Honeymooning

Initially Moose and I were planning on heading to Disney World or Disneyland to get away from it all for a few days since finances are a little tight, and then maybe doing a larger trip later on.  Disney World is a favorite weekend getaway of ours, and we thought the idea of possibly staying in Bay Lake Towers on his family's DVC points would be a great way to get away.  On the other hand, Moose hasn't ever been to Disneyland, so that was also a viable option.

Until a good friend made a comment that her dad had a house in Costa Rica.

Now, Moose and I will be spending ten days in Costa Rica.  HOORAY!

We plan on flying in on a Friday and spending the night in San Jose before taking off to Arenal Volcano National Park for some volcanic fun.  Included will be some soaking in the hot springs and eruption viewing.   Of the volcano, perv.   The next day, we'll head over to Monteverde where we will zip line through the cloud forest before relaxing at our hotel.  After that?  Five nights in Dominical, relaxing by the beach and potentially making day trips to Ballena Marine Park for kayaing, rappelling down Nauyaca Falls, or learning how to surf.  We'll end up heading back to San Jose via Cerro de la Muerte, enjoy a night on the town, and then head home.

I can't wait.  But it's required actual planning and things like oh, renewing my passport... oops.

So far, so good.  I'll update with more info if I get it.

MOAR PAPER LANTERNS!

After my success with AsianIdeas.com, I thought it would be a good idea to go back and find more stars and possibly also find some gold and blue lanterns.

As I'm clicking away and set to order, I get the good idea to do some price checking and lo and behold, I find the same blue and gold lanterns on PaperLanternStore.com, only around 50 cents cheaper per lantern.  So I keep the same 5 star lanterns in the AsianIdeas.com shopping cart, and get ten each of the blue and gold circular paper lanterns from PLS.com.  I mean, they're all the same damn thing anyhow, right?

Well, kind of.

Here's where I made my first mistake: I checked out of the tried and true place first.

Your only options for shipping through PaperLanternStore were expensive and restricted to FedEx only.  AsianIdeas uses USPS Priority Mail, which is cheaper and ships faster than the standard option presented by PLS.com unless you want to add even more money to your order to expedite shipping.  So sure, I ended up saving about $10 on the lanterns by ordering through PLS.com, but any savings I received went straight to shipping.  Point in favor of AsianIdeas.com.

Also, when considering total time it took for the order to process and ship, I again have to nod my hat to AsianIdeas.com.  It took a grand total of four days for me to get my order from them.  It took over a week for the lanterns from PLS.com to arrive.  And remember- I paid more for shipping.

As far as the product quality goes, it's hard to compare since we're talking cardstock star-shaped lanterns and the thinner, circular lanterns.  But both seem adequate as far as quality goes, and for that, it's just about an even tie.

Overall, I think going forward I'd keep ordering from AsianIdeas.com.  They were faster and cheaper from start to finish, and seemed to offer better sales on what I needed.  The star lanterns I picked out were I believe $7 originally, but I purchased them for $2.50 each.  Not too shabby.  Had the lanterns not been on sale, I would have spent WAY more than what I should have at AsianIdeas.

I've been slacking.

Surprise, surprise.

But these past three point five weeks have been a shitshow of stupid with little snippets of awesome mixed in.

Moose has been off teaching a training for work, so I've been home over three weeks alone with the pugs, planning a wedding, interviewing for jobs, all while waiting for the grad school decision to come in.  It doesn't sound like much, but let me tell you-- it is.

On the job front, looking for a job is a full time position in and of itself.  Between applying for just about everything I can, reaching out to make phone calls to recruiters, and trying to connect anywhere and everywhere, it's easily a few hours a day.  If only I could get paid to do this, which, if I were actually eligible for unemployment, I guess would be "payment" for that, but you know...

The pugs and Annie are good.  Fairly low-maintenance.  They've started to act out a bit, especially around meal time, and will go through a stint of peeing on Moose's luggage if he comes home for the weekend.  I know they're just missing him as much as I am, but I've steam cleaned the rugs four times over the past few weeks and have lost count over how many times I've had to drag out the spot cleaner.  Luckily the weather has been nice enough that I can prop the door open and let them all hang out in the back yard if they want to go out, which has been a godsend.

On the wedding front, things are falling into place.  We've finally narrowed down an officiant and are really excited about that.  All that's really left is transport between our hotel and the Codman, floral, cake, mailing the invites (they should be here any day now!) and figuring out things like menu, song list, alcohol list, and the photos we want taken of the wedding day.  Not too shabby.

AND (which will be a follow-up post in and of itself) our honeymoon is set!  But more on that later.

So yeah, that sounds like just about everything that's going on in the world here.  We've finished the PSA AR build, so Daphne will be starting up any day now-- HOORAY!  That's another positive.

Now on to the other updates!

Letter to the Governor

A while back, I noticed there were some unsettling changes happening in my native state of MA as it pertains to gun laws:
    - Seven round mag limit (owners of pre-band mags have a year to dispose of 10+round mags)
    - One gun a month - sales (2.5 years in prison, $1000 fine)
    - One gun a month - rental/lease (2.5 years in prison, $1000 fine)
    - Universal background checks
    - Gun show registration (every seller has to be reported and $500 fee paid)
    - No bail for gun offenders
    - NERF-free schools (airguns, bb guns, paintball guns, air rifles, NERF not allowed on school property- $500 and a year in jail)
    - "Rat Rule" ($500 fine if violations are not reported
    - Establish crime of assault/battery by firearm
    - Required purchase of liability insurance
    - Firearms stored in a locker at a specified gun range and not in control of the owner
    - 25% tax on ammo and firearms

And this is just what I've been able to pick up on the web, nowhere near a comprehensive or up-to-date list.

Reading this really upset me.  Basically, it would make myself and Moose felons if we ever moved back to Massachusetts.  So, I did what any good person did and wrote Governor Patrick a letter stating my concerns.

Dear Governor Patrick,

I am a proud Massachusetts native who is currently a resident of North Carolina.  Despite politically leaning slightly-right-of-center, in 2010 I worked on your campaign for reelection with a fervor I had never put behind any elected official previously, much less a Democrat.  All that you have done in Massachusetts to make it such an amazing, accepting place to live and work makes me proud to call it home, despite leaving the state due to my husband’s job as a federal LEO. However, it is with a heavy heart that I read about some of the points in your proposed gun safety legislation, “An Act to Strengthen and Enhance Firearms Laws in the Commonwealth.”   

Many pro-gun advocates appreciate the national debate on gun control, but we urge our legislators to take real and constructive action on the problems surrounding firearm violence. Massachusetts has some of the strongest gun laws in the country, with licensing requirements among the strictest of any state.  While your proposed bill does have some points I agree on (specifically those related to mental health), this bill by far and large will criminalize and penalize law-abiding citizens while having no impact on the level of gun violence in the state.  It is absurd to think that anyone other than someone who follows the law will dispose of ‘high capacity’ magazines (which are actually standard capacity for many firearms, but I digress), which they have lawfully obtained and owned.  To threaten renting or leasing more than one firearm or its magazines in a thirty-day period with fines and imprisonment is absurd: will firearms be rented or sold without magazines in order to meet this point? And what about those who wish to gain hands-on experience with many different types of firearms prior to legally purchasing a firearm? I have been very thankful for gun ranges which allow me to get a good feel of different models by on-site rentals prior to making the financial commitment to not only the firearm and ammunition, but also to classes dedicated to firearm safety.  

Possibly the most disheartening of all charges is that if this bill passes, there is no way that I can move back to the Commonwealth with my and my husband’s personal collection of firearms without being considered felons.  Because of this, I urge you to please focus your efforts on those who do not believe in law and order, those who would illegally procure and use firearms regardless of what laws were passed, rather than focusing on law-abiding citizens. By disarming the victims, you are ignoring the real problem.   

Respectfully,  

Rhianna Cohen

And then I forgot about it.  Until I got a response today:

Basically, he's telling me to go pound sand.  But it is surprising that he mentions not being in compliance with NICS, which I believe not being in compliance with is actually a felony.  Correct me if I'm wrong.

But my heart still cries for my home state, which we will likely never be able to return to if this passes, LEO or not.

Fighting the good fight

Before I get into the meat of the post, it's no secret that I'm an AR-15 fangirl, and have been since the first time I shot one in 2009.

I don't know what made it so different from anything else I fired up until that point, but I was in love. I never had a moment where I thought of anything other than "shit, this is cool" or "I'd love to get one, but living in Massachusetts, I'll never be able to." It was such an awesome feeling to set up a target a considerable distance away and have spot on accuracy my first time handling one. And, I'll be honest, I just felt like a badass with it.

Now that I've been gone from MA for years, we have several in various stages of built lying around the house. LaWanda is my Bushmaster, and I think the best example for the rest of my post. I'll come back to her.

My friend Weerd Beard has a blog that I religiously check to see how the good fight is going in the northern states. He's also hysterical, and someone I've known since 2007-ish. I mean, come on... He let me Edward 40-hands myself at his Fourth of July party one year, then stand on his back porch yelling obscenities at the town parade in broad daylight. You know a man is a good friend when he allows you to do that. Plus, he always encouraged me to go shooting and get my LTC. That has made him a better friend.

Anyhow. On Weerd's blog, I saw this post that he referenced:

Al Franken..The latest loonbat Politician from Minnesota..
Al Franken used his time in front of the camera to say he had never heard of a single circumstance where a civilian had ever used an AR-15 for self-defense.This led me to an idea and I need your help. If Sen. Al Franken can’t find any examples maybe we could and in the process make sure Franken can NEVER again make such an absurd claim.Print out an example article or write a statement and send it U.S. Mail. A stamped letter will do, but to really make it impactful, spend an extra dollar or two and require a signature or delivery confirmation. You can send it to his state or Washington D.C. address below.
Al Franken
P.O. Box 583144
Minneapolis, MN 55458-3144
Al Franken
309 Hart
Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510

What a great idea! Senator Franken doesn’t think ARs and other modern rifles are used for self defense. We know otherwise. Print up the articles or clip them from your news paper, and mail them to Senator Franken’s offices. Add in the signature confirmation and when you get the confirmation back post it and the story on a blog.

***

So, I thought it would be a good idea to pitch in. There are a few examples of people using an AR-15 for personal defense in recent news, one of my favorites being the two RIT students who scared off armed burglars that broke into their house with an UNLOADED AR-15. Hell, I'd run too if one were pointed at me. So that would be my contribution, and I'd urge anyone spying to send an example along as well.

But it got me thinking about my own home.

As much as I love this rifle and would use it for personal defense, it would not likely be the first gun I grabbed. Selfishly, I wouldn't want LaWanda to end up as police evidence and never come back to me. One of the Glocks? Fine. I'm not happy, but fine. Slightly less important, she's got a 20 inch barrel, which means she's a little on the chunky side. My T-Rex arms would have a hard time carrying her around. When I think personal defense, I think of close quarters. I know how steamy she gets after two thirty round mags, so there's always the chance that if someone grabs her they'd burn their hands... But not after only a few rounds. So I'd likely use one of Joe Biden's female defense weapons of peeing my pants then grabbing a shotgun or pistol. Why? destructive power. No warning shots, though. I'd prefer to cut them off at a choke point in my home.

Now, anything where I'd need to stop someone on my lawn, the AR-15 would be my go-to because I'm good at distance with it. I'd risk turning her into evidence to protect the house.

So, given that information, I guess I would be a person that hopefully never has to use her AR-15 for personal defense.

It seems there are more of us than Al Franken realizes.

I'll NEVER do that again.

Make jewelry, that is. At least not the beaded crap that I love to wear and figured the girls could wear at the wedding

I've successfully created four necklaces for the maids, and one for myself. I still have yet to do something for the flower girls, but I'm trying to figure out what I'd need for beads since I'm just about out. Sigh.

They look great as long as you don't look too close, and I can't guarantee they'll hold through dancing. But as long as they last through pictures, that's almost all I care about.

Here is mine, the one with silver and pearls, and everyone else's. in my head they looked a lot different. In real life? Not so much.

Building a what?!

A Noveske N4. No big.

Trust me, I'm not entirely sure what I'm thinking either, aside from potentially learning more about how the AR15 platform operates. I know how it fires fairly well, and can fire one fairly well... But field strip? Not so much.

Moose has been on a build kick of late, where he'll buy either a stripped or full lower receiver and make it to his own specs. When he ordered a stripped N4 lower from Gunbroker.com that was listed as non-Chainsaw quality, but it showed up with the Chainsaw logo, the shop owner made things right by providing the opportunity for him to buy what he originally wanted at the Chainsaw price. So confusing trail of events aside, we now have two stripped N4 lowers in our hands instead of one.

Naturally, I had the great idea of building one alongside Moose. To my surprise, he thought it was a great idea.

Since Noveske's Chainsaw offerings are basically just aesthetically blemished but otherwise perfect guns, I figured I'd take that for my first build. I mean, there's no sense in potentially scratching an otherwise beautiful and new firearm before the thing makes it out to the range. And for what it's worth, aside from maybe two small, barely noticeable scratches, I can't see the damn blemishes. The Chainsaw line is also apparently covered under full warranty.

Now I'm at the hard part: figuring out what I want to put on my gun. I'm thinking of naming her Daphne-- a google search (don't ask about the parameters) came up with a deaf woman who had murdered her lesbian lover with a chainsaw. Guess what her name was? Yep... Escandalo! So given the coincidences, it seems fitting. But aside from that? I need to pick out a stock, upper, grips, rails, barrel, sights, buffer tube, trigger.... The list goes on.

So, as I get further down the line with production, I'll post updates. For now, I'll leave you with Daphne's "baby picture".