I’m offloading some of my oldest stories this year. Bare Back Magazine just bought my story “The Carnival” for their October 2019 issue. This is my third sale to them.
I don’t remember exactly when I wrote “The Carnival”, but it was at least ten years ago.
Buddy is ten this month. I just remember that I got him in September 2009, when he was a kitten. He’s the only pet I’ve ever had that I know the exact age of.
Yesterday, I was highly motivated. I got a lot done. Today, depression is sinking in and it’s a struggle to keep moving.
I will not surrender.
The big camouflage holster in the center is a sling that crosses my body from shoulder to hip. It’s designed for carrying big revolvers that have scopes on them. I use it when I want to carry my single-action revolver in the field or woods. This holster holds my revolver tight and the flap on the top is unnecessary.
The three holsters on the left are OWBs. The brown leather one is for my snub-nosed .357 Magnum. Though it’s an OWB, it holds the magnum tight against my waist. If my shirt is covering it, you will not know it’s there.
The other two are for my 9mm. One is pretty bulky and would never work for concealed carry. The other, the black leather one, is a little better, but the shape of the pistol might still be seen against my shirt.
The three on the right are IWBs. I really like these thin fabric IWB holsters. They fit well in my waistband and are quite comfortable. I’ve tried other IWB holsters, including leather, and they were very uncomfortable.
One of the IWBs is for my 9mm. Another is for my .380. The third one, the smallest one, I bought it for my .380 and it was too small. But my way of thinking is, if I buy the wrong size holster, instead of returning the holster, I’ll keep it and eventually buy a pistol that fits in it.
Hope I don’t drink all my beer before the game starts.
Michigan kicks off their season at 7:30.
There are times in my life when I’m out in public with a hearing friend or family member. A stranger will pass by, look my way and say something that I don’t hear. But the tone that I detect and the expression on the stranger’s face makes me think it was something rude.
When I ask my hearing friend or family member what the stranger had said, they refuse to tell me. This frustrates me and makes me feel betrayed. All I can think is the stranger noticed I have cerebral palsy and made a nasty comment about it, but I don’t know that for sure.
Why do my hearing friends or family members not want to help clear these things up?
I accept that some people don’t like guns, don’t want a gun and don’t feel they need a gun. That’s fine. I completely support their choice. But I take issue when someone says I shouldn’t have a gun and that I don’t need one.
Do I really need a gun? I don’t know. I live in a nice neighborhood, in a somewhat rural area. I’ve never witnessed any crime around here. But occasionally strange people come to my door. You never know what someone’s intent could be.
I know that violent crime can happen anywhere. Not just big cities. Even the most rural areas can have violent crime. So, you never know. I choose to be armed because I don’t want find myself a target and not have the means to prevent myself from becoming a victim.
I have faith in police forces. But I also know that in most cases, the police are not on the scene at the time the crime is being committed. I suspect most other people know that too. So, it’s strange to me when people say things like “We don’t need guns because we trust the police to do their jobs.”
I live in a nation where firearm ownership is allowed. I know that many other nations don’t allow firearm ownership. Most of the people in these nations seem fine with that and I’m happy for them. Maybe it really does make a difference in their country. But just because it works for them, doesn’t mean it’s going to work for everyone.
I’ve heard all of the different comparisons of my country to another country. Most of the time, I don’t agree that country is any better than mine. Usually that country has a much smaller population and does not have as much land. Though they might have a lower rate of violent crimes, the rates are usually high enough to be a concern.
You don’t have to be armed. But how can you honestly not understand why I prefer to be? How can you honestly tell me that I shouldn’t have or don’t need a gun? If I didn’t have a gun, what should I do if someone attacked me with a weapon? I’m physically strong, I can fight. But I’d rather not be hit with a baseball bat, or stabbed repeatedly while struggling with this person who attacked me, or shot.
So, what would you have me do? Your way of thinking seems to be, I should just accept that I will be a mess for the police to clean up.
My dad just gave me one of his chainsaws. I was going to buy one eventually, but now I won’t have to.
I just finished the epic fantasy novel that I stopped writing in 2004. It’s now 707 pages and 141,821 words. This draft is pretty rough and it’s going to need cleaning. I might end up adding more than I take out. But before I start the editing process, I want to finish the series. This was Book One. I hope to have the story wrapped up at the end of Book Three, but it might end up taking four or five books to finish this story.
This is not the first novel I’ve finished, it’s just one that has sat unfinished for fifteen years.
I wasn’t sure it would come this year. My mind has been on different things and I didn’t have much thought about hunting. But just a little while ago, the passion came back. Bow season starts in a little over a month and now it’s all I can think about.
Baiting is outlawed this year, so I’m going to try calls. A cousin recommended antlers to rattle and doe bleats in a can. I’m seeing a can of bleats and a pair of antlers on Cabelas.com, so I’ll order those and maybe another call as well.