Lee convinced us to park the RV in his driveway and just forget about it. He wanted to take us to the shooting range and teach us how to use our gun. We had decided that having a gun, just for protection was a pretty good idea for two girls on the road. Luckily, we had an experienced and helpful cousin to help us pick out the right one, a .410 gauge. "This is the gun I used to shoot them squirrels out my window with." Perfect for us.
But, the shotgun had sat on the floor, next to the bed, with the shells safely in a drawer, for many weeks. Mom used to shoot cans off the fence in the fields, back in the day, but Nicole had never fired a gun. Lee was just the man, and knew just the place. We met some more of his friends, a lovely recently engaged couple, at the Shoot Straight Shooting Range. We signed all the paperwork, copied our licenses ("Ah, New Yorkers! You guys comin' down for some real freedom, huh?"), put in the ear plugs, eyeglasses, and stepped into the range. The incredibly loud firing of multiple guns and the smell of used caps was pretty disconcerting at first. Have never heard such a racket.
Eased up to the lane, hung up our target silhouette, and Lee gave us a quick lesson of how to lock and load. Nicole stepped up first, wiping the sweat of her palms and finding the sweet spot on her shoulder to steady the sight and cushion the blow. She aimed, slid her finger onto the trigger, and focused. Deep breath out. Ready, set….ready….. Nope. Chickened out. What if there was a defect? What if she forgot to pull some packing material out? What if they weren't the right bullets? Lee offered to take the first shot, and Nicole readily accepted.
After seeing him fire the gun, she was ready to jump in. The first shot was both more and less powerful than she expected. She hit the target and didn't drop the gun. The adrenaline drained fast and the next few shots fired off without a problem. It was her gun, now. Mary Lou's turn.
Mary Lou didn't hesitate to get off a few shots. No fear. No adrenaline. But, for some reason, she doesn't feel she needs to use the sight. She is correct in thinking that our PDX40 bullets give off a good spray to stop anyone in the immediate area, but, every shot she fired hit the floor. She said she doesn't mind. From the start, when asked, "could you really shoot someone?", she has always said, "if they're coming in our RV, anywhere near my daughter, i'm shooting their nuts off." I guess her aim is just perfect.
Lee let Nicole fire off a few clips of his Smith and Wesson 9 mm. She hit the bullseye more than once, and was pretty proud of her steadiness and aim. After all the fun of using their second amendment right, the group packed up and headed out for some yummy German fare at Mr. Dunderbak's. Of the hundreds of world beers, Lee introduced us to a few winners, especially Aecht Ochlenteria Rauchbier (original Schlenkeria Smokebeer), which had hints of bacon that hit the side of the tongue. Spent a long time chatting and laughing and headed across town to another pub for some more beer and a few rounds of very competitive darts. Sarah finally took a break from her college homework and joined us for another round at another pub and then sushi and drinks at a funky sushi place. A few more friends joined there, and in the course of making merry, invited us to their birthday party bake the next day. "What are you baking?" "Alaskan King Crab legs." "We'll be there."
Suki was throwing the party for her boyfriend, Josh, and his favorite was crab legs. Both sides of their family were there, and friends, and Suki did an amazing job steaming up 25 pounds of crab legs. We each got two crabs, foiled steamed in cream cheese and heavy cream and garlic and herbs. It was just too good. And so nice of them to include us in their festivities. Absolutely lovely people all around in Tampa, but it was time to get moving on. Northward bound.
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