Greetings from Williamsburg, Virginia! We are away for a little rest/spring break. I'll be here off and on.
I have been interviewed, recently by Lawyer Mama... here is how it went:
1. How old were you when you learned to shoot a gun and who taught you?
The first time I fired a gun was when I was 12 years old, at Boy Scout camp. I was decent at it... it wasn't difficult to do since we were only using a bolt-action .22
I really learned my trade after I entered the Marine Corps at age 17... I was terrified of the sergeants, and did EVERYthing exactly as I was told. I guess they told me right. They told me that I was "a natural" I guess they were right.
2. If you had to choose another century in which to live your life, which one would you choose?
If I HAD to go back in time, not that I would want to... I guess I would have to pick the 17th century. Being a black man in America hadn't quite come to mean what it would mean in the 18th and 19th centuries, after cotton became King.
3. Who was/is your most memorable role model?
I learned to be a man from the characters in the books I read as a kid, and from emulating Captain James T. Kirk, of the Starship Enterprise. Go ahead, laugh, but it's true. My parents divorced when I was 5. My dad was a career soldier, he wasn't around much. I was also heavily influenced by two of my Sergeants when I was a young Marine (I enlisted when I was 17) Staff Sergeant Ralph Andrews and Master Sergeant Mike Wosika. They taught me to be punctual, to be proud of a job well-done, and how to lead.
4. How often (if ever) would you say that you experience racism?
Rarely. We live in a very diverse area. Occasionally a white woman passing me in the mall will clutch her purse to her side as I pass... not that it would really help her if I wanted her purse, mind you... I'm not a small guy.
This question reminds me of an incident that took place about 14 years ago... I was meeting Mrs Gunfighter for a drink after work. It was a beautiful late spring afternoon, and a white woman at the same crosswalk as me clutched her purse as we waited to cross the street. I told her to relax, and that I wasn't going to steal her purse. She seemed both relieved and embarrassed that I called her on it.
5. Is what they say about what men wear under kilts true? LOL!
Yes... as a matter of fact, it is!
10 comments:
Captain Kirk, eh?
I had the BIGGEST crush on him growing up. I was a real Trekkie back in the day. (I try not to admit that too loudly.)
I'm glad you called that white woman on her bigotry. Perhaps she learned something that day from you.
Now, come by and see me in my new fancy digs...
Captain Kirk, that nice Canadian boy eh? ;)
And what exactly is it that they say about a man in a kilt (other than there's nothing underneath)?
Captain Kirk! Too funny!
Thanks for the info on the kilt, I have always wondered....LOL!
Thanks for playing.
One of my daughter's favorite people in the world is a tattoed black guy with a HUGE Afro, chipped tooth, and many Scarface t-shirts. He works at our local coffee shop. We see him on the street and she just beams. I usually get looks from other whites of how-could-you-let-her-be-touched-by-HIM? Proudly. He is one of the kindest people I know. And he gets alot of driving-while-black c^@p from our local (all-white) police.
So, are you offering to interview others? Just a slight hint...
Great interview! I'm glad you called that woman on it! I guess I get a little passive-agressive sometimes if I'm being followed in a department store. It doesn't happen often, but it's quite obvious when it does, so instead I start following them and then they leave me alone!
Great interview. I'm glad you called the lady on her purse clutching as well. I've had the same thing happen a few times. I had to ask a woman what sense it would make for me to steal her purse since I had one of my own. It would look mighty silly for me to be walking down the street with two handbags. She laughed and looked really embarassed.
Even in our very diverse area, people have gotten up from their seats, when I sit next to them. My son has been stopped while walking and riding a bicycle. The incidents however, are declining more and more every day, every year. Someday..
Enjoyed the interview.
Funny post!
Captain Kirk? Really? Did. you. master. the. art. of. speaking. with. many. dramatic. pauses?
(hee-hee) I am envisioning you channeling Captain Kirk while wearing your kilt! :)
Visiting here from Smiling Mom's place. Interview day is a good time to be here!
I'd really like to take a gun safety class. Good for general knowledge, and one never knows . . .
Lady M,
If you decide to take courses, continue to train with guns after you finish.
Firearms require real skills, if you commit to their use, you can't train once and think that it is enough.
Trust me. If you need any advice, shoot me an email.
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