When I was a little kid, I probably drove my mother nuts with how often I whined, “I’m bored!”
I don’t say that much anymore.
The last four weeks or so have included:
Rangemaster Tactical Conference in Little Rock. Not to be missed. Probably the best value you can get in training for your time and dollar if you’re a “civilian,” and a lot of cops attend, too. You can learn a lot just from the archives of the newsletters put together by Rangemaster proprietor and ace trainer Tom Givens.
The next week, the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association annual seminar in St. Louis, MO. This is for trainers of police (the only ones allowed to attend, sorry) and is to cops what Rangemaster is to “civilians.” While there, the old guy here woke up deaf one morning: a nasty sinus infection had gone into the middle ear, with enough fluid buildup for what the emergency docs at Barnes-Jewish Hospital diagnosed as acute otitis media. Thanks to my old friend Chief Bert DuVernay who took over for me leading the panel of experts on firearms/deadly force training issues, because I was too deaf to hear the questions from the audience. And thanks to the makers of amoxicillin, which eventually cleared it up.
Then, on to the west coast, to visit the scene of a fatal shooting and do some interviewing for an upcoming wrongful death trial.
Last week, two MAG-20 courses – one range, one classroom lecture, encompassing a full MAG-40 with Karl Rehn’s superb KR Training in the Austin, TX area. Students were great. Karl wrote an AAR (after action report) on the shooting portion. Bookmark Karl’s website and blog – there’s LOTS of learning there, for free.
Along the way, managed to work in the testing of two 9mm pistols for a couple of different gun magazines, the Wilson Combat EDC X9 and the Gen 2.0 version of the Smith & Wesson Military & Police. (Both very nice, by the way.)
The older I get, the less often I have time to be bored.
Mas,
They say that an individual’s perception of time changes as they age. Children often perceive time as passing very slowly (Christmas seems to take FOREVER to arrive). As one ages, time seems to pass by faster and faster.
So, perhaps your perception of being “bored” as a child and of being “busier than a nudist in a hornets nest” now is not a function of having nothing to do then and too much to do now.
Rather, you may be suffering a “time compression perception” effect caused by advance age! To tell you the truth, I often feel “time compression” myself! 🙂
Well, TN_man, you’ve got the advanced age thing right.
“Life, my son, is like a roll of toilet paper: the closer you get to the end, the faster it seems to go.”
If you will be speaking anywhere while in SoCal please let me know.
I sure am looking forward to Mas’s review of the EDC X9. It certainly is a pretty looking pistol in my eyes. I hope it shoots as well as it looks.
Scott from England, the EDC X9 article is still in progress, should be out in American Handgunner a few issues down the road.
Dave, won’t be in SoCal this year, but will be in NorCal this summer, check on my website http://massadayoobgroup.com.
I was sure disappointed not to get to the Rangemaster Conference with a boarding pass in hand, packed etc. only to be re-routed to a client site with a hot issue. I can see I really missed a wonderful training opportunity plus I got to pay for it too.
You sure are busy and I appreciate all the training opportunities you make for us. I look forward to seeing you in September in Kankakee and December in Florida so I am working on getting my act together.
Sorry to hear about your temporary deafness and good you did not sit on it since waiting can lead to permanent loss in certain cases like mine. I have to wear a hearing aid now so lucky for you that you don’t need that.
With my work, family, and training I feel like time very limited plus schooling my children with the FedEx schooling model of send it home (outsource the problem) with instructions for me to teach them. I need to figure out how to function on less than 5 hours of sleep.
Sounds like your busier than a one arm paper hanger.
Hopefully, you won’t get stuck on an overbooked flight. Would hate to see them try and drag you off a plane.
Hugs and safe travels 🙂
This is showing my age-Pink Floyds “Time” song which I loved but did not understand until it happened to me…
I am glad your ear infection was cleared up-ouch-stay safe and healthy-your travels are indeed busy!
Southwest Airlines new slogan “We Beat the Competitors. Not you”.
Rangemaster stories could fill many books, I’ll bet. The two groups of shooters with the most gall that I ever saw at a range were: (1) people who tried to drive their pickup truck back and forth between bench and target, against all the rules, and (2) the fellow who became enraged that HE would have to follow the rules and make sure that fees for his guest buddies were covered. Fortunately, the great majority of range shooters seem to have more common sense.
Possibly the best way to advantage the passing of time is to own a couple of horses, while putting them to work five or six days a week. They do generally require a couple or three hours of work and attention. SASS off a horse could become a full time activity. Hey, that is a good idea!
Hope you continue to feel better. You certainly have been busy. God bless you Mas with the strength and energy to continue with the work you love and are so passionate about. Stay well my friend!
Had a friend several years back that kept claiming he was busier after retiring than before. Whatever you do Mas, DO NOT retire.
TN_MAN & Mas,
Our perception of time changes relative to our lifespans. When you are ten-years-old, you’ve seen ten birthdays, and ten Christmases, come and go. One year is one-tenth of your lifespan. When you are sixty, you’ve seen sixty birthdays, and sixty Christmases come and go. One year is just a sliver, one-sixtieth of your lifespan. Years appear to go more quickly as we age, because each year is a smaller and smaller part of our lifespans.
If you like your job, be very thankful. I have a good life, but I have never liked any of my jobs. I work because it is my duty to not be a bum. Work takes up so much of our lives.
I am a capitalist, but here is a good argument for communism. Some really great jobs are pleasant, AND they make a lot of money at the same time. While, some rotten jobs are unpleasant, and can maybe not even pay enough to live on. Imagine getting paid to play a sport! Most people are happy to pay to play sports. Then imagine getting paid millions of dollars to chase a ball around a field! Then there are those unpleasant jobs, which hardly pay. It isn’t fair.
I am tempted to become a communist, but when I look around the world, I see that it doesn’t work. Think East Germany vs. West Germany, and there are many other examples. Because capitalism produces such an abundance of things, I was able to dream of having a great job, and that is why I failed. My good life caused me to dream too big. If I grew up in North Korea, I would dream of having a bowl of rice!
Well, I am glad that at least I am healthy enough to work at bad jobs.
@ Roger Willco & Mas,
Yes, the time-perception change is real. I notice it myself. I am at the age where AARP regularly stuffs my mailbox with invitations to join!
So far, I have resisted these invitations on general principles. 🙂
As for my job, it started out good but has become increasingly tiresome and onerous over time. Maybe it is the “time perception” thing again but my job has become much less enjoyable as I have aged. I feel solidly struck in a “rut”.
However, that will all soon change. According to my “Retirement Countdown Clock” (Yes, I have one sitting on my desk), I have (at the time this is being written) exactly 83 days, 4 hours, 18 minutes and 10 seconds left until I can retire from my job. At that point, I can spent my “time” doing something really enjoyable like more reloading and more shooting at the range!
I just really need to congratulate our very own TN_MAN on his upcoming retirement… Under three months?
Congratulations!
I’ve been staying abreast of the blog but haven’t had much to type to. Increasingly I find myself prefer not to comment on certain topics for whatever reason… Or maybe I’ve just been swamped myself!
Quite the time – all the best
@ Spencer B.
Thank you for the kind words. I confess that I am looking forward to getting out of the “rat race”. However, I won’t be taking up the “rocking chair” right away. I will still have lots to do. The difference will be that it will be on my schedule not someone else’s. Plus, it will be more stuff that I want to do. Like a lot more range time!
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