The Reluctant Paladin

Heroes - and the idiots they save

2012-01-31T07:00:00.002-06:00

About 30 minutes south of here lies Lake Ray Hubbard. On Saturday night, a 21 year old girl and her 20 year old cousin were driving home from dining out, took a wrong turn, and ended up accidentally driving their car down a dark boatramp into the cold waters of the lake. Luckily for them, a Rockwall County Sheriff's Deputy named Kevin Rowan happened to notice the headlights of their vehicle as it was sinking 30 feet from shore and was able to wade out, bust a window, and carry the two young ladies to safety.

Here's a 3 minute dashboard camera video showing the rescue. My comments after...

First, before anything else, I'm glad to see something positive captured on a dashcam video that portrays a Policeman doing what I love them for. Seems like every other day there's something awful in the news regarding something a Cop has done, and Lord knows I get irritated at some of them in the course of my job.... but the negatives seem to get all the air-time and threaten to block out the work of the vast majority of good Policemen and Policewomen who go about their duty of "Protect and Serve" every single day.

As for the girls in the video, and everyone else reading this - The driver was yakking on her cell phone at the time of the boat ramp adventure. Stupid. Pay attention to where you're going and stay off the damed phone if you can't drive and talk at the same time.

Also, get one of these:

Or something similar. Its a Res-Q-Me tool that has a seatbelt cutter and a push punch style window breaker built in. I've got one in my truck, Ms. Paladin's car, and my Daughter's car. Mine hangs on the door handle of my truck by a lanyard. The lanyard attatchment point is a "break away" style so its easy to get to and use. Retails for about $10. It can make a difference if you have to get yourself, or someone else, out of a jam some day.

Neither of these girls could swim, the water pressure outside the doors made it impossible for them to escaped the sinking car, and they would have drowned within minutes had the Police Officer not been there. Please don't find yourself in this situation and unable to get yourself out of it...

Hobo fishing kit

2012-01-30T07:48:00.002-06:00

I'd been meaning to make one of these, and finally got around to it....

Its a hobo fishing kit, or pocket fishing kit, to go in my BOB in the back of the truck. Basically a length of 1" Schd 40 PVC with a plug in one end and a threaded fitting/cap on the other. Its maybe 10" long or so. Inside is an assortment of hooks, weights, bobbers, small panfish lures, and some extra fishing line. 10 lb spider wire monofilament is wound on the end, and a paracord loop lanyard is threaded through a hole in the cap (to go around your wrist). I camo painted it with flat paint and sprayed several coats of flat sealer to help protect the paint a bit.

To use it, you hold your thumb on the wrap of monofilament and cast it underhanded. Then you re-wrap the line onto the end with your other hand to retrieve the lure (or a fish!). Works pretty good. Any stockpond around here that doesn't go dry in the summer tends to have fish - whether they were stocked there intentionally or not. This rig is great for panfish (bluegill, sunfish), crappie, bass, and catfish as long as they aren't too big. Total cost of the rig (less lures and stuff) was probably under $5.

Still to add: a wrap of heavyweight bowfishing line on the outside for making drop lines for catfish, and a short wrap of paracord for use as a stringer.

Yeah... I know it looks kinda like a pipe bomb. As with many things in life appearances can be deceiving :)

Girl Friday - 1/27/2012 - Billie Burke

2012-01-27T07:00:00.003-06:00

This week's Girl Friday was married to Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., as in "Ziegfeld Follies", and is probably best known to people in this era as Glinda, the Good Witch, in the Wizard of Oz.

Billie Burke

Hit the jump for more....

Am I wrong?

2012-01-24T07:22:00.000-06:00

Saw this news story this morning. A little 9 year old girl was abducted during her walk home from school. The bastard's truck blew a tire after he snatched the little girl and the pair ended up at a convenience story. By that time the 9 year old had two black eyes and a big bruise on her cheek.

While in the store, the little girl rebelled against her captor, got a phone and called 911, and refused to leave the store telling everyone "I ain't going anywhere. I'm waiting right here for my Momma." She kept her head and showed bravery that a lot of adults couldn't muster. Her captor fled the store and was later arrested a couple of miles away.

Watch the video and tell me if you think I'm off track....

Ok.... I dig this story because the little girl managed to get herself out of a seriously dangerous jam. What bothers me is how she got in the predicament to begin with. Going by the info in the news story, her enormously fat father is waiting at home for her every day. What the fuck is the fat bastard doing sitting around the house while his 9 year old walks home alone from school? Can he not hoist himself out of the easy chair, walk down to the school, and walk home with his little girl?

I know kids should be able to walk the streets and be safe. I know you can't smother kids and be over protective. I know sometimes financial reasons make it where both parents have to work while their kids come and go from school. I know the sole person to blame for the abduction is the pedo that abducted her (may he rot in hell).

I also know that what "should" be able to happen can bear little resemblance to the world we live in today. My first impulse upon seeing the weeping father was "Get off your fat ass and keep your kid safe!" There wasn't any reason for him not to escort her other than laziness.

Maybe I'm wrong feeling this way. Wouldn't be the first time. What do you think?

What is best in life?

2012-01-23T07:00:00.003-06:00

"To crush your enemies and see them driven before you, and hear the lamentation of their women..."

Personally, I think this is even better, though to me the two are not mutually exclusive and the enjoyment of one is dependent upon the willingness to do the other....

Mrs. Paladin and I went to the Fort Worth Stockshow last Saturday, and my Daughter and her family tagged along. The feeling of Bailey riding on my shoulders so she could see all the interesting stuff, her little fingers sometimes wiggling my ears, is pretty hard to beat.

Going to a livestock show can really help restore your feelings of optimism and hope for the future. At least it does for me. Seeing so many people, many of them young people, with actual positive work ethics and characters is like a breath of fresh air... even with the mingled scent of hay and manure (which I enjoy, btw.)

Our enemies are legion.

They surround us on all sides and mount attacks on us from the front through brute force, from our flanks as they sap the walls that protect us, and sometimes through treachery from within. Whether its a violent face to face attacker seeking to rob you, an endless stream of Government Bureaucrats (from both sides of the aisle) nicking away at your liberty by a thousands cuts, or a growing sea of self righteous malcontents bawling about the unfairness of the system that actually requires they work for what they receive... with the mindset that what you've worked for should be theirs, under the guise of "equality" - its very easy to get worn down and give up hope.

That's why I take so much joy in anything that helps renew that hope.

So, I propose that my two "best" things in life are integrally related. My family and my way of life are bound to the commitment that I must have to crush that which threatens it. One is very necessary to ensure the existence of the other.

The pride that I take in the idea of protecting that which I value - whether its dropping the hammer on an evil doer seeking to cause me and mine physical harm or metaphorically crushing those with philosophies and goals that present a less immediate yet equally tangible threat - is very important to embrace.

In the end, there are those that will take from you what you love.

They must be stopped. The survival of that which you love depends upon it.

Peanut butter jelly time?

2012-01-22T07:00:00.001-06:00

A bulletin from the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries, 1911...

"Carp Jelly, and ancient Swedish dish, is delicious."

I love catching carp whenever possible. I wouldn't have a problem eating one if I was hungry enough. Carp Jelly?.... no thanks!

Girl Friday - 1/20/2012 - Olive Thomas

2012-01-21T07:00:00.003-06:00

This is what I get for not double checking Blogger. I had this week's Girl Friday scheduled for posting as usual on Friday morning... but blogger decided to keep it as a draft instead. Just discovered that fact this morning so here she is:

This week's Girl Friday had a career that was was tragically cut short....

Olive Thomas

Hit the jump for her story and more...

Olive Thomas was born in 1894, and had a rocky life as a child. She dropped out of school at the age of 15, to help support her widowed mother and siblings. She married a local guy at 16, and they divorced when she was 18.

Eventually she found herself in New York, working as a store clerk. She entered, and won, the "Most Beautiful Girl in New York" contest - and thus began her entertainment career. She worked in the Ziegfeld Follies, and its more risque "cousin" - the Midnight Frolic. For the later, she danced and performed clad only in balloons which the rich patrons enjoyed popping with their cigars....

Olive went on to star in several Silent Films and become known world wide. Because of her fame and beauty she was painted by several artists of the day, including Harrison Fisher and Alberto Vargas. The Vargas painting below was done in 1920, the year she would die.

Olive married Jack Pickford, brother of Silent Star Mary Pickford, in 1916. They were very much in love, but it was a stormy relationship filled with plenty of drinking, partying, and the rumors of drug use. While on vacation with Jack in France, Olive accidentally ingested a fatal dose of mercury bichloride. The medicine was a topical treatment for her husband's chronic syphilis, and it is believed she may have mistaken it for water and swallowed some before she realized the error.

She was rushed to the hospital and had her stomach pumped several times, but she passed away on September 20, 1920.

Yeah... what he said.

2012-01-17T09:35:00.000-06:00

From the Weekly Standard, an email from Rep. Allen West regarding the recent incident where Marines appeared on video peeing on dead Taliban fighers, and the hand wringing from Washington over it:

“I have sat back and assessed the incident with the video of our Marines urinating on Taliban corpses. I do not recall any self-righteous indignation when our Delta snipers Shugart and Gordon had their bodies dragged through Mogadishu. Neither do I recall media outrage and condemnation of our Blackwater security contractors being killed, their bodies burned, and hung from a bridge in Fallujah.

“All these over-emotional pundits and armchair quarterbacks need to chill. Does anyone remember the two Soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division who were beheaded and gutted in Iraq?

“The Marines were wrong. Give them a maximum punishment under field grade level Article 15 (non-judicial punishment), place a General Officer level letter of reprimand in their personnel file, and have them in full dress uniform stand before their Battalion, each personally apologize to God, Country, and Corps videotaped and conclude by singing the full US Marine Corps Hymn without a teleprompter.

“As for everyone else, unless you have been shot at by the Taliban, shut your mouth, war is hell.”

Blackpool - Victoria Pier 1904

2012-01-14T08:15:00.000-06:00

Girl Friday - 01/13/2012 - Virginia Grey

2012-01-13T07:00:00.000-06:00

This week's Girl Friday comes from the golden age of Hollywood. She acted in many movies during the 30's and 40's, and made lots of TV appearances in the 50's and 60's. In fact, she worked so much that it's odd that more people don't know about her.

Virginia Grey

Hit the jump for more....

Virginia Grey passed away in 2004, at the age of 87. She never married. It is rumored that she was in love with Clark Gable - whom she was romantically involved with in the 1940's. When he didn't marry her after the death of Carole Lombard (his wife) or after his divorce from his 2nd wife, she is said to have continued to wait for him the rest of her life.

What a lineup.... From left to right is Priscilla Lawson, Virginia Grey, Lynne Carver, and Ann Rutherford.

I'll shoot my eye out?...

2012-01-07T07:00:00.017-06:00

Naw, but I just might clip a zombie as it shuffles over yon hill....

Went to the range Thursday morning. That's my Swiss K31, 3 shot group, iron sights at 100 yds. I didn't caliper, but a quick measurement with a ruler shows it to be about a 1 1/8" group. I had put most of a box of 7.5X55 downrange into the target and was pretty satisfied with the center mass grouping. For the last three rounds I decided to try for head shots. Mission accomplished.

Zombies beware.

I don't normally shoot silhouettes on the rifle side of the range, but I got a wild hair and did so this trip. Turns out I like it :) . I wanted to get a better feel for shooting actual man-sized targets at 100 yds. The K31 makes me look like a decent shot. Now I need to find me a range with longer rifle lanes.

Put a couple of magazines through the WASR too. Obviously didn't group as well as the Swiss rifle, but all the shots hit within the lethal zone at 100 yards, even using the cheapie 5 MOA red dot.

I'm thinking about upgrading my optics for the WASR. Something with a smaller dot (like a 3 MOA). Out at 100 yds the 5 MOA dot on my BSA optic completely covered the head where you couldn't even see it. Great for chest shots, but I'd like to see if I could squeeze a little more accuracy out of the WASR.

Girl Friday - 01/06/2012 - Victoria Principal

2012-01-06T07:00:00.001-06:00

I heard a news blip the other day on the radio about the City of Fort Worth leasing out some of their unused buildings to the film crew working on a revival of the old "Dallas" television series. I grew up watching Dallas in the late 70's to early 80's.

I hated the show, actually, but I tuned in every week to oogle this week's Girl Friday. She's had some pretty creepy plastic surgery since way back then and looks rather odd to me now. But back in her prime she was a dish...

Victoria Principal

Hit the jump for more oldies...

Remember. When every second counts....

2012-01-04T15:50:00.001-06:00

The police are only minutes away.

This young lady showed a ton of courage and level headedness in dealing with a break in.

Two things that you might have missed:

1. Her husband died of cancer on Christmas Day.

2. At the end she says, "I wanted them to hurry and get here, before I had to do it. They didn't get here quick enough."

Flea Market Find

2012-01-02T08:13:00.000-06:00

Saturday was a gorgeous day, so Mrs. Paladin and I made the drive over to the big Flea Market in Canton, Texas. New Years Eve meant there was only about half of the usual dealers hawking their junk outside, but given the huge size of Canton Trade Days there was still plenty to look at. Low shopper turnout also meant there wasn't the large crowds of people to navigate through.

I wasn't looking for anything in particular, and antique irons were not even on my list of possibles. Of course that meant that I found three really interesting ones for sale this time around. I exercised restraint, however, and limited myself to buying only the most interesting one of the three.

It's not marked, so I don't know the manufacturer. I was attracted to the double wing nut set up on the tank. The fuel tank has some dents that I probably won't be able to get out, but she should clean/paint up pretty nicely assuming that I can conquer the rust that has welded everything together.

Girl Friday - 12/30/2011 - Im Ji Hye

2011-12-30T07:00:00.008-06:00

Girl Friday bids farewell to 2011, with a return of the very first Korean Racing Model I ever stumbled across...

Im Ji Hye

Hit the jump for more....

Vintage Advertising - Iver Johnson Arms and Cycle Works

2011-12-28T07:21:00.000-06:00

Iver Johnson was a Norwegian immigrant who came to America in 1863. A gunsmith by trade, he worked in the firearms industry and formed the Iver Johnson Arms and Cycle Works company in the late 1800s. They produced a line of Motorcycles, Bicycles, Revolvers, and Shotguns...

Iver Johnson firearms are probably best known for the transfer bar safety mechanism designed into their line of revolvers - often termed "safety automatics". This was pretty revolutionary at the time, since revolver hammers were usually kept sitting on an empty cylinder chamber to avoid accidental discharge from dropping the weapon or the hammer being dropped from less than fully cocked due to a thumb slip or similar "oops" moment.

1902

I find their ads really interesting to look at. They portray a world where self defense wasn't an odd concept at all.

Hit the jump for more...

1902

1905

1902

1903

Iver Johnson also ran a series of ads featuring either photographs or drawings of little kids handling their revolvers. Usually there was some sort of caption along the lines of "Papa says it won't hurt me."

Yikes.... that's placing a little too much trust in the safety features of the gun. After all, the safety measures only mean that the gun will only fire if you intentionally pull the trigger - not if its dropped. If your kid could pull the trigger they could shoot the gun just fine. That series of ads sure wouldn't fly today.

1903

1901

If this doesn't worry you...

2011-12-27T07:00:00.004-06:00

It should.

....Fargo treasures its placid lifestyle, seldom pierced by the mayhem and violence common in other urban communities. North Dakota’s largest city has averaged fewer than two homicides a year since 2005, and there’s not been a single international terrorism prosecution in the last decade.

But that hasn’t stopped authorities in Fargo and its surrounding county from going on an $8 million buying spree to arm police officers with the sort of gear once reserved only for soldiers fighting foreign wars.

Every city squad car is equipped today with a military-style assault rifle, and officers can don Kevlar helmets able to withstand incoming fire from battlefield-grade ammunition. And for that epic confrontation—if it ever occurs—officers can now summon a new $256,643 armored truck, complete with a rotating turret.

A similar "up-armoring" is occurring all over the country from coast to coast. The usual reasons given are threats of terrorism, the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting, and the ever popular 1997 LA Bankrobbery. The federal government is responsible for funding much of this buying spree - via over $34 Billion in federal grants since 2011.

I found this quote interesting:

The new weaponry and battle gear, they insist, helps save lives in the face of such threats. “I don’t see us as militarizing police; I see us as keeping abreast with society,” former Los Angeles Police chief William Bratton says.

“And we are a gun-crazy society.”

So what's my beef with all this? Militarizing a police force can lead to a change of mindset among the force. As well, militarizing a police force isn't a one-time expense. After the federal money is gone, its up to the local and state governments to maintain equipment, provide training, buy ammo, etc. As those costs are considered, there tends to be a feeling that the expense has to be justified. That, together with the change of mindset, can lead to bad things happening:

In one case, dozens of officers in combat-style gear raided a youth rave in Utah as a police helicopter buzzed overhead. An online video shows the battle-ready team wearing masks and brandishing rifles as they holler for the music to be shut off and pin partygoers to the ground.

And Arizona tactical officers this year sprayed the home of ex-Marine Jose Guerena with gunfire as he stood in a hallway with a rifle that he did not fire. He was hit 22 times and died. Police had targeted the man’s older brother in a narcotics-trafficking probe, but nothing illegal was found in the younger Guerena’s home, and no related arrests had been made months after the raid.

In Maryland, officials finally began collecting data on tactical raids after police in 2008 burst into the home of a local mayor and killed his two dogs in a case in which the mayor’s home was used as a dropoff for drug deal. The mayor’s family had nothing to do with criminal activity.

Joined the club

2011-12-26T08:52:00.000-06:00

I read a lot. Usually to the tune of 1 or 2 books a week.

Mostly fiction, though I read other stuff too. I became a voracious reader around the age of 12 or 13 after I met an older kid who introduced me to the youth books of Robert Heinlein. After that I transitioned to J.R.R Tolkien and its pretty much been a steady stream from that point to now.

For a long time I kept all the books that I had read. Sometimes I would read them again, but most of the time they would just sit on a shelf. When the shelves got full, I boxed them up and stored them away. A couple of years ago my habit of never getting rid of books slammed into my finite storage space and I got rid of almost all of my books. Took a bunch to Half Price books and sold them. Gave many of them away to friends. Donated a batch to some hospitals/rehabs.

I've resisted making the jump to e-books for a couple of years now. Just didn't seem the same as holding a reading a physical book, you know? I've been thinking about it for a while now, though. Mrs. Paladin got tired of me lingering around the edge of the cliff this Christmas and gave me a shove....

I'm now the proud owner of a Kindle 3G keyboard. Tactical Black (Graphite), of course. I think I'm gonna like it. I definitely like the lower cost of "books" compared to buying physical books, and it certainly solves my storage/shelf space problem. I've already downloaded my first ebook (Survivors by James Wesley Rawles). I imagine I'll add to my library pretty quickly using the multitude of free book downloads available. Hopefully the free books will help temper my impulse to go on an ebook buying binge right off the bat.

Next on the list of accessories to buy: A car charger (it came with a wall plug charger), and one of those mid sized solar chargers that folds up and fits in a backpack.

Girl Friday - 12/23/2011 - Vera-Ellen

2011-12-23T07:00:00.007-06:00

Girl Friday this week is a gal I always associate with Christmas. She was a wonderful Dancer in the 1950's, and is probably best known for her major role in "White Christmas" where she appeared along side Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye.

Vera-Ellen

Hit the jump for some more pics, and a great video clip of her dance moves in White Christmas...

Whenever I watch her dance, its very hard to concentrate on anything else in the scene. Its even hard to remember that there's anyone else on the stage - even her dance partner. I'm not a big "Dance Guy", but I can't help myself when it comes to Vera-Ellen. Below is my favorite number from White Christmas... You'll see what I mean.

I'm tellin' you why.....

2011-12-21T06:45:00.001-06:00

I heard a news story on the way to work this morning about the TSA agents singing Christmas Carols to passengers waiting in the screening area of an airport.

Hmmmmm......

To be sung to the tune of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" -

Oh... you'd better not pout, you'd better not cry.
Take off your shoes and unzip your fly.
The TSA is coming to town.

They're putting on gloves, so take off your belt.
Man you won't believe, where they've felt.
The TSA is coming to town.

They do not try to profile, their reasons are inane.
And when they search a Grandma, you will think that they're insane.

Oh... the full body scans caused many outcries,
But if they scanned me they'd scratch out their eyes.
The TSA is coming to town.....

No honor among thieves....

2011-12-20T07:44:00.000-06:00

From Utah...

Security personnel were in the process of questioning Korin Vanhouten, 47, and Eldon Alexander, 36, at an Ogden, Utah WinCo supermarket, accused of stealing makeup, energy bars and batteries. At the end of the interrogation, they left with a citation for attempted shoplifting.

In the process of leaving the WinCo lot, the officer came upon "the two suspects trying to flag him down in the parking lot," as Ogden Police Lt. Eric Young characterized the surreal moment for the Deseret News. "And he goes over to their location and realizes that their vehicle has actually been burglarized. They ended up having their stereo and amplifier, a drum machine and some cigarettes stolen from their vehicle," Young said.

Girl Friday - 12/16/2011 - Maude Fealy

2011-12-16T07:00:00.009-06:00

This Weeks Girl Friday is someone I'd visit, should I ever perfect my time machine...

Maude Fealy

Hit the jump for more...

Mozambique Drill - Cowboy Style

2011-12-13T07:00:00.019-06:00

Mrs. Paladin took the day off last Friday to burn some vacation hours before the end of the year. We dashed off to the range in the morning for a bit. Weather wasn't too bad. A little muddy from recent rains but at least the wind wasn't blowing.

I spent some time doing a kind of Mozambique Drill with my single action Thunderer. Two to the chest and one to the head pretty much as fast as I could cock, fire, cock, fire,.... Range was 21 feet, and the silhouette is about 2/3 the size of a full - sized target.

The really odd thing about the target, though, is the fact that it has seafood recipes printed all over the front and back..... Don't know what's up with that but they sounded pretty tasty :)

Have I mentioned how much I love this gun? :)

Winter Carry Option

2011-12-12T07:00:00.001-06:00

With the onset of colder weather, I can happily switch from carrying my P64 in my pocket, to carrying my Ruger Security Six.

It rides quite well in a Desantis Holster. Two HKS Speedloaders go along just in case. Its really comfortable to carry, and added layers of winter clothing make it much easier to conceal a larger sized gun.

Ella Mae Bowen

2011-12-11T07:00:00.001-06:00

I don't normally post music stuff.

Her name is Ella Mae Bowen, and her cover of this song is hauntingly beautiful....

GPOMD

2011-12-10T07:00:00.010-06:00

Gratuitous pictures of my dog....

Gunny turns 6 months old next week. He's up around 70 lbs now, and growing and growing..... Seems like he gets taller every day and now he's starting to fill out with some muscle too.

He sure looks different that he did when we brought him home back in September :)

Girl Friday - 12/09/2011 - Alexandra Breckenridge

2011-12-09T07:00:00.004-06:00

This week's Girl Friday has been seen most recently on HBO's True Blood, and currently on American Horror Story.

Alexandra Breckenridge

Hit the jump for more...

The First Rule of Dog Park is...

2011-12-07T07:00:00.003-06:00

People love dog parks. If you are unfamiliar with the concept, a dog park is a fenced in area where residents of a city that has a "leash law" can take their dogs and allow them to run around off-leash for excercise and to have fun.

Basically its a special zone set up to allow people to break the existing law. Of course, this runs contrary to the mindset of people who make the laws to begin with so in order to allow people to enjoy the limited suspension of one law.... they have to come up with some new laws.

31 of them.

"There’s no way to rule innocent men. The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren’t enough criminals one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws." - Ayn Rand

To add insult to injury (from my point of view), the Parks Department are the ones who made up the ridiculously long list of rules pictured above. They are also the ones tasked with enforcing most of them, since they are Park Rules and not a part of the Animal Ordinance.

So whose telephone number appears prominently on the sign? The Police Department (who just pass on any Animal Related calls they get to Animal Control), and the number for Animal Control. Park's number appears no where. Which means we get the calls from angry people insisting that we respond immediately to enforce such important rules as "no bare feet".....

I hate Dog Parks.

Prepping update - Keeping Warm

2011-12-06T07:16:00.000-06:00

There was a light dusting of snow on the Tacoma this morning and lows were in the 20's. Texas has a shorter winter season than many places in the US, but it can still be brutal in its own way. Especially since the shortness of the season leads most people to be unprepared for bad things that can happen as a result of winter weather.

Every year, ice storms descend on North Texas causing power outages in neighborhoods and entire suburbs that can last for days, or even weeks. When the lights go out, grocery stores in the affected areas stay closed, gasoline doesn't pump, there's no light at night, and it gets cold really fast. People in affected areas respond mostly by moving in with friends/family in unaffected areas, relocating to motels until power is restored, sheltering in public shelters, or just sitting and shivering in the dark. Some knuckleheads even try to heat their homes with charcoal grills - which can kill them with CO buildup or set their house on fire. Also, ERCOT is repeating their warning that lack of power generating capacity this winter may result in targeted outages throughout the coldest periods this winter.

Heating my home has been a glaring hole in my prep plans for a while now. I have plenty of food/water, various ways to provide light and cooking ability off-grid, stabilized gas for the vehicles.... but no way to heat my home. We have a fireplace, but its mostly decorative and would require extensive/expensive modifications to be of any use at all. Enter the Mr. Heater Big Buddy:

I picked this unit up at Cabelas last week for $120. It can run off one or two of the small camping sized propane tanks, or you can run it off a 25# propane tank which is how I have mine set up. There's a built in fan to help distribute heat, and its rated for indoor use (I also have battery powered CO detectors in my home). It won't heat my entire house.... but in the event of winter power outage we'll be closing off unneeded rooms and the area of the house we would actually live in is small enough to be heated just fine with this unit.

Girl Friday - 12/02/2011 - Chris Koren NSFW

2011-12-02T07:00:00.000-06:00

This week's Girl Friday comes to us from the March, 1970 centerfold spread for Playboy Magazine.

Chris Koren

Hit the jump for more -

Hakuna Matada

2011-11-28T07:00:00.007-06:00

One's appreciation of the beauty found in the "Circle of Life" may be directly related to one's relative position in the food chain ....

This is a Red Tailed Hawk dining on a squirrel yesterday morning. The Hawk was called in as "injured", since it didn't fly off when someone walked by. I left it alone, since it was fine and just doing what it's supposed to do. I have had people call stuff like this in and want us to "make them go away" so they don't have to see any carnage in their upscale neighborhood.

Makes me want to show up at their house one morning, slap the breakfast out of their mouth, and see how they like it :)

Remember when...

2011-11-27T07:00:00.010-06:00

My Daughter and the Son-in-Law are over at a friend's deer lease this weekend, so we got to keep Bailey while they are gone. The weekend of Thanksgiving is always our time to decorate for Christmas at Castle Paladin, inside and out. It was nice having Bailey here to help out, not the least of which because she reminds us of what we may have forgotten about the Christmas Spirit as we've gotten older.

Remember when you didn't worry about Chrismas bills, or crowded shopping malls, or working out hectic Holiday schedules?

Girl Friday - 11/25/2011 - Kang Yui

2011-11-25T07:00:00.005-06:00

This week's Girl Friday is a Korean Model whom I know zip, zero, nada about....

Kang Yui

Hit the jump for more...

As God is my Witness.....

2011-11-24T07:00:00.001-06:00

I thought Turkey's could fly....

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!!

Chillin'

2011-11-23T07:00:00.002-06:00

My Daughter sent us this pic of Bailey the other day. Seems she's caught my Grand Daughter calmly sitting in the refrigerator several times now, just checking out the contents of potential snacks. At least she brings along her Blankie so her legs don't get cold. That shows forethought and a good Prepper attitude!

Its odd, the nicknames kids give their blankets. Bailey calls hers her "Monkey", for some unknown reason :)

New Diversion

2011-11-22T07:00:00.005-06:00

A while back, my local Public Radio Station began running an hour long show on Sunday nights called "RadioLab". I fell in love with the show from the very first episode. It's sort of similar to This American Life, if you are familiar with that show. I have my own problems with Public Radio in general, but there are some gems among their lineup if you sift through the chaff.

Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich host the show, which consists of several short segments circling around a (more or less) central theme. I've found it very enjoyable and interesting to listen to, even on the occassions when I might not agree with some of the content. My problem was that the show starts at 7pm our time. I get off work (normally) at 7, and I'm usually home by 7:30. Then I'm into the house to fix dinner, play with the dog, and smooch with Mrs. Paladin (not necessarily in that order). I'd miss the last half of the show unless I had to work late.

I'm pleased to find that the show episodes are available online at their website: Radiolab. I highly recommend it.

Like I needed another reason...

2011-11-21T07:00:00.023-06:00

I don't generally need another reason to look kindly upon Actress Mila Kunis... She is a Girl Friday, after all. But it's nice to have one anyway. On the heels of Good Dude Justin Timberlake attending a Marine Corps Ball with Marine Cpl. Kelsey De Santis, Mila accompanied Sgt. Scott Moore to the Marine Corps Ball in North Carolina.

I like this very much...

And there wasn't a big "Hey!! Look at me!" aspect to it either. Her publicists didn't promote the event or even release pictures from it. The two pictures above were the only ones released and were taken by a friend of the Sgt.

Girl Friday - 11/18/2011 - Joan Leslie

2011-11-18T07:00:00.003-06:00

This week's Girl Friday is a Hollywood Legend:

Joan Leslie

Hit the jump for more....

Seeing through the Mist

2011-11-15T07:00:00.011-06:00

Dallas Zoo - 11/12/2011

Life, and the world, or whatever we call that which we are and feel, is an astonishing thing. The mist of familiarity obscures from us the wonder of our being. We are stuck with admiration at some of its transient modifications; but it is itself the great miracle.

—Percy Bysshe Shelley

Dallas Zoo - 11/12/2011

I just called... to say.....

2011-11-14T07:00:00.030-06:00

...you suck.

Warning: The following sound file contains profanity. NSFW. Listener discretion is advised...

This was a voicemail left for Animal Control last week. I bleeped out the case specific stuff. We get "drive-bys" like this in Animal Control from time to time through voicemail and email. Especially when its a slow news day and we've had to take enforcement action against someone that they don't like. That's what spurred last week's rash of hatemail and unimaginative anonymous voicemails. The local news ran a piece that portrayed us in a bad light - in spite of the actual facts of the situation. It comes with the territory.

Logically, you'd think people would realize that if they disagree with current laws that Animal Control is obligated to enforce - then they should maybe Oh, I don't know... change the laws instead of expending so much energy trying to kick us in the balls for doing our jobs. Then again, that would be implying that idiots like brave Mr. Anonymous on the voicemail above have at least two brain cells to rub together. In this particular instance its not even something as lowly as a City Ordinance we're talking about. Its a State Law that is in place to protect human lives.

Stuff like this doesn't really bother me that much. Its easy for people to get "Internet Balls" or "Testosterphone" and rant their brains out. Does't affect me much. Sometimes people will get a wild hair and act like this face to face, although that's more rare. It takes the same amount of stupid, of course, but considerably more guts to talk that way to my face.

When it does happen, I'm perfectly capable of handling that too.

It's the response from the Suits Upstairs that really causes me irritation. After careful review of the actions taken by the Officers involved in this specific case (I was not one of them), Management was not able to find one single thing that they did incorrectly. Zip. Zero. Nada..... We did everything right. Open and shut case.

So the natural response by the courts was to dismiss the citation issued to the Violator by Animal Control, without even so much as consulting with the Officers involved to learn the facts of the case. No explaination given at all. The only comment from the Prosecutor to the Officers who showed up at court (only to be ignored) was "This is going away". Then our own Management, in a gutsy move to show how they back up their people, announced to the press that the Animal Control Department would be undergoing sensitivity training.

I'd feel better if they just came out an told us we were being thrown under the bus. At least I could respect their honesty. Now I'm going to have a Mandatory Sensitivity Training notation in my jacket, for a case I had nothing to do with, in a situation where nothing was done wrong.

Perfect.

I'm thankful every day that I have a job. I'm just not specific in my thanks for this particular job.

Girl Friday - 11/11/2011 - Taylor Cole

2011-11-11T07:00:00.006-06:00

This Week's Girl Friday is a native Texas Gal.

Taylor Cole

Hit the jump for more, including a music video featuring Ms. Cole - in the spirit of Mr. and Mrs. Smith...

Video: H/T EVERYDAYNODAYSOFF

Semper Fi

2011-11-10T12:17:00.000-06:00

Happy Birthday, Devil Dogs...

Helpful Hint

2011-11-08T07:00:00.003-06:00

I've heard the same news sound byte over and over on the radio the past couple of days. Some government official commenting on the thousands without power in the Northeastern US after the early snowstorm. Paraphrased quote after the government fails to take care of everything:

"We will make sure that this never happens again!"

Yeah.... you hear that from the government over and over these days, don't you? Something bad happens, the "suck" envelopes everyone that isn't ready for it, the unprepared masses panic and become angry, and some talking head from either political party stands in front of a microphone and proclaims that they shouldn't worry..... the government will ensure that this (whatever) never happens again. Relax.... They are on top of the situation, so all you folks just rest assured and go back to your mindless dependence.

Here's a tip: The Government will not ensure that whatever happened to you won't happen again. They'll be happy to take your money, your votes, and your liberty. However, bad shit will continue to happen on a regular basis and there is nothing they'll be able to do about it.

Your job as a human being is to ensure that you learn your lesson from the experience and prepare so that you can take care of you and yours when it does.

'Cuz it will happen again.

I would crap myself....

2011-11-07T07:00:00.000-06:00

... precisely at the 0:15 second mark.

Fall day at the park

2011-11-05T07:00:00.017-05:00

Friday was the perfect Fall Day. Sunny skies, reasonably calm breeze, and cool fall-like temps. Took the new camera with me on my walk with Gunny and experimented shooting pics of some of the birds around the park lakes.

Great Egret.

We also have "Cattle Egrets" around here, which are much smaller. Trivia: Great Egrets have the ability to compensate for light refraction when looking at prey swimming under the water. Cattle Egrets don't have this ability, and that's why you seldom see them hunting near the water's edge.

Mallards

Geese.

The ones at the park are pretty good natured. If you've ever been attacked by an angry goose you realize how important that point is. They honked at us, and Gunny didn't show any inclination to investigate further :)

An Anhinga - better known in these parts as a "Water Turkey".

Girl Friday - 11/04/2011 - Syliva Sidney

2011-11-04T07:00:00.000-05:00

This week, Girl Friday is going back for another look at one of my favorites from the past:

Sylvia Sidney

Hit the jump for more....

GPOMD

2011-11-03T07:00:00.004-05:00

Dog is my Co-Pilot....

Gunny is 18 weeks old today. A little young for the moniker "Noble", but that's what I think of when he's intently looking at something and he's all squared up.

In this case, it was a passing ice cream truck :) It's said that dogs become more similar to their owners over time. Gunny is getting a head start.

Whining burns a lot of calories....

2011-11-02T17:25:00.001-05:00

Remember when people did real work, and consumed real food to give them the energy they needed to do that work?.....

I guess in a slacker age, we have to have slacker sustenance.

Maybe the OWS folks could use this so that they can maintain their vigorous tweets of outrage over the unfairness of (insert whatever area of life they've failed at here) . Of course, it does cost $18 +shipping for a six pack....

Damn the Man and his expensive corporate status drinks!

H/T Geekologie

Walking Dead..... Shane's Choice (spoiler alert)

2011-10-31T10:43:00.000-05:00

I've been a fan of The Walking Dead television series since the very first episode. It's been a love/hate relationship for Season 2, but I enjoyed Sunday nights episode a lot. I still find some of the things that the characters do to be totally idiotic - but over all I enjoy the show.

This post contains spoilers, if you follow the series but haven't seen Sunday's episode yet.

There's been several blog posts elsewhere about something one of the characters did Sunday night. Most of the comments have been along the lines of "What a Douche bag...." Here's a very brief synopsis of the show and the circumstances surrounding the incident:

Zombie outbreak has occurred. A small group of uninfected people are trying to survive and find someplace safe and secure. The main character is a Sheriff who was in a coma during the beginning of the outbreak and awoke to find the world in turmoil and his wife and child missing. During his coma, his best friend and co-worker, Shane, had an affair with his wife and developed a relationship with his son. They had all given the Sheriff up as dead. They are all reunited in Season 1 and Shane backs off to do the right thing and allow the little family to get back together.

At one point, the Sheriff and his son are in the woods and the boy is accidentally shot by a hunter. The hunter is part of another small group that includes a Vet with medical training. The boy's condition is dire and he needs surgery to live. They decide that if they can get medical supplies from a zombie infested area the boy might have a chance. Without those supplies, the boy will die - Period.

Shane and the hunter who accidentally shot the boy, Otis, go to fetch the supplies and things soon go awry. Shane hurts his leg and is unable to run. Otis is a fat, out of shape guy who can't outrun the zombies either. They have the needed supplies, but the zombie horde is bearing down on them and they are down to their last rounds of ammo.

There is no way out. It looks like the zombies are going to get them. That's when Shane does the deed that is catching him so much flack. He looks at Otis - who is a really likeable guy even though he accidentally caused all this - says "I'm Sorry...." and then he puts a round in Otis' leg. The zombies all dive on the now helpless Otis to gobble him up and Shane is able to hobble away and take the supplies back to the injured boy whose life is saved as a result.

Ok.... did Shane do the right thing?

Some of the comments that I've read paint Shane as a coward for sacrificing Otis to the Zombies and escaping. I think that's ridiculous. If Shane was a coward he would have stayed at the RV or at the Farmhouse with the wounded boy or he would have bailed all togther at the highway and gone off on his own. Other comments seem to stem from people putting themselves in Otis' shoes, and how they wouldn't want someone on their team that would do what Shane did.

I tend to look at scenarios like this and imagine what I would do if I were there.

Fact: There's about 30 zombies gaining on you. They WILL catch you if something doesn't shift the balance.
Fact: You have the medical supplies with you that could make the difference between a young boy you love living or dieing.
Fact: The guy you're with is responsible for the situation you and the boy are in.

Yes, Otis is likeable. Yes, wounding the boy was an accident. Yes, Otis is trying to "make things right".

None of that changes the base fact that if you don't get the medical supplies back to the farmhouse the boy you've come to think of as your son will die.

This isn't even close to a difficult decision for me. I actually made the analysis and the call seconds before Shane shot Otis in the leg. I'd be sorry that it came to that, but given the exact same circumstances that Shane found himself in - I would have made exactly the same call. No bones about it. Change some of the circumstances and a different conclusion would be reached by me. No boy waiting supplies? Then you stick with your partner and fight to the death with the zombies. Find yourself with your Wife or other loved one and you certainly go down together if there's no other choice. Faced with a choice between loved one and stranger where someone definitely has to die, though?.... Otis has to go.

Is it cold? Yep. Would I have wanted to be Otis and have someone sacrifice me to the zombies? Nope.

When it comes to protecting the ones that I love though, there's very little that I wouldn't do. Period. Some may consider Shane a bastard for what he did.... but the boy and his parents probably wouldn't. I don't either. I'm perfectly comfortable being a Bastard if thats what it takes to keep my loved ones safe. People in those circumstances who aren't capable of making hard calls like that need to give up and get eaten or stay at the relative safety of the farmhouse, IMO.

Nature Walk

2011-10-31T07:00:00.000-05:00

One of the places that I take Gunny for walks on my days off is an area not far from our house. There's lots of walking paths in the town where I live, which is nice.

At one point on this particular route you cross a creek via a bridge.

Gunny likes to put his feet up on the railing and look out down the creek whenever we cross. Before long he's going to be tall enough to reach the top rail.

Hit the jump for more pics from the walk...

He's really taken well to leash training. I use a chain training collar when we are walking. It's commonly known as a "choke collar", but when used correctly it doesn't choke the dog at all. Twitching the lead makes the links of the collar make a "scriiittch" sound, which provides the correction needed to train the dog to heel nicely and not drag your ass down the road..... And believe me, Gunny is more than capable of dragging someone's ass down the street even at 17 weeks. He walks perfectly on the leash when we're walking along and doesn't fuss when cars or other walkers go by.

Highlight of the walk for Gunny, though, is when we get to the little nature trail near an Elementary School. He hops up on a park bench and I unclip the lead from his chain collar and fit him up with a regular nylon collar. That's his cue that its play time and he's free to get out in front of me and pull, or stop and sniff stuff, or generally just be a dog. Once he's fired up he really goes...

And goes....

The Nature Trail follows the creek as it winds along and has a couple of different access points down to the creek itself. The creek bed is deeply cut into the chalky limestone that lies under the blackland prarie in this area. Its a part of the "Austin Chalk" formation which runs from north of here all the way down south of Austin, Texas. It is nearly 1000 feet deep in places and contains lots of fossils of fish teeth and some pretty big mollusks. The top of this layer of rock may be many feet below the surface of the ground, or just a few inches.

This proved quite vexing to me as a Lad, since I seemed to spend a great deal of time digging post holes one place or another.

Gunny doesn't know any of that, though. He just likes to stop for a drink and have a little wade...

Once we get back up onto the walking path, I reclip the lead into his chain collar and we head back home nice as you please.

Window to the past

2011-10-30T07:00:00.003-05:00

I love videos like this. It's a compilation of street scenes in London from 1904, originally produced as a travelouge to attract tourists from Australia. The musical track doesn't seem to fit but the images are wonderful....

Lifestraw Give Away

2011-10-29T06:52:00.000-05:00

Angela, over at Food Storage and Survival, has a review up of the LifeStraw Portable water filter - and a give-away as well! Go check it out....

Girl Friday - 10/28/2011 - Suzanne Pleshette

2011-10-28T07:00:00.003-05:00

Ok... as she aged, her voice ended up even deeper than mine. When she was young, though, that smokey voice was uber-hot....

Suzanne Pleshette

Hit the jump for more...

My favorite Pleshette role?..... Hands down, her work on The Bob Newhart Show in the 1970's. That's one of the shows that I grew up watching and still love to this day.

Best Dog Costume EVER!!!...

2011-10-27T07:00:00.001-05:00

Ok, maybe it's not the best ever, but it's the most original one I've seen so far this year :)

Terry Pratchett

2011-10-26T07:33:00.000-05:00

Just a quickie post, because this week's been busier than most.

For the Terry Pratchett fans out there, I wanted to remind you that his new book "Snuff" is now available in bookstores. I picked it up last weekend and read it on my lunch breaks this week.

Awesome.

Main character this time around is Sam Vimes - one of my favorite Pratchett characters. Several other Pratchett regulars are there as well. Really good read. I was afraid that Pratchett's condition might start to show up in his books this time around but reading Snuff was like revisiting an old friend that you haven't seen in a while.

Girl Friday - 10/21/2011 - Natalie Wood

2011-10-21T07:00:00.006-05:00

You may not know this week's Girl Friday by her birth name: Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko. I'm pretty sure you'll recognize her professional name, and her beautiful eyes....

Natalie Wood

Hit the jump for more.

Natalie Wood was born to Russian immigrants in California in 1938. She began acting at the age of 4.

Sadly, Natalie's end came far too early in 1981. Rumors persist to this day as to the exact circumstances of her death. In the end, all that is known for sure is that after a night of drinking with family and friends aboard her yacht, she ended up in the water and drowned.

GPOMD

2011-10-19T07:00:00.002-05:00

Gunny, curled up on the floor behind me sleeping while I blogged the range report yesterday.....

Snoring up a storm :)

Range Day

2011-10-18T07:00:00.005-05:00

Took the day off from work yesterday. I've had the day off on my birthday before, by accident, but I've never actually taken the day off before. Work is irritating me a lot right now, so I figured what the hell....

Went to the range and shot rifles for the first time since last spring. This summer was such a bear I had no desire at all to sit outside at the gun range and sweat buckets. Beautiful day today, though.

Looks a looooooong way down to the 100 yd targets off in the distance, don't it. Especially when its been a long time between visits to this side of the range. I brought the Swiss K31 and the AK along this trip.

K31, iron sights, 50 yards, 10 rounds:

K31, iron sights, 100 yards, 5 rounds:

WASR10 (AK), red dot optic, 50 yards, 20 rounds:

I dug shooting both these guns. The cheap red dot is holding up fine on the AK. She is sighted high at 50 yards, so she'll be dead on at 100 yards. Probably a bit too high, as a matter of fact. I was going to adjust down a tad and then shoot her at 100 but my battery in the red dot crapped the bed and I didn't have a spare on me - poor planning on my part. I'll keep a couple spares in the hollow of the stock from now on.

The K31 is a wonderful gun. I could feel the one flyer at 100 yds as soon as I pulled the trigger. Still pretty happy to lay down these groups with iron sights after my hiatus from shooting. I'm improving, but she'll probably always shoot better than I am capable of.

Finished up the day by sending 50 rounds down range with the Thunderer on the Pistol side of the range:

If they handed out trophies for getting the shots as close as possible to the bullseye, without actually making a bullseye, I would be a champion :)

I need to get my ass in gear and make a holster for this gun. Before long it will be cold enough to carry it concealed.

My Warranty has surely expired by now..

2011-10-17T07:00:00.008-05:00

Paladin, circa 1970, with stringer of fish on a camping trip. Not sure if I should have marked this NSFW, since I'm topless.

Another year older today. Lets see - I was 6 years old in the photo and the photo was taken 41 years ago. If you do the math that makes me...

OLD!!

He bays for your soul... Also, dog treats.

2011-10-15T07:00:00.013-05:00

Excuse the the shabby state of the rugs in the kitchen. It hasn't rained all summer, which did a number on much of the lawn. 4+ inches of rain in the past week made lots of mud in the backyard. We throw down the old rugs temporarily to catch mud off Gunny's paws when he comes back in from the yard.

Contrary to his behavior in the video, he's actually pretty squared away on "sit" and "stay", unless there's the possibility that treats are forthcoming. He goes nuts for them, which I encourage. I use this particular treat as an intensity builder when we work on mantrailing.

Girl Friday - 10/14/2011 - Ryu Ji Hye 5

2011-10-14T07:00:00.013-05:00

If this isn't your first time to the show... she needs no introduction:

Ryu Ji Hye

Yeah... go on.

Halloween - Vintage Advertising

2011-10-13T08:38:00.000-05:00

The Antikamnia (from the Latin "against pain") Chemical Company started up around 1890, in St. Louis, Missouri. They marketed capsules said to relieve "nervousness" and pain. The concoction consisted of mixtures of coal-tar, quinine, and codeine.. among other things. It was addictive, of course, but it probably did mellow people out.

These are pictures from promotional calendars produced in 1899 and 1890 to advertise their wonder drug. I'm always surprised by the advertising methods used to promote medicines, cures, and other medical products in the past. I wonder how much traction a modern day ad campaign would manage using Death and Skeletal related images? These days you're far more likely to see happy scenes of people running through fields of daisies with big smiles on their faces while the voice-over guy runs through the list of horrible potential side effects....

Suburban Macabre

2011-10-12T10:26:00.000-05:00

How's this for realistic Halloween Decorations?....

The resident's in this neighborhood were really freaked out by nature's recyclers. The birds are Turkey Vultures. We have two types of vultures commonly seen in Texas. Black Vultures, which are black (duh), and Turkey vultures which have a red head when mature.

Joy Lost

2011-10-11T07:00:00.004-05:00

The tiny Joy Theater. "Downtown" Arcadia, Louisiana.

Honey... I shrunk the Pitbull

2011-10-10T07:00:00.005-05:00

When trying to catch a dog that doesn't want to be caught, especially by yourself, its largely a matter of patience. This is a video condensed down from about 20 minutes I spent the other day working a dog through a neighborhood. We covered 6 or 7 streets and alleys. I would spot it, follow it, loose it, find it again... you get the idea. If a dog isn't going to come up to me immediately and be friendly, I'd rather it make a stand and fight me rather than run around not letting me get close enough to get up to it.

This dog was clipping along at from 12 to 15 miles per hour. The Average human in decent shape can plug along at about 6 miles an hour. You do the math. The idea is to keep the dog in sight and pester it until it either goes home, or makes a mistake and you're able to run it in someplace more confined where you can make a catch.

This odd little dog is a "Pocket Pitbull". This is the first one that I've picked up on the job, but I've seen pictures of them before. Has the body sort of like an English Bulldog and the head of a Pitbull. I'd guess this one at around 50 pounds or so.

Really friendly guy, once we stopped running all over the neighborhood. His owner called the next day and they are reunited.

Fishin'

2011-10-08T07:00:00.009-05:00

On the road today with Mrs. Paladin and Sister #1. We're traveling to Louisiana to meet my Parents and Sister #2 at a family reunion - my Mom's side of the family. 6 hours in the car each way.... with my Sister.... who talks a lot.

Feel my pain.

Yesterday, Mrs. Paladin took the day off work and we went out to my Folks farm to do a little fishing in order to calm ourselves for the chatter-fest to come. We took Gunny along too, of course. It was his first trip "to the country" since we've had him. He wore himself completely out. Before heading down to the farm pond we did a little mantrailing training, which was his first focused intentional track. It was an "intensity" drill where I held him close to me while Mrs. Paladin teased him with a dog treat and got him excited about it. Then she walked away across their yard toward the house, disappeared around the corner, and circled around the house about 3/4 of the way back toward the front. It was about 100 yards total distance walked including 3 full right angle turns.

Gunny tracked her cleanly. I let him go in front of me on about 10 feet of lead. He hesitated just a few seconds at the 2nd turn... but that was mostly because their donkey was braying up a storm and it distracted him (the donkey HATES even the sight of dogs). He followed her scent right up to where she was hiding and I was really happy with his success. Next time we are adding a "scent article" to the mix so that he starts to associate taking scent from an article of clothing and then tracking down-scent from that point for that specific scent. Before long, I'll have to find another helper to lay scent trails so he doesn't just learn to track Mrs. Paladin. Unless she starts getting lost on a regular basis such a skill would be pretty useless :)

I'll try to remember the hatcam on our next training session so ya'll can see him work.

Fishing was good. The pond is about half capacity due to the drought. Considering a lot of ponds around here are completely dry, though, its holding up fairly well. We fished topwater lures for bass for about an hour to start and then switched to catfishing. Gunny had never seen a fish before, and he got pretty excited....

He soon calmed down, though, when he figured out that it wasn't going to play with him.

We caught this mess of channel catfish in less than an hour.

The stringer was so heavy my Dad had to hold up one end while Mrs. Paladin snapped a picture :)

I don't normally keep fish, since I hate to clean them. I'd much rather fish catch-and-release and then just go out for catfish at one of the great little restaurants around here. With the water being so low, however, we kept and cleaned all of these to help the fish population in the pond handle the stress. Fewer mouths to feed in the pond makes it easier on the rest of the fish. We split the fillets with my Parents after I cleaned them.

Fried Catfish this week.... YUM!!

Girl Friday - 10/07/2011 - Angelique Boyer

2011-10-07T07:00:00.005-05:00

This week's Girl Friday comes to us as a wildly successful Mexican TV Actress, who recently won Best Actress from Premios TVyNovelas.

Angelique Boyer

Hit the jump for more...

Angelique was born in France, to a French father and a Mexican mother. They moved to Mexico shortly after her birth in 1988. She's appeared in several roles prior to her current gig on the TVNovella "Teresa", and was blonde during some of her earlier acting forays.

What Works and What Doesn't

2011-10-06T12:50:00.000-05:00

Kevin Williamson reveals the truth that the anti-capitalist protesters may never grasp....

Once you figure out why your cell phone gets better and cheaper every year but your public schools get more expensive and less effective, you can apply that model to answer a great many questions about public policy. Not all of them, but a great many.

There seems to be a growing trend toward hatred of people who are successful at what they do, or if not hatred then at the least perpetuation of the lie that every rich person or successful business got where it is because of fucking over the "little guy" - and that the fruits of that success flow exclusively upstream to the rich white guy at the top. That sort of thinking is great for motivating hundreds of malcontent drones to disrupt business and shout their demands to anyone who will listen. What is lacking, though, is a basic understanding of what has been proven to work, and what has been proven over and over again to not work.

Mr. Williamson continues...

Mr. Jobs’s contribution to the world is Apple and its products, along with Pixar and his other enterprises, his 338 patented inventions — his work — not some Steve Jobs Memorial Foundation for Giving Stuff to Poor People in Exotic Lands and Making Me Feel Good About Myself. Because he already did that: He gave them better computers, better telephones, better music players, etc. In a lot of cases, he gave them better jobs, too.

Did he do it because he was a nice guy, or because he was greedy, or because he was a maniacally single-minded competitor who got up every morning possessed by an unspeakable rage to strangle his rivals? The beauty of capitalism — the beauty of the iPhone world as opposed to the world of politics — is that that question does not matter one little bit. Whatever drove Jobs, it drove him to create superior products, better stuff at better prices.

Profits are not deductions from the sum of the public good, but the real measure of the social value a firm creates. Those who talk about the horror of putting profits over people make no sense at all. The phrase is without intellectual content.

The entire piece is over at the National Review. It's a great read.

Skupossum

2011-10-04T07:00:00.002-05:00

Shy and secretive, the Skupossum is a distant relative of the Chupacabra. A Hybrid abomination between an opossum and a skunk, the Skupossum is irresistibly attracted to partially empty Miller Lite cans.

Hey, if the SyFy channel can have Sharktopus I can have a Skupossum.
I've seen several of the black color variant in the opossums around here, but this is the first that I've come across with a prominent white stripe down its back like a skunk. Pretty weird....

Oh, and don't try this at home. Opossums have lots of very sharp teeth and can whip around and get you a lot faster than you think they are capable of.

iCaveman

2011-10-03T07:30:00.000-05:00

Caught part of a show last night when I got home from work on Discovery Channel called iCaveman. I saw most of it, though I was doing other stuff and missed sections. I think the series had run before. Don't know if anyone else watched it, but here's couple of thoughts I had while watching:

1. The idea behind the show is that it would be an "experiment" wherein they would teach rudimentary paleolithic skills to a group of volunteers and then have them live a week or so as hunter/gatherers. Much of the show centered around their quest to bring down an elk for food. It was interesting to watch a few of the people give up on the experiment after a few days of hunger and cold. The first girl to drop out was a pretty brunette who apparently refused to eat some of the less impressive small animals that the group managed to kill in the first couple of days. She became weak and hungry and ended her stint sobbing as she mentally broke down and couldn't handle the scenario any more.

2. The second person to drop out was a healthy, enthusiastic guy who I didn't peg as a quitter. After the second or third unsuccessful attempt to kill an elk, he quit - but not before stating that it wasn't fair for the few active hunters to go out and expend energy every day while some of the women lounged around under the trees sleeping all day and whining about being hungry. "Its not like they are my girlfriends or anything.... why should I provide food for them while they lay around and complain?"

3. Combine #1 and #2, and you see the birth of the Worlds Oldest Profession.

4. I was surprised that there wasn't a more concerted effort on the part of EVERYONE to concentrate on small game and fish. While small groups of hunters tried for an elk, the rest of the crew basically sat around instead of setting snares, deadfalls, or fishtraps.

5. Their first elk hunt was with stabbing type spears, which was doomed to failure. You'll never get close enough to a large animal in modern times to make that work. Then, they were given Atlatls and a brief instruction in their use. The next couple of attempts were failures too - since the elk smelled, heard, and sensed the hunter long before they got close enough to make a throw.

Then... when the group morale was at it's lowest and they needed a successful hunt the most, magically they were able to bring down an elk. For some mysterious reason, the elk just stood there and let them get close. Even after the first spear was thrown and missed its target, the elk - all of which were staring at the fur clad hunters - remained where they were and one of them was speared and killed.

Yeah... really?

I'm of the opinion that being able to hit an elk with an atlatl and bring it down, cut it up, and haul it back to camp is a great achievement for people with little to no experience. It was pretty clearly a "canned hunt", though, with elk that were used to being near people and in no way reflected the skills and abilities needed to stalk and bring down truly wild game.

Girl Friday - 9/30/2011 - Esti Ginzburg

2011-09-30T07:00:00.046-05:00

Regardless of how I feel about the idea of Women in Combat roles in the Military, I have the highest regard for individuals who see their duty and carry it out. This week's Girl Friday is such a person. She caught some flack for her willingness to serve in the Isreali Defense Force, as a requirement of her citizenship in Israel, and for her comments regarding other folks who choose to dodge that responsibility.

Not only did she serve her country when asked, she did so proudly stating, "Military service is part of the things I personally believe in."

Esti Ginzburg

Hit the jump for more

Esti has appeared in print ads in Europe and America, as well as in the pages of Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit Edition.

The readers of Girl Friday salute YOU, Ms. Ginzburg.

How I Roll....

2011-09-28T07:00:00.003-05:00

Rollin' with my Crew.....

Those Hip-Hop Hampsters Ain't Got Nuthin' On US!

Perspective

2011-09-27T07:00:00.083-05:00

This is the Smith Family, circa 1911...

They lived in Mississippi at the time this photograph was taken, having recently relocated from their farm in Alabama. The photo was one of many thousands taken by a man named Lewis Hine during his career. Mr. Hine was employed by the National Child Labor Commitee for a decade to document the conditions faced by kids working in mills, glass factories, coal mines, and other urban occupations. His photos from this period are always interesting, and very often emotionally moving.

Often accompanying the photos are short captions identifying the conditions and working hours of the people photographed. Too, there are sometimes quotes from the subjects of the pictures - as there is with this photo. The three girls in the front row worked in a textile mill. He quotes one of them as saying,

"We all like the mill work better'n the hot sun on farm".

It's a simple quote, but one that illustrates some things that most people forget in this day and age. Here are some random thoughts that bubbled up when I read that quote....

1. Modern people look at child labor, and harsh industrial working conditions in general, as an anomaly. In truth, our current standards of safety and luxury are the anomaly. Throughout most of recorded history the lives these people lived were the norm - even for children. Kids began work at the age of 6 or 7, and were expected to do an adult's share of labor by the time they were 12 or 13 years old. This was common not only after the industrial revolution but preceding it as well, on farms and ranches all over the world.

If you were a kid back in those days, you were going to work - and work very hard. Usually 12 hours a day 6 or 7 days a week. The only question was where you would be working and for how much.

2. People today look at the conditions faced by "the poor" in early industrial settings and see it as evil perpetrated on the masses by rich fat cats building their empires on the backs of poor laborers. To some extent, that is true - in that the farther up the chain you went the better the conditions and higher the rewards.

However, it is extremely important to remember that no one forced these families to leave the farming communities they lived in previously and flock by the thousands to urban areas to work in mills and mines. They did so largely because, as harsh as those industrial conditions were by our standards today, they were a damned sight better than life they had led before. The pay was better, the conditions were better, and they benefitted greatly from the shift. That was the whole reason they made the move.

3. Much is made today about the next generation no longer moving forward and "having it better" than the generation before. This may be true from a narrow, static, monetary number based view. However, what is often ignored is the overall quality of life faced by people today compared to just a short time ago. The "poor" today often have cell phones, televisions, multiple automobiles, computers, .... Just a short 50 years ago there were large areas of the country that didn't have indoor plumbing and electricity.

I'm not rich by any modern measure. I would probably fit into the "lower middle class" category if I were to quantify it. However, a short walk around my house will find conveniences that would have amazed my Grandfather - and even my Parents - had they been described to them when they were young. Truth be told, if you walked around the home of a modern "poor" person you would find many aspects of their living conditions that would make a middle class person of the past green with envy.

4. Hunger in America is supposed to be an awful problem. I hear about it on the radio and TV several times a day. Oddly enough, Obesity is also supposed to be an awful problem too....

Umm....

I hear directors of food banks declaring emergencies over the "growing problem" of hunger in America because no matter how much food they give away it never seems enough to satisfy the demand. No one stops to consider for a moment that when you give stuff away for free..... people will take it. Doesn't matter what it is and it doesn't matter whether the recipients "need" it or not. You give it away, someone will take it. That fact seems to elude people for some reason.

We have a population over 300,000,000 in the US right now. If hunger were such a dire problem, don't you imagine that someone, somewhere, would die of starvation at some point?... Just doesn't happen. Even the tiny number of people who starve due to some sort of psychological condition (anorexia, etc.), or kids dying from abusive restriction of food by their parents is so statistically small as to not even register. People just don't die in America because of lack of affordable food. Even the CDC reports that low income and "poor" kids are more likely to be obsese than their financially better off counterparts.

Food banks do serve an important purpose by helping people out in the short term that are down on their luck. However, the "Hunger in America" agenda is largely a solution in search of a problem.

None of the above should be construed as an indication that I am in favor of child labor, think there's no such thing as a poor person, or don't appreciate the fact that hard times effect people in unpleasant ways. I contribute to several charities, though I don't walk around wearing it on my sleeve or openly promoting that fact.

Life can be hard. It can be even harder at times. That's the nature of life. Utopian dreams of magically, or forcefully, making everything equal and "fair" always fall short in their result when compared to the initial dream. Often tragically so.

I guess what I'm trying to get across here is that with all the class envy being bantered about in public discourse these days its important to have some perspective when trying to sort it all out.

Right Place, Wrong Species

2011-09-26T07:00:00.002-05:00

Picked up another Cooper's Hawk last week at work. This one had apparently been hit by a car. It managed to fly erratically around the entrance to the ER at a local hospital. He could fly well enough to be difficult to catch, but not well enough to go on about his business without intervention.

I took the bird to a Licensed wildlife rehabber to see if they could patch him/her up.

GPOMD - Updated

2011-09-24T07:00:00.005-05:00

Gratuitous pictures of my dog....

That's not a cigar hanging out of his mouth. He likes to snatch pieces of bark mulch out of the flower beds when outside to munch on.

Gunny's growing fast. Hard to believe he's just a little over 12 weeks. We're taking him with us to a local Octoberfest shindig today. Good chance to socialize him. Also get to play some more with my new camera. I recently upgraded my digital camera from a Canon Powershot A630 to a Canon SX30IS.

Its still a point-and-shoot, but I'm loving it. WAYYYYY better than my A630.

Update:
Gunny was a hit at the Octoberfest. No signs of the shyness now. Our only problem during our visit was having to stop every three or four steps because someone wanted to pet him :)

Girl Friday - 09/23/2011 - Claudia Cardinale

2011-09-23T07:00:00.000-05:00

This week's Girl Friday is an iconic sex symbol of the 1960's - both in Europe and America.

Claudia Cardinale

Hit the jump for more....

Gunny's first successful track

2011-09-19T07:00:00.006-05:00

Ok.. this is a minor little success, but considering the fact that we weren't even scent training yet I was pretty surprised and happy.

Gunny hasn't had much exposure to people up to this point. Pretty much the only people he's been around before we got him were the breeder, her husband, and a couple of trips to the vet for shots. They lived out in a rural area and there just weren't any other people milling around.

He's very friendly toward people, but initially (especially in large, noisy crowds) he's a little hesitant at first. He'll shy away from people until he's sure they aren't gonna smack him. Once he's over that initial hiccup then he's all lovey-dovey. To help socialize him and get him used to lots of different situations I'm taking him places with me on my days off. Shopping areas, parks, that sort of thing.

Thursday night we visited a local park. This is a huge park with long walking paths and multiple playgrounds and soccer fields. Lots of soccer teams were playing and the parking lot had well over a hundred cars and trucks parked in it. We found a spot to park and proceeded to take a walk to work on our leash training and people meeting skills. He did pretty good, although people pushing baby strollers still freak him out a little.

Our initial route to the sidewalk/walking path led us from the parking spot north across the pavement about 30 yards to a grassy area. Once on the grass we cut east along a line of trees for about 50 yards before arcing across a wider area of grass to the concrete trail. We walked all over the walking paths and when we got back to the area where we first entered the trail on our way back - Gunny quickened his pace and immediately left the pavement and started across the grass at exactly the point we had entered the trail earlier. When I noticed this I gave him lots of slack on the leash and let him find his own way so I wouldn't be subconciously influencing where he chose to go.

If you've ever parked your car at an unfamiliar mall or stadium and had trouble finding your ride home, you'll appreciate how difficult a task that can be even for humans to do. Not so much trouble if you're a bloodhound :)

He retraced our path across the grassy area, along the treeline, and across the pavement of the parking lot right up to the passenger door of the Tacoma where it sat among the other cars in the parking lot. He sat down facing the door and looked back at me waiting for me to open it. Needless to say, I was pretty stoked.

I praised the hell out of him :)

I'm even more anxious to get him started on trailing exercises now. He'll be three months old this week. As soon as we get him a little more socially comfortable around people and strange places, we should be good to go. Don't want any more distractions from the trailing work than necessary.

Paved Paradise, and put in a parking lot...

2011-09-17T07:00:00.051-05:00

Ok... maybe calling it "Paradise" is a stretch, but it sure was more interesting than it is now.

This is the F. G. Lindsay grocery store, as it appeared in 1925. The location is 2215 Nichols Avenue, in Washington, DC. Interesting window display that includes a hanging side of meat :)

Today, there is no longer a "Nichols Avenue" in Washington. The name was changed to Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd at some point. This is the approximate location of Lindsay's Grocery as it appears today:

Yawn.

Let's try to tear ourselves away from that stimulating scene, and go back to 1925 for a moment. You also get the chance to see what it looked like inside the little grocery store.

If you view the picture full sized at Shorpy or the Library of Congress website, you'll see stuff that you can still find in stores today. Lava Soap, Cream of Wheat, Jello, Argo Cornstarch, are among the familiar brand names. Also of interest is a contraption that you might miss in the lower left hand corner of the picture:

That's a Cestor Peanut/Popcorn Cart. A Model 1, I believe. Its steam powered and the little steam engines that ran the carts made by Cestor are highly sought after by Steam engine collectors today. Looking closer still, you can see the trademark feature of Cestor carts and wagons:

The image is sort of squished due to the perspective of the old lens and glass plate negative, but you can make out the little animatronic clown that turned the crank for the peanut roasting hopper.

Here's an illustration of this type/model of cart from a catalog:

And here's one that is restored showing the beautiful colors of the original carts:

Girl Friday - 09/16/2011 - Crystal Smith - NSFW

2011-09-16T07:00:00.003-05:00

This week's Girl Friday comes to us from the pages of Playboy Magazine - September 1971.

Crystal Smith

Hit the jump for more.....

Making a link through the past

2011-09-14T07:00:00.035-05:00

This is a picture I found recently on Shorpy:

That's a street view of the Iroquois Hotel in Buffalo, NY around 1900. Pretty awesome picture, especially when you view it large and pick out the smaller surrounding details.

Looking at the lower right hand corner of the photo you find another building that housed a shoe store on the first floor, a Dentist office on the second floor, and a Photographer's Studio on the floor above that. "Tonalgia" was a pharmaceutical concoction popular back in the day. It contained Cocaine, and was one of several similar mixtures used to make dental work less of a terrifyingly painful affair.

Bliss Brothers photography studio saw lots of business in those days, I'm sure. Cabinet Card photos were all the rage at the turn of the century. It was common practice in those days for people to go into the photographer's studio and have their pictures made - often with props, pets, and their best clothing on display. A brief search of the internet produced this example:

Finding a picture of someone actually taken inside that studio in the photograph is one of the many things I love about the internet. It ain't all pron, silly videos, and politics out there :)

Busting the stereotype....

2011-09-13T07:00:00.008-05:00

Sure... I know what you're thinking. Bloodhounds are lazy, unmotivated, and wrinkly.

Ok... they are wrinkly. I'll concede that point. But they are a lot more active a breed than most people imagine. Especially when the only exposure they've had to them are clips from the Beverly Hillbillies.

Gunny's favorite toy at the moment is a stuffed 'possum, with a squeaker inside.

"But Paladin... you could have just posed his head by the stuffed animal while he was sleeping".

I'm ready for you, Doubting Thomas. I have video proof:

Of course, after a bout of possum killing you deserve a rest. True to form, Bloodhounds approach nap time with the same diligence they bring to all their duties.

And yes... he does snore up a storm when he sleeps on his back.

You can set your clock by it.....

2011-09-12T10:43:00.000-05:00

You want the cute?... You can't handle the cute.

2011-09-11T07:00:00.006-05:00

Everyone will be posting their 9/11 remembrances today. We're observing the day as well here at Castle Paladin, but I thought I would provide a little soul Gatorade so you can take a wee break from the somberness. That's important too.

Meet Gunny..

Gunny is short for "Gunnery Sergeant XXXX", with the "X's" being the rest of his registered name we haven't settled on yet. He's black and tan bloodhound that we picked up in Mississippi this weekend. It was a loooooong drive there and back. About 10 hours each way.

Gunny slept most of the way on the floorboard between Mrs. Paladin's feet. We stopped every couple of hours at roadside parks to stretch all of our legs. He made the trip like a champ.

He's only 10 weeks old, if you can believe that! He weighs 23 lbs already and his feet are almost as big as our Rottweiler's feet were at full grown. He's gonna be a big boy.

We looked high and low for a closer source for a bloodhound puppy over the past few months. We found some in Texas, but to be honest when you looked at them and the parents they looked more like bloodhound mixes instead of the full blooded animals they were. If I was going to plonk down cash for a bloodhound, by God I wanted one that looked every bit of the part.

I'm hoping to start him on Mantrailing exercises soon - just to see if he and I have an aptitude for it. I include myself in this evaluation, because all the tools and skill are already in the dog. Its more a matter of whether I can synch myself into his doggie brain and interpret what he tells me and communicate with him enough to get him to get "the game".

He's already good at the leaf search and destroy missions...

Girl Friday - 9/9/2011 - Josie Maran

2011-09-09T07:00:00.007-05:00

This week's Girl Friday is a model/actress who was "discovered" while eating at a BBQ joint:

Josie Maran

Hit the jump for more

Tacti-kennel

2011-09-06T07:00:00.012-05:00

Many years ago we bought a big dog kennel for crate training our Rotty. It did its duty well, until it was no longer needed and sat in the garage unused for several years. The last time we used it was 4 or 5 years ago when we picked up several farm raised mallard ducks as a present for my Dad. He wanted some to keep on his pond at the farm.

Ducks poop a lot.

By the time we got from the bird place to the farm, the kennel was a mess. We were pushed for time and sat the filthy kennel down by the barn with the notion of cleaning it out next time we were out for a visit. Yeah... never happened.

With the coming arrival of our new puppy, we picked up a brand spanking new kennel. I also retrieved the old, duck-poopy one from my folks house and finally cleaned it out. Years of exposure to the elements had taken their toll and it looked really bad even after I cleaned it up. I figured a quick coat of paint might make it presentable enough for use as a transport kennel in the back of the Truck when we go on longer trips like camping weekends.

One thing led to another, and the plan for a simple coat of paint morphed itself into this:

It's Tactical. It's a kennel. It's a Tactikennel!

I tiger striped it in sort of woodland colors, because quite frankly the desert digital camo so in vogue with the kids these days I just don't get. North Texas, while hot and dry beyond the point of reasonableness, is not a desert. To each his own, of course, but I just don't dig digital camo in general.

Woodland digital is OK, and I like multicam (except for the price), but I've always preferred the old school woodland camo or tiger stripe woodland for aesthetic and practical reasons.

5 days and counting...

2011-09-05T07:00:00.018-05:00

Can't you just FEEL the excitement building?...

Trust me, inside that calm exterior is a virtual explosion of anticipation.

Everything old is new again....

2011-09-03T07:00:00.003-05:00

This is a picture of W.H. Murphy, of the Protective Garment Corporation taking a full on shot in the chest (while wearing a bullet proof vest, of course) from a .38 caliber revolver. The man firing it is a Deputy Sherriff in Washington D.C..

The year is 1923.

And here is a video of the CEO of Texas Armoring Corporation - Standing behind his product....

I wouldn't do either stunt.... for any amount of money :) I wonder, though, how much it would cost to outfit the Tacoma with some of their glass?

Girl Friday - 09/02/2011 - Jeanne Crain 2

2011-09-02T12:20:00.000-05:00

Sorry Girl Friday is late... I'd blame Blogger, but it's plain old operator error :)

I stumbled across some nice pics of a young lady who last appeared as Girl Friday back in May of 2009....

Sheesh... I've been doing this a long time, huh? :)

Jeanne Crain

Hit the jump for a couple more...

Just because...

2011-08-29T07:00:00.004-05:00

Matter of Perspective

2011-08-27T07:00:00.007-05:00

15 Days To New Puppy and Counting :)

Girl Friday - 8/26/2011 - USC Edition

2011-08-26T07:00:00.008-05:00

I'm not a sports guy. Just don't have the time and can't seem to generate the interest. My Father had season tickets to see the Cowboys when I was a kid and we went to every home game. I enjoyed it, because I was with my Dad, but wasn't a fanatic about the game back then either.

One facet of the outings that I DID enjoy, however, was the cheerleaders. I would watch the game, but odds are when the action stopped my binoculars were glued to the Dallas Cheerleaders prancing around the sidelines. When I went away to College, I couldn't get my cheerleader fix anymore. Texas A&M doesn't have cheerleaders. They have "Yell Leaders" and they are all male.

Not the same thing.

So, to make up for the gap in my cheerleader appreciation time - Girl Friday this week is:

The Song Girls of USC:

Hit the jump for more....

Yes, I realize that the Song Girls are not technically "Cheerleaders" - since actual cheerleading at USC is performed by an entirely different group of young people. I liked these pics, though, so I'm throwing down the "close enough" rule.

Texas preparedness alert

2011-08-24T07:00:00.005-05:00

Last winter, many areas of Texas were subject to "rolling blackouts" of electric service due to the abnormally cold weather conditions as well as outages due to ice storms and power line damage. We dodged the bullet at Castle Paladin and didn't lose power, but many neighborhoods were without heat for hours, days, and weeks at a time.

Of course, this time of year I could do without a little of the "heat". Spending an hour trying to coax a feral kitten out of a hot car engine compartment in 104 degree heat is no fun - at all.

But, I digress....

I have already decided to purchase a portable fuel powered heater in preparation for this coming winter, and I encourage you to do the same after hearing the news this week:

Because of a new requirements from the EPA, due to take effect January 1:

The company says the industry's standard time frame for installing emission controls is several years, but the rule requires compliance in six months. So Luminant, a subsidiary of Energy Future Holdings, has said it may have to shut down some coal-fired power plants in East Texas.

"Curtailing plant and/or mine operations will be the only option" if the 1,323-page rule goes into effect as planned, Luminant said.

The Electric Company spokesperson went on to say that she had a high degree of confidence that "Curtailing Plant Operations" would mean rolling blackouts across the state during the coldest part of the year.

And while we are looking forward to possible risks, just think about what might happen next summer. The Texas heat is responsible for more deaths each year than any other weather related cause (floods, tornados, etc.). We skirted the edge of blackouts this year, and continue to do so because of the heat wave. We use virtually every kilowatt of electricity we are producing now with very little margin for error.

Just imagine the predicament next summer with even fewer power plants supplying that electricity. The hammer fisted Green Agenda of the EPA will be responsible for a whole lot of dead people.....

Then and Now

2011-08-23T07:00:00.008-05:00

The Cotton Exchange Building, New Orleans, LA. Built in 1871, and appearing in the photo circa 1900.

And the Cotton Exchange Building Hotel, as seen in modern day:

Same location, different building now. I like the idea of turning it into a hotel, but it certainly would have been a more beautiful and interesting place to stay before they "Blah'd" it down to look like every other modern building.

21 Days

2011-08-22T07:00:00.010-05:00

And counting.....

What would you do?

2011-08-20T07:00:00.024-05:00

H/T Fox News Dallas

That's a guy robbing an Exxon/Mobil convenience store in Dallas this week. Yes, he's wearing a dress and underwear on his head as a disguise, or perhaps a fashion statement. He also has one hand under the dress pointing it at both the clerk and a bystander inside the store. Don't know if he had a gun or not, but clearly that was the impression that he was trying to give. He robbed both the store, and the bystander.

As someone who carries a gun virtually all the time, I think its important to consider situations like this and what my response would be were I to be in the shoes of the bystander. I have a responsibility to myself and others to - as much as possible - determine what my actions would be under those circumstances.

Trust me.... If you haven't spent some time thinking "What would I do, if XYZ?" before something like this happens you certainly won't have time to think about it when/if it comes up. I might freeze up regardless.... I'd like to think that I wouldn't, and I've never yipped under pressure involving physical force or physical danger before, but you never know.

As for me, the decision to use lethal force is pretty clear cut. When he asked for my money I would turn slightly to the side (to reduce my profile), reach my hand in my pocket ostensibly to get my money, draw my loaded Makarov from its holster, and put as many hollow point rounds center mass as necessary to stop him from being a threat to me. I've practiced that drill many, many times both dry fire and live fire at the range. Hopefully that training would pay off and carry me through the adrenaline and fear affects from facing a "real life" situation.

So lets assume for moment that I am successful in stopping the threat. What then?

Maybe he has a gun, maybe not. Maybe he has a gun but has no intention of using it. Yes, if it turns out he is unarmed theres a chance I'd face criminal prosecution. That's more likely elsewhere, but it could happen even in Texas depending upon the Grand Jury and the particular District Attorney. I'd be virtually guaranteed a lawsuit from this idiot's surviving family which would cost me a bundle in attorney fees even if I win the lawsuit.

So, given all the bad things that might/will happen if I shoot - why do I choose to shoot? Because I won't take chances based on hoping that a man unbalanced enough to walk into a store wearing a dress and underwear on his head brandishing what I have to assume is a weapon, will make reasonable choices and not shoot me. I don't want all those bad things I described to happen to me, but I'd prefer that to bleeding out on a convenience store floor. For every surveillance video I've seen that ends OK like this one, I can show you one where the robber opens fire. Often for no reason.

I'd feel like shit if the guy turns out to be unarmed and that would stick with me forever - but in the end that's a choice that HE made. I'm put in that position by HIM. I think that would piss me off more than anything.

So, if you carry and found yourself in the shoes of the bystander - what would YOU do?

Girl Friday - 8/19/2011 - Christine Kaufmann

2011-08-19T07:00:00.005-05:00

It's back to the past again for Girl Friday this week. The featured gal was born in Germany, to a German father and a French mother. She began her professional career as a ballerina and went on to appear in several films both in America and abroad.

Christine Kaufmann

You know what to do...

Christine was married to actor Tony Curtis from 1963 to 1968. They had two daughters together.

The Waiting is the Hardest Part

2011-08-18T07:00:00.024-05:00

Someone's coming.....

I'm very excited :)

25 Days and counting.

Dios Mio!... EL CHUPACABRA!!!!11

2011-08-17T09:35:00.000-05:00

I received an email at work this week. It seems a couple had been away on a trip and their house sitter had spotted a mysterious animal lurking around their backyard. She snapped a picture of it, which the residents emailed to me.

Apparently, they took the picture to a local "Wildlife Expert" to identify the creature in the picture. Even after consulting references for native Texas animals they were unable to solve the mystery of the creature's identity...

Could this be the fabled Chupacabra? The crypto-zoological rarity whose name means "Goat Sucker", for its reported fondness for feeding on the blood of livestock?

Naw....

It's a young coyote with a bad case of mange. Took me about .05 seconds to ID it. If you Google "Chupacabra" you'll get tons of news reports and amature videos that feature images of animals that look very similar to this one. They baffle the experts - but not the dog catcher :)

Coyotes in an urban environment face several challenges not faced by their rural counterparts. This is most likely demodectic mange - which occurs when an animal's immune system is compromised too much to combat the mites that cause the hair loss. In the wild, if an animal is injured or sick to the point that it can't hunt it dies relatively quickly from starvation. There's not time for diseases like demodectic mange to progress to the point where the entire body is affected.

In town, though, the coyote is often able to find enough food (garbage, pet food left out) to linger on longer before eventually dying.

I actually saw a news report several years ago on a "mystery animal" (coyote) spotted and filmed locally. They interviewed someone of authority from the Fort Worth Zoo - who declared that it might be some strange hybrid between a domestic dog and an African Wild Dog.

So much for the Experts. :)

But what if we grade on a curve?

2011-08-13T07:00:00.007-05:00

You've all heard the stories and seen the pictures coming out of the London area regarding the riots and the looting. So, lets take a look some of the main theories from the Left on how to make us all shining happy people. You know what I'm talking about. The common sense abandonment of personal liberty that would make everything wonderful - if only the gun loving Tea Party types would just shut up and get in line....

Hmmmmm... it would seem that there isn't a Grading Curve steep enough to keep those ideas from sucking.

If stricter gun laws and increased government intrusion and control are the answers to society's ills, then England should be the safest, happiest, most utopian place on earth.

They aren't.

It ain't.

Girl Friday - 8/12/2011 - Colleen Farrington NSFW

2011-08-12T07:00:00.003-05:00

This week's Girl Friday comes from the pages of Playboy magazine, circa 1957. She appeared in the magazine with a variety of hair colors - my favorite of which is red.

Colleen Farrington

Hit the jump for some NSFW, yet classy, shots. And also a reveal of Colleen's connection with a beautiful modern day actress...

Ms. Farrington married briefly in 1964, and divorced in 1965. That union, while short, produced a daughter that went on to become an Academy Award nominee - Diane Lane.