Training: Day Three

Ooops! I forgot to post last night. Dang.

We went out to the range and it was wet and cold and pretty much miserable. Not that shooting something isn't fun, but when you can no longer feel your fingers it gets to be kind of a drag.

I always keep one of those chemical hand warmer packs in my right hand pocket to keep my trigger hand warm and flexible. It helps some, but not enough when it is that cold and wet outside.

By the time I got home my feet were wet and I was cold and feeling pretty worn out. I stripped off my coveralls and crawled into a hot bathtub (no bubbles) with a smoke, a book and an irish coffee. Half an hour later I got out feeling much warmer and so sleepy I could barely keep my eyes open. It was all I could do to keep my eyes open until my daughter toddled off to bed at nine.

We spent the morning in the classroom, first hearing a talk about the sex offender program, then the role of medical services and finally mental health and suicide intervention.

I worked hard (really I did!) to keep my mouth shut but I wasn't always successful. And once or twice when I wanted to say something and managed to choke it back, a snort still came out my nose. Sgt LB (sitting next to me) would say "Just stop." and everyone else would look at me waiting for the comment. At that point I would clap my hands over my mouth and shake my head so the class could continue.

I guess I have a reputation.

At least the state has gotten rid of those ridiculous glock pistols and we are down to only the shotguns now. In my opinion, those things were just an accident waiting to happen. 'Nuff said!

We fired the shotguns with a group of officers from the camp up north and since they are special and have further to drive to get back, they got to fire first. No biggie, it happens every year. A few of them stayed to help clean up afterwords. That was nice of them.

I'm not a gun nut. At this point in my life I don't even own a gun. But I do like them and I enjoy shooting. If I had the time and place, I would go out and target shoot all the time. I don't have the patience to be a hunter. If I am going out in the boonies with a weapon, I am going to put a hundred rounds downrange before I go home. I will frack something up before I leave, whether it be paper targets or old coffee cans, I will send them to paradise well ventilated.

So I enjoyed the actual shooting part. It wasn't very challenging. I managed to hit five targets twice with ten rounds. From what? Thirty feet or so? I could have thrown the shotgun from there and hit the targets. But I got to shoot something and that satisfied the primal hunter/killer part of my lizard brain. It was enough.

My training is over for the year. I am now, once again, fully qualified to do my job. Yee haw.