when the law is wrong...

In Ohio, you cannot carry (openly or concealed) in an establishment that has a class D liquor license. Originally intended to stop people from having firearms in bars, the law also extends to most restaurants.

For instance, when Mike and I visit our favorite Thai restaurant, we cannot carry even though we only ever have tea with our pad kee mao and noodles curry. Apparently the state of Ohio believes that just being in the same room where alcohol is served will turn us into bloodthirsty, trigger-happy monsters.

Some might think, "You're just going out to eat - it's a nice little restaurant, what could possibly happen?"

What, indeed.

Shortly after midnight on May 25th, three masked gunmen
robbed a restaurant in the affluent, upper middle class suburb of Solon, Ohio. Suddenly a "safe" place became a place of violence and fear - and very few options for those who were forced to disarm.

As it stands now, you could go to a restaurant or bar, drink a few beers, get in your car and take that risky drive home. If caught by the police, you would be charged with a misdemeanor. But if I get caught carrying my pistol while eating (and remaining completely sober) in my favorite restaurant, I would be charged with a felony. It makes no sense.

In the effort to make people "feel safe" the state of Ohio has created gun free zones...which sometimes, sadly, make unarmed victims out of the law-abiding and felons out of those who wish to protect themselves from real criminals.

Guns & the City

Women learning to shoot at the only range in Manhattan. In heels.

I now want a rifle.

(H/T Instapundit)

hi!

...discovering that the old digital camera has video
+ too much free time on a 3-day weekend
+"I wonder what Windows Movie Maker can do..."

= 2 seconds of silly.

what did you do today?

Oh, life is so short.

Make it sweet.

we're doin' the work

We are finishing the powder room. This weekend. Yes, we are.

Unfortunately, this process involved a miter box and angles that are not at all 90 degrees. Mike got the full demonstration of how my brain works.

I had to talk things out, visualize, literally touch the crown molding, draw little pictures and talk some more before I could make sense of the cuts that we needed to make. A little bit messy and a little bit unconventional but I eventually decided which slot the saw should go in (why Mike left this up to me, I have no idea. I barely passed geometry in high school.) and, whattya know?

Mike held the molding up against the ceiling and it fit perfectly, just like it was supposed to. I jumped up and down, delighted, clapping my hands together and grinning like a big goofball.

"I did it! I'm a frickin' genius! Whee!! Say it, say it!"

Still up on the ladder, Mike sighed patiently. "Yes, Breda. You are a frickin' genius."

The little victories are sometimes the sweetest.

keffiyeh kerfuffle

There seems to be a bit of confusion concerning Rachel Ray's choice of accessories. Spokesperson for Dunkin' Donuts, she appeared in an ad wearing a scarf that looked very much like the type chosen by terrorists and anti-war protesters.

So, let me clear things up once and for all.

Everyone can relax. It's just a scarf.

(I can has bacon?)

Isn't it?

librarian by day...

I totally need this shirt to wear to work.

covert operation underway

I'm taking the camera to the library today. I have to be sneaky when taking photos because the reference manager gets a little paranoid - "Why are you taking pictures of the books? what are you doing?"

I fib and tell her it's for my family overseas, that they want to see where I work. I can't very well tell her it's all going to be blog fodder. (my mom doesn't even know about this blog, do you think I'm going to tell my boss?)

Any requests?

I am a good cook.

Tonight's dinner:

Chicken and toasted sweet potato curry over basmati rice with raisins, served with a side of sautéed spinach and roasted garlic, and a pint of brewery IPA.

Whenever I make an especially good dish for dinner, Mike always gives it a price. After his first bite he'll announce something like, "$15.95!" as if we were planning the menu for Café Breda.

I would not hit that.

Fashion designers not only want to feminize adult men,

(yes, he is applying lipstick)

but now they want to turn them into children.

(would wittle sweetums like a lollipop?)

If trends continue, soon we'll all be like Japan...where the women don't want sex, the men resort to having air sex, and they're in real danger of not having much of a future.











(h/t View From The Porch)

Once Great:

Britain.

quick, pack your bags!

Have you made plans for your summer vacation yet? The state of Michigan would like to suggest the thrill of a real city - Detroit.

(perhaps the most ridiculous ad in the history of TV)

Not only does it have the country's highest violent-crime rate, second-highest unemployment rate, and more toxic-waste sites than just about any other metropolitan area but just this year, its mayor was charged with nine felonies. Fun for the whole family!

Flip fop.

I just read in the local news that a native Ohio bachelor has received a rose from the bachelorette on a dating reality show. From what I've heard, the premise of the show is that a bunch of people are thrown together, go on group dates to fabulous locations, backstab each other in order to win and try to pretend they're not shallow. All very romantic.

Naturally, the contestants are presented as being terrific people, which of course only leads me to wonder why they might be single...

(newsworthy Ohio single guy)

Oh, okay. Now I get it.

yay me, part 2

Another of my blog posts has been republished on Buckeye Firearms. They've even included the photos - it looks very tidy and professional, if I do say so myself.

I was also invited to be on the Buckeye Firearms Editors list. I'm not quite sure what all is expected of me yet, but I'm happy to help where I can. I am the first female in the group and I'm looking forward to being able to offer a unique viewpoint.

But...I do not not know why or how this all happened. I blame Mike. When I was trying to think of something to write about he suggested, "You've started shooting. Put that in your blog." (& he has hardly stopped giggling to himself about this Editors List business. "My wife! Famous gun writer!" And then there's that other thing about being contacted by a certain photographer...Oy. He's going to be impossible.)

So I started writing things about guns and shooting on my little livejournal. I read Tam and the Cornered Cat and said to myself, "Cool! I can do this! It's okay if I do this!" So I moved to blogger and wrote some more. People started noticing that I could string words together somewhat coherently and, well...the rest is history. Now they're even naming shotguns after me. (what? no?)

And hey, where are my wheelbarrows full of cash? Ammo is expensive and I have a leak in my dining room ceiling! I'm waiting.

Please ignore the uber-dorky fangirl squeeing.

But look! All in one place!
Squeaky (who takes the best photos ever.)

Tam (my long time chick with gun/blogger hero)

And me! (kind of)

Whee!!!!

stream of CCW consciousness

I've taken to wearing a long, thin spaghetti strap camisole and a looser shirt when I venture out while armed. The top shirt blurs the hard lines of my pistol and the camisole is just long enough to hide the muzzle. When I look in the mirror, I can see a bulge and can tell I'm carrying but so far, not one person has even given me a second glance. I think (unarmed? unaware? unthinking? unobservant?) people don't see it because they aren't really looking. It really gives me an odd feeling - as if I am living a different reality or am traveling through a different space than those around me.

__________________________

During the heat of summer (all 2 months of it), I like to wear skirts. I choose breezy flouncy knee length styles because they are much cooler than blue jeans and much more attractive than shorts. I'm trying to decide how to carry.

Belly?

Or thigh?
I think the belly band would be more practical but Mike is lobbying for the tactical thigh holster, thinking I'll wear it, and not much else, around the house.

__________________________

I went to Target today and as I was paying for socks and nail polish remover, I noticed that there was a young security guard standing near the entrance. An unarmed security guard. I suppose he was hired to make people "feel" safe; wearing a dark uniform, multiple embroidered badges and a batman belt he looked very official. He might have even had pepper spray. I envisioned something happening. A crazed gunman, a lunatic with a machete - whatever. If it could happen in a Chicago Lane Bryant, or an Omaha shopping mall it could happen in a Target here. (why not?)

But what could the security guard do, exactly?

Call for help and pray that someone with a gun arrives before it's too late.

personalized!

Kevin found something totally awesome at NRA convention. And isn't he just the best for posting it on his blog? Thank you Kevin! (& hey, do they have t-shirts? stickers? free guns for people named Breda?)

I will be at the next NRA convention/2A BlogBash. I will.

Research.

It's what I do. I look things up a living, winnowing useful information out of astounding amounts of dreck. It's like a scavenger hunt everyday, and I like it. I've often continued a search well after a library patron has given up and gone home. I don't know what I like more - the thrill of the hunt or the satisfaction that comes with finding the right answer.

So when I started thinking about buying my first handgun, I knew myself well enough to know that I'd have to do a lot of reading and pistol-testing to be sure of any purchase I'd make.

In the end, I made the right choice. The Bersa Thunder .380 is slim, easily concealable and shoots like a dream. My first time at the range with my first pistol...

Bersa Thunder .380 @ 7 yards

Smaller calibers require better shot placement. I think I'm doing okay.

I should write somethng.

Really. I should.

Instead, I'm kind of feeling like this:

Ladies Night!

I've rounded up a bunch of girls (suddenly I have friends! that are girls! whee!) and we're going to the brewery. There's going to be a DJ and, most importantly, 3 free drinks. I doubt I can drink that much and I suspect Ladies Night is supposed to be for unmarried ladies but, hey...free beer.

I'm going to sample the Blue & Black - a milk stout made with dark chocolate and blueberry puree. Positively wholesome, I say. Think of all those antioxidants!

UPDATE: The Blue & Black was not quite as sweet or as fruity as I expected. It was good as stouts go, but it had an odd smokiness that I didn't like.