Mossy 500's are fun...

A few weeks ago I took the family on a little camping trip. As part of my camping gear I take along my Mossberg 500 12 gauge with a pistol grip. It comes in handy when a grizzly, or lion wanders into camp...who am I kidding, I really have no practical need for the weapon, it's just FUN. I like this boom stick, and I recommend one to anyone interested in blowing stuff up. "00" buck shot makes a real big mess of trees ( that's right, I shot a tree), gourds, gallon jugs of water, and anything else you would like to destroy. It also makes a nice home defense weapon. The ch-chunk sound that a shotgun makes as you rack a round into the breach is a sound familiar to all most everyone, but most especially to those who make it their living to prey on others.

Pictured above is a gun very similar to mine minus the heat shield over the barrel. The pistol grip is optional, 500's also come with butt stocks. There are also many after market stocks and fore ends that you can buy and install without much trouble. A quick search on Google will yield a variety of options and info on the 500 that I, in this little blog post, don't have energy to cover.

People, who don't regularly shot, are often intimidated when approached with the idea shooting a 12 gauge on any kind, but this setup with the pistol grip really gives people pause. But it's not that bad...he, he, he. Just to give you an idea, I can hold the gun straight out in front of me like a handgun and fire it with one hand, no problem. I demonstrated this for my wife, Mandy, on our camp out..."See, no problem.", I said. I then showed her how to engage/disengage the safety, load the gun (three rounds of 2 3/4" "00" buck), properly hold and fire. Mind you, she has never shot a gun of any kind, let alone a 12 gauge shot gun pistol-grip to boot. Here's what still makes me smile to this day. So, I toss this gourd out about 10 yards and tell her to let it rip. BOOM! She looks at me like I was drowning kittens in the kitchen sink. I yell, "TWO MORE!"... BOOM!... BOOM! She looks at me, shaking her right hand, and says, "I don't want to do that ever again." He, he, he...Truth is she took it well, no real damage, just a clearer understanding of the ol' boom stick.

CONFEDERATE MONEY

I just have to start off by saying that I like Little House on the Prairie...yeah that's right, I like Little House. Why? you might ask...of all the T.V. watching that I've done, it's the one show (besides 24, which is a topic for another day) that answers all of life's questions.

Let us, for the use of this blog, look at Charles Ingalles. Talk about a man, this dude came from the Big Wood to the prairie and lived in a "muddy", which is a house dug out of the side of a hill with a front door, with a wife and small children. Chaz, as like to call him, clears land for farming, chopped some wood, dug a well,chopped wood, grew crops, builds a house and barn,chopped some more wood, has more kids, plays the fiddle, more wood, adopts kids, loses it all and gets it all back, chops more wood... and the list goes on, all while helping all his neighbors do the same. On top of all that he found time to grow that magnificent mane of hair that he stuffed under that flat brimmed hat of his.

Chaz was a true friend, always there when you needed him...ready to lend a hand, but what he was really good for was a good butt kicking. Friend or foe, if you crossed ole' Chucky, off came the shirt, and "POW" teeth on the ground. After the dust settles he's the first one to help you up and find your teeth.

I could go on and probably will in the future, there is much to be learned from Chaz Ingalles. When I watch Little House I feel a real kinship to the Ingalles and their many adventures, not that I've ever had a child fall into a well or broke a wheel on my buckboard. All I can say is "Confederate Money"...if you know what that means, then you understand too.