Sunday, November 25, 2018
Tis the season...
The tree is up and most of the lights work. The cats may actually go near it this year, so any decorations that are breakable are out. Andy Williams has played, so it is now officially the Christmas season. Since I work the afternoon shift on Christmas day this year, things are looking good. I need the holiday pay due to medical bills, tho it may go to replacing the car instead. Who knows? All that counts is that I can now get eggnog for a month!
Tuesday, November 13, 2018
Oh the cold...
I am entirely too amused by my friends here in Texas. Its comparable to when the temperature went down in California. People lose their minds and act like a new ice age is beginning. Snow flurries that melted as soon as they hit the ground caused wonder and panic. Same people who planned hurricane parties.
Going to the range, Texas Vs California
So, I used to live in the Silicon Valley, near the hear of California liberalism and anti-gun policies. Now I live in deep East Texas, where gun laws are much closer to my tastes and both auto parts stores and purveyors of glass windows/auto glass have a gun and ammo section. So, shooting sports are popular and should be accessible and affordable sue to the lover cost of living, right? Mmm, not so much.
See, in San Jose I would generally shoot at one of two locations. The first was an indoor range, Reeds, which was my favorite indoor range in the area. Good facility, right around the corner from work and generally nice people. Range fees are now $16/hour (up a little since I left) and you get one target. They generally don't care how many guns or calibers you are bringing.
If I wanted to shoot outdoors (rifle, pistol or skeet/trap) I used the Santa Clara Field Sports Park. For $15, you can shoot all day with as many guns and calibers as you want. Or, for $9 you can shoot 25 clays on the skeet/trap range.
Here in Texas, things are different. At the local range on the other side of town, its only $10 for an hour on the range. However, if you bring more than one gun, its $10 for each additional gun. If you bring different calibers of ammunition to shoot through the same gun, each additional caliber will cost you $10. And it seems, this is a standard for many ranges in the area. There is an indoor range about an hour from here, towards Houston, that is spectacular. They don't care how many guns or calibers I bring. But, its $20 for the pistol range and $29 for the rifle range. Plus the hour drive.
Skeet and trap have their own differences. There are several near Houston that are great. One has pistol and rifle as well. Pricing, tho, is $10.50 for 25 clays, $14 for pistol/rifle and $7 for each additional gun. The other one has similar offerings and no extra gun/caliber charges, but does have the member/non-member pricing scheme, so my prices would be higher still as I am not a member. Plus the hour drive for either.
Generally, for skeet and trap I am driving an hour in any direction. Many of the surrounding shooting venues have the member/non-member pricing. The membership costs would be ok if i lived close and could go multiple times per week. But that just isn't in my budget, since gas prices are still north of $2 a gallon. Most of them I would need to use twice a week minimum for me to break even at the end of the year.
So, while my cost of living has dropped dramatically from when I lived in California, my cost for a day of shooting has gone up. Disappointing, but I still am far happier in Texas. Now I just need to make friends with someone who has a home range and a skeet machine...
See, in San Jose I would generally shoot at one of two locations. The first was an indoor range, Reeds, which was my favorite indoor range in the area. Good facility, right around the corner from work and generally nice people. Range fees are now $16/hour (up a little since I left) and you get one target. They generally don't care how many guns or calibers you are bringing.
If I wanted to shoot outdoors (rifle, pistol or skeet/trap) I used the Santa Clara Field Sports Park. For $15, you can shoot all day with as many guns and calibers as you want. Or, for $9 you can shoot 25 clays on the skeet/trap range.
Here in Texas, things are different. At the local range on the other side of town, its only $10 for an hour on the range. However, if you bring more than one gun, its $10 for each additional gun. If you bring different calibers of ammunition to shoot through the same gun, each additional caliber will cost you $10. And it seems, this is a standard for many ranges in the area. There is an indoor range about an hour from here, towards Houston, that is spectacular. They don't care how many guns or calibers I bring. But, its $20 for the pistol range and $29 for the rifle range. Plus the hour drive.
Skeet and trap have their own differences. There are several near Houston that are great. One has pistol and rifle as well. Pricing, tho, is $10.50 for 25 clays, $14 for pistol/rifle and $7 for each additional gun. The other one has similar offerings and no extra gun/caliber charges, but does have the member/non-member pricing scheme, so my prices would be higher still as I am not a member. Plus the hour drive for either.
Generally, for skeet and trap I am driving an hour in any direction. Many of the surrounding shooting venues have the member/non-member pricing. The membership costs would be ok if i lived close and could go multiple times per week. But that just isn't in my budget, since gas prices are still north of $2 a gallon. Most of them I would need to use twice a week minimum for me to break even at the end of the year.
So, while my cost of living has dropped dramatically from when I lived in California, my cost for a day of shooting has gone up. Disappointing, but I still am far happier in Texas. Now I just need to make friends with someone who has a home range and a skeet machine...
Monday, November 12, 2018
Where did the time go?
Time passes and some things get pushed from "I'll do it tomorrow" to "Where the hell did the last year go?"
I spent six months of the last year and a half working for TDCJ. 12 hour shifts working Texas Death Row. Not a job for everyone, as my cardiologist pointed out after an ambulance ride to the cardiac unit in the middle of a shift. It was definitely an experience and I give all respect to the people still doing it.
Still, a job in IT appeared out of the blue near me and I have to say, things generally could not be better. Good pay, great people to work with/for, and I really do enjoy my job. I missed IT work. Amusingly, a co-worker who joined four months after I did also came from TDCJ. Apparently that's common around here. Overall, I am learning new things, sharpening old skills and looking forward to the future.
I spent six months of the last year and a half working for TDCJ. 12 hour shifts working Texas Death Row. Not a job for everyone, as my cardiologist pointed out after an ambulance ride to the cardiac unit in the middle of a shift. It was definitely an experience and I give all respect to the people still doing it.
Still, a job in IT appeared out of the blue near me and I have to say, things generally could not be better. Good pay, great people to work with/for, and I really do enjoy my job. I missed IT work. Amusingly, a co-worker who joined four months after I did also came from TDCJ. Apparently that's common around here. Overall, I am learning new things, sharpening old skills and looking forward to the future.
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