Enjoying life in semi-retirement mode

      To me, among all the benefits of being a "Free American", perhaps the best is that right to Keep and Bear Arms.  I have spent most of my life enjoying this, that or several types of weaponry.  From that bolt action single shot .22 that gave me the pleasure of putting some good meat on the family table when I was just entering my teen years, to the .410 bolt action shotgun that helped me to get my season limit on Pheasants and rabbits.  In the military, I found that shooting well came pretty easy for me, and always enjoyed and looked forward to going to the range.
   These days, I have several weapons of different purpose, and shape.  While none are "collectors", all are good in their own way  Having a good, long, range right outside the door is a real plus.  I can step outside and shoot, practice this, or that, style, stance, or caliber.

     At my age, (76 laps around the Sun), I am probably not as steady as I was, but I am still impressing myself with my pretty tight groups, and ability to even find the target.  Shooting at a 6 inch circle, from distance, is not as easy as one might think.

As I knelt and aimed, shooting the round above, I got one hell of an ant bite, causing me to toss a wild round at the 6 inch Shoot NC target.  The next 12 rounds fell in a 2 inch group.  Not bad for an old dude.  I credit my ability to being able to shoot every day.  Were I to try this once a year, the results would be much different.
     Today, I used an old "Buffalo Hunter's Trick", and built myself a "Trigger Stick". It has been cut of a piece of the bamboo that I harvest and cure, and has been sanded and varnished.  This evening, or in the morning, I will try that and see if I can keep a pretty tight group.

     If I like it, I will add a minimal "sling", enabling me to carry it as I walk.  The vertical foregrip on my AR-15 fits into the open end of the Bamboo shaft, and gives me a really steady stance. 
    I shoot daily, from any of several of my firearms, because being able to to put the lead where it needs to be is more important than just "having" a firearm.  I have proven, to myself, that this proficiency is necessary to being a "good shot". 
   Shooting is fun, it is educational, and it is vital to being "self-protected".  64 years after having training at William's Gunsight, "On the Range", I still love that trip to the range,  especially so now, with the range being right outside my door.
On a cool and windy day in December, I just shot this 30 round group with my AR-15 from Bear Creek archery, resting the barrel on a saw horse, and letting fly from 100 Yds, I  kept everything inside 6 inches.  This is acceptable to me:

To welcome 2017 at my place, I went to my "safe place", aka my shooting range, and unloaded a 30 round magazine of 5.56 MM.  When I shoot, with each shot, I picture that 6 inch circle as being the head of anyone who would try to bring harm to me or mine.  Being in the right frame of mind can work wonders on ones accuracy: