Times change

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great plains
Time flies faster than one of these new jacketed bullets propelled by smokeless powder
 

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Boy, how times change. I don't know how many of you pulled this picture in to see the old man, but what a story he had to tell. His year shooting a ML were probably shared to this young pilot. Even my years in Utah have been more of an evolution of change than probably most you. I remember when the sound barrier was broken in 1947 by Yeager. In my teen-age years, if you wanted to shoot a muzzleloader, almost all were the old originals. I live in Utah and when I started to hunt deer the population was around one million people and still being one of the smaller states we are now over three million people. There were no freeways in the state during my young adult life. There were Mule Deer everywhere. Just purchase a permit, go hunting in October for 10 days and it was over. No archery or muzzleloader hunts. Taxidermy heads were boiled skulls, glass eyes and filled with sawdust. They called our valley "Rooster Valley" because there were so many wild pheasants. Now there are none. Some dumb Wildlife Biologist planted racoons in the 40's here, eventually ending the wild pheasants. In the early 60's brought the special archery hunts. It took Utah 10 years to finally make a special muzzleloader hunt. I was there to indulge in both of those first hunts. The first ML hunt was in November with very few hunters with their trusty TC. CVA, or Zouave ML'ers. None of us really knew how to hunt with those 100 yard or less guns. We were used to the 30-30s. We joined Black Powder clubs of which there were many and learned the Art of MLing. Then came the in-lines, the clubs went to the grave in the rural communities, we are required to now draw for the hunts and the Granola people are starting to take over with the bicycle trails everywhere in our 70% State and Federal Government Lands. That is my tail of woe and I have just about seen it all.
 
When the Late season flintlock only season started up in Pa.. , 1972. Everyone was trying to find their m/ling rear ends , w/both hands , figuratively speaking. Trying to use ctg. gun technology to kill deer with 100 yd . rifles , and muskets. We slowly started to learn the art of "still hunting" , 2 man stick drives , slowly moving deer to another m/l er , using those old walki-talkies size of a red brick to position the poster ahead of the deer being pushed. We were game to try anything to put meat in the freezer. The little m/ling knowlege out there was to be found at the local m/iing shooting club. Somebody there had a brain storm , and as a club group thing , we decided to try "driving" deer on state game lands. At the appointed morning , 7 or 8 vehicles pulled into the Blame Commission parking lot , with guys and gals loading their rifles reading to drive deer. The old State blame comm. land Manager living there , came out and inquired what we were going to do. He was surprised when we informed him that m/l season for deer had started , though he didn't know there was such a season. Good thing he knew little about legal flint lock firearms , as some of the guys were Civil war reinactors , and hunted that day with 1862 percussion rifled muskets. We musta done something correct , we bagged three deer that day. It was a start irretrievably down the m/l rabbit hole.
 
In the 90s I worked in a nursing home. There was a resident that was near a century old. She was widowed with a seven year old boy and lived on a small farm in Calico Rock Arkansas.
She remembered the very first time she rode in a car, and saw her first plane at a county fair. She was seventy before she got electric, and until she came to a nursing home she never had indoor plumbing
 
At 56 I am a Spring Chicken it seems.
But, I still remember a dime to make a call or send a letter. 8 tracks and reel to reel. :) 8mm home movies and Polaroids. Mainstreet had prosperous shops and the best Taffy was made in one of those shops in nearly every town.
Computers were for the Military, mega corps and Universities. I scoffed when I was told we would all have them. Guess I was wrong on that one. lol

Finally got rid of the landline phone 2 weeks ago. Only scam calls and Medicare hustlers called it. Probably should have given it up a few years back. Just stubborn.
 
At 56 I am a Spring Chicken it seems.
But, I still remember a dime to make a call or send a letter. 8 tracks and reel to reel. :) 8mm home movies and Polaroids. Mainstreet had prosperous shops and the best Taffy was made in one of those shops in nearly every town.
Computers were for the Military, mega corps and Universities. I scoffed when I was told we would all have them. Guess I was wrong on that one. lol

Finally got rid of the landline phone 2 weeks ago. Only scam calls and Medicare hustlers called it. Probably should have given it up a few years back. Just stubborn.
I used to spend A LOT of my allowance on those balsa wood airplanes. .15 cents. That same plane is still sold today, Hobby Lobby, for $4.99! (not the rubber band kind either). Hershy bar was a dime. Movies? When it went to .50 from a quarter we were forced to boycott (by the folks). Oh, and the box of popcorn was .25. I first heard Grand Funk on an eight track! Those were the days!!!
 
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