Sunday Sunday Sunday

Thanks for all the birthday wishes. It's actually in a week or so.

Tahoe is off because my youngest daughter needs emergency dental surgery. Her adult teeth are coming in and her baby teeth aren't even loose. She has to get 4 extracted under anesthesia asap. We are just waiting for the Pediatric specialist to call back.

It's no skin off my nose. The kids are more important. I can always go later.

I'm glad everyone liked the revolver pictures. I still need to post my ash tray, pottery, shotguns, and my auto pistol collections. They don't see the light of day much so I'm glad I can post pics so other people can enjoy them.

Some of you inquired about gun safety. It's a subject near and dear to me. I have been around some terrible gun handling by people who should know better. I've also kicked people out of my house who refused to obey my rules regarding firearms.

Here goes:

Education. It is never too young to start teaching gun safety. Even if you do not own a gun chances are one of your child's friends will have them in their home. Firearms should NOT be a forbidden fruit. Tell youngsters that if they see a firearm to leave the area and get a responsible adult there asap to secure it. An NRA gun safety course or hunter safety course can be invaluable for accident prevention and to prevent kids from mishandling firearms.

Basic rules:

Keep your finger off the trigger and out of the trigger guard unless you intend to shoot, you are sure of your target and what is behind it.

Never hand a loaded weapon to someone. Always check and recheck and treat it as if it is loaded. If someone shows you a gun, open the action and check to see if it's loaded even if you just saw them do it. If you don't know how to operate a particular gun, find someone knowledgeable or take it to a gunsmith.

Always keep guns pointed in a safe direction. I can't count the times I've had someone ignorantly point a gun at me in a sporting goods store. The muzzle should be pointing at the ground or downrange. Never point a gun at anything that you do not wish to destroy.

Storage: Guns not being used for protection should be kept under lock and key and stored separately from ammunition Safes are a good option. Gun locks are pretty useless but are free and really don't hurt anything.

As far as a home defense gun goes, there are inexpensive key and thumbprint coded lock boxes that can be accessed rather quickly. Hiding guns from the kids does not work it just piques their curiosity and leaves them vulnerable.

Do not tell people that you keep guns in your home. Avoid NRA or gun manufacturer stickers and decals on your car. It just invites unwanted attention from police officers and criminals.

Do not use a gun rack in your vehicle. There are metal bar locks and lock boxes that can be installed under the seat to keep your firearm secured when you are forced to leave it in your car.

Keep detailed records and pictures of your guns with serial numbers in a safe place. In case of theft report this information to the police immediately.

These are some basic guidlines that should cover most important issues.