Life

What should we be doing right about now?

/ hsoi / 1 Comment

With all the talk of gun banning, collapse of our Constitutionally guarded rights, potentials for civil unrest… well….

Take a cue from The Suburban Dad Survivalist on how we should be behaving:

  1. Respect the Constitution.
  2. Pray for our leaders, even if you don’t agree with them.  Pray for God to heal our collective souls.  Pray for wisdom for yourself.
  3. Educate yourself and others.
  4. Remember you get more flies with honey than you do vinegar.
  5. Be vigilant about what’s going on in the news and in politics.  Stay on top of current events.
  6. Reach out to those who disagree with you.  Build relationships with them.  Let them see you are not a bad person or a nut job.
  7. Value truth.  Don’t hide from facts.
  8. Prepare for the possibility of more difficult times ahead, for you and your family.
  9. Support candidates who espouse your values.  This means supporting their campaigns financially.  It also means reaching out to them to let them know what’s on your mind.
  10. Be a nice person.  Don’t be a jerk, even if someone else is being a jerk to you.  Set a good example.

Emphasis on that last one: be nice.

Fun Family Day

/ hsoi / 1 Comment

If you look down on “rednecks”, both the people and the things they do, then you should stop reading now because this post will probably offend you. 🙂

Had a wonderful day with the family today. Originally we were to do this during my Christmas vacation, but since I was down with the flu it didn’t happen. Fortunately the heavens saw fit to give us today, so the opportunity was taken.

The main thing? Going to the gun range and shooting. Some work, some recreation. Thank you, Karl, for letting us use the range.

It started off with me doing some live fire pistol skills work, because of my desire to start shooting IDPA. Details on this elsewhere. Meanwhile, Wife and Kiddos were inside the range house doing schoolwork (the joys of homeschooling).

When I finished my work, I took Wife out for a little work with the shotgun. She wants to improve her proficiency with the shotgun, so we did some work there. Alas, a 12 gauge, even with low-recoil rounds, just isn’t in the cards for her (Karl, if you find her shoulder, please let me know). She’s just fine with the 20 gauge. I just wish … oh wait! It looks like Federal now has a 20 gauge buckshot with FLITECONTROL wad (PD256). Holy crap! This is awesome. Of course, as I look around right now, everyone’s out of stock. But wow, this is great. I’m there and it’s pretty much removed my reserves about the 20 gauge. Sure it’d be nice to standardize on 12 gauge, but oh well. At least now I don’t have to put up with sub-optimal 20 gauge buckshot.

After that, Wife was done for the day. With the wet weather and the temps in the 40’s, it was just too cold for her to keep going. But the Kiddos were ready.

I recently purchased a new shotgun and needed to break it in and ensure function. I ran a bunch of 12 gauge target loads through it, then some full-power buckshot (of course, the Federal FLITECONTROL), and some slugs (Brenneke low-recoil slugs). The slugs didn’t want to go into the mag tube easily for some reason, looks like the brass was hanging up on the retainer clips, but no big deal really. Everything functioned great. I did put a 12″ Hogue Short Shot stock on it (shorter LOP makes for easier shouldering) and while 12″ LOP is a little too short for me, it worked out alright and I didn’t smack my thumb into my face as much as I expected I would. 🙂  I consider the shotgun functional and able to be pressed into service.

Oldest has never shot a 12 gauge before — he’s always been a bit recoil shy. But today he stepped right up to the plate and fired it like a champ. We’ll work on speeding up his shot recovery, but he really did a great job with it.

Youngest has never fired a “big gun” before, just .22’s. But he wanted to try the shotgun. 12 gauge was too much tho, so I pulled out the 20 gauge (a Mossberg 500 Bantam youth model) and let him try it with some light target loads (which are still kinda stout). He handled it well, tho was taken aback a bit because it was a big boom — again, it’s the most gun he’s ever fired. But he did come back for a second shot, but that was enough. 🙂

We put the shotguns away and took out an AR-15. I originally didn’t plan on bringing out an AR, but when packing up this morning, Oldest expressed interest in shooting it and I wasn’t going to say no. Again, he’s been very recoil shy in the past, only wanting to shoot .22’s. So for him to want to step up is great in my book. I mean, I know he can handle it, after having shot that 255# feral hog a couple years ago with a .308 bolt-action. Oldest got to learn what “giggle factor” is. 🙂  He was having WAY too much fun with that rifle — I should have brought more ammo. Daughter shot it for a bit, but she tweaked something in one of her arms the other day and so it was kinda painful to hold up the rifle. Youngest tried the AR as well, and was quite pleased that the recoil was far less than the shotgun — tho it was a heavier gun to hold up.

We put the long-guns away, and pulled out everyone’s favorite: the Buck Mark Camper. All 3 kiddos shot at the steel targets with this, and it’s just fun to plink with such a low-recoil gun — tho Youngest did get bit by the slide. Daughter showed some good improvement on trigger control. She asked how you get to shoot faster, so I explained a bit and I guess something clicked because she was shooting a little faster by the time we wrapped up.

While a lot of today was about having fun, it also was with purpose. I want my kids to be self-sufficient and able to take care of themselves. Yes, that means being able to shoot a gun proficiently. You may not understand why that’s the case, and if you don’t understand I’d be happy to discuss it with you; even if you don’t agree with it, I hope you are willing to have an open mind and come to listen and understand. The guns shot, the things we did, all done with purpose, even if I was the only one that knew what the purpose was.

Alas, we had to wrap it up before everyone was tired of it, but that’s ok — always leave them wanting more.

We headed to the Elm Creek Cafe for a delicious lunch (everyone loves that place), then back home.

Oh… and the Buc-ee’s in Bastrop is finally open. Yes, we stopped in. Finally my family came to understand why I adore Buc-ee’s.

We had a great day. Smiles all around. Happy family. I can’t wait to do it again.

Anthophila

/ hsoi / 3 Comments

I gave Wife a unique gift for Christmas – a custom-made kitchen knife.

Anthophila

(click the picture to embiggen)

It has been dubbed Anthophila. Click here to see more pictures and specs on the knife.

Wife had no idea, hadn’t asked for anything like this, but over the years I’ve seen what’s been needed in the kitchen and thought this could be a welcome thing. Fortunately, my buddy Shawn Hatcher is a knife-maker, Hatcher Knives, so I asked if he could make this for me. We sat down together, I gave Shawn some goals, and let him do his thing. We liked the santoku concept, but I wanted a “taller flat” (I’m probably not using the right terms) to give more surface for the fingers to ride against when chopping, plus it allows the knife to be used as a “scoop” for taking chopped food off the board. I still wanted some sort of “tip” to make it useful for getting into tight spots, carving out, and so on.

I think Shawn did a great job.

Wife’s been using the knife for about a week now and is enjoying it. But you can tell there’s some reserve about using it. Exactly what? We don’t know. We’ve had a nice set of J.A. Henckels knives since our wedding, so I reckon part of her reserve is just that it’s different and she needs some time to get used to a different feel in the hand. Plus, I had to design the knife blind, taking her into consideration but never letting her in on the process. Daughter did help out, but that could only go so far (e.g. their hands aren’t quite the same dimensions). Still, we’re chalking this up to acceptable, and if after using it for some time Wife figures out what she likes and doesn’t like, how she might want to refine the design, or even start with a whole new design… well… we can do that, thank you Hatcher Knives. 🙂

Check out Shawn’s work. He’s developing a style and quickly maturing as a knife-maker. I’ve enjoyed reading his shop updates and watching not just the knife-making process but also his evolution as a maker. It’s always cool to watch an artist over time.

10 lessons

/ hsoi / 2 Comments

Everyone likes to look at the changing of the calendar as a time to make some greater changes in their life.

A friend of mine posted this on Facebook, and I thought it was a good list about not just life lessons, but if you really want to make some change in your life, pick just one of these and see how accepting it in your own life could make you better.

While I put a summary of the 10 lessons below (for my own posterity, should the linked-to site ever go away), you really should read the whole thing to understand where it’s coming from.

  1. Your thoughts create your reality.
  2. You will regret the chances you didn’t take.
  3. Change is the only constant thing in life.
  4. What you resist persists.
  5. You judge others for the deficiencies you haven’t yet accepted in yourself.
  6. You have far less control over the behavior of others than you think.
  7. You are what’s on the inside.
  8. You can’t force love in relationships.
  9. Sometimes the only healthy option is to move on.
  10. Life as you know it doesn’t last forever.

For that matter, check out their whole website. It’s got a lot of good food for thought.

on my flu

/ hsoi / 10 Comments

I officially have the flu – the doctor at the local “emergency clinic” (my regular doctor was out and his associates were booked) shoved a swab up my nose, ran a test, and I won the prize.

#1 – Mr. Doctor – you do NOT deeply shove long thin swabs up people’s noses unannounced. 

It was one of the stranger and more uncomfortable feelings I’ve ever experienced. Once my eyeballs returned to my skull, I realized my hand was already around his wrist to prevent him from shoving it up my other — I was strongly telling him to WAIT and NOT do that until I had recovered from the shock and sensation of the first violation. I understand what he had to do and why, and I’m sure he’d been doing it all day long for the past some days or weeks. But what’s become sickly routine to you is NOT to those of us on the receiving end — gotta remember that, Jack.

So since I have flu, I was prescribed Tamiflu. I vaguely recall hearing of that before, the prescription was already phoned to my local pharmacy, so off I went to get it. While I waited for them to fill the prescription (they were quite busy, as you could imagine), I pulled out my iPhone for a little research on Tamiflu.

#2 – Tamiflu is controversial and possibly worthless

Read this.

The lack of peer review, that any studies done were funded by the company, that the company won’t open up and let people see the studies, replicate them, and so on… well, that speaks volumes. And those government 3-letter agencies that so many believe are there to protect us, if the government blesses it it’s good, if the government doesn’t it’s bad (government defines “morality” I guess?)… well…

Nancy Cox, who heads the CDC’s flu program, told us earlier this year she opposes a placebo-controlled study (in which one half of patients would be given Tamiflu and the other half would be given placebo), because the drug’s benefits are already proven.

No it hasn’t. And if the benefits were proven (already a problem to say anything has been “proven”), then another solid study would lend more credibility and strengthen the position. So uh… why would they want to deny it? And isn’t the CDC supposed to be looking out for the public’s interest? or just whomever is lining their pockets?

All of this made me think about open source software. 🙂

Still, I’m taking it. I figure I paid $106 for it (yes….), I might as well see for myself. Of course, I have no way to really verify if it actually did help me or not.

#3 – Paying for your own medical care is informative

When costs are hidden behind “insurance” or “taxes” or other indirect methods of payment… boy, how that system can (and will) be abused by those directly involved. I’m so looking forward to Obamacare and how that’s going to fix everything. 🙄

#4 – My productivity is in the can

This is what I hate the most. I’m technically on vacation from work, and I get to spend it all being sick. I had all sorts of plans with the family, from going to the gun range, to seeing “The Hobbit”, but alas now those won’t happen and I don’t know when they will. It’s not the end of the world, but it sucks.

Obviously I’m not going to the gym either. I’ve decided to just start cycle 16 over, once I feel good enough to return to the gym. I may also call an audible once I get to the gym and may spend the first week doing something like a deload week to get me back into the swing of things first. Just have to wait and see.

I also have a list of things that needed doing, from long-postponed programming projects to just various honey-do items. I’ve tried to work to trim off ones as I can, but when all my body wants is to sleep, and even eating has been a chore until today… well… makes it hard to want to do anything. Even writing this has gotten to a point where I want to stop because I’m out of gas.

But I will write one more thing.

#5 – My wife and kids are the best

They’ve taken very good care of me, especially Wife. She’s sacrificed and done a lot to take care of me and help me get better. They’re all doting on me, constantly asking if I’m OK and how I’m feeling. Daughter keeps walking up behind me with the head-scan thermometer taking my temperature. It’s all quite wonderful. I’m a fortunate and thankful man.

 

Being wrong can be right

/ hsoi

The hallmark of a strong individual is not in being flawless and passing blame, but in being able to admit when they are wrong and taking the necessary actions to correct the problem. These are our greatest innovators, thinkers, and leaders. People who are not only able to realize and admit when they are wrong, but who are also always mindful that they could be wrong about something are the ones who lead us into prosperity. No true advancement ever came from being wrong but sticking with your guns anyways. That’s called ego, and it is a major bane on our society.

From “It’s OK to be wrong” by Stephen Carter.

Mr. Carter makes a fine point. We’ve become a society where being wrong is bad. Where it’s bad to admit mistakes, because either there’s the (mistaken) thought that it shows weakness, or because you were less than perfect it’s now time to crucify you.

Why do we do this?

If Thomas Alva Edison said things like:

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”

“I haven’t failed, I’ve found 10,000 ways that don’t work”

That means the man was wrong far more than he was right. And we embrace Edison.

Why don’t we do this with ourselves?

Why don’t we do this with politicians?

We don’t want to be wrong; it’s a human trait to desire to be right. It takes a humble person to admit their wrong, and it takes a strong person to not chastise another for being wrong. If you do not have an environment that allows people to be wrong, they will struggle and fight to always be right — even if they are wrong, even if it flies in the face of all logic, reason, and even emotion.

We as a society need to often consider that we could be wrong. We need to challenge what we think we know, and we need to understand that this isn’t a bad thing, but very much a good thing, a march towards progress. In doing so, we have to have empathy. We are all wrong at various times and no one wants to feel bad about it, so we need to be understanding when other people are wrong and encourage them in a positive way to understand that it was a mistake, and we all make mistakes. There’s no need to be rude or mean about it, even in the face of extreme ignorance. We want people to feel good about being wrong in that it is not a bad thing, but a learning opportunity.

We also need politicians that don’t feel like it will be the end of their career to admit that they made a mistake. Do you want a person who is willing to admit they were wrong and change towards the right direction, or do you want someone who will keep it full steam ahead and never even remotely admit they’re wrong? This is very dangerous for our society. A strong and caring leader will admit to their flaws and mistakes, and we need to encourage this by looking inward at ourselves. It’s also perfectly acceptable to say “I don’t know.”

I am fortunate at this stage of my life and career that I know enough to know what I don’t know — which is a lot. Basically, I know what I know, and that means I don’t know everything else, but also I know that what I know I might not know as well as I think I know, or know at all. I know people hate hearing “I don’t know” as an answer to their questions, and I know they hate hearing that I made mistakes. I do my best to know what I can, and I do my best to not make mistakes. But I’m human — you’re human — and the sooner we all admit to it and act like it, the better off we’ll all be. Because to say you don’t know is at least honest, instead of doubling-down on being wrong.

This isn’t to say we should aim low and accept being wrong. What it is saying is we need to accept that being wrong happens, no one is immune to it, and building an environment that understands this and allows people to learn and grow and deal with being wrong in a healthy manner, that would be better.

Trans-Siberian Orchestra, 2012 Winter Tour Review

/ hsoi / 5 Comments

Yesterday afternoon the family went to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra. This is our fourth time seeing them in concert, and it’s always an enjoyable experience.

But this time was a lot more enjoyable — especially for Youngest.

Like all TSO shows, it’s a giant rock concert with loads of class, music blending classical and rock (hey, all the guys behind TSO are heavy metal guys), lights, lasers, smoke, pyrotechnics… just a great time. This year was different from years past in that their 3rd album, The Lost Christmas Eve, was the focus of the first half of the show. It was a great choice and welcome change. Still, the storytelling was awesome, and overall production top-notch, as always.

We did notice some differences, like the show was tighter. A little less banter and talk, a little less improv, and the second half “rock concert” didn’t have any noticeable covers or jams. But that’s all good because again, it made for a nice change in the show. We stopped going to see them for a little bit because it was “the same thing” over and over, which was OK but you know… you’ve seen it once, you’ve seen it again, and why spend all that money again? So we really liked the change. We do hope as they put out more non-Christmas albums to try to catch them on one of their non-winter tours.

I am a member of the TSO Fan Club, and because of that I’m able to get early tickets and good seats at the shows. This was no exception, and I chose some nice floor seats. Not too close, not too far back, but close enough to really see everything yet far enough back to be able to take in the whole of the show. Well… I think because we had such good placement, we got a treat.

Before the show started, while we were just sitting and waiting, a member of the road crew came up to us and pointed at Youngest and asked if he’d like to come on stage at the end of the show and receive a present from the band. Whoa! Of course we said yes. He asked a few questions (e.g. first time seeing the band? no, fourth), we discussed the logistics, and that was settled. He would come over to us during the last song to get us, then walk us over to the end/side of the stage where there are steps, and then Youngest would go on stage with the band and receive a gift.

And so it happened.

Youngest, taking a bow with Trans-Siberian Orchestra… with his autographed guitar!

He came up on stage, they gave him a guitar, autographed by the band. They gave him a chance to say something, but he didn’t — he told us later he was just in shock and giddy from it all, had no idea what to say being up there with them in front of 5000 people. 🙂

But he really enjoyed it and it was such a cool moment for him and our family. I know it’s a moment we’ll never forget.

If you’ve never seen TSO live, you’re missing out on a great experience. Go see them if you get the chance.

I wept

/ hsoi

I wept (literally) on my drive to work yesterday.

I was listening to Bing Crosby & David Bowie’s beautiful duet “Peace On Earth / Little Drummer Boy ”

Like you, the large events of the past week have been going through my head… a lot.

And it’s been very heart-breaking to me, tho perhaps not for the obvious reason.

Every child must be made aware
Every child must be made to care
Care enough for his fellow man
To give all the love that he can

Care enough for his fellow man, to give all the love that he can.

If what I’m seeing right now is all the love that we can give, then we’re doomed.

Maybe it’s the recent spate of rudeness. Maybe it’s all the anger, the fear, the vitriol, the venom, the hate, the intolerance. Maybe it’s all the hypocrisy and double-standards. That no one wants to listen, they just want to be right, they just want their way.

There’s some lip service given to love, to compassion, to understanding… but you know… talk is cheap. I’m not seeing the actions reflecting it.

And I wept at the thought.

And I’m looking at what might lie ahead. Because the way the war drums are being beaten, in the media, in Washington… it’s only going to drive the wedge deeper, it’s only going to divide us further.

Everyone thinks recent events are extra sad because it’s Christmastime. But yet, I don’t see anyone acting in a Christmastime way. Selfishness, ugliness, taking and not giving. That giving can even be giving an ear, giving consideration to someone else’s point of view. Alas, it’s all back to “me me me”, gotta be right, gotta get my way.

It just breaks my heart. Truly.

I pray my wish will come true
For my child and your child too
He’ll see the day of glory
See the day when men of good will
Live in peace, live in peace again