So the saga of the pets continues.
Kids
The hamster
Hot on the heels of the cat, we now have the hamster.
Being a more light-hearted parent
There’s a lot about the HuffPo that doesn’t jive with me, but this article by Gretchen Rubin about 10 ways to be a more light-hearted parent is a pretty spot-on piece.
While I understand and agree with the point of #6, I would say it’s more important to phrase things in terms of what you want them to do. Sometimes negative phrasing might be the right way to phrase it. Still, Ms. Rubin’s point is generally solid. You can read this for further elaboration on what I mean.
Still, a pretty decent list.
Keeping your kids safe around guns
Tam is much better than I at being snarky, but she provides a nice counterpoint.
It’s a shame some people don’t understand the point she raised.
Furthermore, if you really want to keep your kids safe around guns? Consider something like the Eddie Eagle Safety Program. That’s what gets me the most about the “well-intended” suggestions towards keeping kids safe, be it regarding guns or anything else. People expect everyone else to make the world safe for them (i.e. you change, I remain the same). The reality is the world is filled with things that, no matter our best efforts, can be harmful. Instead of expecting the world to cater to you, better you should equip yourself with the means, skills, and abilities to deal with the world around you.
So if you really want to do your kids a favor towards keeping them safe, provide them with the skills and know-how to keep themselves safe. We may try to keep strangers away from our children, but we acknowledge they may come in contact so we teach them all those “stranger-danger” tactics so they can manage should danger come their way when we’re not around. We teach kids to walk facing traffic so when there’s no sidewalk, they can see the oncoming cars. So when it comes to guns, even if you think they are horrible things that ought to be banned, it’s possible kids will come in contact with a gun at some point in their life so why not also give them the tools here to deal with it safely?
Stop. Don’t Touch. Leave the area. Tell an adult.
If you wish to educate them further, check out Kathy Jackson’s articles on the topic of kids and guns.
Daughter stuff
Daughter has been growing her hair out for some time now, and today she finally got to get it cut.
All for Locks of Love.
It’s a bit shocking to see her go from long hair to rather short hair, but the stylist Wife goes to is very good and Daughter looks great. All is good.
So… now I get to take her to see The Hannah Montana Movie this afternoon. It’s good time with Daughter, but I just hope my ears don’t bleed. 😉
Update: I survived the movie. Truth be told, it’s not that bad. Not some great cinematic tour de force, but it was OK. Certainly there’s no need to see this movie unless there’s a Hannah Montana fan that needs her Hannah-fix. Plot was predictable and cookie cutter, but it served the purpose (i.e., making lots of money for Disney, including cross-promoting their latest teen-star du jour). No real character development, and honestly I was hoping for more laughs. I was annoyed at how some “new song” would be whipped out but somehow everyone else knew the song well enough to sing, harmonize, dance, play the instruments… but hey, gotta suspend reality, right?
I will say, while at first I didn’t get the whole Hannah Montana thing, now that it’s infiltrated our household I have to admit it’s not that bad. I actually do enjoy watching the show (Jason Earles is a funny guy). If Daughter is going to be listening to music, Hannah/Miley music isn’t all that bad. Sure it’s got typical “teenage girl chasing boys” type of songs, but that is a fact of life and believe me there’s far worse ways of presenting such topics. Off the new movie, the song “The Climb” has a pretty good message to it (cliché but acceptable). There are some other songs of hers that I’ve also felt had a pretty decent message too, but don’t ask me to name them because I don’t know them.
But for me, the bottom line is spending time with Daughter. Now we just need to go to the gun range together. 😀
Random thoughts from the gun range
I was able to make a quick trip to the local indoor gun range this morning to try out my new purchase. Nothing really cohesive here… just a bunch of thoughts from the trip.
First, the Buck Mark was so nice. I cleaned her before I went, to take off the manufacturing/shipping residues and ensure it was well-oiled. Daughter helped me. I do think she’s more into shooting than her brothers, which is great! She can’t wait to try out the Buck Mark. I just didn’t have time this morning (and I refuse to take my kids to the indoor range), so I’ll soon be making time to take her to the outdoor range as soon as I can. Meantime I told her we can do some dry practice with it at home so she can learn it.
At the range, it was nice. This is why I prefer going early on weekday mornings: I was the first and only person on the range. Shot benchrest so I could get the rear sight adjusted. Shot at 7 yards to get it on paper, then out to 15, then 25, then back to 7. Fine tuned along the way. Should be sighted in, but after squinting so hard for so long my eyes were getting upset with me and it’s so dark in there, so I may need to re-verify the sight-in later. I have a hard time shooting with both eyes open, but it’s something I work on and I’ll get there eventually.
The Buck Mark itself was quite nice. It balances very well (has a 5.5″ barrel). The grip is very comfortable, but either it’s a wee thick (nah) or the magazine release button is a little short (this)… I can’t quite get my thumb to drop the magazine. I’ll have to see if there’s an aftermarket replacement for the mag release that’s just a hair bigger, but it’s a minor nit. Trigger felt nice. The magazine is a little tricky to load but once you get the hang of it, not so bad. I did buy one of these HKS magazine speed loader things, tried it once, didn’t use it again. Not that there’s anything wrong with it (I’m sure it’ll make things a bit easier for my kids), but it’s just another gadget to lose or break or forget and doesn’t really offer me any sort of advantage… certainly didn’t help me load any faster.
All in all, I’m happy with it. I really want to shoot some steel with it… that’ll be fun!
As for other things at the range…
When I arrived there were a group of guys in the parking lot talking. I figured they had just finished up and were talking before leaving. But as I was finishing up I saw they had moved into the ready area and were coming in. So, I only put about 70 rounds total downrange and did feel I got her dialed in fine, but with them coming I opted to leave a little early (only thing remaining was to just shoot offhand for some fun). I have no idea what their gun handling skills were like, but seeing some of their targets at 3 yards with holes all about well… better safe than sorry.
When I was back in the store area waiting for a cashier, I observed other people. One guy was at the rental counter trying out different guns. He would hold the gun at his stomach to rack the slide, violating rule 1 in a few ways, the biggest of which was that “into your stomach” is not a safe direction for a muzzle. Another man was getting his gun worked on. Looked to be a Ruger Charger Pistol, looked like he was getting a bore sight. Bore sight completed, employee handed the gun back to the man, then I don’t know what he was doing but he then proceeded to aim at the ground (and his feet) and do something… with his finger on the trigger. I did my best to stand somewhere else.
The shop/range wasn’t all that busy this morning, but it was enough. I try to avoid this place for these reasons (amongst others), but there are some things it’s good for (e.g. sighting in). So, when I was leaving to go there this morning I had to explain to the kids why they couldn’t go and why I won’t take them. When I got home, I was able to give them specific examples as to why I won’t take them there.
On the drive home, I thought more about the Ruger Charger. Oldest likes it because of how it looks. He really wants one. I tell him it’s just the same as the Ruger 10/22 rifle we already have (it’s the same action), just different stock/grip and shorter barrel. So that’s why I haven’t been interested in getting one as I haven’t seen the point. However as I thought about it, I think I do see a point. Sometimes I don’t like shooting the 10/22 because I want to shoot a handgun, not a rifle. Then when you consider the Ruger 10/22 is the most popular rimfire rifle in the world and has a big aftermarket, what that means is with the Charger you can have a .22 pistol with a massive aftermarket, so you can really customize and tune it just like you like it. That’s actually a pretty good thing. So no, the Charger isn’t on my “to buy” list, but now at least I’ll consider it.
A positive message for kids and everyone
Kuk Sool Won of St. Paul keeps a blog, and they just posted an entry about “A homeschooling perspective.” The posting, IMHO, doesn’t have much to do with homeschooling or martial arts, but it has a lot to present about life and good things to teach your kids (or even yourself).
Such a simple exchange, but I found it so moving. I’m so glad my son is getting these messages early from strong, compassionate teachers. You can keep going after you make a mistake. You can ask for help. You just have to keep practicing.
It reminds me a little of a story I read once about a famous modern-dance choreographer-I can’t remember which one now. Maybe Martha Graham? One of her dancers fell flat on her butt during a rehearsal and sat there with a stunned expression on her face, not moving, not getting up. The choreographer swooped over to the dancer and exhorted her, “Don’t stop now! Make it into something beautiful!”
Home Depot kid workshops
If you have kids and there’s a Home Depot near you, then the first Saturday of each month you can have some free fun with your kids by attending the Kids Workshop.
It’s a free workshop for kids ages 5-12. You get to assemble some sort of a kit, which varies from month to month… but think “birdhouse” sorts of things. A simple wood kit, a few nails, maybe some screws, and off you go. It’s free, it’s some fun with your kid(s), and yes… they might actually learn something (but don’t tell them that). The kits are not that difficult to put together, and you really won’t learn a lot of carpentry skills (so parents, don’t feel intimidated by the prospects of this activity). But you do have to learn to read directions, including matching all the kit parts to the instruction’s lists/pictures to ensure you have everything and have properly identified all the parts. Plus, you want to read all of the directions before starting, which is a good lesson to learn for successful projects. You learn how to hammer, maybe how to use a screwdriver, perhaps some sanding or gluing. It’s all simple and basic, but still some good things to learn.
And again, it’s fun. And most of all, it’s free. 🙂
Disney copy-paste
I’ve seen these Disney movies many times (I have kids!), and I noticed some of the similar/rehash stuff back when I was watching these over and over and over and over with my kids. This video did a great job of really showcasing it. While watching this video, what got me was the video’s juxtaposition really brings to light just how far they went with the copy/paste, down to the last detail.
Note, I don’t consider this a horrible thing, just interesting. I would like to know the story behind it because this was back in the days of traditional cell animation where you still had to draw… not like they could just re-render some CGI scene. How did they do it? What motivated them to do it (budget? stock actor films? homage to past films?).
Windy day
I wanted to go for a nice long motorcycle ride this morning. But again, we’re having heavy sustained winds and some wicked gusts. Just doesn’t make for the most enjoyable riding, so I’m opting to skip it.
In the spirit of making lemonade, I’ll see about going and flying a kite with the kids. I’m curious how the kite we bought at the Kite Festival can fly at higher altitudes… just couldn’t fly too much at the festival since it was so crowded.
In related windy day news, that momma duck and her ducklings are still coming around, however the day after my blog entry there were only 4 ducklings. 😦 Who knows. Hit by a car, taken by one of the many neighborhood cats, I’ve seen turtles in the pond take a duckling under. Such is life.
Stuff From Hsoi 