When I was in Huntsville in December, we shot off some 22 rifles with some friends. I had never shot a gun before, so it was a new experience for me. I am right-handed, so I support the gun on the right side of my body, with my right hand on the trigger and my left on supporting the barrel. Like this:
It turns out I couldn’t hit the side of a barn from the inside of the barn.
Part of my problem is my vision – I have always had problems with depth perception due to a lazy eye (which is hardly noticeable, honest, my hunchback and lisp usually distract people) and farsightedness. When I am tired, one of my eyes drifts inward. But also, if you are shooting with the right side of your body, and cocking your head to the right and using one eye to sight. . . . it should probably be the RIGHT eye that is open. Right, cause that is the eye that is directly over the gun. When I tried to shoot with both eyes open, I couldn’t sight the gun properly.
As I recounted this story to my family on Christmas Day, my brother asked me why I didn’t just close my left eye instead. Wha?! My left eye instead? What are you talking about? One can only wink with one eye!
That lead to the entire family (uncle, aunt, aunt’s mother, cousin X 2, 98-year-old grandpa, husband, and brother) doing the double wink. Left. Right. Left. Right. “Ha ha! You have brain damage!”
Really? My mother can only wink with one eye too, (the other one from me) but maybe she was just feeling sorry for me.
January 3rd, 2013 Extra-Ordinary: Despite trying for weeks now to wink with my left eye, the only thing I have accomplished to date is a weird Popeye squint and a left leaning head cock. Brain Damage indeed.
PS. I know you might think that I was shooting with Steven Paige of Bare Naked Ladies fame, but that is his Doppelganger.
The Daily EO 