Another intense night...

Yesterday was a quiet day until late afternoon.

I installed a safe in a secure place in my home.  I wanted to be sure that any firearms I might own would be safely locked away in a place that was not easily observable but I could gain quick access to in the event I needed it.  I found a small standing safe that fit nicely in the place I selected.  It has three sections for storing things, so I can store some of my more important things there as well.  It weighs 50 pounds, empty, so I had to use my little platform trolley to move it to it's new home.  I am very happy with the outcome.  I know I have done the best I could to make sure my weapon(s) are as safe as possible.  I am learning in my class that not only being able to shoot properly is important, but overall making sure the weapons are secure and out of the hands of anyone but those intended to use them is equally, if not more than important.

I made my 3 envelope roast yesterday.  I was able to make some of the best roast beef sandwiches I have had in a long time.  I had added mushrooms and onions to the recipe and the result was delicious.  As I was eating a fast moving but dangerous thunderstorm arrived.  It has been quite a while since I have seen such beautiful but frightening lightening.  Thank goodness it only lasted about 20 minutes and was pretty much gone by the time I left the house.  According to the rain gauge it put down close to 1/3 inch of rain in that short period of time.

Last night was the second night of my basic pistol class at the West Caln Sportsman's Club. It was another intense evening, with a lot of information in a very short period of time.  The first hour was the final classroom instruction before we went onto the range.  The rest of the night was firing exercises.  I was using the .22 caliber weapon from one of the instructors.  It did not work very well.  Loading the cartridges was difficult.  They did not seat well.  I had to give each one an extra push in order to have the gun fire correctly.  It made  the entire process more nerve racking for me as the first two exercises had the gun misfiring often.

In spite of that, and in spite of the fact that midway through I also managed to shoot my pinky finger on my left hand with a staple gun, I managed to keep almost all of my shots inside the target.  My instructor even said I was a good shot...it was his gun I was using... and that he would try to have a better gun for me next week.  I think I will just start using my .38 that I just bought, however, so that I can continue with the gun that I will be using for self defense.

We have now completed the basic pistol course.  Next week we will start the Personal Protection Inside The Home (PPITH) course.  This is where we will learn how to safely use the gun inside our home should we encounter an intruder.  Our next shooting experience will include kneeling.  I hope my old and infirm knees are up to it or at least they will be able to help me up once I get down.  I am guessing I will wear my brace for those classes.

These volunteer instructors are very good.  They challenge us, emphasize safety over and over, but are very helpful and patient with us.  I really believe that this is the best learning experience I could have gotten to become a responsible gun owner.  Thanks to the Sheriff's Office for pointing me to this class.