This is a nice video of a guy taking a few shots from a Mosin Nagant M44, similar to mine. This guy has removed his bayonet for some reason or other…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmqKERUJy4U
Nice Fireball.
A picture is worth a thousand words.
But the truth is we left the camera at home, so I have some typing to do. Last Thursay, we were privileged to host the President of the United States in our tiny little home town of Huntsville. Neither Darling Wife nor I got close enough to meet the man, but it is quite exciting to have the leader of the free world drop by your neck of the woods.
The highlight of the visit was that we were able to get quite close to runway 36R as Air Force One touched down. We were about 300 yards out on the right side of the plane, perpendicular to the runway. I did have the foresight to bring the air-band radio with me that morning. Darling Wife came down to meet me for lunch, and we were able to tell about 5 minutes before they landed which runway they’d be on. Both of us were surprised that they allowed people to get so close as the plane landed.
It was impressive to see the big, blue Boeing 747 as it came down (ironicly enough, directly over the top of Boeing’s Huntsville office). Everyone cheered as the smoke chipped off the edges of the landing-gear tires. Then in less than a minute, they were at the terminal, nearly out of our sight.
A couple hours later, I heard on the radio that they were about to depart. I gathered up some interested people at work, and we went outside with the air-band radio. My office is also perpendicular to the runway, but not quite so close. After a couple of very hot and sunny minutes, we heard Air Force One give its goodbye to Huntsville Tower. Seconds later, we saw it, landing-gear retracted, nose pointed steeply up. Two minutes later, and it was gone. There were no politics discussed. There were no snarky comments from anyone. I was thankful for that because either of those would have soured the occasion.
I may never again get the experience of seeing the leader of the free world touch-down in my home town. I’m glad that I got to see it this time, and my only regret is that we forgot the camera.
Bored as toast
I’m in Atlanta for SAP training this week. Amy came down with me on Sunday, but she went home this morning. The end result is that I’m bored and uninspired. I’ve exhausted my ration of Cadbury’s Royal Dark for the week, and I’m down to orange juice and Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA to stave-off dehydration. As our Mr. Jerome noted, thirst is a dangerous thing. Now, the 90 Minute IPA is quite tasty, but the amazing hops presence and slightly elevated ethanol content means that one has to take it easy with this stuff.
The SAP training is going well. I’ve seen a lot of the material we’re covering before in the real world, but I haven’t usually understood what I was doing or why. This class has done a good job of filling in the gaps in my understanding. I know that I still have a long way to go in understanding why Jerry made some of the decisions he did in desiging this product, but that doesn’t make it any less impressive. SAP is a good system, but it’s large and complex. There is a lot to learn about it, and a person so inclined could make a career of it. To a large extent, I have. With the exception of the one year I worked at the NASA Integrated Services Network, I have been supporting SAP systems in one way or another since 1998. With any luck, we’ll keep at it. It seems to pay well, and the hours are good mostly.
Home Front
On the home front, all is good. We have much to be thankful for. We have the prospects of a new job that promises a substantial increase in the standard of living. Previously, the Mrs.’s term of service with Huntsville City Schools came to an end. With a child on the way, neither of us thought it very sporting to start a new school term that everyone concerned knew she would never finish. We’d planned from the outset that once she had the baby, she’d stay home. We both felt and thought that would be the best plan for all concerned (in this case, all concerned are Mommy, Daddy, and Baby).
With approximately one third of our income drying up in a couple month’s time, we realized that we needed to do some belt-tightening, and we have done. Amy is now driving me to work most days, under the pretense that it is cheaper by about $30 -$40 at current prices to fill the car twice in a week than to fill the car once and the truck once. Also, I am brown-bagging lunch more often than not, and this leads to further savings. Since we reload our ammunition, we can save quite a bit, and still get to shoot fairly often. We’re waiting on a batch of Hornady 123 grain, .310″ diameter spire-point bullets to arrive. These will allow quite cost-effective plinking loads for the No. 4 Enfield.
Last week, we found out that my uncle, Greg, had started work on the same NASA contract on which I work. He has taken up with a very challenging group; the Russia Services Group, which will require bi-annual trips to Moscow. Greg is flexible, and perhaps a good deal more hardy than we. There is an amount you could pay us to travel to Moscow, but it ranks in the mid seven-digits. Per day. In dollars, not rubles. We wish him well, but there is no need to wish him success. He is after all a Steele, and due to the heartiness of our constitutions, we achieve what we set out to accomplish. Perhaps it is not a testament to our constitutions, but rather us being too thick to completely understand and comprehend the nature of failure.
The weather is mostly dry. Too dry for our tastes, but it is not without benefit. The fauna do not enjoy it, nor the flora. It is quite dusty and asthmatic, but the pollen and other allergens are down to a most manageable level. Our local water authority has just imposed strict lawn-watering rations, and we are not at all upset about this. I have only had to mow the lawn four times this year, and I’m quite happy about the prospect of keeping with that rate for the rest of the year.
Amy and I have been taking afternoon walks three days per week, and are delighted to report that wildlife is flourishing in our bedroom community, despite the drought. Eastern cottontail rabbits are plentiful in our neighborhood, though we have only two rather scrawny ones. We’ve also seen the requisite squirrels, one chipmunk, many various birds, and a spotted fawn. Odin the cat has taken a particular fancy toward chasing the sprinkler, getting thoroughly soaked in the process. He still doesn’t care for being bathed, but will chase the sprinkler for hours. Several times, when we haven’t had the sprinkler on, he’s resorted to running towards whichever neighbor has the closest running sprinkler. We also have taught him to chase a frizbee. Unfortunately, he hasn’t quite worked out what to do once he’s caught the thing except wait for one of us to throw it again. Freya the cat will have none of it. She is more interested in the rabbits.
Most importantly, Amy and I went to the doctor today, and they confirmed that the Tot of Steele is in fact a daughter. Mother and child are both quite healthy at this point, and everything looks normal. We could not be more happy, but I suspect we will be once Amy has hatched-out. The doctor gave us permission to go right out and procure a new shotgun and large-bore handgun to protect the Tot of Steele’s honor. We are already well-provisioned here, but doctor’s orders are doctor’s orders. We’d hate to disobey them. Perhaps a nice Beretta 12-bore O/U. The wife asked if a .45 wasn’t already enough, to which we replied “Not when a .50 is available! Only the best to protect my daughter!
We’re going to Atlanta next week for an SAP training class (ADM 100), so possibly we will have some travel log postings.
Two Expectant Mommies
Here is a snap of my better half with brother Shannon’s wife, Sojung, taken at Brandon’s wedding. Sojung is due about three weeks before Amy. In fact, the night Shannon emailed me to tell me that Sojung was pregnant, was the night that Amy and I found out. It was hard for me to keep it quiet when I got Shannon’s message, but Amy and I had agreed not to tell anyone until we went to the doctor.
Here are the other few pictures I took at Brandon’s wedding reception.
The Whitney Wolverine
Slow down!!! That pistol looks like it is doing 120 MPH just sitting there!
This is the little-know but well-loved Whitney Wolverine, chambered in caliber .22 Long Rifle. It was produced from 1956 until 1957, when my dad was just a pup.
The bottom picture shows a modern reproduction by Olympic Arms, this one in a polymer frame instead of the original Aluminum. It retails for about $280, which is just about in line with the Ruger 22/45. The Ruger for some reason just doesn’t look as fast.
Currently, Samson Manufacturing owns the original production equipment, and will be bringing these babies back from the dead just as soon as they clear the BATF hurdles.
Modern as Tomorrow. Sign me up! Apparently, originals are Curio and Relic eligible.
Anyone else notice that picture of Eli Whitney on the 1950’s advert? You’ll remember from Alabama History that Mr. Whitney invented the Cotton Gin.
Many Alabama students will remember their 4th grade history books had a picture of a black man in the section about Mr. Whitney. I can only guess today that the picture was un-captioned or that any caption that was there was meant to mislead us into thinking that Mr. Whitney was black slave from the south. I can’t even begin to guess as to why they would have done so… Imagine my surprise when I learned as an adult that Eli Whitney was a white man from Massachusetts.
Eli Whitney’s race is completely irrelevant, but the story-line we were sold was that he invented the cotton gin to improve the lives of slaves who would otherwise would have had to perform all of the cotton-seeding operations manually.
It is but enough to make me wonder what else they lied to me about, either directly or through omission.
Welcome to America
We have a strong affection towards President Theodore Roosevelt, and we accept it as a good omen that our first-born’s due date is on the anniversary of his birth. We are pleased to pass along these words that Mr. Roosevelt wrote shortly before his death in January of 1919.
In the first place we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the man’s becoming in very fact an American, and nothing but an American…
There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn’t an American at all. We have room for but one flag, the American flag, and this excludes the red flag, which symbolizes all wars against liberty and civilization, just as much as it excludes any foreign flag of a nation to which we are hostile…We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language…and we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people.
We certainly are ready for another like him. Now for those of you paying attention, yes T.R. was once the mayor of New York City, but Mayor Guiliani is comes nowhere near the same ballpark.
The Properly Outfitted American Home
Suppose you were in the position that I was in 15 months ago; wanting to properly arm your home starting from square-one. We normally do a lot of research before committing to the purchase of any high-dollar item, and this was no exception. The gun boards are full of yahoos that are looking for validation… They have their favorites and they’ll call you an idiot if you like something different.
But what to do? Eventually, you have to jump in and buy something to get started. After 15 months of painstaking research, I’m pleased to announce the minimum outfit for the American home (with wiggle-room), and I will list them in the most efficient order of acquisition.
- An M1911 in caliber .45 Auto. A 5-inch “Government” model is probably the most desirable, but slightly hard to conceal. A 4-inch “Commander” model can be had, and is a perfectly reasonable substitute. You can defend yourself, your family, and your home with this weapon. In a pinch you could take small or medium game with it, if you do your part.
- A 12-bore shotgun of some description. A repeater is wonderful if you can get it, but a single-shot break-action will suffice. If you have to choose among fixed-choke barrels, choose “Modified Cylinder” as the most versatile. With this weapon, you can defend your home, take upland and water fowl, small game, and large game at medium distances.
- A .22 Long Rifle of some description. Again, a repeater is best wether it be pump-action, lever-action, bolt-action, or auto-loading. With this rifle, you can take small game, practice, become an fair marksman, and eventually take large game in a pinch. An Englishman performed some tests during WWI, and discovered that with some moderate marksmanship training, a Brit rifleman could effectively snipe the Hun from distances up to 300 yards. It never came down to that, but they had it if they needed it. For my money, a bolt-action is probably best, but I don’t dismiss the lever-gun.
- A .30-06 of some description. This rifle need not be fitted with telescopic sights. You are practicing with your high-quality .22 lr in order to acquire skills you will apply with your ‘06. Your ‘06 with proper sights and ammunition can be used to engage targets at up to 1000 yards if you practice. I’ve never had that kind of practice, but it appeals to me. With this rifle, you can take large game at a pretty far distance. You can defend your home. You can defend your country.Here is where the wiggle-room comes in. If you can’t get a .30-06, almost any medium-bore, medium-power rifle will work. The 7.62×54R is ballistically similar to the .30-06, but the 7.62 was invented by Ivan and the .30-06 was invented by John Moses Browning. Almost anything in the 30 calibre range will do, from your Winchester 30-30 to the 7.5×55 Swiss, to the 303 British. Ideally, you’d like something that starts a 150 grain projectile at a minimum of 2500 fps.
Now, the point of this post is that I own all of these with the exception of the diminutive .22 long rifle. Eventually, I’m going to have to break-down and buy one, but I don’t want some dinky kid’s 22. I offer the following gun pr0n for your consideration. The Czech CZ 452 Lux, in .22 Long Rifle. It weighs-in at just over 7 pounds, and is almost 47 inches over-all with a 28 inch barrel. It also features an excellent trigger-pull ( I tried one in the local shop), adjustable sights, and a detachable box magazine in both 5 and 10 round capacities. More information may be had at http://www.cz-usa.com/
Enjoy.
Orson Scott Card on the "Way Things Ought to Be."
For the last couple of months, Mr. Card has been producing a well-written course of essays beginning with global warming and ending with a vision of how we might better structure the way we choose to live in the future. As usual, there are passages we agree with (the global warming analysis) and passages we don’t (the idea that people don’t like to drive their cars).
For those who don’t know, Mr. Card is a well-known science fiction writer. He is a democrat and a bleeding-heart leftist. For once, I use those words without revulsion because Mr. Card operates high above the arena of empty political invective. He isn’t hate-filled. He’s logical and honest, and though I often disagree with him, he is eminently respectable. The fact is that we need more people like Mr. Card on both sides. We would do well to listen to him, and perhaps better still to emulate him in the matters of political and civil discourse.
Without further ado, I link you to his series of essays.
- All in a Good Cause
- Life Without Cars
- Walking Neighborhoods
- Don’t You Dare Ask for Proof!
- Oil — Past the Peak
As a bonus, I offer you Global Warming: Fighting Off the Ice Age.
Finally, all of Mr. Card’s “World Watch” excellent essays may be found together at http://www.ornery.org/essays/warwatch/index.html.
Election Selection
We have no love of Republican POTUS candidate Ron Paul. He seems to be an isolationist with little clue as to how the world actually works. The one thing that he did get right was to point out that our founding fathers cherished the idea of liberty and not the idea of democracy.
It seems to us that democracy was meant only to be the vehicle, and liberty the destination.
Expound.
Friday Three Men in a Boat
Is there any better way to spend a hot and rainy Friday afternoon than reading a few chapters of Jerome Klapka Jerome’s classic Three Men in a Boat?
Here’s an excellent passage for your consideration.
The first list we made out had to be discarded. It was clear that the upper reaches of the Thames would not allow of the navigation of a boat sufficiently large to take the things we had set down as indispensable; so we tore the list up, and looked at one another!
George said:
“You know we are on a wrong track altogether. We must not think of the things we could do with, but only of the things that we can’t do without.”
George comes out really quite sensible at times. You’d be surprised. I call that downright wisdom, not merely as regards the present case, but with reference to our trip up the river of life, generally. How many people, on that voyage, load up the boat till it is ever in danger of swamping with a store of foolish things which they think essential to the pleasure and comfort of the trip, but which are really only useless lumber.
How they pile the poor little craft mast-high with fine clothes and big houses; with useless servants, and a host of swell friends that do not care twopence for them, and that they do not care three ha’pence for; with expensive entertainments that nobody enjoys, with formalities and fashions, with pretence and ostentation, and with – oh, heaviest, maddest lumber of all! – the dread of what will my neighbour think, with luxuries that only cloy, with pleasures that bore, with empty show that, like the criminal’s iron crown of yore, makes to bleed and swoon the aching head that wears it!
It is lumber, man – all lumber! Throw it overboard. It makes the boat so heavy to pull, you nearly faint at the oars. It makes it so cumbersome and dangerous to manage, you never know a moment’s freedom from anxiety and care, never gain a moment’s rest for dreamy laziness – no time to watch the windy shadows skimming lightly o’er the shallows, or the glittering sunbeams flitting in and out among the ripples, or the great trees by the margin looking down at their own image, or the woods all green and golden, or the lilies white and yellow, or the sombre-waving rushes, or the sedges, or the orchis, or the blue forget-me-nots.
Throw the lumber over, man! Let your boat of life be light, packed with only what you need – a homely home and simple pleasures, one or two friends, worth the name, someone to love and someone to love you, a cat, a dog, and a pipe or two, enough to eat and enough to wear, and a little more than enough to drink; for thirst is a dangerous thing.
