Right and Responsibility

A couple of weekends ago Phil and I took an NRA basic handgun course from a friend and his two colleagues. By completing the classroom portion of the course (with flying colors, might I add), Phil and I are now allowed under Colorado law to apply for our concealed carry licenses.


When Phil first suggested to me that we take this course, I was thinking he intended for this to be a basic self-defense class and that honestly freaked me out a bit. Phil kept asking me in the days leading up to the class if I was "excited" about it. I kept telling him that I knew it was important, but I was doing it because I knew it was important -- not because I thought it would be fun. I am not generally afraid of guns because I was raised around them -- all of my friends growing up were hunters, so there were shotguns in the back of all of their truck windows (guys and girls, by the way). But, I didn't know anyone who carried a gun solely for defense, only for hunting. I've shot shotguns out in the woods with friends, but had never touched a handgun before last weekend. Anyway, I told Phil that I don't like thinking about self-defense because it makes me feel paranoid. Those of you who know me know that despite my occassional bouts of smart-ass-ness, all I really think about is sunflowers and bunnies. I told this to Phil and he said, "I think of the same thing only in my mind I'm there with a shotgun!" So, there you go -- we have similar dreams.


Anyway, the handgun class ended up being extremely fun and so incredibly informative. I feel way more comfortable around guns now because I know a little bit about how to handle them safely and how they work. Before we went to the actual shooting range at the end, our instructors jumped out of NRA mode for a few minutes and gave us a bunch of information about their experience with concealed carrying (because they all three do carry handguns everywhere they go). One of the instructors said before we consider getting our concealed carry licenses, we should seriously consider one question and only we will know whether or not there is any hesitation in our minds when asked this question: "If you were faced with a person heading towards you or someone you love with intent to harm them and, knowing if you shoot you may kill another human being, could you still pull the trigger to protect yourself or someone else being threatened?" I might have had hesitation a few years or weeks ago, but I have no hesitation at all now -- my answer is easily "yes." Especially with the shootings at New Life Church a few weeks ago and the shootings at these universities. Think of how many lives would have been saved in Illinois had one person there been trained well and carried a concealed handgun! I feel like I need more training before I'm ready to carry with me, but it's definitely something I'd like to consider in the future months.


So, now to the fun part of the class -- the shooting range. There's a really nice indoor range in Colorado Springs called Whistling Pines. Our instructors were members there so we got to go with them to rent handguns (since we don't own one yet) and try them out. The goal the first time out is to hit an 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper from five yards away. Here were my first six rounds on the .22 I tried first:





Yes, that's 5/6 in the center! :o) Here's a zoom-in on the bullseye:




Phil's bragging about my shooting to everyone we know -- it's the ultimate compliment for this wife. :o) We went on to try several 9 mm handguns and a couple of .45s. The .45s were a bit much for me at this juncture, but the 9 mms were perfect. When we get guns, this is probably what I'll get. Phil might get himself a .45, we'll see. Anyway, it was a great experience and I'm looking forward to the next training we do!


I think the right to carry guns is just that -- a right. Most people who have accidents with guns are not well educated/disciplined/careful with them and most people who are committing crimes with guns are just plain psychotic and often don't acquire the guns until they're ready to go shoot someone. Those of us who are trained with guns have the right to carry them to protect ourselves and those around us and I think this country is better for it.

From Rumors to Reality

So, the sum-up from today's geekfest is that the pre-Apple-keynote rumor mills are getting more and more accurate! There were basically some updates to the iPhone (yea for the ability to text more than one person at a time!), iTunes (yea for movie rentals!) and AppleTV (which we *gasp* don't own and *gasp* don't intend to purchase ... mostly because we have a Mac Mini hooked up to our TV, and it works the same way, only it has a hard drive).

Anyway, the big announcement from Apple today was the coolest inter-office envelope contents ever, the MacBook Air. This thing looks incredibly sweet! Hopefully Phil can get some hands-on time (and maybe even pictures?) when he's there tomorrow. Meanwhile, check out the guided tour of this skinny bad boy.

Festivus for the Rest of Us

This is a special day for us nerds: it's time for Apple head-honcho Steve Jobs' MacWorld keynote speech (10 MST)! I'm not sure what will follow last year's industry-transforming, my-life-changing announcement...

...but, I'm sure it will be cool and innovative, whatever it is. Predictions and rumors are flying. The wait is almost over!

I sent my Phil off to San Francisco this week to enjoy the nerd-fest with his fun friends. He opted to not pay the money to wait outside all night to actually go into Steve's keynote presentation, but he says the atmosphere in general in San Francisco is electric. It's like St. Pat's Day in Ireland ... only it's just MacWorld week in San Francisco. Ha! Hmm ... I wonder how many people in Colorado Springs actually even know the big day is today? :o) Phil and his friends are going to visit the exhibits on Wednesday, so they'll still get to see all of the new stuff, whatever it may be.

Christmas Breeds Addictions

So, I used to tease about the things my mom put in our stockings for Christmas: a deck of cards, a pack of gum, a pancho, travel-sized hand sanitizers, a pack of travel-sized tissues, chap stick and an apple. Looking back on it, I can't complain about the contents of our Christmas stockings, because in most cases they're things I wouldn't have purchased for myself, but I've used them up over the years, so it seems pretty good afterall (except for a pile of unopened decks of cards -- those don't need to be replaced yearly at our house -- I can play solitaire online).

Well, this year was different: my mom pulled out all the stops! We had the usual practical goodies from above, plus a few things I'm completely addicted to now that I just have to share:

Williams-Sonoma Pop-Up Sponges

These little suckers are ridiculously cool and handy. they come in this flat, wafer-like format, then you run water over them and they turn into full-sized, ultra-absorbent sponges. And they're only $12/pack of 12, so it's not so bad to use one until it stinks then pitch it and get the next one. Get 'em.

Bath & Body Works Anti-Bacterial Moisturizing Hand Soap

I'm no stranger to products from Bath & Body Works. With the exception of a short boycott I conducted in 1999 because of the discontinuation of their Vanilla Bean fragrance, I've used their Signature Collection lotion since middle school. I've since moved on and accepted the transition to Warm Vanilla Sugar, but it was brutal there for a while. Anyway, I do know they've been selling this hand soap stuff for years, but I had never looked at it very closely because I always assumed it was going to be extremely expensive and not practical (because of the fragrance) for bathrooms or whatever. However, I stand corrected on both fronts! It's 3 for $10, which is comparable to Dial or whatever. And, they have less-girly frangrances like Coconut Lime Verbena (which Phil now uses and likes) and Kitchen Lemon (which we now use in the kitchen).

Car Coasters

I wish I could say Mom got us these exact car coasters, but we got a set that had one ladybug and one bee. Maybe I need to order a set of these with the eaglez on them just because they're awesome. But, anyway, these are a GREAT idea and I wish I'd known about them sooner.

And, a few things that weren't in my stocking that I got addicted to nonetheless over Christmastime:

Sequence Game

Anne Perry Novels

"The Killers" Music

Guinness: It's What's for Dinner

As my astute readers have already noticed, the picture now gracing the homepage is one of Phil and me on our recent trip to the land of leprechauns and shamrocks: Ireland!

It was a special treat for my deserving husband to celebrate his 30th birthday. We don't know of Irish ancestry in either of our families, but the price was right and the sights (for Phil to photograph) were just what I was hoping they'd be. You really do drive along a country road there and suddenly come upon gorgeous ruins, most of which are at least 1,000 years old.


One spot we visited was the Rock of Cashel. Just to show you how true the "happening upon ruins" is, the picture above isn't actually of the Rock of Cashel, but it's taken from the Rock of Cashel out into a field where other random ruins lay. The contrast of the lush green with the grey stone and blue sky was simple and beautiful.



We also spent a day driving the Dingle Peninsula, in the area where Far and Away was filmed. Although overcast, this drive was still beautiful. In general, the western coast (which we were near when we took this picture) of Ireland reminded us of Northern California, only Ireland was greener, blue-er and maybe a bit cozier.

On the last day, we decided to go out of our way and drive up to the Cliffs of Maher ...


... and MAN, was it worth it! You can't tell really from this dinky picture, but those cliffs are 650-foot drop-offs. I've never seen anything like it.

To sum up, I'd highly recommend a trip to Ireland for anyone. Although I admittedly favor simply beautiful things like ruins on a green countryside, I think you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who wouldn't be captivated by the endless supply of gorgeous scenery and some of the friendliest people I've ever met. The local pubs are primarily social hang-outs and neighborhood gathering places and secondarily places where you can have the beverage of your choice. But, if you choose anything other than Guinness in Ireland, you're crazy -- it's no good here in The States, but a tasty treat that must be consumed at least once a day in its homeland.

Tried and Trump

If The Donald says it, it must be true:

"If you want to improve morale around the office, start cursing.

According to a study by British researchers, regular swearing at work can help boost team spirit among staff members. It’ll help them express their feelings and it’ll help develop better social relationships."

See, I called it months ago!

More Than Meets the Ears

My avid readers (or, at least those who stuck with me through my six-month hiatus) might have noticed the list of movies I've seen in the theater this year has lengthened considerably since the last time I did a movie review post. Many, many of those movies are not worth mentioning. But, I thought I'd start with my favorite of the summer and work my way down the list, as time allows.

So, my favorite movie of the year so far is:


Transformers was the surprise gem of this summer's movies for me. I wasn't a huge fan of the original Transformers show as a kid, but I do remember watching it at the bowling alley with all of the other teachers' kids while Mom and Dad were doing their teachers' bowling league after school (they each had their own balls and shoes and everything). Just the mention of Transformers brings back fond memories of piles of junk food, the bowling alley arcade which included my favorite as a kid -- the Donkey Kong arcade game, and, of course, the unavoidable stench of stale cigarette smoke that permeated that ghetto bowling alley (they have a website? What the heck?!). Actually, come to think of it, all of these things remind me of my childhood, and not just on teachers' bowling night, but I'll save those details for other posts on other days.

SO, as I was saying, I really liked this movie. Shia LaBeouf was the perfect star for this intense film. Matt said something to the effect of him being extremely good at acting uncomfortable, and that's why he was perfect in Transformers. I definitely agree. I've been a fan of his since he was in Even Stevens (yes, I do know this show was made for 8- to 10-year-olds and was on when I was 18-24 ... what of it?). But, I also thought the story was good and the visuals were amazing. It was just an energetic and fun summer movie.

Of course, I would be remiss if I didn't mention what probably was one of the biggest contributors to putting this movie at the top of my list: the soundtrack. I'm not talking the score, I mean the collection of songs by various artists that were played in part or in whole during the movie. My iPod (which is actually my iPhone, on which I actually purchased said soundtrack) has been stuck on it ever since. Predictably, the first song is "What I've Done" from my favorite (as you all know by now), Linkin Park. Then they throw in some Smashing Pumpkins, Disturbed, Goo Goo Dolls, Taking Back Sunday, an updated version of the "Transformers Theme" by Mute Math, and various other great songs from bands I didn't know before. If I start feeling recovered well enough from the gross stomach virus I've had for a month to start running again, this will be my new running music. Check it out!