wolfriverjoe

I took a semi through Deal's Gap (the Tail of the Dragon). I am never, ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER doing that again. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Seems to be. There are links to similar stories on other sites. And none of them are the Onion "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Please don't go over there. The instructor has specifically requested that no one bother his first jump students. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

2nd this big time. I work as a range officer at our local shooting range. Deer season opens tomorrow. If you saw how some of these guys handle their weapons you'd have a heart attack. This isn't Hollywood. You don't just hand out weapons (particularly pistols which would be mostly useless) to untrained seamen and think that it will be a good thing, FWIW, a lot of the ships have "repelled boarders" with fire hoses, and a bunch of the pirates have been rammed and sunk. They aren't totally helpless. Don't forget that the dead pirates from the Maersk Alabama had their boat sunk. That's why they were in the ship's lifeboat when they got shot. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

I got the postcard in Wisconsin. I'm guessing USPA mailing list. I kind of like the idea of a skydiver in congress, but not so much a conservative Christian. Oh well, I wasn't going to donate anyway and with winter coming I can use the kindling "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Yes, land line. I have a bad habit of letting my battery go dead. I also will talk for quite a while with certain people. If I start the call on the cell, I usually ask them to call back on the LL to continue the call. But I don't have long distance on the LL, so I only pay about $25/mo "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

What in particular rules out the physical attraction? I posted in another thread about the need for intellect, personality and physical attractions for a relationship to have a future. But the "physical" side has a lot of leeway in it. I'm no supermodel, and I certainly don't expect to land one. Is there any chance for the physical attraction to grow? I've known some women who I found unattractive at first grow to be more so as I got to know them (the attraction was toward the "inner" person, but it made the physical shortcomings less noticable) Keep in mind a nice guy who clearly likes you and makes you laugh is not one who you come across every day. OTOH, you are correct in realizing the "one-sided friend" thing gets really uncomfortable and messy. I'm currently in this dude's place. I seem to be getting really good at making women "friends" but can't seem to make the leap past that. Although I still stay in touch, and occasionally get together, spending a lot of time together or doing much more than lunch or a dog-walk gets too weird. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

USPA has the Skydiver's Information Manual. This page is where the ISP starts. Along with the Poynter book that someone else recommended to you (in another thread I think), it covers most of what you are able to learn without actually jumping. That only scratches the surface of what you need to learn, but it's a place to start. Most of what you will learn will come from doing. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

$40/month. Very old phone and plan. Haven't changed in 8 years. 350 min/month, voice only. Nights and weekends unlimited. Back when I started driving, Verizon was the only "No Roaming Anywhere" plan available. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

I liked everything else, but loved this part. My 2 out landings were the direct result of being on the wind dummy load. Until you are comfortable risking landing out, watch a couple loads land. The OP's situation of winds changing on the ride up is a tough one to call. My suggestion would be to get a good feel for what wind speed is what on the ground, using GLIDEANGLE's ideas, then knowing that "Above 18kt steady or 14 gusty" (or whatever your comfort level is) is when you ride down. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Problem is I need another rational adult to have one of those.... Dekker.... I'm just confused as to why you even made that statement. Ron didn't say anything out of line nor did he say anything close to what you made his statements out to be? Obviously you guys disagree a lot but why bring that in to a post that you have no input on at all? You just wanted to attack him? Standard SC behavior (how many otherwise rational adults turn into PeeWee Herman in here?) I'm a little surprised that none of the antis have come in here screaming and yelling how dangerous guns are. You said in the other post that you are in a new place (with new people right?). Have you done a "security check"? Entry points/paths for the intruders, a safe room and escape routes for you and yours, ambush/last stand points, good/bad corners, peek holes/strategic reflector placement. All that stuff. Play hide and seek with the kid. Or better yet cowboys and indians/cops and robbers/terrorist and Delta Force. Seriously. Use it to identify good hiding places for you and places to aviod when checking out the "noise in the middle of the night". Use it to learn how easy it is to get surprised coming around a corner. My ex absolutely hated the stainless steel round lamp I insisted on leaving in the front hall. But she let it stay when I pointed out how useful it was for checking out the front door from the bedroom doorway. With the bedroom dark, She could easily see into the living room and check to see if the front door was open, while still being totally invisible. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Personally I think it is rather cool and I like the benefits, like being able to preview a trip in advance so I know if I want to ride the bike, car or take public transport. However it is naive to not see the downsides - the most obvious is that it gives criminals a perfect opportunity to carefully examine a neighborhood for targets without ever stepping foot on the street. The same goes for terrorists. Don - (I'm replying to Nigel99 because he says a lot that I think) I'm willing to listen. I may be naive about this. I'm not saying that there are no downsides, jus that they aren't that bad, and the upsides outweigh them. They aren't showing anything you can't see otherwise. And the detail isn't all that great. I looked at my house, and it's pretty mundane. The only real "intel" you can get is the USPA sticker on the back of my truck (parked in the street). The Porsche is in the garage and the curtains are closed (basic security precautions that I take anyway). The burglars could do a drive-through with a video camera and get the same info. Terrorists generally aren't interested in low-profile targets. What else am I missing? "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Nope, but it is my canopy. And my dog. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

You have more jumpsuits than "dress" suits. Skydiving/rigging gear has taken over more than one whole room in your house. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

My condolences. My dad died about 4 years ago and I still think about him almost every day. Mostly wishing I could ask him or show him something. It hurts like nothing else, but it gets better over time (I think mainly you get used to it rather than it going away). Your friends are here for you, lean on them if you need to (I sure did). That's what friends are for.

I'm not sure what you mean by "10 years from now". And if it was just my house, yes I'd be worried. But it's everybodies house. Kind of like the phone book. I'm nondescript enough that I'm not too worried. Edit to add: Normiss - Yes, that's the one!! "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

What do you mean "How do they do this" They have a car with a large camera setup on the roof. Judging from the crap in the neighbors driveway, they did my street 2 summers ago. Edit to add: wasn't there a picture of the photo car being pulled over somewhere on here? Like in BV's Sick & Twisted thread maybe? "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Let me come at this from a different angle. How do you react under stress? For example: If you are driving down the road and a large animal (or a person) jumps out in front of you, how do you react? Jam on the brakes? Swerve and nearly flip the car? Stare and do nothing? As others have said: You will react as trained. And as well as you do under severe stress otherwise. Think about it. Personally I haven't had a cutaway, but I've had a couple brake-fires (one into spinning line twists). When they happened, my training kicked in. I very quickly evaluated the situation, took corrective action and dealt with it. I maintained situational awareness and was ready to chop if necessary. I was really thrilled that I did so well under the circumstances. Don't worry too much about it. I think it's a really normal thought process for a beginner. It means (to me at least) that you are taking the risk seriously. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

No Swiss Army Knife?? They have a can opener on them. I have 3 or 4 (only one real Victronox, the rest cheap knockoffs). "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

I'm replying to a bunch of different posts here, specifically to JohnRich, carrying a revolver with a full cylinder (live round under the lowered hammer) is no different than Condition2 (correct condition2, I was mistaking 2 for 3 in earlier posts, sorry 'bout that) - hammer down on loaded chamber. It isn't inherently unsafe in a modern weapon designed to be carried that way. The hammer block in a revolver is the functional equivalent of the firing pin safety in an auto. Don't forget that many autos are designed to be carried that way, some are even "decock only" with no real safety. Others (like the Beretta 92) drop the hammer down when you put the safety on. Personally I carry condition1 (cocked and locked). I have a Kimber 45, and the 1911 (and all it's copies) are designed to be carried that way. Without a firing pin safety, C2 is (as Ron mentioned) more dangerous than C1. If I carry a revolver, it has the cylinder full, hammer down on loaded chamber Others I know prefer C3 (empty chamber). As Belgian Draft mentioned, the extra time to work the slide is minimal, and if practiced properly won't make any real difference. BUT there is a big difference between carry protocol and nightstand protocol. A weapon on my belt or in my hand is under my direct control. Short of having it taken from me (grabbed out of my hand or snatched out of the holser) I don't have to worry about it ending up in the wrong hands. The pistol on my nightstand is a different situation. With it that far out of my control, I don't like having it loaded at all. As I said earlier, I have an empty auto with the loaded magazine in a seperate location, both easily accesible. No, it won't stop a burgular (or kid) from finding both and thus having a loaded weapon, but it will slow them down a bit (And they are put away when I'm not home). It also means I have to be coherent enough to a)find the gun, b)find the magazine, c)load the mag and chamber a round before I can shoot. For Me, in my overall situation, that extra effort and the level of safety it ensures is worth the extra time it takes and the additional risk in a "high-speed malfunction" scenario. I also have a "Plan B" in case the intruder gets hold of the empty weapon and keeps it from me. Thanks for all the discussion. It's been a while since I've had to define and defend my personal protocols. It isn't changing anything, but it's nice to revisit them and make sure my reasoning is still valid (at least for my situations) "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

I'm not going to requote the whole thing, and we may have to agree to disagree. That's what makes these discussions interesting. Very few (if any) modern guns are unsafe to have condition one. But condition two is safer, as Billvon said. My point is that disengaging the safety is a very simple flick of the thumb. Working the slide requires a much higher amount of effort. If I am half asleep and disoriented, I don't want a gun that is able to be fired that easily. Yes, it puts me at a tactical disadvantage. Yes, that 5 seconds may mean the difference between life and death. But it greatly lessens the chance that I will have an accidental discharge, which I consider to be a more likely situation and more of a threat to me or my loved ones. Again, this is what I have decided is right for me. Others may decide differently. And what's right for them is cool by me. I just like to put other options and the thought processes behind them out for discussion. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

So you are now stalking NerdGirl? Who's she? She hangs out in SC mostly. Supersmart, self-confident, government agent of some sort (biotech/bioterror I think), travels all over the world. Based purely on what she posts in SC, I have a crush on her Nerdgirl "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

1. Adds an extra bullet to the capacity. 2. Any modern weapon poses no risk to having a round chambered provided you don't pull the trigger. Older weapons did pose a danger, but today's firearms don't fire unless you pull the trigger. 3. Adding a step in an emergency situation is normally a bad move. It would be like locking down the cutaway handle with a snap that you had to take off when you needed to cutaway. So, it adds capacity, poses no extra danger, and simplifies the process. Disagree. It adds to the danger because the weapon can go off with the simple release of the safety rather than the deliberate act of working the slide. A safety is a mechanical device and is subject to failure. (yes, there are usually multiple levels of safety). More importantly, you want to know what you are doing and who you are dealing with before pulling that trigger. If you wake up from a sound sleep, you will be disoriented. I prefer to be alert enough to rack the slide, rather than just drop the safety. I've worked with my pistols enough that dropping the safety has reached "muscle memory" levels - I don't conciously think about it, it happens as the gun comes up. There's also the tactical advantage in case the bad guy gets the gun before you wake up. He may not know the chamber is empty, giving you an extra second to do whatever you can. I keep my nightstand gun empty for this reason. There is a loaded mag nearby, and I can get to both, load and chamber in about 5 seconds. If you are at the point where one or two seconds are going to be that critical you've already lost the advantage anyway. It's likely going to turn into a shootout, and that's one that often nobody wins. Being alerted to the threat with enought time to put your defense plan into action is the most improtant thing. Alarms, dogs, or a big noisy mess right by the front door (my ex never understood why I insisted on leaving my workboots right in front of the door) will give you that time, if they don't scare off the bad guy altogether. IMO the biometric (fingerprint id) safes aren't where they need to be yet. The fingertip-pushbutton-combination ones are pretty good, but the limited number of combinations make them less than ideal. One way around this is to lock the gun and it's small safe in a larger vault during the day. That way the kid can't get to the safe to experiment with the combination. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

No, you're not shallow, you're honest. For me, attractivness is a combination of brains, personality and physical appearance (in that order). While a plus in one area can offset a minus in another to a certain degree, a total zero in any area is not going to work. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

Everyone has a preference to what they like and don't like. I am sure most men dont like it (excluding VB here) because most men like longer hair on women for some strange reason.. I prefer longer hair, I also prefer darker hair. But, done in a reasonable way, on a head shape that compliments it, that cut can look nice. But once the back starts to shag out, it looks messy. I think Amstadler looks really cute with it (she has it in her uniform pic that's on here somewhere).