Winter Has Arrived In Southern Illinois

Just a few days before....

October e-Postal Scores

Pizza Night was a wild success, and while it was tough to get a high score with this target, everyone was able to shoot a respectable score. You can wash all this pizza down with a cold one over at Danno's blog with the November contest.

Many Thanks to all who took the time to shoot and send in their targets!

Rimfire Pistol	Iron Sights	Distance	Score
Billll	Ruger Mk I	25’	25 (1 Anchovy, 1 Olive Pit, 1 Olive, 2 Crusts, 5 Pepperonis!)
R J	Ruger Mk II Target	25’	23 (3 Anchovies, 1 Crust, 5 Pepperonis)
Mike B	S & W 617	25’	21 (2 Olive Pits, 1 Olive, 6 Pepperonis)
Pat B	Ruger Single-Six	30’	18 (1 Crust, 4 Olives, 3 Pepperonis)
True Blue Sam	Ruger Single-Six	25’	18 (2 Olive Pits, 6 Pepperonis)
Danno	Ruger Mk III .22/45	33’	16 (2 Olives, 1 Crust, 7 Pepperonis)
Chester J	Ruger Shopkeeper	25’	16 (1 Anchovy, 1 olive, 1 crust, 5 Pepperonis)
Kim J	Ruger Shopkeeper	25’	14 (3 Olives, 1Crust, 2 Pepperonis!)
Merle	Ruger Standard Model	25’	14 (1 Anchovy, 1 Olive, 1 Crust, 4 Pepperonis)
Danno	Ruger Single-Six	33’	13 (2 Crusts, 1 Olive, 4 Pepperonis)
True Blue Sam	German Sport Guns 1911-22	33’	12 (1 Crust, 1 Olive, 6 Pepperonis)

Rimfire Pistol	Red Dot Sight	Distance	Score
Mr. Completely	High Standard w/OKO Red Dot Sight	25’	37 ( 2 Anchovies, 3 Olive Pits, 2 Olives, 1 Crust!)
Mrs. True Blue Sam	Ruger Mk III Bushnell Red Dot Sight	25’	21 (2 Olive Pits, 1 Olive, 6 Pepperonis)
Merle	Ruger Mk II Red Dot	25’	9 (1 Crust, 6 Pepperonis)

Rimfire Pistol	Scope	Distance	Score
True Blue Sam	Ruger Mk III Bushnell 3X	25’	26 (2 Olive Pits, 1 Crust, 3 Olives, 2 Pepperonis)
Merle	TC Contender .22 LR, 2X scope	25’	10 ( 1 Ancovy, 1 Crust, 1 Pepperoni)

Centerfire Pistol	Iron Sights	Distance	Score
Merle	S & W M625	25’	20 (1 Anchovy, 1 Olive Pit, 2 Crusts, 3 Pepperonis)
Pat B	Colt Detective Special .38 Sp	30’	19 (1 Anchovy, 1 Olive Pit, 1 Olive, 5 Pepperonis)
True Blue Sam	S & W 66-1, 2 ½”, .38 Sp	33’	18 (1 Olive Pit, 2 Olives, 1 Crust, 3 Pepperonis)
Merle	British No 2 Enfield, 38/200	25’	17 (2 Anchovies, 2 Crusts, 1 Pepperoni)
True Blue Sam	Ruger Blackhawk 4 5/8”, .38 Sp	33’	16 (1 Olive Pit, 1 Olive, 1 Crust, 4 Pepperonis)
Chester	Bersa Thunder .380 ACP	25’	13 (1 Olive, 1 Crust, 7 Pepperonis)
Chester	Springfield XDM .45 ACP	25’	12 (1 Anchovy,1 Crust, 1 Olive, 1 Pepperoni)

Centerfire Pistol	Scope	Distance	Score
Merle	TC Contender 2X scope, 9mm	25’	12 (1 Crust, 1 Olive, 6 Pepperonis)

Rimfire Rifle	Red Dot Sight	Distance	Score
Pattie Ann	Ruger 10/22 Bushnell Red Dot Sight	25’ (Shooting off bench due to disability)	24 (1 Anchovy, 5 Crusts, 4 Pepperonis)

Centerfire Carbine	Iron Sights	Distance	Score
Mr. CCBBCC	M1 Carbine .30 cal	33’	15 (1 Anchovy, 1 Crust, 1 Olive, 4 Pepperonis)

Drilling For Daffodils

In addition to the wildflower beds, we have just finished a couple of new daffodil beds next to the road. We hauled the generator out so we could auger the holes, and had the bulbs planted in record time. Stay Tuned for photos next spring of our new flower beds.

Wild Flowers! We're Gonna Have Them!

 Our wildflowers put on a show for us every spring...

They are next to our driveway, where it joins a busy county blacktop.  Our neighbors enjoy the show every May and June.  We prep in the fall for the next spring.  We rented a tiller from the local Soil and Water District, and tore up the ground to mix this year's seeds into the soil;  we will add some more for good measure.  We should have a good show next spring. 

Sweet 'Taters!

We have been busy doing fall chores around the farm.  Digging the sweet potatoes is always a joy.

Ghosts Of Summers Past?

The pond puts on a good show in the morning to remind us that the seasons have changed.

Mr. Completely's October e-Postal Contest! Pizza Night All Month Long!

I've jumped into e-Postal hosting with the October contest, and prepared a homemade pizza for everyone's enjoyment.  Click Here, or on the Pizza to go to the pdf file.  The rules are simple; 25 feet, or as close to that as you can set up at your range; shoot ten times per target.  Anchovies are worth 5 points, Olives are worth 3 points, the Crust is worth 3 points, and Pepperonis are worth 1 point.   Multiple hits on toppings or the crust are OK.   Hits that touch the center of an Olive count double, for 6 points.  You might touch a pepperoni and the crust with one shot; that will count for three on the crust.


Use the name you want published on this blog and on True Blue Sam.  Enter your Firearm, Sights, and Caliber, and we will sort them out into classes.  We kept the number of shots at ten so you can shoot multiple times for your best score, and enter as many guns as you like.  Send scans or photos of your targets to truebluetravelinman (at) gmail (dot) com by Sunday night, November 3, 2013.  We will publish the scores soon after that date.


The September contest runs through Sunday night, October 6, so you can shoot both of these contests during one range trip.

Man Of Constant Sorrow

No-One Is There...

Sadder Than Passersby Can Know

The tin has been torn off and this barn will soon disappear from the landscape.  We stopped to take some photos and there are barn swallows living in this barn.  We have a soft spot in our hearts for those special birds.  They are becoming more rare as these homes disappear from Southern Illinois.

We Remember

Spring Floral Show

Every Day Is Precious...

Nearly killed by a stroke less than a year ago, and now able to weed her garden; Mother Pat and her Schipperke. 

It's So Easy....

...to pick up wood.

The Joys Of Engine Shows

Pond Dam Maintenance

We are beginning the fight to rid our pond dam of woody vegetation; next step is an application of 2,4-D in May or June.

He Really Is A Brat!

My Bundle Of Love by TrueBlueSam Our cat Brat earned his name early-on, behaving like a Tasmanian Devil after we captured him and began the taming process. He's a good pet now, but he still has an assertive personality. He has been a handful when we play our old records, and we finally gave in and let him walk around on the phonograph while we play records. He's a pretty good dancer.

Big Doin's

 We had plenty of excitement at the end of 2012; we finally talked our favorite logger into moving in to harvest our black oaks, which have been dying off one by one for several years.  We had many pleasant trips to the landing to watch logs being skidded in, and loaded on trucks.

The loggers skidded the last logs to the landing on Christmas Eve, just a few hours ahead of a big snow that would have shut them down.  They were able to load the last of the logs out on New Year's Day, and then they moved their equipment to the next job.