Is there a solution? At this point, there aren't many good ones, aid has to be sent as quickly as possible, and the good people must police themselves to insure that they can hold out until that aid arrives.
This says nothing of the rescue efforts that are still ongoing. There people buried under the rubble that may still be alive, and we should continue to look for them until no hope of survivors exists. We did the same thing after the twin towers collapsed and we should do the same here. Teams from all over the world have arrived to help search for survivors, together, they all hope to make a difference.

Our soldiers are currently on the ground, helping the people and attempting to restore order, my only hope is that there rules of engagement are not so strict that they are powerless.

All images came from yahoo and can be found here. Go look, there is alot of them.

My Latest Daydream

2010-01-06T06:19:00.000-08:00

I have been daydreaming about a 7mm-08 rifle for a while now. What I wanted was a light, handy, bolt gun in 7mm-08. I was willing to spend the extra money and make install a detachable box magazine. I know that I talked about it a little when I was deliberating a scout rifle.
Texas has changed my ideas a little. First, Texas has no limit on magazine capacity while hunting. Second, hunting hogs at night is legal, and it would be nice to have something I could mount a flashlight on (Honestly, I have yet to decide if the idea of hunting at night is at odds with the sportsman side of me, but thats a different post).
So I am currently considering getting the new Remington R-25 in 7mm-08. I believe it is California legal with a four round magazine, so I can take it there if I want. It also will accept full capacity mags from DPMS (19 rounders). I can add rails to the free float tube for a flashlight. I think it would make a really good rifle to keep in the truck during hunting season.

Steve over at The Firearm Blog has a ton of details.

I Have Been Moved

2009-12-11T05:57:00.001-08:00

Watch this, twenty minutes of Mike Rowe talking about work. It is worth every bit of that. Wow.

See what I mean? Wow.
Here is where it came from.

What, a Casting Call? For Shooters!?!

2009-12-09T06:07:00.000-08:00

via the Hog Blog I have discovered a new reality TV show that is currently casting for the History Channel, called America's Top Shot.

THE HISTORY CHANNEL is seeking SKILLED MARKSMEN
for its First Competition Show
You Could Win $100,000 in Prizes !!!

If you are skilled with a pistol, rifle or any other firearm, you could win $100,000 in prizes on TV’s biggest marksmanship competition show. The History Channel and the producers of The Ultimate Fighter are looking for anyone with mind-blowing shooting skills and a big personality to take on exciting physical challenges with multiple guns and mystery projectile weapons.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a professionally trained shooter or a self-taught average Joe (or Jane!). As long as you’re in good physical shape, have mastered a firearm and can adapt to new weapons and demanding physical situations, you could be America’s first “Top Shot."

Looking at the application, it appears that I can make the filming dates. I dont know wether I am quite good enough, my skills have slipped slightly in the last few months. Isn't that what training is for? What say you? Anybody want to see my ugly mug on the History Channel?

Have You Forgotten?

2009-12-08T05:41:00.000-08:00

Today is December Eighth, In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand and Nine. Have you forgotten what happened 68 years and a day ago? Have you forgotten what happened eight years and two months ago?

Never forget, never surrender.

No Really, It Can Happen Here Too.

2009-12-06T07:37:00.000-08:00

Following my last post on Caladonia, there comes a self defense story from Oklahoma City. I am kind of late getting in on it, Jay G has reported it, Extrano's Alley covered it, and the actual story with the 911 tape can be found here.

One evening, Donna Jackson is relaxing at home when someone tries to break into her home. She calls 911 and calmly informs the dispatcher of the situation. The dispatcher repeatedly tells her that the police are on the way. You can hear the dispatcher informing the officers of all the updated information. Mrs. Jackson stays calm, loads her shotgun as he gets closer. You hear more banging as he tries to get in. For TEN MINUTES and TWENTY SECONDS, she stays on the line with dispatch. She prepares herself for what is going to happen, knowing that her only option will be to use deadly force to defend herself. Finally, he breaks in and she shoots him once with a shotgun. It takes another FIFTEEN minutes for the police to arrive.
Only then, does the woman who has been so calm throughout the ordeal begin to fall apart.

"I shot. I shot,” Jackson tells the dispatcher frantically. "I’m going out front. I hit him. Oh God, help me! I dropped the phone. ... Oh please, dear God, I think I’ve killed him.”

As the reality sinks in, her voice fades to a whisper, "Please, Father in Heaven. Please, Father in Heaven. Oh my God, ma’am. Please.”

And she begins to sob, "I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

The dispatcher on the other end of the line tries to comfort her, telling her there was nothing she could have done — she had to protect herself.

"No, he’s bleeding,” Jackson said, looking at the body on her back porch. "I’m so sorry, Father.”

So for TWENTYFIVE minutes this poor lady went thru the worst ordeal of her life, because the police were not there to protect here, nor are they legally obligated to.

What are the good points to this horrible ordeal? She had a plan, she prepared herself to do what she had to. She had large dogs that did their job and alerted her to the threat. She was calm until after she shot, and she was aware of what was going on around her.

She is one tough lady, my heart goes out to her, but she did the right thing.

Here is the best advice I can give to anyone:

Get a gun, learn to use it, and use it if you have to.

While you are at it, get a four legged alarm system. Because alarm companies call 911 - and cost more than dog food.

thanks to Extrano's Alley for the quote.

Caledonian Crisis

2009-12-04T06:01:00.000-08:00

The Indian War Chiefs sat stoically as they pondered the implications of what they were about to do. No longer would they let the white man impede upon there lifestyle. "We must fight!" One chief exclaimed, most nodded their agreement. "We shall drive the white settlers from there homes, burning and pillaging!" More people nodded their heads, "When they see that we are fearsome warriors, they will leave and never return!" The Chiefs were decided, it was time to fight. They all rose and headed out of the building, one yelled, "Hey, Jerry TwoFeathers, don't forget to turn out the lights." Another remarked, "Lets take my truck, there is room for all of us."

This isn't some twisted Dan Brown story, this is real life. I understand that with a name like Caledonia, and in Canada to boot, the story is less than plausible. I assure you that this really occurred and has yet to be settled. My good friend Des turned me onto this story yesterday. A revolt in Canada, so bad that the police will not even protect it's own citizens. Now I don't think that police should be held responsible for your own personal protection, and U.S. courts feel the same way. But what do you do in Canada? A place where people do not have the right to self defense. A place where gun ownership is severely restricted and to defend yourself with one would bring untold scrutiny to you and your loved ones.

What started all of this? It appears that the natives (they really call them that in Canada, what happened to PC?) sold off some of their land to the government in 1841, with the understanding that the profit would be invested by the Crown for the Six Nations. Jump ahead to 2006, and the land is sold, by the Crown, to a development firm, who promptly build a housing division on it. The Six Nations go into an uproar and say that they land was only leased to the government. It all goes before a judge who sides with the development company. Needless to say, the Indians go on the war path. They blockade streets, burn down bridges, rob peoples homes, beat up innocent people, generally riot and cause as much discontent as possible. The police do nothing to protect the innocent, except charging them with crimes. David Brown may have acted out of line, but what he did was in reaction to the criminal acts taking place against his home and his family. Yet the government decides not to pursue the true ~~criminals, Indians, scoundrels, ruffians,~~ terrorists that have caused all of the problems.

From wikipedia:
Since the occupation began, many Caledonia residents have complained that they have been subject to threats and violence from Native protesters and that the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) failed to take any action to protect them. David Brown, who lives with his wife near the disputed area, stated in court testimony in November 2009 that he was required to carry a native-issued passport and needed approval from the protesters to enter his own house. He also claimed that after arriving "after curfew" one day, he was denied entry and jailed by the OPP when he caused trouble by ignoring the natives. Brown alleged that Native protesters threatened and harassed him repeatedly and that rocks and mud were thrown at his family and their home. Brown and his wife are seeking $7 million dollars in a civil lawsuit against the OPP on the basis that the police did nothing to protect him and his family during the occupation.[25] [26]

In response to Brown's claims, Crown lawyer David Felicient stated that the situation "must be understood against the backdrop of the unique character of aboriginal occupations and protests" and that the OPP were prevented from taking action due to "policy implications."[25] Felicient also suggested that Brown had fabricated portions of his testimony to draw attention to his lawsuit. When Felicient asked why Brown kept a loaded shotgun, Brown responded that "We were doing what we had to do to stay alive. I had no protection from our government. I felt that I needed to protect my wife and my family."[27]

In court testimony, OPP Inspector Brian Haggith stated that the Native protesters "set up a checkpoint... Almost like they were entering another country," and that community lost confidence in the OPP's ability to protect them. Haggith also testified that when natives set fire to a wooden bridge in town, the fire department withdrew from fighting the blaze when confronted by shouted death threats from the protesters. The fire chief told the OPP he did not believe they would protect him or his men if they went against the natives' wishes. In addition, a electrical substation was then destroyed, causing more than $1 million in damage and a blackout, when a truck crashed through its gates and was left ablaze. Once again, Haggith stated that there was little response from the police. Inspector Haggith also testified that he asked for a change in policy at a subsequent meeting he had with his OPP superiors but that his request was denied

So here is the real issue, and it has nothing to do with the uppity Natives. Do you have a right to self defense? Are the police required to protect you? If the answer to the first question is 'no', than the answer to the second question has to be 'yes'. This is not some third world country we are talking about here, this is Canada, land of beer and hockey. Our slightly frigid neighbors to the North that talk funny and use words like 'eh' and 'oi'. And yet this travesty continues.

I encourage you to research all the links I left for you here. It truly is an interesting story that shows how these things can happen anywhere.

Four Wheelers as Hunting Tools

2009-12-02T05:42:00.000-08:00

I recently had the opportunity to try something I had never done before. Use a four wheeler in the pursuit and apprehension (I'm dropping into cop talk again, sorry) of game. "Wow, you sure can cover alot of ground", was my initial thought. My final thought after getting home was, "Wow, there sure is dirt everywhere." Am I going to run out and spend $10,000 on a new four wheeler? Nope. Will I borrow somebody else's? Hell yes!
Living in Texas has done wonders for my conservative mindset. One of the things that Texas does not seriously regulate is the use of vehicles for hunting, especially on private land. This is why you see vehicles specifically built for this purpose. They also can include large spotlights for the pursuit of varmints and feral hogs at night. Why I do not personally care for hunting from vehicles, many do and it does have it's place.
I figure in two days I saw five or six coyotes from the four wheeler, I can safely say that's double the number I would have seen without that mobility. The ability to quickly cover ground is awesome, and can allow you to get into position alot faster. On the other hand, two days of my rifle in a gun rack on the front of a four wheeler was not kind. I had to completely disassemble the rifle and remove the dust from every part of that weapon. My pistol was the same way, it spent the time on me in a Safariland drop thigh holster. I had to completely disassemble it as well. I am happy to report that I did fire the pistol on Sunday prior to cleaning and it functioned perfectly, even if it was full of dirt and dust.
I believe that they are an effective tool that can make hunting more productive and enjoyable. Like any other tool, they can be used improperly and abused. They can also be used in a unethical manner, which could lead to bad press for sportsman everywhere. Like a rifle, a four wheeler has no will of its own. You control how and where it is used and wether it is used for good or evil. So use your tools righteously, and lets stay safe and have fun out there!

Fantasy Fun

2009-11-28T14:43:00.001-08:00

This is why I shouldn't have a long weekend, see what my mind does?

I should go hunt, but Mrs. Sigboy is working and my freezer is full. Anybody want Venison steaks?

I was sent this one today, I dont know where it came from. But I did laugh at the irony in it.

My Texas Mule Deer

2009-11-23T20:30:00.000-08:00

This is Carl.

Stories about this trip will be forthcoming, right after he is safely in the freezer, not to mention the rest of the story on the whitetail that I found the weekend before.
I also would like to apologize for the crappy pictures, it was a little hectic that day and I didn't get any good ones.

It All Makes Sense Now.

2009-11-23T05:06:00.000-08:00

Via Tam, and from West of the West (whom I have never heard of and am now considering changing that), we have a flow chart that helps you choose your religion, strangely enough, it seems to work. As usual, it all seems to come down to bacon.

National Ammo Day

2009-11-20T19:34:00.000-08:00

Thursday was National Ammo Day. After much chagrin, I decided to participate. I really didn't need much so I decided to keep it conservative.

I wonder what I'm going to do to keep me out of trouble at home?

California Places Increased Burden on SubjectsCitizens

2009-11-20T06:37:00.000-08:00

I have just heard that on November first, California increases it's income tax with holding by 10%. The LA Times reports. Please note that this is not a tax increase, just a forced loan to the state. And it is only a 10% increase on the taxable amount. So roughly the same amount as your cable bill. John Marshall said that "The power to tax is the power to destroy." Many people are already plagued by wage cuts and other employer cut backs that put more burden onto the employees. The state of California has decided that they will not roll back all the expensive programs that they have enacted over the years. They will take more money from the people to cover their shortfall. 1.7 BILLION dollars in an interest free loan strong armed from already strapped California citizens. "The power to tax is the power to destroy." How many will be destroyed so that California can maintain their socialist policies?

Isn't it ironic, don't you think?

I Should Have Hit Her, Part 2

2009-11-19T09:13:00.001-08:00

As many of you know, I wiped out my elbow almost two months ago. Last Friday I took the ACE bandage off and have been functioning almost normally. It had been fairly unnerving there for a while, the swelling would go down, and than come back. I was starting to get worried, I cut out all but the minimum physical activity. I surely did not want to have to have surgery. I was speaking to a Doctor friend of mine and he asked me a few questions about my healing process. I told him how it was progressing and here is his exact quote: "You went off your meds didn't you?" Now anybody that knows me very well knows that I have an aversion to drugs. Not just the illegal stuff, that's another long drawn out story. I don't go running for the Tylenol when I have a headache, I don't go diving for the Motrin when my back hurts, frankly, I would rather suffer through the pain and allow my body to heal itself. I told Doctor friend that he was right, I wasn't on anything. He proceeds to lecture me how the body wasn't going to get rid of that swelling without drugs. Being a Doctor, he tells me 800mg Motrin, 3 times a day and I would be better in two weeks.

So I'm mostly better now and I decide that I need to start being active again. A few days ago I stretched and did about an hour of calisthenics, not bad, started loosening up. Last night I picked up some free weights. Wow, I knew that I was loosing muscle mass off my arms, after all I wasn't using them, but I am definitely weak. So looks like I am back on a workout routine and going to drop all that weight that these sedentary months have put on me. Maybe I can get motivated and drop that extra ten as well.......

And next time, I`m just gonna hit her.

Preperation Pays Profusely

2009-11-16T08:40:00.000-08:00

Without further ado, I would like to introduce Harvey the Heavy Deer.

Early Saturday morning I had seen two does hastily leaving the meadow and heading up into the canyon. Naturally, I wasn't in the proper position to get a shot off. I had seen plenty of sign down in the meadow coming off of the river. I just didn't know what time of day the deer were moving. I decided to work my way around to the other side of the little plateau that I was sitting on and too watch the trail that the does had followed. My hunch paid off as I saw sunlight glinting off of antler as a medium sized ten point trotted down the same trail that the does had been on.

My heart fluttered as I made the decision to take the shot, the distance appeared to be about 300 yards. I set my binoculars aside and picked up my rifle, smartly cambering a round as I shouldered the rifle. I smoothly tracked him through the scope, waiting for him to pause. Fate would not have it so I decided to intervene and let out a small, "Bleet". He stopped, ans of course my shot was obstructed by a large Mesquite tree. Time was measured in heart beats as I waited for him to step out from behind the tree. One step, and than two and he was clear. I settled the cross hairs and squeezed the trigger. I recovered from the recoil in time to see him collapse in the grass.

I thanked the Great Spirit for blessing my hunt, and thanked this beautiful creature for providing nourishment to my family and I. But now the real work begins.

1 1/2 miles from the deer to the truck. Through the thickest, nastiest brush you have ever seen, not to mention the river crossing. The emotional satisfaction of having to earn your deer thru physical and mental exertion makes the memories sweeter and more fulfilling.

Deer Season Prep, Part 4

2009-11-13T10:25:00.000-08:00

Mental Preparation

By the time you read this, I should be deep in a canyon, surrounded by red rocks and mesquite trees. The mental preparation for this trip began long ago. What would I need to pack? What rifle would I use? Where would I go? These are all very important. Most importantly is the mindset that will get us to our final goal. The taking of a life, any life, is almost religious in nature. It is a responsibility that I do not take lightly. This magnificent animal will provide sustenance to my family throughout the year, and it's sacrifice will not be forgotten. Heavenly Father placed beasts upon this Earth to serve man, that does not give man the right to abuse these resources. It is my responsibility as a sportsman to insure that I make a clean kill, to insure that nothing is wasted, and to manage what I take wisely, so that others may follow in my path.

It is not about the kill, that is secondary and anti-climactic. The endorphins that are released into the body when you have made the decision to take an animal are powerful and difficult too control. It is man at his basic form, a hunter, some call it a relic of our distant past. A cruder form of society that has no place today. I challenge them with this, think of your last steak, did that cow suffer more or less than my deer? I already know the answer. Do you? Forgive my wild tangent, back on topic, endorphins. The taking of an animal makes you a predator, very close to the top of the food chain. It puts meat into your hands, protein that will give you life and make you stronger. The deepest part of your subconscious realizes this and dumps chemicals into your body to prepare you for the fight. Senses are heightened, respiration and heart rate go up. Muscles tense as your visual acuity goes up. You become attuned to the slightest sound, the rustle of leaves in the breeze seems louder than before. These are all great for fighting, but we are not fighting, we have to pull a trigger on a rifle.

These things are things that must be overcome to make a clean shot. Your body must be able to relax and focus on the fundamentals of shooting. I have found that mental exercises long before we reach this point allow me to keep my body under control. Almost as if you were mediating, imagine yourself shooting at animals in the field, under many different conditions, in many types of terrain. This allows your mind to follow thru all the steps without the distraction of an adrenaline dump. Every hunter, whether he admits it or not, has seen his cross hairs wildly moving as he tries too settle down and make the shot. Mentally preparing to take the shot ahead of time will make this easier, and allow you to put more meat on the table. To me there is little more satisfying than preparing and serving a meal that I have harvested myself.

Deer Season Prep, Part 3

2009-11-12T08:24:00.000-08:00

Gear Prep:
This is the part that most people focus on. You can spend alot of time and effort in the off season trying to find the perfect gear. The simple answer is that just like any shooting sport, find what works for you and stick with it.

Most importantly, your gear has to be tested before the season, and it has to be inspected before use.
If you reload your own ammo, remember to be diligent, you are responsible for making sure you get a 'bang' instead of a 'click'.

I will do a more in depth gear post when I get back, now it's bedtime, and I have an early appointment with the great outdoors.

Pithy Observation

2009-11-10T08:42:00.000-08:00

Am I the only person that notices the trend among cop TV shows? The one that has a heroine law enforcement officer, decent clothes, hair, make up, and a $10 nylon holster?

Maybe the recession has hit Hollywood as well.....

Deer Season Prep, Part 2

2009-11-06T18:42:00.000-08:00

Physical preparation, probably the part that never truly ends, but sometimes you have to make sure your body can handle the strain you are going to impose upon it. If you aren't used to climbing mountains, go climb some. If it has been a while since you humped a pack, throw it on and do a few miles.

Last weekend I decided to do a few miles with a loaded pack on. I didn't max the weight out, I started with about 35 pounds. After two miles I was in good shape, a little soreness in my calves but no worse for wear. It had been a few years since I put a full pack on, luckily my body remembers what it feels like and was able to adjust quickly. I have walked several times this week and have been gradually adding weight. I should be good to go for next weekend. Remember preparation and training are the keys to success, whether it be hunting or any other endeavour.

Perishable Skills

2009-11-04T04:13:00.000-08:00

I have a confession to make. I cannot recall the last time I dry fired. It has been months since I shot a pistol match. It has been weeks since I pulled a trigger. I am getting rusty, I can blame most of this on my elbow injury (next time I'm not dodging), but it's a lie. I can blame it on Mrs. Sigboy's work schedule, but she feels that should her job holds a higher priority than my shooting.

Either way I need to rectify this problem. So my plan is simple, just like keeping the mind and body sharp, I need to do something everyday. Nothing carried away, things like dry firing, drawing, firing positions. Something every day. Just like working out, even though most days it is just stretching and some push-ups.

So what do you think? Any ideas to improve this and make it more successful?

White Collar Sumdood

2009-11-02T06:21:00.000-08:00

Special thanks to AD and Lawdog for showing me what this truly was.

My thought was that I had left him in my past. I had seen hide nor hair of him since I left California all those years ago. I had laughed at all my buddies that caught the occasional glimpse of Sumdood. I was not worried, he was no threat to me.

I am comfortable in my position at Large Corporate Energy Company, awesome benefits, good retirement plan, great hours, decent pay. I had climbed a few rungs up the ladder, what more could I want?

I volunteered myself to travel to Dallas and act as a representative for Large Corporate Energy Company and purchase a piece of equipment that another department needed. Not a big deal by any means, I had authority to spend about 35k, and I intended too perform diligently and enamour myself with this deal. A few trips back and forth to Dallas and the deal was finalized. I had performed well, and secured an excellent deal for Large Corporate Energy Company. A few days went by and the equipment was set to be delivered. Suddenly my company cell rang, "Large Corporate Energy Company, this is Sigboy"

"Sigboy, this is Salesman Sumdood." My thoughts ran rampant, it couldn't be. I hadn't seen him in years. "I was able get another discount on that equipment. Since the wire transfer is already done I will just write a check for $500. Who do I make it out too?"

"Make it out to Large Corporate Energy Company, I will take care of it from there." No big deal, what was Sumdood playing at?

"Are you sure, I can make it out to Sigboy if that would be easier."

"Nah, make it out to Large Corporate Energy Company." It all made sense now, Sumdood was trying to pay me off, after the deal was done. Sneaky little bastard, that Sumdood is getting smarter.

Let this be a lesson to all of you that Sumdood can be anywhere. Keep your eyes peeled, and your mind sharp.

Do I Smell a Comeback?

2009-10-27T06:36:00.000-07:00

I was squeeeing like a teenage girl last night during the opener of Castle.

Societies Rose Colored Glasses

2009-10-20T15:30:00.000-07:00

Modern society has a standard to uphold. That standard is that the police will protect you. That politicians have your best interest at heart and that consumerism will save us from whatever ails us. Do you question what you read in the newspaper? Do you vote the way a talking head tells you to? I don't care which way you vote. I do however, like it when people can articulate to me the reasons why they voted the way they did.

I feel that these things tie into the sheepdog principal, because the simple truth of truth of the matter is that money does not buy happiness, most politicians don't care about your opinion, and the police are only required to take a report. So if you must question these things, can you trust the media to tell you the truth? All of it, regardless of it's apparent motives and intent? Our opinions belong to us, but they are influenced by the things we surround ourselves with, thus we don the mythical 'rose colored glasses'of society. I personally think that we need as much information as possible to form our opinions. This is not about 'right' or 'left' it is about making an informed, educated opinion of what goes on around you. Remember, if you can't rationally defend your opinion, then your thoughts lacks the value of logic.

"No matter how blessed our lives, how charmed our existence, things still inevitably, irrevocably, go wrong. Your mother is swindled out of her savings. Your estranged husband runs off with your kids. Your best friend goes on vacation in a foreign land and disappears. Eventually, bad things find us all." The Unit

Society would prefer the average citizen to believe that nothing bad ever happens.
But bad things will happen, and they may not happen to us. Make a choice: be ready to help those you care about, or just watch. Simply put, protecting yourself and your loved ones from being brainwashed into the hive mentality is just as important as protecting them from being raped, murdered , or even worse.

Traffic Stops Made Easy

2009-10-14T11:54:00.001-07:00

Recently I was pulled over by the police. What did I do, you ask? I ran a red light, or so he said. I told him it was orange. Did I get a ticket? No. Did I deserve one? Probably.

I can't remember the last time I had to pay a ticket. I would say that I get pulled over about 3 times a year. I'm probably going to jinx myself now, but I generally get out of them. Why? I don't think it is because of my witty charm and stunning good looks. I make the officer feel comfortable. He is just doing his job.

Step 1- Pull over immediately, and get all the way off the road. If he has to chase you, or feels like he is chasing you, it will not end well.

Step 2- Have your paperwork ready, and keep your hands vi sable, shut the car off and keep your seat belt on. No I don't care that it is 110 or -20, do it, he will know your not going to run.

Step 3- Be respectful, use Sir or Ma'am. Remember, he is just doing his job, and when he isn't writing tickets, he is protecting society (that means you as well).

Step 4- Take responsibility for your actions. You know what you did, and you know that you got caught. Don't make up some BS story. He gets lied to all day. He will know when you are lying, and you will pay for it.

Step 5- If you happen to get a ticket anyways, say 'Thank you'. He doesn't hear that enough, trust me. He has seen things that most people can't even imagine. He makes the world a better place. A ticket is a small price to pay for this comfort.

Finally, if you feel that you didn't deserve the ticket, fight it in court, not on the street. It is your right as a citizen of this great Country to do so, and besides, he might welcome the OT. But, if you follow steps one thru four, I doubt you will be getting a ticket. It works for me, and when I finally get one, I will pay it with a smile.

Deer Season Prep, Part 1

2009-10-12T16:46:00.000-07:00

Fall is quickly approaching, Sunday morn found ice upon the sidewalks and windows. The trees have started to drop their leaves, nightfall seems too come faster and a chill hangs in the air. Times like these remind me that it is time to renew my love for the bounty of nature. Time to watch the sunrise over a new and exciting wilderness, a journey more for the soul than the body.

For one reason or another, fate has led me to West Texas, and I plan to spend time this year in the canyons of the Panhandle. If the Great Spirit smiles upon me, my table will be blessed with a nice Mule Deer buck (I'm not picky, I will be happy with a whitetail). The area around here reminds me of reading Loius La'mour novels as a kid. The red ground and green Mesquite strike a interesting contrast of color. I plan on spending three or four days away from the distractions of modern life, no cell phones, no Internets. Just a few bare essentials on my back, to help ensure I find my way back home.

The outdoors have always recharged my batteries, showering me with a peace that I seldom find elsewere. My mind wanders to that day a few weeks from now when I shall pit my skills against nature. But first there is preperation to be done, scouting, gear prep, and most importantly, mental prep.

A few weeks ago I took the first of several scouting trips. The key to scouting is in finding the established deer trails and, if possible, finding the times that the deer are using these trails. Granted, after the opening day of deer season, all bets are off as the outside pressure of hunters will change estblished patterns. I located alot of good sign and saw a few does with fawns, the fawns still has their spots. The sheer numbers of fawns that I saw are a good sign of a healthy deer population, not to mention the bountless energy that they have will bring a smile to even the most stoic, bouncing effortlessly thru the thicket.

Tata's and Boobies

2009-10-07T07:16:00.000-07:00

If you ever needed a reason to give to a charity:

Wait, I promised Boobies didn't I?

How's that for a nice, matching pair of Boobies?

Chicken and Rice for $2.50

2009-10-06T12:01:00.001-07:00

I attempted an experiment of sorts last week. I am tired of paying almost $6 for a freeze dried meal, there just had to be a better way. I did some research, and played around with it a little bit.
I present to you my first dehydrated meal:

Chicken and Rice with Vegetables. The recipe is simple.
1/2 cup Minute Rice
2 tbsp freeze dried corn
2 tbsp freeze dried peas
1 tbsp freeze dried carrots
5 oz canned chicken
1/2 tsp chicken bullion

Boil 1/2 cup water and bullion, add canned chicken, do not drain. Bring to second boil, add rice and vegetables remove from heat, cover and let stand 5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste (mostly pepper). You can substitute the chicken for just about any other meat, or soy if thats your thing.

It is a decent meal, fairly lightweight, and it's filling. Definitely wont leave you hungry on a cold, rainy mountaintop.

Clinic Update

2009-09-30T14:16:00.001-07:00

You remember that clinic where I received shoddy treatment last week? Today was Mrs. Sigboy's turn. She had another allergic reaction at work and had to go visit the clinic. How did she get treated? Poorly, so poorly that I even got an eye roll out of the nurse for pointing out her incompetence. As for the Doctor, I'm getting tired of the attitude when you question the doctor. On the bright side, I am getting over my fear of telling doctors that they are wrong.

I will have full background on this story tomorrow.
/rant

Overstepping Their Bounds

2009-09-29T06:00:00.000-07:00

MArooned: Overstepping Their Bounds...

So Jay G talks about a new Massachusetts law where college students can't attempt to know their friends bucolically with the roommate in the room. This story accelerated me down memory lane.

Many moons ago while in the Army, I was stationed at Ft. Myer, Va. I shared a room with a soldier we will call Smith. Late one evening, or early in the morning, I don't recall which, Smith brings his lady friend into the room. I am sleeping soundly as he turns on the lights, the stereo, and proceeds to make as much noise as possible. Obviously, I wake up.

For my non-military readers, a little background is in order. Visitors are not allowed in the barracks after 2200 hours (that's 10 pm). Visitors are to be signed in and out at the front desk. Do I have to say that neither of these conditions were met?

So Smith comes over as I wake up and says "You need to get the fuck out so I can get my grove on." Or something equally cheesy. I look at them both, shes half drunk, make up smeared across her face, her ratty hair is disheveled, and say "I'm, going back to sleep, you two do whatever you want, but I'm not leaving my bed." Needless to say there was no loving in our room that night!

The very next morning, I get called into the commanders office, seems that the young lady had returned to file sexual harassment charges against me. Simply because I wouldn't leave the room that she wasn't supposed to be in so that she could ride the magic stick. The charges were dismissed, of course, but it didn't do anything for me and my roommates friendship. Moral of the story? I think Massachusetts actually has this one right. Nobody wants to be a first hand witness to their roommates drunken attempts to stuff the fish taco.

I should have hit her...

2009-09-28T00:01:00.000-07:00

Not hitting my wife led me to the Doctors office. Not hitting my wife put my right arm out of commission for several weeks. Not hitting my wife led to my worst doctor visit ever.

Maybe a little background is in order. Last week we were working in the laundry room. Of course, we had plenty of company, the dog and a small child were underfoot. I swung around unexpectedly and found my elbow about to contact my charming wife's head. A decision was made in a split second that would lead to my downfall. I chose to avoid hitting my wife and I hit the corner of the wall instead. Several days went by and all was well, no pain, no swelling, only a slight bit of discomfort.

Tuesday morning was when it all changed. I woke up to a swollen and inflamed elbow, it was warm to the touch and very tender. I immediately started heating it and starting taking Motrin to keep the swelling down. The week went by with only slight improvement. Friday came along, no swelling, but still tender and it felt that there was a bunch of fluid around the joint. I begrudgingly went to the clinic. After reviewing the dates nobody seemed very impressed with my delay, or my self diagnosis (which was correct by the way). Obviously, the first thing the Doctor ordered was x-rays. My first question was "Why?". I have decided that since I pay for it, I have the right to ask all the questions I want, and to deny tests if the Doctor cannot explain to me why they are neccesary. Little did I realize that this would change the tone for the rest of the visit. She was offended that I even questioned her judgement. She told me that she wanted to check for a break. I told her it wasn't broke. She said I couldn't possibly be smart enough to know that. Well, at least she insinuated it.

When in the room, her body language told me that she didn't want to be there. Her tone confirmed it. There she was, about my age, reasonably unattractive, hair pulled back in a simple pony tail. Her makeup was splotchily applied, foundation poorly covered by powder. I made no judgement, unfortunately,I was the only person in the room with such courtesy. She judged me based upon what I was wearing, my uniform for work. Black pleated pants, and a button down grey shirt, complete with name tags and an ISO 9000 cert patch. I also like to call it suburban camouflage. You don't know who I am, what I have done or even what I do. You are payed to provide a service to me. I expect courtesy to come along with the deal. I do not expect attitude because I dared question your judgement.

The xrays came back and confirmed all of our suspicions, the fluid in the joint was inflamed and causing the discomfort. She offered to drain it, but said that it would probably refill later. She also told me that the xrays showed no sign of gout or any other diseases.

So here is my point. I will not be accepting her services again. Why? Because I payed for a service and was not impressed. What was she looking for in the x-ray? Gout. I did not pay for xrays for her to mislead me so that she could check for gout. She didn't tell me that in the beginning, I would have said no and she wouldn't have gotten the up sale. Luckily, I pay for my own health care and nobody can tell me who I can see and who I can't. I will not be needing her services in the future. Thankfully I live in a Country where I am not told which doctor I have to see and when.

Next time, I'm just going to hit her.

72 hour food kit

2009-09-25T10:11:00.000-07:00

My goal was simple. I wanted a 72 hour food kit for a family of four. First, it had to be kid friendly. Second, it had to have a minimum of a one year shelf life. Finally, it had to be easily transportable and inconspicuous.
My first concern was what to use as a container. This would let me know how much space I had to work with. I had thought about backpacks, plastic kitchen containers, metal drums, and even large plastic storage containers. I decided to use a new five gallon plastic bucket with a new lid. The bucket is printed with an Engine oil label. This fulfils my desire for a low profile appearance. Who expects three days worth of food to be in an oil bucket?
My second concern was what to use for food. Anybody could throw rice and beans into a Tupperware container and call it good. I wanted more, planned meals, and food that the kids would eat. Compromises had to be made in regards to meals. I wasn’t just going to pack three days worth of Chef Boy R Dee and Chicken and Stars into the bucket just to appease the children. On the other hand, three days worth of Mountain House meals would not have fit into allotted budget. In the future, I am going to attempt to supplement a two serving mountain house meal with either noodles or rice.
The main meals are:
Roast beef with rice and brown gravy
15 bean soup
Pasole
Chicken with rice
For breakfast we have several choices:
Corned beef and hash
Instant oatmeal
Hash browns with Spam
I had mentioned earlier that I wanted a kid friendly kit. To accomplish this I have added Kool-aid packets. These will keep help encourage them to drink and stay hydrated, not to mention that the sugar will be a morale booster. My kids love Nutrigrain bars, I have added eight of them. I personally believe that they have good nutrition for low weight, and can be considered a fruit serving. Following this logic, I have added two 30 oz cans of Del Monte fruit cocktail. I decided that peanut butter would also go over well, not to mention being calorie and protein rich. I didn’t want to go overboard and only added a small 17 oz jar. In order to make this more palatable for my wife, I added some seasonings. Six chicken and six beef bouillon cubes, a small bottle of salt and pepper, and some crushed pepper.
Originally I had wanted to add plastic utensils and some cheap cook ware. Unfortunately, it would not fit into the fifty dollar budget, or the 5 gallon bucket.
I packaged everything into small zip lock baggies, or vacuum sealed into airtight containers to make the most of all available space. I filled all the crevices between cans with hard candies. To fend off any unforeseen problems, I duck taped a P51 can opener to the lid of the bucket. I also included some iodine tablets to aid in water purification. Several assorted plastic bags and a box of matches rounded out our kit.
The one thing that I learned from this project was that some serious compromises had to be made in regards to space and shelf life. Three days worth of food uses up more room than you might think, especially when you are making an attempt to appease your children. This project was centered around a five gallon bucket, its low profile appearance, and ability to be sealed.
This kit has limitations, all of them do. I do not suggest that this be your only source of food storage. Without a ready supply of water, this kit will fail. Without a heat source, or a pot to cook in, this kit will fail. However, assuming that these two conditions are met, you should be able to eat, and eat well, for at least three days.

New Blog

2009-09-23T11:51:00.000-07:00

Have you ever met someone and it seems that you have been friends forever? I actually have a few of those friends, almost as if we knew each other in the preexistence. One of those people I just recently met. He goes by Deschain and recently started a blog. It's a little crass, a little vulgar. I wouldn't hold that against him as he was raised in a liberal Canadian household. Sorry, I misspoke, a liberal French Canadian household. It's a blog about his newly discovered disdain for the liberal system. His moral awakening to the fact that man is supposed to be responsible for his own decisions and well being, regardless of what society tells you.

Go visit.

One final thing, he has a deep disdain for AR's and loves FAL's.
That you can hold against him.

Don't Shoot the Hostage!

2009-09-21T11:59:00.000-07:00

Tbolt had a post about hostage targets.He also wondered why anybody in their right mind would want to take this shot. In a previous life, I thought about this shot alot, and I always mentally prepared myself for taking it.

Back when the shooting range was my back yard, I used to practice this shot. I would walk purposefully around the corner of my barn, draw my pistol and shoot the bad guy (in the head) at about ten yards. Average time was about 1.5 seconds.

Do not misunderstand me, I NEVER want to take this shot for real, but I WILL. I have trained for it, I know that I can do it. I will take this shot to protect someone that I care for, friends and family alike. If I consider it to be my responsibility to protect you, I will take this shot for you.

Another Lifetime, Part 1.

2009-09-21T05:45:00.000-07:00

The desert air was still as I watched the full moon rise thru the windshield of my patrol car. The road in front of me was barren as I sat parked behind a Juniper bush, I was absently filling out a report from the last call. A red Honda Civic drove past, a small part of my subconscious tugged at me as I eased the cruiser out onto the road. I followed unassumingly behind them as I called the license into dispatch. It was no surprise when the car came back as stolen. The suspect was wanted for a list of other crimes. He was a white male, early thirties, 5'8", muscular build, blond hair, flat top. Think white supremacist without the tattoo's.

I turned on the red and blues, the little Honda in front of me lit up by the strobe lights like a psychotic chase scene in a bad zombie movie. Almost predictably, the chase was on, the little car attempted to speed away, it's acceleration was no match for the big V8 in my cruiser and I easily kept pace as I called for backup and started calling streets and directions into the microphone. The siren wailed into the broken stillness of the night as the chase started to head back into town. I knew that the danger was going to increase as more innocent lives came into the risk that this chase was creating.

Suddenly the car came to a halt and I saw the suspect flee on foot out of the passenger side of the vehicle. Across the desert he ran. I quickly bailed out of the cruiser and pursued him. I knew, or perhaps hoped, that backup was close behind. I kept calling my location into the radio; I now had a choice to make, flashlight or pistol? This choice would prove to be the most important out of all made that night. I chose to draw my pistol as I pursued him. I dodged cactus and creosote bushes as I started to close the distance. He had made a mistake when he chose to run from me. I loved to run, and I really loved chasing bad guys. My lungs were starting to find a rhythm as my belt and vest sought to slow me down. Not tonight, tonight my only goal was too put my cuffs on this guy. Soon we would be crossing another road and I started coordinating the backup on that road. I heard the sirens in the distance and knew that I would not be alone for long. I continued shouting commands at the subject.

"Stop, police!" But these commands were to no avail. I saw the road, 50 yards ahead, I saw headlights, but no flashing lights. I put on a final burst of speed as I caught up to my suspect. I shoved my pistol into his holster as we hit the edge of the road. I reached out and grabbed his arm as we collided with the vehicle. I remember putting him into an arm bar as we slid onto the hood and the car started to pull away. I briefly noticed the red paint as I went for a rear wrist lock. The move failed and we continued to fight on the hood of the car. The vehicle made a sudden turn and I rolled on the hood, the suspects arm was torn out of my grasp by the force as I lost my balance and fell of the hood, my body bouncing down the side of the car.

I felt my pistol hit the car and get hooked on something. I remember the distinct clatter it made when it hit the ground. Decision time again, secure my weapon or chase down the suspect? I looked up at the car and saw that it was the one I had chased earlier. I saw the suspect climb in thru an open window. It was crunch time.

What do you do? A choice has to be made here. What is yours?
Part 2 will published on Wednesday, when you will discover what I did.

Role model of the Week: XX

2009-09-18T07:36:00.000-07:00

Where to begin? The Interwebs have seen to dump a profuse amount of quality actions in lap this week.

Ever wonder whether or not a man will keep his word and/or be a loyal friend?

Barry Delaney and Private Kevin Elliott made a promise, they agreed that they would wear a dress to the funeral of whoever dies first. I'm not sure if color was specified or not, but Barry truly is an honorable man and loyal friend.

Ever thought that a mall ninja would triumph over a would be robber by defending himself with a katana? Neither did I, buy it happened with a Johns Hopkins University undergrad this week. He confronted the intruder in his garage, a convicted burglar with multiple convictions. When the burglar attacked, the student defended himself with his sword, severing his left hand and inflicting a lethal chest wound. Regretfully, now the dead goblins sister is saying that her brother didn't deserve to die and that the victim should be charged with murder.
Let me explain something to you, sis, if you somebody tried to rob and attack you, do they deserve to die? If they decided they wanted to rape you? If they decided they wanted to kill you? Your brother was committing a crime, and was somewhere he had no right to be. It was a risk he had taken numerous times, he knew that. This time he lost. The greatest part of all is that he will never rob anybody, ever again.

In your wildest dreams, did you ever think that two kids masquerading as a hooker and her pimp would bring down ACORN? (brief aside, I have yet to decide how I would feel about this if it was MY daughter.) I give you Jon Stewart, he describes this better than I can.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

The Audacity of Hos

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These two people showed remarkable tenacity, they were willing to risk themselves, and their reputations to show the truth of ACORN.

Another New Planet, and Other Celestial Body News

2009-09-16T06:26:00.001-07:00

I always enjoy news of new discoveries in space. I also enjoy when reporters over state the obvious, so this is a win-win.
From Yahoo news:
Astronomers have finally found a place outside our solar system where there's a firm place to stand — if only it weren't so broiling hot. ....its surface temperature is more than 3,600 degrees Fahrenheit, too toasty to sustain life.

I would say that is a overstatement of 'earthly' proportions.

Closer to home, in our own solar system, scientists have discovered a red spot on the dwarf planet Haumea. They say it is a richer deposit of minerals than the surrounding ice.

Again from Yahoo:
Haumea, discovered in 2004, orbits the Sun beyond Neptune, in a region known as the Kuiper Belt. It is classified as a dwarf planet — a celestial body that is big enough to have been rounded by its own gravity, but has not cleared its neighboring region of similar objects. There are four other dwarf planets: Ceres, Pluto, Eris and Makemake. Haumea is the fourth largest dwarf planet.

Fourth largest? Out of four? Wouldn't that make it the smallest? I give up, I'm going back into my corner now.

Role Model of the Week XIX; 9-11 Edition

2009-09-11T00:22:00.000-07:00

I do not have a specific role model for this week, there are many police officers and firefighters that all came together on one fateful day, eight years ago. Many, if not all of them, knew the risk that they took that day. Bravely, they saved all the people that they could, or they died trying. There is no greater sacrifice that can be given, then to honorably give your own life in the service of your fellow man.

Our soldiers in the Pentagon were hit as well. Luckily, major loss of life was spared. Construction in that area insured that a minimum amount of people were there.

Let us not forget the people that died on Flight 93, who decided that they would not go quietly into the night. We will never know exactly what happened on that plane. But we do know that innocent lives were saved by a few individuals that came together as a team, and decided that they would not be victims, that they would not be a pawn in somebodies morbid chess game.

9-11 was one of the few times in my life that I prayed to the Lord for vengeance, and the only time that I have asked Him to use me as the tool for it. I even briefly considered rejoining the military (much to my wifes chagrin). Instead I pursued a badge and became a better person.

Much has changed since than, much has been forgotten. Today let us remember those who sacrificed all for this great state we call the United States of America. We sleep well in our beds because them.

Who Hired the Steampunk Engineer?

2009-09-10T11:16:00.000-07:00

International, apparently.

And here is a real pictures for those that doubt me:

And no, I'm not going to add a 'trucks' label. Maybe a 'steampunk'.

Anyways I like it, thoughts? Questions? Comments? Opinions?

ROUS

2009-09-08T07:54:00.000-07:00

They have been found in Papua New Guinea.
From the CNN article:
Measuring 82 centimeters (32.2 inches) from nose to tail and weighing around 1.5 kilograms (3.3 pounds), the species is thought to be one of the largest rats ever to be found.
This is one of the world's largest rats. It's a true rat, the same kind you find in the city sewers," said Kristofer Helgen, a biologist from the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, who was part of the expedition team.
"To find new species of insects in this region isn't uncommon, ... this giant bloody rat -- the size of a cat. Amazing!"

Jay G wants to know what you would use for one of these scurrying about in your pantry.

My answer? I'm going to side with the Dred Pirate Roberts and use a sword.

New Leash

2009-09-08T00:57:00.000-07:00

No, not for me. Get your mind out of the gutter you freaks.

Mrs. Sigboy said that she wanted a new longer leash for our deaf, half blind, slightly special puppy. My first thought was that I wanted a longer leash(even though I cant be trusted with it). The second thought was 'Oh, I can make one of those!' For your viewing pleasure, I give you the paracord dog leash.

12 feet of braided goodness, Sorry for the colors, I used what I had on hand.

Shooting vs. Hunting

2009-09-05T07:44:00.000-07:00

Sebastian talks about the burden of breaking into hunting. I have a slightly different perspective.

I grew up hunting, we shot to increase our skill, but only so that we could quickly and cleanly harvest game. We also spent time hiking and practicing other outdoors skills. It wasn't until a few years ago that I started practical pistol shooting. When I started pistol shooting I had enough gear to shoot production class, but getting into limited class wasn't cheap. I believe that I spent about $2000, and that was going cheap. Any new hobby is going to have start up costs. Could you imagine trying to break into golf (I don't want to either)?

My point is this; Shooting and hunting, although they involve firearms, are two different sports. They require separate training and separate gear. They are two different disciplines. Sure there is some crossover, but not much.

The only thing that your average hunter and your average shooter have in common is the use of a projectile weapon. This is a blessing and a curse. I enjoy both pursuits, they satisfy me on different levels. I understand why hunters don't understand shooters and vice versa. Remember one thing, we are all on the same team, and will both suffer if the tools of our hobbies become further regulated and taxed.