Cool and damp in Houston, with clouds and overcast… my best guess for conditions 6 hours from when I’m writing this. Based on current conditions anyway. We’ll see how the day progresses.
It was certainly nice at the BOL, even with the howling wind. It was warm enough that the wind felt nice rather than raw.
I got most of my list for the weekend done. Stuff got transported to the BOL, I did the things I hoped to do. Got seeds in the ground, which is more than I’ve done here at home, or in my own patch up there. It’s that time for us, soon it’ll be too late for some things. Check with your local ag extension service, and get some gardening happening. The learning curve is steep. Start climbing it.
And if you have a black thumb like me, instead of a green one, stack more food!
Today I’ve got auction stuff, drop offs and maybe pickups. I’ve got to finish the tub repair too. And any other thing that pops up. It’s sure to be a normal day, which will provide all the challenges I need… PLUS now I’m counting down to the Hamfest. I’ll be making lists, digging in bins, looking in the garage, patio, attic, storage units, and secondary location to find the stuff I put aside for the swapmeet and then forgot about, and I swear, I WILL do some price research this time, at least for the test gear and some of the radios… and reserve a trailer. I just realized it will be the first weekend of the month, and trailer rentals might be scarce.
There is always something more to do. Just gotta do it. Get to stacking. And doing whatever it is YOU need to do.
nick
You should have capitalized PEX. As written, a quick reading make it look like there was a one-letter typo in that statement.
(I’m talking about pet supplies. Get your minds out of the gutter, ya pre-verts!)
Most jobs like pro athlete, actor, musician, influencer, or online prostitute also have a very few people making most of the money. The average pay from these fields is usually not enough to live on, and the top tier make almost all of the money, leaving the typical pay just enough to say you’re earning something and therefore you can call yourself a musician.
Telling aspiring athletes, actors, musicians, influencers, or online prostitutes to give up their dreams would have the effect of keeping the truly gifted (or hard working or lucky) from going into the business and rising to the top, but would the world thereby be a worse place? All of these jobs are in the entertainment field. I’m not the person to judge how important these are to society, as I watch very few movies, listen to very little music, have no interest in pro sports, have never paid attention to Instagram or Tiktok influencers, and find OnlyFans to be repulsive on both moral and pragmatic grounds. Would society fall apart if Joe Average had to get up and play softball in a local league to get his sports fix rather than plop his widening ass on the recliner and turn on the TV? (Rather: would society fall apart worse than it is now?)
Everything goes into a ticketing system. That is not the problem.
The dollar amounts involved make people lose their grip on reality right now.
There are a lot of jobs like that:
I wouldn’t want any of those jobs…
A lot of managers in this line of work think that they can be Steve Jobs or, at least, the “Steve Jobs” persona portrayed in the press and “Legend Of” oral history.
Like many industry leader “Legend Of” tales, I believe Steve Jobs’ has a lot of BS.
In event management, we’d get these younger people, females usually, that would come in for the event, including the setup, watch everything go smoothly, and then decide they should go into business doing event management… because they’d been in the room while the work was being done, they thought they understood the job.
They didn’t see the weeks or months of prep work, site plans, hiring, design, permits, contingency planning, rentals, etc. They didn’t recognize the high skill levels of the people involved, because it all went well. And when it didn’t, the pros smoothly did what needed to be done, without a lot of fuss.
My buddy would have a perfect three day show, as he walked around with a 3″ binder full of info, and a radio, making sure his staff of hundreds had what they needed. NewGirl would be convinced the job was ONLY walking around talking to people, and she does that all day long! ALL DAY LONG!! She’s practically a pro at it.
The really crazy thing is when NewGirl starts doing the job, and HIRES my buddy, or someone similar, she succeeds and is validated that she was right all along.
And she never realizes until later that the catering company’s Head Chef suffered a heart attack at her $1k/plate dinner for 100 guests, and had to be medivac’d, without her guests ever becoming aware anything was wrong.*
n
*slightly fictionalized version of real events.
One of my great-aunts (maybe? third cousin twice removed? Older than my mother, anyway.) made a career of being the event planner for a NYC corporation. It kept her employed for 40 or more years, with a staff, just setting up retirement parties and welcomes for new senior vice president and what-not. But, yah, some 20-something with no connections and no real skills can walk in and do it, no problem.
Ha, ha. Hi, Mr. Ray.
Our military’s finest wins Darwin Award:
Air Force engineer Aaron Bushnell dies in hospital after setting himself on fire outside DC Israeli Embassy screaming ‘Free Palestine!’
You have to be mentally ill to burn yourself to death for, checks notes, Palestine.
Air Force, of course.
Not just that, but the doublespeak involved in the reporting…
Very few people actually thrive in a team environment, and most of them are slackers that coast on the work of others.
n
Oh, the slackers certainly thrive in a team environment, much better than if their rewards were based on their own ability, effort, or results.
Prolly a Six Sigma Black Belt, too.
Oof, that hurt.
As a once-pro photographer, knowing just when to push the button is important. Of course, it is now possible to shoot high quality video, and pick the right instant later. Hmm…
I also did darkroom work. Nobody sees those long hours. Same for digital editing now.
Ray, that shouldn’t hurt. You know your worth.
@Ray, just to be sure: I was being sarcastic. Like the zookeepers, who don’t just play with cute animals…
Zookeeper is one of those jobs that pay very little because there are so many people who want the job. Most would do it for free if they had to and could. Wife’s cousin was one.
n
BTW, overcast and warm today, very moist.
n
The DevOps guy at the last job moved up to the system architect role and proceeded to run the project into the ground. He also had active duty in the Air Force in San Antonio on his resume.
Plus one or more of the following: PMP. PMI-ACP. A-CSM. CSPO. CSA.
Trailer is arranged. That’s one thing off the list.
Tried lying down for a while – turns out crouching over a mower deck for 3 hours then mowing an acre of bumpy yard will jack up my lower back in interesting and new ways. Grr.r. Didn’t work.
n
@Brad: Of course I knew that.
Ooof, hit him while he is down.
Besides, I don’t really qualify as a photographer as it is not my job or profession. It is more of a hobby, something to do, as I am now retired.
Yes, a lot of people think being a photographer is easy. They don’t realize the time spent afterwards processing images. The time beforehand setting the exposure and white balance. The avoidance of distracting backgrounds, avoiding bad lighting, getting people to cooperate.
I know several people on FB who could not spell photographer. Then they bought a kit camera and now are one and advertise their services. All the images taken on the “P” (Professional) setting. Granted digital has made it much easier, the intelligence in the cameras and the ability of software to fix a lot of problems. I still see images that make me cringe while the recipients think the images are wonderful.
In my opinion, the cell phone has created the problem. Cell phone images are generally so bad that anything from a simple kit camera with a mediocre lens looks so much better. That impresses people because of what they are used to seeing.
What people don’t realize that of all the items in a wedding that should have top priority is the pictures. A video will not be watched more than a couple of times. The wedding dress will be put in a box, vacuum sealed and left. Flowers will wilt and die in a few days. The cake will become a mess and what is not eaten, tossed. The food consumed and converted to human waste. What people will look at years later is the still images in a wedding album or enlargements on a wall.
I tell people my cost to do a wedding is $1,000.00. They balk and say they know someone who will do the pictures for $200.00. I say OK, go for it. More than once a couple has come back to me and asked if I will fix the images. I tell them it will now cost $2,000.00 as I have to deal with someone else’s garbage and they better get a copyright release. They lament they should have gotten me in the first place but don’t have the money to pay. That is why I present that price, I want them to refuse as I really don’t want to deal with the bad images.
There was one person I know that photographed a wedding and their memory card failed. All the images on a single card. I use smaller cards with no more than 100 images on each card. If a card fails, I do not lose all the images. The photographer was begging for cell phones images from anyone that attended.
There was another wedding at my church where I had to run a video the bride wanted played. I stayed around after and watched the photographer. She took the couple to some railroad tracks that were behind the church. That is trespassing at a criminal level. Anyway, the photographer laid her case with some memory cards on the tracks. Then everyone left and the case was left behind. I picked up the case and brought it back to the church. Several minutes later a train came by on those same tracks.
The photographer then realized she had left the case, with the cards, on the track. She panicked and quickly ran back to the tracks. When she came back she was in tears. I went up to her and handed her the case and said I found it on the tracks. Her comment to me was “You SOB, you could have told me earlier”. To which I replied, “Fine, next time I will leave the case”. Ungrateful b*tch.
The BNSF engineers working the line down the Columbia Gorge on the WA side of the river considered anyone on the railroad’s property fair game to whack in the head with a stick if within range of the cab window. No one local went anywhere near the tracks, but, occasionally, the engineers would get lucky with a tourist or new resident.
Pleasant here, if mostly overcast, on Sunday.
Went to a nearby yard full of junk british sportscars with the neighbor to buy a “parts car” for his MGB-GT.
Kind of fun, reminded me of my teenage days going to the junk yard in Martinez, back when you were allowed to wander around.
I even felt a mild attack of “wrench fever” myself, but was able to fight it off.
Plus the TR4 with a chevy small block had already sold.
I think that in Current Year, the only people who are allowed to Know Their Worth are women past 35, with at least three children by at least five fathers, and with NSFW videos floating around the internet from their failed attempts at being “models”. Oh, and they should still have college debt, preferably with a balance greater than when they finished school.
I’m not opening my work laptop tonight, but I can see my email in-box from my phone. In another hour, the overseas developers are going to start sending messages looking for me to fix their problems ahead of the ship date scheduled for 2/29.
I know I certainly no longer see the point beyond a paycheck.
So, why are their problems your problems ? And does your supervisor know this ?
“The Houston real estate firm’s recent buy is part of a $55 million frenzy of shopping center acquisitions.”
https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/houston-sams-club-vacant-18688639.php
$55 million is not a frenzy in the Houston commercial real estate market. People are holding over a billion dollars of commercial real estate off the market waiting for better times. Those better times are not coming. A lot of that market may end up in bankruptcy court.
Walmart (Sam’s Club) is selling properties all over the country. They have apparently closed 102 stores in the last several months, out of their 4,600+ stores. Tell me that is not a sign of the times.
Most jobs like pro athlete, actor, musician, influencer, or online prostitute also have a very few people making most of the money. The average pay from these fields is usually not enough to live on, and the top tier make almost all of the money, leaving the typical pay just enough to say you’re earning something and therefore you can call yourself a musician.
Telling aspiring athletes, actors, musicians, influencers, or online prostitutes to give up their dreams would have the effect of keeping the truly gifted (or hard working or lucky) from going into the business and rising to the top, but would the world thereby be a worse place? All of these jobs are in the entertainment field. I’m not the person to judge how important these are to society, as I watch very few movies, listen to very little music, have no interest in pro sports, have never paid attention to Instagram or Tiktok influencers, and find OnlyFans to be repulsive on both moral and pragmatic grounds. Would society fall apart if Joe Average had to get up and play softball in a local league to get his sports fix rather than plop his widening ass on the recliner and turn on the TV? (Rather: would society fall apart worse than it is now?)
The number of athletes floating around junior colleges in Texas is simply amazing. Eventually they run out of scholarships and money and abandon ship with their underwater basket weaving degrees. Or their flower arranging degree.
I’m not Greg but I was the stunt double for the guy who played him on TV.
Any number of times I’ve been given someone else’s work to do or to complete or to fix. The team lead or manager almost always knew that the person who was supposed to do it was a bozo but would never admit it. All the manager cared about was getting the project done on time or else having a good excuse why it wasn’t his (or increasingly her) fault. Not speaking out against the modern religion of “diversity” is also a top priority. Not calling attention to the VP’s poor decision in outsourcing critical work to Turdholia is important. Little things like making sure that the taxpayers or the shareholders get value for the wages paid isn’t even on the list. Not overly annoying the people being tasked to clean up after the others may be on the list, if the manager is savvy enough to realize that 10% of the developers are carrying the entire project.
The named store chains anchoring the site (TJ Maxx, HomeGoods, Target, Old Navy) aren’t exactly thriving.
I actually went into a TJ Maxx in The Wisconsin Dells looking for a duffel bag before our flight home. The place was mobbed in early November, with a line to check out.
That was the first time I had been in one of those stores in 20 years.
“Even Warren Buffett’s legendary optimism is fading.”
https://www.schiffsovereign.com/trends/even-warren-buffetts-legendary-optimism-is-fading-150201/
Yeah, I kinda read that into his annual letter. The cost of doing business in the USA is rapidly rising. Tell me something that I do not know.
Management knows. The dollar amounts involved make everyone lose their minds.
“Vibrator virus steals your personal information”
https://www.malwarebytes.com/blog/news/2024/02/vibrator-virus-steals-your-personal-information
“A Malwarebytes Premium customer started a thread on Reddit saying we had blocked malware from trying to infect their computer after they connected a vibrator to a USB port in order to charge the device.”
You have got to be kidding me.
Stop plugging stuff into your computer !
The printing press money has to stop. That is the root cause of all inflation.
Management knows. The dollar amounts involved make everyone lose their minds.
So what happens when everyone lists you as their block for meeting their goals ?
“that shouldn’t hurt. You know your worth”
Ray: Ooof, hit him while he is down.
No!! I meant no harm. I meant that a good photog knows his worth, and others’ opinions shouldn’t hurt. By worth, I don’t mean fee, but the value added in preserving something precious.
You said as much further down today’s journal.
FWIW, I have presented some work to people who are unimpressed. Then they ooh and aah over some cr@ppy pictures taken by someone else. They don’t know the difference between competent and cr@ppy. That is their problem. I will admit that taking pictures of people is not my strong suit. I also don’t want to work when I am a guest. As said, I would feel obligated to do a lot of post processing, and don’t have the time.
This is one reason why I will not do weddings unless there is a pro under contact. I agree to take human interest (informal) pictures, and never charge. I also ask permission of the pro before things start. Back in the film days, I would just hand over the exposed film. I would offer to have it developed and small “proof” prints made, but that was it. With digital, it is easier. I simply post the pictures to a cloud drive for a limited time, for anyone to copy. They are usually not processed, but if some are, I also preserve the unedited ones. That makes me just one of the many guests who take cell phone pictures. Lately, I also use my phone.
BTW, one of the things that bugs me about amateur photos is poor framing. To me, composition makes a lot of difference. To others, it doesn’t seem to matter. Selective focus also adds to good composition.
Very true. We have a very well-regarded zoo near me. So many young people want to work with zoo animals that they get away with paying minimum wage (even when so many other business are paying almost double that just to get applicants). Teens and young adults get a job there thinking they’re going to be feeding the lions or playing with the penguins, but 99% of them will be selling concessions or emptying trashcans. So, essentially the same job they’d have at the local fast food chain, but for half the pay. I’m sure management dangles eventually working with the animals in front of them to keep them around.
Weddings. When we had the whisky business (which included a nice locale), we catered a few. It’s apparently sort of like giving birth: after a few months, or a couple of years, you forget how painful it was, so you do it again…
I knew that. But it is hard for me to skip a chance to inject some witticism, often done badly.
“The Eagles’ Don Henley tells Hotel California trial it was a ‘poor decision’ to party with prostitute, 16, who overdosed at his mansion in 1980”
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13127111/Eagles-Don-Henley-set-stand-Hotel-California-lyrics-trial.html
So after all these years, the real story comes out. Don Henley did call for the 16 year old prostitute and he did give her some of the drugs that led to her death. Wow, Don Henley is 76 now !
BTW, I think the girlfriend that he was breaking up with was Stevie Nicks who left him for Tom Petty.
“Dunno – we ain’t done crashing yet”
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmkZHFgIMrDM2A4gy2_4yj47_-KDWWPUAir2AYRkJxp9CCQOzuc1M_qtCB2-XvxRi7xY3T9URpjocurVZcQYuE6e_LDRz9-6Op1tS-d1PhkG88ICZNgx2RukM-WRY9BbcZZt1Y5hRpjNmigqMn5d6CssnMi2w8q0Szo3Y85gdqmNbN4QpRzf3_ghsotc0/s600/Meme%20-%20ain't%20done%20crashin'%20yet.png
From
https://bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com/2024/02/memes-that-made-me-laugh-198.html
The printing press money has to stop. That is the root cause of all inflation.
Yeah, like that is going happen. They like spending their grandchildren’s money like water.
I don’t worry too much about framing as that is easier to correct while editing. Even tilted photographs are easily corrected. I am more concerned with backgrounds, reflections, and other oddities that are difficult to remove. I do selective focus as much as possible. Outdoors, on a sunny day, minimum ISO on the camera being 200, shutter speed no slower than 1/200th (due to flash), it is difficult to get a large enough f-stop (smaller number), without using neutral density filters. I use a polarizer instead of a ND but sometimes that is not even enough.
I almost always photograph with the white balance set on daylight. In a new environment I photograph a digital target with white, black, and 18% grey. I then use that to set white balance in post processing and can sync a thousand pictures in a few seconds.
Digital today is providing on a desktop what would have been impossible even with $1 million in equipment 30 years ago, unless you were the feds. ISO 128K is easily achievable and the noise can be dealt with by using software. Being able to shoot at 30 FPS, with autofocus, that tracks subjects, is just absolutely amazing.
The ability to carry 10K images on a single memory card. Long gone are the days of having to plan, and sometimes not use a full roll, so that changing film would not come at an inconvenient time. When I shot with film, I had three cameras. The wife would be loading film in a camera while I was using one. The third camera gave us some buffering space.
The last wedding I photographed I carried several memory cards. I tried to not put more than 100 images on a card before swapping them out. Loss of a card was a problem, but not a disaster. Now cards are today are extremely reliable. My current camera has two cards and both can be written to at the same time. One card is high speed and can continuously handle 30 FPS without stopping. The camera buffer never gets full.
It is truly amazing today what cameras can accomplish. And mine is certainly not top-of-the-line.
Not badly. Maybe I was distracted trying to juggle too many things this morning.
Amen to that! I can only keep up with a fraction of the developments. Thanks for the tips.
And, yes, many things can be corrected in post processing. I sometimes forget that after years of shooting slides where corrections were usually impractical.
I will forever like still photography, but also marvel at pro video. Studio cameras have been impressive for years, with their 100:1 zoom lenses and great resolution. I used to operate cameras for ABC TV in the 1960s. They were impressive in their day, but were only a glimpse of what was to come. I would like a behind the scenes tour of a modern studio. If I had a bucket list, that would be on it.
@Ray
Please remind us what cameras you are using
Ok, I’ll take you guys up on the offer to consult about the weapons used in my fictional thriller books (the “RV Vigilante” for anyone interested).
The main character is a retired veteran. Solitary type, wandering around the country in his big F-250 (black color and trim) and RV trailer. He often comes upon people who need his extra-legal help dealing with their situations.
His weapon of choice is a Glock 19 Gen 5 9mm. I chose this because it had an integrated safety, so it can be safely carried (he has the proper CCW permits), but quickly used. He usually carries it at all times with an ‘appendix’ carry. (Seems like the right term.)
He also has a Mossberg 590M , because it is pump action (the pump action sound gets your attention), but also has detachable magazine. The shotgun is brought along on some of his ‘adventure’s’ as a backup, so has a back-carry strap.
He doesn’t have a long-range sniper-type rifle (at least in the first three stories). Maybe he should.
He is proficient with each weapons, and can easily hit targets, either lethally or non-lethally, as conditions require. He regular practices with the weapons at gun ranges he finds during his travels, or when in remote area. And he knows weapons safety procedures, including trigger safety.
I got two dings in early reviews on the first book about specifying the wrong weapon. I had mentioned a safety switch, which the Glock 19 Gen 5 doesn’t have. And the wrong shotgun (the original one I used didn’t have magazine capability). I fixed that in a minor revision of the story.
I think that I got things right now. But I suspect that some experts here can help out. I am do not own the weapons, but I read a lot of books. And did some basic research on weapon capabilities (although I got it wrong at first).
Mon. Feb. 26, 2024 – yes, we have no bananas, we have no bananas today…
There was zero bananas at HEB last night. Just a few of those nasty old plantains.
My niece did wedding photography, worked her way up, from gopher, to asst. to 2nd shooter, to 2nd, to primary, then to her own entry level business, then to mid level.
Then got married, moved out of state, lost her contacts, and went into event photography for banks & such … not as high paying (usually, but not always, VC events pay well), but MUCH less drama.
Olympus OM1 Mark II
“Hunter Biden Claims He’s Staying Sober to ‘Fight for the Future of Democracy’ by Stopping Trump”
https://slaynews.com/news/hunter-biden-staying-sober-fight-future-democracy-stopping-trump/
Awesome. I heard Clay and Buck joking about this today but I thought they were just playing around.
Hat tip to:
https://thelibertydaily.com/
And FedEx, what the heck?
“Delivery exception” “Customer not available or business closed”
Again. But bless their hearts, they’re going to try one last time tomorrow.
And FedEx, what the heck?
“Delivery exception” “Customer not available or business closed”
Again. But bless their hearts, they’re going to try one last time tomorrow.
They saw the emu and got scared.
Yeah, everybody knows Liberty Mutual kicks dirt in their faces.
If they made it far enough to see the emu I wouldn’t be complaining.
I called. And yabba dabba doo well, “there was no-one there to sign for the package” to which I replied if you folks think I’m going to spend the afternoon sitting in a lawn chair waiting for the driver, y’all are crazy. It’s real easy, when you get to the gate / property line, drive about another 1000 feet to the house.
She said ok and will “instruct the driver”.
It is truly amazing today what cameras can accomplish. And mine is certainly not top-of-the-line.
Any computer related is moving a generation every couple of years. Everything else in humanity is moving a generation every hundred years or so.
I could never be a portrait photographer, and especially a wedding photographer, because of the responses I’d give when people said “Does this dress make me look fat?” or “Make sure to get my good side.” Unless there’s a market for demanding, insulting wedding photographers, the way some clothiers and hairdressers can get away with being childish, temperamental, disparaging jerks. That I can do!
The last emu isn’t mean. She’s not a pet as in I can pet her. She’s never been that way. Some emu are friendly. But she’s pretty mellow. She doesn’t mind the cats or Penny in her pen. She knows who brings food. Shrug.
It won’t reach that point.
The last emu isn’t mean. She’s not a pet as in I can pet her. She’s never been that way. Some emu are friendly. But she’s pretty mellow. She doesn’t mind the cats or Penny in her pen. She knows who brings food. Shrug.
I just figure that anyone seeing her would mistake her for a velociraptor and run away screaming. I have seen a couple of emu farms on highway 36 over the years. They are fairly fierce looking beasties. Plus, every delivery person has been bit by a dog or will be, it is the nature of the job. They are always wary of creatures.
When I worked for TXU, our meter readers always had stories of being chased and bitten by creatures. The pinnacle event was where two meter readers got bitten by the same dog, one at the meter and one in the car waiting with an open door.
@RickH
Writing about guns will always get you criticism from someone who knows better.
Have you read the Matt Helm series written by Donald Hamilton? I’d recommend the opening chapter of “The Threateners” as an example of guns as part of a story, as opposed to a pedantic exploration of hairy-chested minutia. (I’d recommend the entire series, plus his six westerns, and Iron Men and Silver Stars).
He probably needs an ordinary rifle that can give him 100-300 yards range*. If you choose anything but an AR-15 you will get comments. I haven’t read your series, yet (about time, you’ve got three out) but if your protagonist is on a budget, you can make the acquisition of a non-AR part of a story. No fancy glass, just a good laser sight.
The other facet of firearms is ammunition. FMJ is fine for range and targets, but handguns for defensive purposes need defensive ammo. And shotgun shells have a wide variety of purposes, primarily grouped by the size of the projectiles in the load.
I presume that, being mobile, he has a carry permit recognized in multiple states?
Does he carry a knife/knives?
*ADDED
Maybe the lack thereof is part of a story.
@SteveF
I see you more as a divorce photographer.
@ Rick H:
My reading hobby is with mystery, criminal novels such as the James Patterson books. As a member I currently read them electronically from the Libby app hosted by my Huntington Beach Public Library. I did a search there for “RV Vigilante” but they have not obtained it. Consequently, I will sign up for the 30 day free Kindle Unlimited subscription and read it there,
Here’s a resource for you.
https://crimefictionbook.com/2016/02/04/do-glocks-have-safeties/
Yes, you goofed about the Glock safety. All Glocks of all generations have multiple safeties build-in, but no manual on/off type safety. So all Glocks are equally safe to carry, and AIWB (Appendix Inside the Waist Band) (1 o’clock) is very popular, as is the Glock 19. In fact, I considered it myself before I spent even more money on a Sig P365.
Pleast note that I said equally safe, which is not the same thing as “safe”.
I think the CCW permit thing probably deserves its own response.
@drwilliams – thanks for the comments.
Since I am not that knowledgeable about guns, I’ve kept weapon details to a minimum. The protagonist has a (probable) multi-state carry permit with the name of his current ID. (It’s been implied that he has a false ID – “Max Smith – that’s the name on his current ID…” but it hasn’t yet been revealed why he has a bogus ID. There’s not much backstory on Max, although I am thinking that the backstory might be in book 4 that I am working on.) The details on the permit are vague. So far, he’s been in states that allow permit ‘sharing’ (or whatever the term is).
The three books have strongly implied that he is proficient with various firearms. (He’s used them – sometimes fatally – against the ‘bad guys’.) He has the legal weapons, and maybe some not-so-legal items. Those are hidden in well-built secret compartments in his truck and RV. He keeps his daily carry with him (usually) and stored in a lock box in the RV pantry area. Along with some spare mags (legal) and cleaning kit, along with paper targets from ranges that he has visited in his travels. Those are there to keep the appearance of that being his only weapon, and if the RV is searched, any gunpowder residue found will be explained away by the targets and cleaning kit.
But I mostly keep things vague. Let the reader assume that he has weapons, some maybe illegal but hidden, but he is proficient with all.
I have been wondering about holsters for carrying, though. I mention in the book that he has an ‘appendix carry’, which I assume is a good choice while driving or walking around – keeping the weapon ready but mostly hidden. It there are better choice for a holster while carrying?
The shotgun he used initially for intimidation of some bad guys. Although one bad guy made the mistake of going for a hidden gun … to his ultimate detriment
As for a rifle, I think he is proficient (being a retired veteran), but a rifle has not needed in the first three stories. Not sure if it will be needed in subsequent books. He might need one, but what would it be? It would have to be ‘reasonable’ to have in possession while traveling the country. Easily stored, not visible carry in truck or RV. Ideas?
The fourth book is only about ⅓ done. Still haven’t figured out the whole story. (I’m what writers call a ‘pantser’ – not an ‘outliner’. I start the story, and then it sort of takes me where it needs to go.). I need to work on it more than I do – I keep getting distracted by other projects and reading other stories. (OK, it’s procrastinating….)
But – it all keeps me relatively busy. I’ve resisted turning into a couch potato, watching old Westerns all day long. I save my TV watching for the evenings.
Speaking of that – been watching the new series “Tracker” … which is about a guy traveling the country in his RV, finding people and things. Sort of like my “Max” …
Whew, just got home with eldest brat and a load of groceries.
Brisket is back to normal pricing. No prime or choice beef on sale. Vac pack pork loin $2 /lb so I bought a 9 lb. tube. Sodas on sale. Minute Rice on sale. The beef jerky I like- on the shelf and $1 cheaper than last week.
Weird lady in the checkout line was eyeballing my pork loin, kept asking if it was the brisket. No ma’am, it’s pork loin. Pork ribs? no LOIN. LOIN. “Lemme see that label” followed by mis- reading the label. HUH, you gonna eat for a week on that piece of meat. No ma’am, I cut it into roasts and chops to freeze and eat later… {blank look}
With $300 in the basket, she thought I was SEXY…
——
or maybe not. BTW, at 33c /oz BACON is cheaper than breakfast cereal.
——
egg cooler was bare. I ended up buying a couple 12 packs of a brand I’ve never seen in the store before, which was cheaper than the free-range, organic selection which was pretty much all that was left.
Milk was down to a couple gallons.
Dunno if they couldn’t keep up with stocking or if they didn’t have the stuff…
n
Top “Worst of Woke”
Disney
Fani Willis
$73 Billion CA state deficit
Jose Ibarra, illegal alien invader caught and released by Biden administration, who murdered GA nursing student Laken Hope Riley last Thursday
Yah, there’s that, but if you really want to get the 40+ demographic prowling after you, mention that you fix appliances, do household repairs and light renovation, do car work, and can replace screens on phones and tablets. Of course, I’m sure that most of the women who’ve approached me (on the rare occasion that I go to some social gathering with people who don’t know that I’m married, and the even rarer occasion that I’m approachable) just wanted to get me to fix things by hinting at promises which they had no intention of keeping, just as they did when they were 20.
Gun laws for fiction writers, Part 1: Hardware and traveling (non-CCW)
There are approximately 20,000 Federal, State, County, and Municipal regulations about guns. If you think your character is able to cross county lines with weapons, and be both legal and unmolested by cops about it, you’re most likely wrong, except Texas. Even here, there are places that are enemies of us freedom-loving 2A types, like Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, and Houston.
As a law-abiding citizen who does not know anything about guns, it’s no surprise you are unaware how totally obnoxious and screwed-up the law is.
There is a federal law that “protects” travelers transporting firearms across state lines. It’s one of those Republican head-fakes, where you have an affirmative defense, and it might, maybe, protect you as long as you were intending to travel non-stop through a bad state into a welcoming one. After you get arrested, jailed, and pay thousands to lawyers and courts. And you’ll probably never get your guns back.
If you own any of a long list of firearms, and attempt to stop in Illinois, or California, or NJ, or NYFS, you may be arrested and thrown in jaili for violating Assault Weapon Ban laws. In each of these states, such laws cover the most popular sporting rifle in America, the AR-15.
But they don’t stop there. They require registering the firearms, the magazines (don’t say clips), even the ammunition, for the ones they’ve grandfathered in.
Your character’s Glock 19 is most likely illegal in California. They have a ban on magazines over 10 rounds.
Part 2: CCW
I grew up in Illinois. Outside of Cook County (Chicago), there is a lot of gun culture and gun ownership. But the criminals who run Chicago (and stole the first high-profile stolen presidential election), also run the state.
So the ISP (Illinois State Police) threatened to arrest people for carrying guns in their cars unless they were unloaded, broken down to parts, locked in cases and innaccessible to the occupants of the cars. There was never a CCW available in Illinois except to sworn law enforcement, and they never honored any other state’s CCW. They still don’t, in practice.
It never mattered what the law was, the uniformed thugs could get anything through the corrupt courts.
I understand many other states are just as bad. Single mothers and serving military have been arrested and thrown in jail for the crime of inadvertantly bringing handfuls of rounds across state lines.
If you google Concealed Carry Reciprocity, you’ll find an interactive state map showing which states honor other states’ CCW. You’ll find out pretty quickly that if your character wants to carry in every state, he’d better be sworn, active-duty law enforcement.
Many of us patriotic 2A types have been asking for national reciprocity law, forcing states to honor other states CCW. It hasn’t happened. At this point, I’m more hopeful the Supreme Court will finally interpreet the 2nd Amendment correctly, and tell all the states that no one needs a CCW, anywhere, period.
I have been wondering about holsters for carrying, though. I mention in the book that he has an ‘appendix carry’, which I assume is a good choice while driving or walking around – keeping the weapon ready but mostly hidden. It there are better choice for a holster while carrying?
There are very practical issues with appendix carry. Especially with a full size pistol like a glock 17.
If you don’t have washboard flat abs, it’s a pain. It’s pointing at your manhood, all the time. That freaks some people out. The advantages are easier draw, (supposedly), but for me the disadvantages far outweigh anything else. It’s pointed at your junk and your femoral artery. An AD while drawing or holstering is gonna be a major issue. If you don’t have the belly for it, it’s gonna suck. If it “prints” it’s on your front, and visible to someone in front of you.
I carry IWB at “4 oclock” or just behind my hip. There’s a sort of natural hollow there that helps fit the gun. It’s not visible from the front,even if it prints thru my shirt. The muzzle doesn’t point at my body. It’s much more comfortable when sitting, especially driving, although it’s harder to draw while seated.
I usually wear an over shirt, but you can get a “super tuck” style holster that lets you tuck in a shirt over the holster. Most people aren’t very observant, so if the gun is medium sized, and fits flat against your body, a loose t shirt can cover it 90% of the time just fine.
Of course, there are places like Florida that consider an accidental flash of your concealed handgun to be a crime. I think they even (or used to) consider a “print” to be a crime too. That might have changed.
States that honor another state’s carry permits call it “reciprocity” and there is an online map that shows what states honor what other state’s permits. The rules are still different in each state, and it’s up to the carrier to know them, like traffic rules.
n
re: your character’s rifle choices
Rifle skills are fairly transferrable from one gun to the next. If you learn iron sights, telescopic sights, and red-dot or reflex sights, you can shoot most of them accurately to medium distances, and with practice, to much longer distances.
For camouflage purposes, and to avoid icky Assault Weapon bans, I’d say to get something that would plausibly be used in deer hunting, and is a very traditional gun. Either a bolt action or lever action, well used and beat up. Most Fudd cops that are frightened of citizens armed with AR-15’s wouldn’t look twice at an old Remington Model 70 in .30-06 if it was in a case and you called it your deer rifle.
The fact that it is capable of taking any big game animal in North America is just a bonus. Personally, I wouldn’t use it on Brown or Polar bears, but with good shot placement and ammo it would work.
Smaller calibers would be even more believable, and would work fine on bad guys.
Even active duty sworn officers have trouble, it features in one of JL Curtis’ novels.
There is a sort of federal concealed carry license for honorably retired sworn law enforcement that lets them carry everywhere. The idea is they are at risk from the enemies they made on the job. But F that, I’ve got threats I face too and I hate “only ones” bs like that.
Chicago has CHL now, after the Heller case, and people are getting them and using them defensively. LEO there and certainly the DA’s office still think of everyone with a gun as a criminal. Oddly, the first shooting I ever saw was there, and all the illegal concealed carry I knew about was there… and they have the excrescence of the FOID or Firearms Owners Identification card. The Blues Brothers movie incorrectly identifies the fascists…
I don’t even stop at Ohare if I’m flying with my EDC due to the messed up laws, even though it should be ok just transiting.
n
Gun laws for fiction writers, Part 1: Hardware and traveling (non-CCW)
There are approximately 20,000 Federal, State, County, and Municipal regulations about guns. If you think your character is able to cross county lines with weapons, and be both legal and unmolested by cops about it, you’re most likely wrong, except Texas. Even here, there are places that are enemies of us freedom-loving 2A types, like Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, and Houston.
Excellent, concise truthful write up. I am impressed.
BTW, the Texas LTC (License To Carry) is just about the best carry permit there is in the states. I think that about 36 of the states have some sort of reciprocity with Texas.
https://www.usconcealedcarry.com/resources/ccw_reciprocity_map/
BTW2, the best safety on any weapon is to keep your trigger finger OFF the trigger. I have been yelled at multiple times by both a senior range instructor and a range instructor about getting my finger off the trigger.
My wife’s oldest cousin got shot in Vietnam (the second time) in the buttocks by the guy behind him while on patrol. Both excellently trained members of the 82nd Airborne. The shooter had his finger on the trigger and tripped, shooting him in the buttocks rather than the back. My wife’s cousin spent a year is various hospitals, losing almost a 100 lbs, due to a continuous infection.
BTW3. US Postal Buildings are strictly no carry for civilians no matter what state you are in. It used to be the parking lots surrounding the US Postal buildings too but that got thrown out by a federal judge. This is being litigated of course with expectations to throw out the law.
A MalwareBytes customer?
Maybe the vibrator was involved in her auditing process.
Cuban roast pork isn’t the same without a couple of pieces of fried plantain on the side along with the rice and black beans.
I carry IWB at “4 oclock” or just behind my hip. There’s a sort of natural hollow there that helps fit the gun. It’s not visible from the front,even if it prints thru my shirt. The muzzle doesn’t point at my body. It’s much more comfortable when sitting, especially driving, although it’s harder to draw while seated.
I was carrying my Ruger GP100 seven shot snubbie the other day without a holster at the office. I walked out to the mailbox carrying my gun, we had a lot of mail so I stuck my gun in the small of my back under my belted slacks. When I stepped up into my building, my gun slipped loose, fell down my pants legs and the hammer raked the back of my leg all the way into my boot. Took over a week to heal. I won’t do that again.
I would like to carry in a shoulder holster but that is just too exposed. I have carried a Sam Brown belt for a week, too heavy.
For camouflage purposes, and to avoid icky Assault Weapon bans, I’d say to get something that would plausibly be used in deer hunting, and is a very traditional gun. Either a bolt action or lever action, well used and beat up. Most Fudd cops that are frightened of citizens armed with AR-15’s wouldn’t look twice at an old Remington Model 70 in .30-06 if it was in a case and you called it your deer rifle.
The fact that it is capable of taking any big game animal in North America is just a bonus. Personally, I wouldn’t use it on Brown or Polar bears, but with good shot placement and ammo it would work.
My fishing guide in Alaska in 1981 kept a Remington 458 Magnum in his float plane to scare away the grizzlies. His position was that a Ruger 44 Magnum pistol would tickle them.
I hate Illinois Nazis.
OTOH, the clerk working the counter in the tax collector’s office who accepts the check went on to be part of the fascist leadership in Woke Hollywood.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2quc-iQ96R0
And that flick was the origin for the “hut hut hut” meme.
Thanks for all the info on weapons. Helpful and appreciated.
Found a few websites that contained more info. Ordered a book about weapons and fiction writing, which also might be helpful overall, although it was published 8 years ago. So might not be current.
Since it is fiction, I’ve mostly decided that keeping things vague is best. So, the book will say that the main character (protagonist) has a carry permit, but not get into details about specifics.
As for placement, it appears that an ‘appendix’ carry is not the best choice. So I’ve decided to also be less specific, just stating that the MC “draws his gun out of the holster” or “puts his Glock in the holster”. Let the reader fill in the blanks. Some will complain about the lack of details or accuracy.
But it’s fiction, folks. Fictional gun stuff happens all the time in books and movies. Why are the bad guys have such bad accuracy, while the good guy can hit a guy in one shot (or multiple people in different directions as they are fighting other people)?
Keeping things vague is better. Don’t let the action part of the story story get bogged down in excessive details.
I’m sympathetic to your “it’s fiction, folks” attitude. And in case you didn’t get it from my very first comments, any handgun works. Some are better than others, none are as good as rifles. We have people on this site who carry revolvers, and others who carry autos. I often carry in a pocket holster, and sometimes at 4 o’clock, and AIWB. The last is perfect for my .38 snub nose. I won’t say the brand, because as you point out, vagueness is ok, you don’t have to.
You will get pushback if you mention pistol caliber and it’s not in the set of 9mm, .38, and .45. Because there are people who are convinced anything smaller is useless and no real gun guy would use them. They’re wrong, but they’re often loud.
And my statement about “don’t say clip” isn’t my prejudice talking; it’s to save you grief from the anal-retentive among the gun guys. “Clip” is wrong, “magazine” is right, but I know what you mean with either word.
Vagueness is ok, but I wouldn’t rule out AIWB carry in real life or in fiction. It is very popular IRL.
And finally, for author’s solace, remember that Ian Fleming is known in the gun community for getting nearly everything about guns wrong, from the names of holster manufacturers to the selection of calibers for a secret agent. I’m going out on a limb and saying no author would regret having that reputation, as long as it came with the sales and fame of Fleming.
I’ll probably buy and read your books when I reduce my SBR just a little bit. Sounds fun, in an antihero kind of way.
Rick, another firearm consideration is that revolvers don’t throw brass around. Depending on the situation, this can be handy.
In order:
I was remembering great opening scenes with firearms, and was unable to recall the Alistair MacLean novel where the hero describes looking down the barrel of a .45. Pulling up the wiki entry and looking at the novel list didn’t help, but it did remind me of a lot of good reading, and then I saw this:
My favorite opening scene is Max Allan Collins’ “The Dealer”. I opened the book in a used book store, read the first chapter, and bought it. By sheer effort of will I hunted down the first two books (Quarry and Quarry’s List) and read them in order, finishing with The Slasher. Then one more in the series ten years later, followed by another hiatus of fifteen years, and now he is up to 17. The character is unabashedly modeled after Westlake’s Parker.
I’ve done a little private law enforcement: bodyguarding, bail bond enforcement (bounty hunting), computer monitoring, and investigation. The first non-computer investigation task I was asked to do concerned a cheating spouse. I got in contact with the other woman, charmed her*, and got enough information to confirm that the husband had come clean to the wife, thus it did not lead to divorce.
* Believe it or not, I can be charming when I set my mind to it. It’s very tiring, just the same as wearing a persona for a covert operation.
“It was a dark and stormy night. Suddenly a shot rang out.” What more can you ask? It sets the stage and then gets straight to the action. Perfection!
I used that pair of sentences (very slightly modified) in a story of my own. It wasn’t exactly a parody but it was a send-up of several tropes, with lots of wordplay and literary allusions. Well received, by the relative handful who read it. (Good thing that I never planned on living off of my writing. It’s a hobby that pays a bit, which is a lot better than a hobby that you need to sink money into.)
cheaper than restoring classic cars, forex…
n
Or collecting ex wives.
n
Hah, I just listed my occupation as “homemaker” on a form. It was a choice, and it describes what I do. Take that gender role stereotypes!
n
Ya think they woke up SloJoe from his nap to tell him about this “breaking” news?
Biden Targets a New Economic Villain: Shrinkflation
Oh, I also won a Mr Heater 30,000 BTU vent free indoor heater, set up for propane. I will take it to the BOL. I have one set up for natgas that I forgot about.* I was going to sell it when I discovered I couldn’t just convert it to propane use, BUT now I’m going to put a hose on it and set it up to use the fireplace log gas line in the house in Houston. That will give me a safe heating alternative that doesn’t require power or propane bottles indoors.
At the BOL the propane one will get a hose too, and maybe I’ll run a line into the living room near where the woodstove is slated to go (eventually) so I can put some heat into the place without the need for power. Or I could put a gas outlet in the garage and use it there until needed elsewhere.
Two is one and one is none applies to your infrastructure too. Make sure you can control your local environment in several ways…
n
*it’s in deep storage at the secondary, I found it while looking for hamfest stuff.
Hah, I just listed my occupation as “homemaker” on a form. It was a choice, and it describes what I do. Take that gender role stereotypes!
So unstereotypical that they made a movie about it, Mr. Mom. Which, introduced many new words to the English language: woobie, yuppie, etc.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085970/
>> I still see images that make me cringe while the recipients think the images are wonderful.
But if the recipients are happy then what’s the harm? Besides, how long until those photos get tossed into a dumpster?
They started a cable cutting war…
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2024/02/houthis-knock-underwater-cables-disrupt-communications-between-arabian/
n
>> The printing press money has to stop. That is the root cause of all inflation.
Yeah, like that is going happen. They like spending their grandchildren’s money like water.
What, you expect them to be spending their own
ill-gotten richesmoney?? Their grandkids will just have to suffer like the rest of us.Barbarians. It is so much easier to tear down civilization than to build it. Of course, without Iran, these barbarians would not have the capability to cut undersea cables.
There is speculation, or perhaps some evidence, that Putin plans to test NATO in the next year or two with a “minor” incursion. Say, occupying a couple of square miles of Estonia, just to see what happens. I sincerely hope NATO has already decided that any such incursion would be met with a massive response. Say, 1000 modern cruise missiles aimed at important government buildings in Moscow. If they don’t take a strong stance, Putin will just keep pushing…
@Nick: don’t trust hoses, run a line. I have been through a couple propane hoses in the last four or five years, and the one I was using now has failed. I like propane, I run my house on it, but I would never trust chinese hose indoors.