Friday, November 13, 2009

The way to a girl's heart is through the gun range...

This is my AAR (aka "after action report"), and it's gonna be simple, because honestly? I might not be quite as shiny or squeaky, but I'm still a n00b.

Any errors in spelling, etc. are mine, I'm going off smudged pencil on a tiny, spiral notebook. Don't blame my teachers, who were nothing but awesome: patient, kind, thorough.

One of my best memories of being at the range is hitting the half-sized silhouette at 250 yards, turning to LawDog and exclaiming, "I HIT IT!" Only to have him reply with a gentle smile, "Of course you did."

THAT'S the kind of teacher who will make any student shine.

Thanks are due to Aepilotjim, Ambulance Driver, Old NFO, and of course the aforementioned LawDog.

Thanks also to all the cool kids who let me play with their toys! So nice of them to share.

Okay, I'm going to list the firearms I got to shoot, with my own little cryptic notes. I hope this makes sense. And I have no pictures yet, but I will eventually.

At Blogorado, I fired the following weapons:

-Bersa Thunder .380 (yes, the famous one)
Not to blaspheme, but I only felt this was okay, possibly because I have HUGE hands for a woman.

-Springfield 1911 MilSpec (this one was Jim's)

-Ruger 22/45

-Glock 17 (SQUEEEEE! I loved this. :))

-Heritage Arms Rough Rider .22 (fun!)

-Sig Mosquito .22

-Rock Island 1911 .45 ACP

-Smith & Wesson 5 screw .38

-Henry Lever Action .22 (again, FUN!)

-Single Action Rossi

-AR 15 with EoTech Sights (Meh, believe it or not)

-Citori 12 gauge shotgun (this one was FarmMom's, and I actually hit a few clays! w00t! MUCH FUN)

-Ruger Super Blackhawk .44 magnum. (Oh, my GOD. I lurved this gun! Thank you so much, Stingray! I knocked down a popper with each shot.)

-Smith & Wesson model 25 .45 Long Colt (VERY nice)

-Walther PPK (this was FarmGirl's; it was extremely cool to shoot, fit my hands well.)

-Taurus PT 140 Millennium

-Hi Standard HD Military .22 (I loved shooting this, because I finally took down my nemesis who had been taunting me all day: the full soda can. I hit that sucker TWICE.)

-Taurus Judge (shoots either .45 Long Colt or .410 shotgun shells; this is FarmMom's critter killer, and it's a beast! I loved it...maybe I'm a (gun) size queen?)

-Ruger Mark III 22/45 (my notes say I liked it!)

-Bersa .45 (ditto, this one was Gay_Cynic's, thanks, G_C!)

-M14 (kicked like a FUCKING MULE, but I didn't bruise. I was sorta/kinda hitting the target, and that's all that matters to me!)

DUNN, DUNN, DUNN:

-M24 in .308 caliber (hit a barrel that was 970 yards away, 3 out of 5 shots, and it was WINDY. Don't piss me off. ;) Funny thing about this is, so that I wouldn't feel intimidated, Jim told me I was shooting at the one that was 500 yards out. I only found out last night that I was shooting at the FARTHER one. Yeah, he's evil like that, and he admits it!)

Well, that's all, Folks. I'm sure I forgot a few guns here or there, I was so excited it was bound to happen. I'll have you know that I always waited until I was off-range and unarmed to do any squeeing or happy dances. Safety trumps squeeing, always.

I've definitely found a new hobby, certainly an activity I love.

I also have to remind myself to breathe...I was getting a bit out of breath from excitement, and from unconsciously holding my breath while aiming and firing. No worries, I'll get better!

Oh, and I hit the bull's eye on my first target with my third shot. Just sayin'...

(Oh, I know: Beginner's luck!)

Photobucket

31 comments:

Home on the Range said...

I told you. :-)

Wait till you see our little collection over here. You need to come visit next summer.

Captain Tightpants said...

Good job, and welcome to the club :D Glad you had fun.

If you liked the Glock 17, you might enjoy the 19 as well - a hair smaller, conceals easily & reliable. Not as "pretty/handsome" as some guns but very practical.

Size queen.... hmmm too bad no one was there with an FAL to let you try some other .308 fun!

Christina RN LMT said...

Brigid, I'd love to hang with the (other) cool kids... ;)
Thanks for the invitation!

Sean, I'll try any weapon. As long as somebody tells me what to do, I'll try. And have loads of fun in the process!

Lokidude said...

Heh. First hit's free, and it's more addictive than crack. Glad to hear you found a couple that made you go squee, too. Another gun nut is born!

Alan said...

Nice shirt.

Oh, and welcome to the dark side.

Muahahahahahahahha!

Christina RN LMT said...

Lokidude and Alan, thanks...does this mean I can consider myself a gunblogger, now? :D

Alan said...

Yes, You have a blog and you mentioned guns. We have very low standards to gunblogger membership.

breda said...

To be honest, I'm "meh" about shooting the Bersa too. I have it because it's a good compromise between size and caliber for concealed carry. I much prefer a .45.

I'm so glad you had a fun time - it was a joy to watch you blossom in that way.

Christina RN LMT said...

Alan...w00t! Thanks! Do I get a special ring or badge?!

Breda, wouldn't it be awesome to be able to open carry ANYWHERE? Then you wouldn't have to worry about concealability, and you get whatever gun you wanted. *sigh*
Thanks again for letting me use your gun.

Anonymous said...

Can I just say what a lovely blog you have and how beautifully presented it is... and that I think you're a really nice person....

Noonie backs away slowly so as not to spook Christina... Nice lady...

Glad you had fun.

Christina RN LMT said...

ROFL!
No worries, I'm so laid back, Noonie!

I did have a total blast, no pun intended.

Old NFO said...

You done good kiddo :-) Of course now that you're hooked the 'fun' starts... what to buy, where to shoot, Oh I want THAT one... and on and on :-)

Christina RN LMT said...

Oh, goodness, Old NFO...I dunno if I can afford such a hobby! But it's definitely worth saving for. :)

And thank you for the compliment.

Old NFO said...

It's not a hobby Christina, it's a life style that 'may' save your life one day...

Christina RN LMT said...

Point.

Christina RN LMT said...

But the collecting aspect *is* a hobby, you'll agree.

Roismhaire said...

Hey, I think you're gonna love TX! If ever you're in the Dallas direction we can go get massages then hit the gun range.

SCI-FI said...

Awesome AAR, awesome trip, awesome shootin'...

(My jealousy is sooooo transparent...)

:)

Christina RN LMT said...

Roismhaire...you're just the lady I need to talk to. Shoot me an email and I'll give you my phone number...

Christina RN LMT said...

SCI-FI, what can I say? Leave the Volksrepublik of Mass and move somewhere friendlier. :)

Bob S. said...

Christina,

When you hit the DFW area, let me know and we'll go out to the gun club.

I don't have a collection as vast as what you experienced but enough to have a good day.

Welcome to the gun blogging community! Definitely started off right

Christina RN LMT said...

Bob, thanks for the invitation, I'll most certainly take you up on it! It's very kind of you to want to assist a newb in wearing a bit of the shiny off. :)

Buck said...

Agreed on the quality of the AAR! An excellent experience.

Christina RN LMT said...

Thanks, Buck!

I will be there next year with BELLS on, perhaps (hopefully) bearing my OWN firearm.

dick said...

Of all people, I should be a gun nut, but instead I worry about the mental stability of those folks. Me? I hit what I aim at without practice or spending thousands of dollars. Go figure.

Christina RN LMT said...

Then you're naturally talented! I don't think I'll ever be a true "gun nut", but I know I WILL own firearms and that I'll enjoy practicing with them. It's plain fun.

Mad Saint Jack said...

Did they have any happy sticks (33 round mags) for the Glock 17?

They are fun-er. . . As long as your trigger finger doesn't get tired.

Come to Indy and hopefully I can meet you there.

Tango Juliet said...

Nothing but big smiles on every blogger who attended it appears.

Christina RN LMT said...

MSJ, not that I'm aware of. And thanks for the invitation. I'll take you up on it when I get a chance. :)

Lorimor, we were grinnin' fools!

Old NFO said...

Agreed, collecting is a whole 'nuther' world... sigh...

Christina RN LMT said...

All collectors, regardless of the item of desire, are a bit batty... ;)