If only we had known back then

[BB_TX]

The recent long thread about generator bonding got me to thinking. I know, a dangerous pastime. There was a brief mention of electrons and how they move thru atoms to create current. And I was a bit surprised that I remembered most of what I learned over 50 years ago. The more I thought about it the more I realized that things I studied in school, both public school and college, and how I wondered why I had to study that because it would be of no use later on. I was wrong. I was not a great student. But….

When I see a news story related in some way to some historical event, I understand that story because I studied it long ago. When I read some story maybe about controversial things in government, I remember some history about how the basis for those questionable things originated and I become more interested.

I may read some seemingly irrelevant story about some animal, or insect, or even a plant, and I grow more interested because I suddenly remember studying about that in high school biology.

I wondered why I had to take algebra and trigonometry and calculus. But over the years I used what I had learned to calculate unknown values and angles when doing some projects involving woodworking or metal work that were not all straight lines.

Chemistry? Who, other than some scientist, would ever need that. But later I realized I could understand statements about things in our natural world where otherwise I would not have had a clue.

Things as varied as pressure/heat relationship, causes of weather events and patterns, solid/liquid/gas relationships and interactions, materials actions related to temperature, space and the interaction of planets, stars, and galaxies, and the list goes on.

Had I known then what I know now I would have paid more attention. Sorry about the long musings of an idle mind.

[DutchmenSport]

Absolutely agree with you on everything you pointed out. I was a very poor student in grade school (not financially, poor in mind). I saw no value in school. I sloshed off a lot. It wasn't until my Junior year in High School I started thinking about my future. By then, it was almost too late.

I did go to college with a high school GPA of around 2.0 (does anyone still remember what that translates too? If you don't know, that's an average of a "C". Do you even know what a "C" means? With a GPA of 2.0 I almost did not qualify. But I pleaded and begged and then worked my tail off learning how to study and actually focus on something for the first time in my life. I complete college with something like a 3.5. That translates to a B+ or A- Half way between A and B.

In today's educational system, who knows what is being spit out. It certainly isn't "education." But one thing is for sure, everyone going through grade school and high school these days sure can feel good about themselves. But, no clue how to write cursive or do math or balance a check book.

[mlh]

When I was there machine shop class I decided to make a 22 mag out of a 22 long rifle. We could take our gun to school then. Knowing nothing about chamber reamers I selected a drill slightly larger than the brass case and ran it in far enough that the 22 mag round would go in. The barrel was bent so I thought I had nothing to lose, wrong. I waited until I got home loaded up a round, pulled the trigger and the rifle jumped out of my hand in three pieces. I wasn’t hurt but that ended my gun smithing for at least 10 years.
Some of the kids graduated with honors not me I graduated with luck.
Lynwood

[BB_TX]

Experience is the best teacher. Or so said Julius Caesar. And I would add, as long as you don’t get maimed or worse in the process.

[Mikendebbie]

6th grade was in Jr. High and it was the first time each class was in a different room…the bell would ring and I would run to my locker to get the book for the next class. It was in the original high school building - a grand old 3-story building built in 1928 I think. I thought “I’m getting somewhere now - I’m a big kid!” I particularly enjoyed diagraming sentences in 5th period English class. I made good grades in science and math, and I still use those basics in my job for the past 40 years. I wish I had been able to take wood shop, car mechanics, welding and Ag - but my sports took up that time. I started off going out for every sport but dropped one sport per year when I figured out that I was not gifted in that area. Basketball was first victim. Did you know you have to run AND dribble at the same time? Then it was track - then baseball. I settled on football and tennis.

Lynwood’s .22 caliber story reminded me of a something. In early summer after 2nd grade, my neighborhood friends and I found some .22 cal short bullets (somewhere? Now I don’t remember how we got them). Took them to my house and I got my dads hammer, put one on the concrete driveway and I hammered down on the butt end…loud bang and the hammer flew out of my hand. That was cool - let’s do it again. We took turns until the bullets were gone. We thought it was like caps. To this day I have no idea how none of us got hurt or where those bullets landed.

[DutchmenSport]

Talking about guns? My dad had a couple shot guns, I fired one of them, only once. So, basically, I was not trained or schooled or coached on guns at all, other than, ... keep away from them (so I did).

When I was about 14, my dad's friend let us use his cottage in Southern Indiana. Actually, this "cottage" was a 2 story house in the forests of Brown County, absolutely beautiful, completely decked out. My dad left my mother and me there and he had to return back to work. We were there alone for about 5 days.

Well, the owner had quite the gun collection, including several riffles and shotguns, and nothing in locked cabinets (especially back then).

Well, I was fascinated by these guns and talked my mother. I found a BB gun and she said I'd be OK playing with that one. So I did.

So, how do you load the BB's???? I ended up dropping one in the part that loads (you know, that lever thing). And I could not get the BB out. I ended up cocking the gun and the lever was open. Stupid me, I was trying to get the BB out looking real close inside there when the trigger snapped... and so did that cock thing, right across my nose!

Well, that was the end of that. The BB fell out, I put the gun away, and my nose swelled up about 3 times it's normal size. I had 2 black eyes, and my mother decided to tell my dad when we saw him the next time, that I slammed into end of a door at night, in the dark, going to the bathroom. Actually, my dad bought that story.

I never picked up another gun until I went into the Army, and I've had sinus problems every since I was 14 years old. I'm am 100% positive that blow across the bridge of my nose, broke my nose. Breathing has never been the same.

[mlh]

I’ve been extremely lucky in making a living. I was always interested in accurate rifles. I was in the machine shop business and ran out of work so in looking for something to do I thought back to making a friend bench rest reloading dies 15 years earlier. I started making reloading dies and that turned into other products. And now over 30 years later I’m still making products for shooters. It’s really the people. Shooters are the nicest people on earth. They call and order a product. We put an invoice in the box and they all pay. We have friends all over the country from one end to the other. Before I go somewhere I call a friend and ask where to go and what I should see. My favorite places to camp are places friends told me about the Shirley Basin, Union Pass. If I wont to go hunting or fishing I have a buddy there.
Lynwood