Old Folk vs Young Hooligans

I found myself at the Base Shotgun range again this weekend. Little did I know that the that the shotgun club on the base appeared to be just as bad as the Tucson Trap and Skeet Club. As my dad and I roll up on scene we only see three field to shoot on and all are full. Nightmare. Not that I don't like shooting with people, I just prefer to do it by myself, especially since I have a quite controversial gun and I'm not that good at it since I started the whole trap and Skeet thing 6weeks ago. To make matter worse, there is only one Trap field, which has a full party shooting and more people waiting to shoot.

After we go through the hassle of figuring out where to buy the rounds at and all the stupid safety questions by the people working the booth (Yes I do actually know where the danger end is!), we go over to the Trap field and try to make some friends.

Surprisingly most of the people didn't need their walkers to walk to the shooting stations. And most of them were fairly easy to talk to once you dropped in on whatever they were talking about.

After talking to the "Gentlemens Club" (and thats not because they were young whippersnappers who chased after women) we went back to our truck to pull out our two shotguns. Given that I have a shotgun made for killing people in tiny rooms and my dads is actually semi made for this sport, most of them flocked to look at my gun and proceed to inform me that "You won't be hitting shit with that." I was walking back to the truck to get ammo when I heard this. Since this is my new baby I turn around to see who is so incredibly doubtful of my skills...CAPTAIN AMERICA, in the flesh, minus American Flag headband. I thought of many quick comebacks to say such as "are you really talking to the guy whose shotgun is made to kill people" or "Ya grab your walker old man I'll see you on the field" I remembered that my dad was within earshot and would promptly shoot me with my own shotgun if I said that, so I said nothing and walked back to the truck.

After figuring out who is doing what I snatch up my dads shotgun and head out with for the first round. Of course being so incredibly new to this whole game I am shoving ammo in every pocket in my jacket since I have no snazzy vest thing or hip holster like everyone else does, and the old men are now waiting on me... embarrassing.

Of the 5 shooting stations the first four are taken, I'll shoot last since I am not given an option. Heading out there and fussing in my pockets for shells while people starting yelling variation of Pull (you yell PULL and the guy pressing the button which causes the machine to fire out the clay pigeon). these variations in "PULL" to "PUUUAAAAAAAAAA" and the funniest of the group "PUUUUUUUU." So after hearing all these I probably have the stupidest look on my face as the entire "Gentlemens Club" stares at me. PULL! BOOM! Vaporized that little clay bastard. Touche Gentlemen.

25 Birds in a round and 5 shooting stations. Shoot five birds and move to the next station.

After the first two stations and 100 percent hit rate. I move to the third station and fucked it all up. Missed 4 out of 5 on this station. But I can see that I already showed them what a Boss I am. In the end of round 1 I was 17 out of 25. Not to bad for being pretty damn sick, tired and coughing like I have been smoking for 80 years.

Round two was 19 our of 25.

After this round everyone left except one guy who was clearly a pro. So pro that he had ear protection that connected to his Ipod which he kept in one of his many pockets in his fancy shooting vest, purple glasses, and some weird shell holder that looked like he could take on most of the world in a zombie invasion. He had been talking to my dad while I was out on the field. they were basically Best Friends for Life (BFFL) at this point.

He offered two be the Puller (guy who pushes button) for a round while my dad and I shoot against each other if we pull one for him. Of course we agreed.

On said round I shot a solid 7 out of 25 with my shotgun designed for people while my dad did much better. I blame this drop in accuracy as to shooting a different gun without warm up.

We pull one for him and he actually let me shoot his (at least) 3,000 dollar gun for his last two birds. He gave me three rounds. As he was yelling at me about how he loaded these shells himself and since I had ear protection on and didn't fully understand how to work said weapon, the only words I picked up from his rant were "BIG" and "RECOIL." I put those two words together with the full understanding when I pull the trigger I'm going to blow my shoulder off and drop his gun. So here we go, PULL! boom! Ya it was like shooting the bolt action .22 we have. So with my ridiculous flinch I wildly missed the bird. "YOU MISSED IT!" In my head I'm saying "Thanks boss, I noticed." As he hands me round number two and I fumble it into the gun he says "IT"S NOT GONNA HURT AT ALL SON" Once again in my head "Thanks, I'm aware."

I vaporized the next two. Always end it on a good note.

Point here is Old people don't think the young kids know what they are doing. Boy did I show them wrong. Minus the one round were I was at a 28 percent hit ratio...Glad I get to work on that this Saturday.

Professionals versus the Weekend Hobbyist

So in all things in life there are three groups of people. The Professionals, the wanna-be Professionals, and the Weekenders.

Break it down:

The Professionals are always really nice and try to help the Weekenders.

The Wanna-be Professionals take shit way to seriously and turn everything into competition.

Weekenders, like me, are out there to have a good time and enjoy the sport.

What brought me to this conclusion was one weekend out with my Dad at the local Trap and Skeet club we ran into a Wanna-Be Professional. We were shooting Trap which is were you go out to the stand and yell "PULL" and the little orange clay bird shooting out and you blow it out of the sky. On the "Field" there are five stations so  in a actual competition 5 people compete against each other. Well on a Sunday morning we had Father-Son time instead of church we went shooting.

My Dad and I on the range

Out on the range, got through a few rounds and this guy comes up to join us on the field, nothing wrong with that I mean it is a easy way to make friends. So he looks like he is pretty serious about the sport. He has a full shooting vest and shooting glasses and special boots and a gun that looks like it is worth more then my car.

On top of it all he has a American flag headband/dewrag on. Hello Captain America.

He seemed nice at first, he came up and politely asked if he could shoot with us. my dad and I look like we need help so out of 40 open ranges I don't know why he chose us but he did and we were nice people so we didn't turn him away.

The second we stepped up to the shooting boxes it was over. He was breaking our spirit and rubbing it in our face after every shot. since you have to pre pay by the round so we have 2 rounds to finish with Captain America before we can make our subtle exit. After two more embarrassing round Captain America asks if we are leaving (we already put the gun away in the case and have no ammo left). We tell him yes we are leaving and then walk to the club house to tell them we are finished. On the way back to the truck we pass Captain America for the last time. He had taken all of his stuff and found another range with a older guy on it, who was all by himself, until Captain America started harassing him.

I feel sorry for people that need competition to make themselves feel better. Maybe Next time I run into Captain America I will be able to destroy his will to ever shoot against me again.

My dad rocking the shit out of some clay pigeons!

Exotic Foods for the Poor College Student

So a friend told me about this exotic taco shop here in town that serves special meats. We talked about how they serve African Lion Meat and what not. At some point in or conversation the thought clicked in my head that I want to try African Lion Meat. Best part is that the restaurant is within walking distance from the university.

From the outside the place looks like a run down drug front kind of store. They have a very small turn in to the parking lot which is behind the restaurant so on the third go around I finally got the correct turn. Right away when I walk in it looks really nice modern place. Although the people working behind the counter were trading stories about how many car jacks they have seen in the next parking lot over (Kinda Sketchy).

It's a Tuesday night and I learn that they only have the "Special Exotic Taco" on Wednesdays. Bummer. Already parked my car and inside the building so I might as well order something.

I was going for Exotic so best thing I saw on the menu was Octopus. Haven't eaten Octopus since I lived in Hawaii (and I hated it back then). So after a certain amount of time I was presented with my Octopus taco and  the rest of the food that I ordered. Here are the pictures.

The presentation was very nice. Octopus taco on the bottom and Steak something on top.

The server brought us 5 different types of Salsa which was very good, 1 mild, 2 hot, 1 super hot, and one chunky thing in a jar but it was good.

Going in for the kill on the steak thing first.

Honestly never liked Octopus but had to down it either way. Was very chewy and weird to eat something that still has suction cups on it.

Overall it was a good experience, I will definitely be going back on a Wednesday to try the Exotic meat.

Boca Here is the Link

I suggest everyone try it out at least once!

Nighttime/Star Photography Attempt 1

So with a camera that I barely understand how to operate I have been on the mission to take some money worthy pictures that I could sell to _____ (classified).

Last couple nights I have been trying to take some star photos. Remember that these are taken from the balcony on my apartment complex, which is located in the middle of Tucson.

Click on photos for Full Size

Moon with full zoom, Need telephoto lense

Airplane flew threw picture

Pic 1 medium black background

Pic 2 lighter background

Pic 3 very black background

Please let me know what you think in the comments,

Tips and tricks are greatly appreciated as well

How Cleaning Works College Style

So I now that I am back at school I had to clean the apartment so certain people don't get pissy with me. I realized that there is a very strict order to cleaning. I believe nothing is ever truly clean, it just migrates around in certain groupings with other objects.

I start near the front door and move back deeper into the apartment all the way to my room, which is opposite of the door across the apartment.

Starting in the Kitchen, Everything is clean just need to put all the pots and pans and stuff of that nature in their respective homes. Easy. Since I don't have a dishwasher everything is done by hand, therefore everything sits out until it is washed, then resumes sitting around until it is dry and someone (me) puts it all away. Instant counter space. Wipe down counter and Kitchen is clean.

Moving to the kitchen table the problem begins. With everything from Mail from months ago to present day, Coasters, A bamboo plant, Homework, Bike Lock, Bills, Xbox controllers, and anything else that gets left there it seems hard to clean. Like most people I am going for speed so I can move on to doing something fun. Move all the bills and mail into to neat piles and throw all the other stuff onto the couch in a pile. Couch is only a few feet away but counts as the next room since it is on the carpet and the table is on the tile.

Move to living room. Note the pile has moved from the table to the couch. Things are now all over the couch and surrounding area. Remotes, backpacks, pillows, chargers for phones and laptops, game cases, plates and drink glass, soda cans empty and full. various boxes with instructions for bike locks, RC helicopter, Football and Kick stand are all object now in pile on couch. Grab the obvious and put them away, Xbox controllers and game cases. Move rest of personal crap to room. Move kitchen items into sink.

Everything in room is messy, pathways literally determine how I get to stuff I need. Everything in pile from couch is moved to already huge pile on desk. I put away shoes (just line them up). Next is clear flat spaces, Take everything put in on bed. New Pile. Keeping track we now have two piles in bedroom, one on desk one on bed. All paperwork is moved to desk, into pile. Other objects that are used daily are also moved to desk or put back were they were in a somewhat neater fashion. Pile on desk is now huge.

Forget the bathroom. The sink area is just sorted roommates stuff on one side mine on the other. Just make it look kinda neat and walk away.

Now There is neat pile in my room and one in the Kitchen with all the dirty sh*t I found around the apartment. The Pile progressed from kitchen table, to couch, to desk in my room. Once we have achieved this point in the cleaning we are done. Huge pile of shit in room therefore apartment is clean.

Daytime: Move shit to bed.
Nighttime: Move shit to desk.

The Hype about Alaska

Has anyone else noticed all these new TV shows about things in Alaska? They seem to be taking over the discovery channel.

Between Gold Rush, Ice Road Truckers, Deadliest Catch, Sarah Palin's Alaska and Flying Alaska, the state seems to be the most popular in the country. Not that they are at all bad shows, it just seems they are only based in Alaska. Is someone trying to tell us that Alaska is the shit? Or are the TV people just trying to say "Suck it you 49 other states?"

Alaska must have it all figured out. I don't see any other states where cruise ships go. Or any other states were people go on exotic adventure trips. Yes they have some amazing scenery, pretty cool wild life, and some crazy shit that goes on up there, but really Hawaii is getting offended because it used to be the shit.


Bear walking on Ice





How often do you get to see a bear walking around on frozen lakes with goregous scenery in the background? Never...unless you live in Alaska, in which case this happens everyday.

I feel that Alaskan's think that since they are so far up north and not connected with the rest of the country, they can do whatever crazy stuff they want. Because of this Alaskan mentallity people go up there and make TV shows out of them. Lets be honest, who doesn't love watching crazy people take unnessicary risks and live. Thats why there are so many TV Shows about what goes on up there.

I personally would love to visit Alaska and do all kinds of cool shit up there.

You can even see Russia from Alaska (only if your in Sarah Palin's backyard though)



(I love feedback, thoughts and opinions in the form of comments, Thank you veiwers!)

Stock Market for the College Student

Every one has heard of the Stock Market. Mainly how people either win big or loose it all. In my ever-wandering ways to make a extra buck so I canafford a pizza on those all-nighters I pull, I looked into the Stock Market as a way to make extra income.

In therory, it is not a hard concept. By stock when prices are low and sell stock when prices are high. But upon further analysis of this simple therory I have learned a few things that people should consider and make the desicion about playing the makrt very easy. I will explain how to make money on this game in 3 easy to follow steps.

1. Start-Up
In order to buy and sell stock you must have an account with a online website like TD AmeriTrade, E*Trade, USAA, or any other company. Many of these companies required a "start-up fee" or "deposite." On average this fee starts at 500 dollars and climbs. The most expensive fee I saw was anything overthe 1,000,000,000(billion) mark. This is a very large sum of money for the average college student. The fee corrisponds to a level on whatever website you are using. Basic Bronze, Silve, Gold Platinum. Right away many people turn their heads at the large number and give up on their dreams of being a stock market trader right there. But wait it gets better (and much more expensive)

2. Trading
Once you throw that lump sum of money into this game, You can start buying Stock. Every company has them so pick a few and buy away. Buying and Selling is called "Trading." The website charges you a fee for every trade you make. This is how the wesite makes money. Based on your level of buy in at start up, your Trade fee goes up or down. At the Bronze level you will be charged 9.99 everytime you buy or sell. Platinum people are much lower at around 5.25 a trade. So not only must you pay for the price of the stock, you must also tack on this trade fee.

3. Money Making
Buy Stock, Wait until Stock prices go up, Sell Stock. That is how you make the money.
In more detail: buy the stock and wait for the price to rise, you must factor in the two trade fee's that will be charged to your account, then sell the stock.

Example:
Lets take a single share of google stock. Ticker Symbol GOOG

Single share of GOOG opened the market today at a price of $610.05

-

Trade Fee to buy Stock  (Rounding) $10.00

-

Trade Fee to sell Stock  (Rounding) $10.00

+

Single share of GOOG closed the makret today at $ 618.43

=

Net Profit $-11.62

In order to make money off this stock you would have to buy more then one share. at that price no one can afford. No Matter how many shares you buy the Trade Fee is always 9.99. This is were the money comes in. Lets say you bought 100 Shares of GOOG, Here is the sample equation:

100 shares of GOOG opened the market today at a price of $61,005.00

-

Trade Fee to buy Stock  (Rounding) $10.00

-

Trade Fee to sell Stock  (Rounding) $10.00

+

100 shares of GOOG closed the makret today at $ 61,843.00

=

Net Profit $818.00

Now there is a Number we like.

Of course this example is done with a fairly high priced stock. There are stocks on the market that trade a under $1.00 dollar a share. You can use the same equation to figure out your net income on that type of stock to. Just remember a stock that trades at under a dollar a share will not have as much price change as the GOOG stock. therefore in order to make money you will need to buy in the 100's of shares. And with a stock that has a price change of .25 cents, you will not make over 800 dollars at a time, instead your profit may only be in the single digits.

FAILURE

All the aboe is of course the happy and lucky side of the market. It could very easily (and more commonly) go the exact opposite of the examples above. You buy a stock at a certain price, and instead of going up, the Stock crashes. buy the time you get to click "Sell" on the computer you could have lost your 61,000 dollar investment.

World Influence in Stock

Lets play two examples here:

1) You Buy a stock in an airplane company. The stock is trading at 10 dollars a share. That day the airline company comes out with a media release that says they made an airplane that can fly farther, use less gas, and carry more people then any other airplane in the world. The stock prices skyrocket. You sell your shares for 1,000 dollars a share. You have just made a huge profit.

2) You buy stock in an airplane company. The stock is trading at 10 dollars a share. That day an airplane from that company crashes. They company comes out to the media and says that a certain part failed and caused the crash, the company must not fly any of their airplanes until the art has been replaced in all their airplanes. The stock price plummits. You have to sell your share at .10 cents a share. You have lost it all.

If you stay on your game and can afford the initial start up cost, there is alot of money to be made in the stock market. But the second you fall behind or trip up, you will loose almost all your money in a heartbeat. I read recently that almost 90% of people who try to play the stock market will loose all the money they put into it. Of that 90% over 30% of the people will have to go into bankruptcy because of the ammount of money they lost.

it would be a great learning experience to try to buy a few stocks and see how it all works first hand, but no college student has the moey to go and try this.

Still better off working at McDonalds then playing the Stock Market.