38 Special

For those of you with little to no knowledge or appreciation for firearms, you need to know that a .38 special is actually a handgun, not a rifle. I am the only "38 special" in this picture!

I can't think of a better way to celebrate my 38th birthday than by exercising a little fire power. For those of you who are less than enthusiastic about firearms, you may be surprised to find that I grew up with them. Not in my personal possession, of course, but my dad is and always has been a great gun collector. When I was young, he used to let me tag along with him when he went to the firing range with his collection of rifles and pistols, and I would watch from the cement bunker as he blasted away at those helpless targets 100 yards away. The highlight of these excursions was sipping the Grape Nehi my dad always bought me to keep me quiet and out of mischief. If I close my eyes, I can still taste it....I haven't been shooting since I can't remember when -- junior high, I think -- so it was eagerness that I jumped at the chance to visit our local target range last week when my folks came up for a quick visit. Dad had a recently purchased gun he wanted to break in and of course, I had to go and try it out. I was a little nervous, since it has been a few years since I touched anything that could break the sound barrier, but it really is a very pretty gun, and I'm like a raccoon when it comes to pretty things. Anne, too. And for someone who has never picked up anything remotely close to a rifle (other than a video game joystick), she did pretty DARN well! And despite my initial reticence, I have to say that I didn't do too shabby either.

We forgot to take the camera with us to the range, so hopefully you'll accept these pictures as proof....

It's only a little disturbing to know that my child has an affinity for handling rifles. On her first time out, she NAILED the bull's-eye... and not once, but FIVE TIMES IN A ROW.



Just for fun, (and to rub it in a little), here's a color-coordinated look at our success: ( go ahead -- click on the picture to get a better look.)

Roy also grew up with guns, and it is no small victory to see that I have better aim than he does after all these years. He insisted that his first try was simply to get a good grouping (getting all your shots in a tight group), but since I bested him at that, too (his second attempt is in blue up there at the top), I have total and complete bragging rights. Unless he let me win because of my birthday... hmm, I just thought of that...well, that means a rematch!

Anne also tried the pistol, which is harder to control and aim and actually hit the target, let alone the bull's eye, but she liked the rifle better. I swear, the girl did not even flinch. My dad also put up a target that consisted of three metal discs that hung from a frame that would spin when you shot them, and Anne nailed those every time, too.

It was really a lot more fun than I remember, especially since our range didn't have any vending machines, and I think we may have found a new family hobby. Beats playing video games any day!

Other birthday weekend highlights:

• The photo shoot for "Once on This Island" was awesome!!!! Long, tedious, tiresome, and lots of "hurry up and wait your turn" kind of stuff for the kids, but I have to say, they all looked amazing! It's a huge relief to know that, three weeks before dress rehearsal, I'm about 95% done with this job. The official photos are not up for review, but I snuck in my camera and took a few of my own:

Papa Ge, god of Death


Agwe, god of Water

(This dedicated young man shaved his head just so I could paint it gold and detailed, swirly blue waves all over his skull! Talk about sacrificing for the craft!)

Erzulie, goddess of Love


Asaka, goddess of Earth

(Her head-piece is still under construction, but I wish I had gotten a picture of her whole dress -- it took me about 8 hours to make, and it's incredible!)

• Getting my dad hooked on pineapple salsa.

• Wheelbarrow duty at our stake service project.

• Finishing my niece's wedding dress.

• A birthday cake shaped like a sewing machine...
• 

"E" for effort, right? I got the jist of what they were trying to accomplish, anyway ... and it was delicious, which is all that matters.