Ok, so I went to a gun shooting clinic yesterday.  Yes, this is very unlike me, as I am vastly pro-gun control.  However, I agreed to do this months ago with a coworker who was kind enough to invite me, so I made the trek out to Centerville Virginia early Saturday morning.  This clinic was all women learning how to shoot guns.  Some of them were pros, but some of them (like me) had never touched a firearm ever. 

The first class was learning how to shoot rifles and pistols.  I knew that I could not be timid and needed to try everything I could while I was there, otherwise I would be wasting my time and money.  My first experience was with a rifle.  The instructor was really nice and let me try lining up and shooting without bullets first, and she pretended not to notice that my hands were shaking.  However once the gun was loaded I was given a target, and I managed to hit on target seven out of the ten shots!  I was very proud of myself, even when my coworker informed me that most people were pretty accurate with the rifle.  Whatever...

I went on to shoot a pistol next.  Whew.  I only had a few minutes to learn how to do this. However, when I stood there and shot the pistol and felt the bullet leave the gun and the recoil shake my body, it took my breath away.  I fired five shots, and when I stepped back I was in awe.  I was able to hit the target two out of the five times, which I didn't think was bad for my first time.  The picture below shows the target.  Mine was the bottom right-I promise there are two shots in there!

The last thing in the class that I got to try was the black powder guns.  My coworker collects antique guns, so he showed me how to load it and how to shoot it.  He was very meticulous considering its quite a process just to load one bullet in one of those things.  Mike informed me that you can actually just order antique guns over the internet and they will send them with no questions asked because apparently they are "not considered weapons".  That made me feel good, you know, for safety reasons...=P  Another person had this humongus gun that was literally bigger than me at 5'10".  Just watching someone fire it was rather scary, so I said no to that. 

My second class was entitled "How to Avoid Becoming a Victim".  There were only five of us in the class, and it was actually really informative.  I now have some ideas on how I can make myself more safe living in the city, which pleased my mother.  The last class was shotgun, which was after lunch.  It was definitely my favorite class because we got to shoot clay pigeons that were flying through the air.  My favorite thing was watching the pigeon explode in the air, instant gratification!  Anyway, my claim to fame here was that I was the only one in my group to shoot two in a row on my first try.  One of the instructors yelled "ANNIE OAKELY!" which made me happy.  They gave me the bullet casings, which I kept. 

I think the person taking this had never used an iPhone, hence the blurriness



Anyway, after I left I called my mother and stepfather and told them about the experience.  My mother is just as pro-gun control as I am, but she was proud I wasn't sitting inside wallowing.  My stepfather was quite pleased, as he is a card-carrying member of the NRA...I received a certificate at the end, so perhaps I will send it home to them to frame and keep in their house!  It was an long day, but I enjoyed it alot.  I will definitely go again next year.  All in all, not a bad start to my project.