doing things I've never done before.

[katster]

So I'm sitting in somebody's (that somebody is chaoswolf, among others) living room in San Jose, hanging out on somebody's else's laptop while the owner plays scrabble, and I figured I'd do a quick update because I want to note that I've done something else I've never done before.

Today, I shot a gun. Just a Browning .22, I think, but it was the first time I had ever shot a gun. It was different. Once I got over the first shakes, and quit jumping six feet in the air every time the guy in the lane next to mine shot his gun, it wasn't half bad. I never managed to hit the bullseye on the target we had, but I did manage a couple shots in the black around it, and now I have some idea of how to handle a firearm and how it feels -- very important when you're trying to write realistic stories involving firearms. (I also got to shoot one shot out of a 9mm, I think. That was quite fun, although the kick was somewhat unexpected compared to the .22).

I have to scrap out an entire scene I wrote, but that's okay. Now I have to figure out some way of telling the story I want without invoking the device that I did. Oh well, rb2 was coming slow anyway and I was about to scrap it and rewrite again, so it's not the biggest of deals.

Part of me is pondering getting one, the other part of me knows that isn't the wisest of ideas, and a third part of me just wants to do it again. The problem, I suppose, is convincing somebody to go along with me.

But yeah, I had a blast, and ccon goes well, and I'm having a good time, and I don't want to go home. Thanks to flaim and funjon for organizing the trip, and jenkitty and ryoganox for being so patient with me while I was learning.

And I'm finally coming off the adrenalin high.

Yeah. It was definitely fun.

Comments

[archangelbeth]

Neat!

I need to get classes or something. I have a sentimental attachment to one of my grandmother's pistols (the other, I said my mom could ebay), and I want to have it as more than a slightly dangerous heirloom I don't know how to use.

I did do some shooting once, long ago. It was... scary, how easy it was.

My eye's going to be troublesome. I'm right-eyed normally...

[tropism.livejournal.com]

I did do some shooting once, long ago. It was... scary, how easy it was.

The ultimate in point-and-click technology! ;)

My eye's going to be troublesome. I'm right-eyed normally...

Why's that going to be a problem? You can use either eye whether you shoot left or right (with a pistol, at least.)

[archangelbeth]

The ultimate in point-and-click technology!

Close! O:D

I'm right-eyed (took archery in early college), but I've developed histoplasmosis in my right eye. This distorts... well, everything in my fovea now. The actual blind spot is small. The distortion may fade or be compensated for (eventually) if the histoplasmosis will "go into remission" from the cold-laser treatments, but until then, I have some nasty double-vision issues because of how screwed up my right eye's vision is.

So I'd have to shoot left-eyed, which is sub-optimal -- at least in archery -- and especially odd for being a right-hander, I'd suspect.

[tropism.livejournal.com]

Aaaaah. :)

I suspect that it's rather less of a disadvantage in riflery and pistolry, since you need less arm strength, and, in teh case of pistols, can shoot with either eye when holding in your main hand. Actually, in a lot of cases, you can do that with a rifle too. Whatever you train to do will eventually work -- it's being consistant that's necessary.

[archangelbeth]

Mmmm. Thanks. It gives me hope.

(And apologies to Katster for taking over her comments here!)