On Saturday, April 13, I had occasion to “interface” with our local state police barrack. My brother-in-law was giving me a pistol in exchange for my old car and we had to get the pistol registration transferred to me. I called them the day before and asked about the procedure. They told me they could do it (will yeah, it’s one of their jobs) but, they being terribly busy, I should just go to a gun store and have the store do the paperwork. The problem there is the local gun store is packed these days, charges $90 plus a $10 state police fee. The state police just charge the $10. Care to venture a guess where we went?

 We dutifully arrived about 9:30 AM. The corporal in charge told us to go in and have a seat as they were terribly busy; shuffling police cruisers around in the parking lot as far as I could tell. We did as instructed. About 20 minutes later the corporal came in and gave us some papers to fill out. Among the information requested on the list was a “firearms safety training certificate number?” It was not mentioned verbally that honorably discharged armed forces veterans don’t need to take the safety class but the form states it. I knew this and did the mentioning. I was asked for proof. Other than a host of sea stories, I didn’t have any on me (I always knew I should have gotten one of those USN over an anchor tats – I just knew it).

So off we went back home to get a copy of my DD214 – honorable separation from active duty form. My brother-in-law was stunned I still had such a document. The fact that it has “This is an important record – safeguard it” in big letters at the top impressed me 40 years ago so, hey, I kept the thing. It came in handy too, come to think of it, when I got my VA house loan in 1984 and needed a security clearance for my job. It will also get me a VA grave marker when the time comes!

 As added proof, I also bought my boot camp graduation picture (yup, that's it). When we returned, the form DD214 was accepted as proof, the photo was not. Hey, I never thought it would be but I was a bit disappointed when my little attempt at humor elicited not so much as the hint of a smile. Finally, two hours later, it was all done. After a 10 day waiting period from the date of the paperwork filing, I will be the new official owner of the pistol.

 The last time I actually fired a gun was in 2006; incidentally at our state police training academy. Our son was beginning training and the state police conducted a family gun safety day for families of the soon to be new troopers. We saw a William Shatner “Rescue 911” episode about a policeman who left his loaded gun within reach of his toddler daughter (she survived by the way). Then we saw the recruits demonstrate their marksmanship and then got to give it a go ourselves. They actually taught me how to get a respectable shot grouping with a semi-automatic pistol; something the US Navy and Marine Corps were never able to do.

 Last Monday our plastic goose and two ducks were abducted from the planters in front of our house. The two ducks were my late mother’s and I took them home with me on the day I went to settlement on her house in 2007. My wife and I are irate to say the least. Living in an ethnically diverse state, I am hiring a member of the local immigrant community to put a voodoo curse on the thieves. Will it work? Who knows; but it will make me feel better.

 We also have several “psychic readers” who have opened shop near us. Maybe for $15 bucks, one of them can tell me where our goose and ducks are. I am doubtful though. They put “open” signs in their front doors. It seems like a good psychic reader would know when a customer is coming and be ready to meet them as they arrive.

 Big events are looming in my near future – a “Day out with Thomas” with my grandson and reenactment commemorating the 150^th Anniversary of the Battle of Chancellorsville. My enthusiasm for the latter is waning but if I go, it will provide good blog material (maybe). Still, my increasingly blasé attitude toward civil war reenacting plus my duties in caring for our dachshund as he recovers from back surgery may cause me to sit out Chancellorsville 150. But if not, I guess it will be better than having been at the first one.