Operation Carnival boxes on the way!

And here goes the last of it. I shipped out two boxes yesterday, three went today, and the last two go tomorrow, roughly 70lbs of Mardi Gras beads, toys and other swag, all going to help some of America's best guys and gals in Afghanistan.

And for those of you who helped out, here's what you sent:
Mr. B

Margaret and Dennis K. and Kimber the dog!

Old NFO

Kirk C., CW3, USA (Ret)

Tom B.

Thanks, folks.

Trains...

So last night,Aaron and I and my friend Beth went out to Celebration in the Oaks, a holiday light display set up every year in City Park. Part of the huge display was a fairly large model train set-up, which I tried to film several times, a task made difficult by Aaron and Beth constantly laughing and chattering right behind me.

But here's a clip of one of the trains...and Beth.



And yes, there was a little more than just coffee in that cup.

Good friends, good read

So I recently finished my copy of Calexit, the Anthology, by J.L. Curtis, aka Old NFO, and several other great contributing authors, to include Bob Poole, Cedar Sanderson, Tom Rogneby, Alma Boykin, B Opperman, L B Johnson, Eaton Rapids Joe, Lawdog, and Kimball O'Hara.

I know most of these other writers as well, and if you rerad this blog's sidbar, so do you. All are great people and great patriots, and their assembled stories of life after California, currently America's most useless and least patriotic state, are all worthy of a read and consideration.

In fact it took me a while to read this because I wanted to savor each shot story, so I read no more than one a day. And I was sorry to turn that last page.

If you love America and hate the way that the Left is trying to ruin it, get a copy of this book and see what could happen if the Left gets their way and transforms California into their idea of utopia. (Think "Lord of the Flies" only with the force of government behind it.)

I loved this book and I hope there is another one coming. Meantime, go get you a copy here

A great night indeed

Tonight I took the heck hounds down Bourbon Street to Johnny White's bar, where I met blog readers Steve and Connie and their cool little Fox Terrier Joey for dinner on the bar's second floor outdoor patio. Johnny White's is one of the most dog-friendly restaurants in the French Quarter and the food is good and priced right. We spent a couple of nice hours watching the street scene below and getting to know each other, and it's been a while since I've met such charming folks. But then they ARE from Nebraska...

This was just the night I needed after a hectic day. Hopefully they come back again soon.

And the dogs were very well-behaved, with the exception of Murphy being Murphy and grabbing a chicken wing off of Steve's plate. (Sigh.) That Dog...

A Displaced Louisiana Day.

So today, the dogs and I had a visit from Baton Rouge in the form of Displaced Louisiana Guy, who came to hang out, eat food, drink beer and deliver a holster that he spent some time making.

Here's the finished product;

It's a beautifully stitched left'handed cross-draw holster for my Uberti Colt SAA clone which will enable me to wear it in the fashion of Western icon Lee VanCleef, who always wore his gun cross-draw beneath a bad-looking coat.

The pistol fits great, but I'm going to need a bit of new wardrobe to cover it properly so I didn't wear it when we went out.

After DPL petted Murphy and Belle for a while and validated their little egos, we went out to Chalmette Battlefield to see where the Brits under Packingham got totally shellacked by Andrew Jackson and his men, earning him a place on our money until Barack "I hate America's white heroes of the past" Obama unilaterally decided to replace him last year.

Then we went to Jackson Barracks, the Louisiana National Guard facility, to see and photograph all of the wonderful tanks and aircraft on display outside of their museum. which was regrettably closed on Sundays. And alas, as we drove onto post, the MP at the gate gave us two instructions:

1. You cannot take pictures here on the post.
2. If you do take pictures, they cannot show any of the buildings.

Well ok then...and damn. I interpreted that to mean "leave the nice camera in the car and sneak shots with the camera phone then crop the hell out of them".

So here's an F-15 on a stick for Juvat.

There was an F-4 Phantom in there too that I wanted, but I would have been seen trying for it, so I did not. I did get these great shots of their A-26 Invader, one of my favorite things with wings.

There was an F-86 with the radar nose and the belly-mounted rocket launcher, too.

And an F-102 Delta Dagger, partially hidden behind Displaced Louisiana Guy.

There were several tanks and armored vehicles there, but all were in direct line of sight of the MP who'd told us "no pictures" so there's none of those today. But rest assured, I'll go back soon and get the proper permission to get better ones.

We did find this groovy Dodge Command Car that really looked sharp.

I told DPL not to mess with it, but he did not listen.

Oh, wow. That engine has new wires and belts and obviously runs.

Now close that back up before you get us in trouble, DPL! Sheesh.


Then it started to rain on us so we drove back to the French Quarter where is was not raining and I took him to a bar that serves fantastic "Hangover Burgers" which are topped with, among other things, hash browns and a fried egg. Oh, heaven..especially when accompanied by a couple large Abita Amber drafts.

Then we wandered around the Quarter and got an after-dinner coffee.

Then we strolled some more and ogled the chicks enjoyed the street scenes for a bit before DPL realized what time it was and had to call the Missus and ask for permission to stay a bit longer.

Yeah, nice bag, right? Man walks down the street carrying that bag, people know he's not afraid of anything.

Then it was into Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop for one more beer.

It was a good day and hopefully he comes back again soon.

Southern hospitality

Yesterday, I was honored with an invitation to go to Baton Rouge and meet Displaced Louisiana Guy and his wonderful family for dinner. It was a short drive of a little more than an hour from here, and it was a nice one, even with Murphy and Belle along for the ride.

As he describes it on his blog, we spent much time talking about things from "politics, to guns, to food, to dogs, to vet care". There were probably other topics too, but the discussion was eclipsed by this incredible stuff pork roast that he made, and with potatoes and a salad which also topped anything I could ever even hope to learn to make. And there was beer consumed as my two dogs played with his two. This was easily the nicest evening I've spent since coming down here, and it felt good to get out of the city and back out where real people live.

Next time out, I'm hoping to meet his father, Pawpaw, another interesting blogger who lives somewhat nearby as well.

I still miss my West Virginia-area friends something fierce, but meeting quality people like these folks down here makes that a bit easier.

Check out both of their blogs if you haven't done so already. You'll be glad that you did.

New House--First Steps

So now that I'm able to move around and get things accomplished again, I'm working to put the house in order and try to make it an actual home.

For a week and change now, I had wanted to use a gift that I got as my first official action, because it is special to me and reminds me of where I've come from and the people there that I care about.

The first thing I did to change the house was to hang a painting. This painting:

This painting was given to me the day before I left by my friend Bruce Chandler, a professional artist of some renown in the Washington DC/MD/WV area. It's an oil painting that he did of a stretch of the Shenandoah River not far from where I've just moved from, and I'll cherish it, both for that memory and because it came from Bruce, a shooting buddy and ardent conservative, even though he officially resides in Maryland. Over the past year or so, I've watched Bruce as he's developed his shooting skills and taken a real interest in some classic firearms, and I'm proud to call him a friend right along with his wife Katherine, a liberal lawyer who is nonetheless a truly pleasant and charming person, political discussions aside, of course. ;-)

I shall miss them, and it's my hope that they do come down here and visit. Until then, I shall think of them both every time I see this picture, which now hangs in a place on honor on my wall just inside my front door.

Back on the internet!!!

Today, the world's slowest cable install guy came over and hooked up my internet, so I'm finally able to post from a computer that is not my work computer or an iPhone.

So here's the tale thus far...

Last night in my old place thew previous Wednesday night. The furniture is already gone so Aaron of The Shekel breaks out his camping gear.

I'm starting to wonder about his operational cred here.

The first night took us to the home of Keads, where we enjoyed some shooting, some BBQ, and some adult beverages and conversation.

Here, Keads rocks the Thompson. Elliot Ness got nothing on him!

The dogs like Keads too. He spoils them. (And thanks, Nancy, for the cookies!)

It was a long dog day. Murphy racks out on the floor, using my travel bag for a pillow.

Miss Belle actually went down the hall and slept in Keads' room. Did I mention that he spoils them and they like him?

In the morning, coffee was had, and good-byes were said.

Keads had best come visit, and soon!

Got to the new house well after dark. The dogs were a bit thirsty.

And the chickens outside. Seriously.

Lots of chickens.

Feral chickens have proliferated in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina (Thanks, PH!)

And they're not shy or timid. This one came calling as I enjoyed breakfast on my porch.

We saw St. Louis Cathedral.

We had crawfish.

They even arranged a brass band parade in the French Quarter...guess they heard I was here.

Back at home, the unpacking began.

Not exactly helpful, these two.

Belle did help with the kayak, though. Sort of.

Then she claimed the back steps.

Murph just be chilling inside though.

Saving up energy to chase more chickens tomorrow.

Oh--and s far, the score is Murphy escapes = 2 (including one where he bum-rushed me at the door), Belle escapes = 4

This is the week.

The movers are coming today to pack all my stuff. Tuesday they load it, Wednesday I finish what house repairs I can, and on Thursday, I'm on the road.

Sometime in that process, they'll take the computer and I'll be off-line, save for iPad updates enroute.

As much as I'm happy about the new job and locale, I realize now that I'm going to be leaving a lot of really great people behind. I have a lot of friends here at my church, at work, in the neighborhood, and all my shooting buddies...I'll miss them and some of them were probably telling the truth when they say that they'll miss me. So I go with some sadness, too.

I've spent eleven years in this house. Like most around here, I bought when the market was high and I'll be lucky to break even today even after eleven years of payments. And some time during that eleven years, I acquired a lot of stuff that I don't recall having to move before. When I moved in, all my worldly goods fit in one medium-sized moving van and my Dad, gone now, helped me make the move in a day. This time I think I've disposed of more stuff than would have fit in that truck, and I still have a couple of train car loads left that has to come with.

Now I've got to oversee the packing and loading of all that stuff. Then I've got to get a trailer for the stuff that I'm not entrusting to the movers. You can guess what that is. And for moving help and enroute security, I'm bringing down the best armed lawyer that I can afford, because lawyers can come in pretty handy in the south.



No, I won't have that one. I can't afford him. I got Aaron from The Shekel coming instead. So I'm getting ready for that two-day discussion of his favorite topic, the Rule against Perpetuities.

And of course the dogs will be riding with us for two whole days as well, so I've got that going for me, too.

I'm wondering if it's not too late to ask for my old job back.

Sunday...a very good day.

On Sunday, a few of us got together to give Old NFO a proper send-off...and to celebrate his birthday.

Some of the Usual Suspects assembled. There was me, Proud Hillbilly, Wandering Neurons, Stretch (who really needs a blog), John from Excelling at Mediocrity, and the original Most Interesting Man in the World, Old NFO himself.

He's finally retiring and moving out west, but we couldn't let him go without one more lunch together...especially with it being his birthday and all.

Needless to say, the ladies all found him irresistible.

Face obscured to protect the guilty.

It was a nice lunch indeed, and then we capped the day by wandering over to Wal-Mart and buying a cart full of toys for the Marines' Toys for Tots program, which we then dropped off at the local Holiday Inn.

It only took a few minutes, but I like the idea of a couple dozen kids getting some presents this year. And a Fart Gun. Who picked out the Fart Gun? WN? Stretch? I'm looking at you guys.

Heck, we should have gotten Old NFO one too. For his birthday.

You will be missed, my friend. Gun shows won't be the same. Safe travels.

And happy birthday.

Blogshoot 2015 in pictures

Bloggers and others came from all over today to shoot and socialize at the blogshoot.

Here's Hayden, an English transplant to Ohio, holding a vintage Martini Henry and a round of .577-450 ammo for it.

Reunited at last. This Martini Henry left Britain in the late 1800's and wound up staying behind in Afghanistan for over a century before coming back to America a couple of years ago with a military contractor and winding up in my collection. And now for the first time since the Afghanis "acquired" it, it's in British hands again.

Here's the lovely Nancy, firing a Brown Bess black powder flintlock musket.

Larry the Historian shooting the musket.

There were modern guns here, too. Here we have a suppressed .300 blackout rifle with an Aimpoint Micro T2 optic. It's smaller and quieter (and easier on the shoulder).

Andrew shoots an FN SCAR-17 in .308.

The Miller, in person with a suppressed AR.

New Jovian Thunderbolt, with an unsuppressed AR.

Jesse from Washington DC, with a Ruger 10-22.

And two of the Usual Suspects, Jay and Old NFO, discussing some mischief or another.

Here's Jay, with a single-shot suppressed .300 blackout.

This rifle was almost as quiet as Old NFO's tricked-out Ruger 10-22 (sadly not shown) with a suppressor and subsonic ammo...Oh, man. Talk about quiet.

On the other end of the noise scale, Larry the Historian had his Barrett .50 rifle here again.

And there was a suppressed Uzi, shown here in the capable hands of Kara.

Some gun porn:

British #4MK2 Enfield (above), and American Model 1917 Eddystone (below). Both courtesy of Jesse.

Many rounds were fired from many weapons, many acquaintances were made or renewed. Dinner followed, and $600 was raised for this years's charity, Jefferson Community Ministries.

Thanks once again to all who came, and to 340 Defense for hosting us.