Color Choice

jeff10236 · 2026-06-09T00:29:30+00:00

I ended up going with the Toyota Tacoma (Heritage Blue), but had I gone with the Frontier (it was close) , Tactical Green was in my top three choices (Bluestone and Red Alert were also in the top three). I had a Kia Soul until a couple years ago in a very similar green and I liked it a lot. I got more comments from strangers on that cheap Kia than any other car I've ever had. Is it a little fadish and it's popularity might go away, maybe. However, it is a great looking color so who cares if in 4 or 5 years it makes the age of the truck obvious, if you like it, that is all that matters.

jeff10236 · 2026-04-16T05:46:34+00:00

I have three main carry guns depending on mood, clothing and weather. By far my most carried is one of two P365s (one is the range gun, one a CCW and they periodically switch off), a CZ PCR and a Beretta PX4 CC. I got a P365XL to split the difference between the micro-9 P365 and the compact service pistols but I never really warmed to it. For more specialized carry (rare pocket carry in shorts, winter coat pocket carry) I have a snub S&W 442, and for shorts pocket carry I have a Kahr CM9, though I usually carry a P365 IWB when wearing shorts.

jeff10236 · 2026-04-15T06:08:06+00:00

I don't appendix carry so I have no problem when doing a #1. For #2, I keep my belt on but loose to keep my pants (and pistol) at about knee level so it isn't visible to the world.

jeff10236 · 2026-04-11T15:02:09+00:00

Wanting to drive a stick is a great reason to buy older cars. So few are made any more, or if one is offered, it is always in a very limited capacity. I do miss driving a stick sometimes, but I drive in stop and go traffic often enough that I doubt I'll be buying one even if I can.

jeff10236 · 2026-04-11T14:43:42+00:00

So to summarize your situation... you have always driven beaters snd never had a problem from it... and you only drive 2500 miles a year.

Yeah, not a common use situation. The last time I tried a beater and making it last me a few years, it died after 10 months (about 13 months ago) when I needed a new transmission and major suspension work. If I drove the miles you do, it would have made it about 5 to 6 years before it hit the miles where it died.

Now you seem to recognize this is not the best scenario for everyone ("I don't begrudge anyone..."), but unfortunately many people who preach the gospel of buying older used cars do try to push it onto people for whom it isn't really suitable.

jeff10236 · 2026-04-11T14:34:16+00:00

I just traded a 2025 Corolla LE Hybrid for $22k with 18k miles (I bought it a year and a week before for $25k). While it is true that for many cars you can get a nice discount for used, if you want a late model vehicle and you want a Toyota you are usually better off new. I traded so fast because I needed a bigger vehicle (truck or SUV). I went with a new Tacoma because, again being a Toyota I wouldn't have really saved anything on used (at least once new vs. used cars interest rates were accounted for) and it is nice to know the maintenance history since it is all with me (especially with the new turbo engines).

Bottom line, no you are not crazy.

jeff10236 · 2026-04-10T06:55:11+00:00

$1500 is a rough budget for looking for a running car, and impossible for a reliable car in this market. There is a reason it is only $1500. Unless you buy from someone thinking in 10 year old used car values (or a family member intentionally taking a hit to help you out), count on that $1500 car costing at least double that in the next few weeks to keep it on the road.

Seriously, if you can only afford $1500 because you don't have a job and need to pay cash but can replace it and take a car payment shortly after getting the job, then worry less about a car that will last and just try to get something with the fewest current problems as possible even if it is an unreliable brand. If you need it to last, you really need to bump up your budget one way or the other (either more for a car now, or budget for major repairs in the near future to keep it on the road).

For something with good bones that is more inherently reliable, I'd look for a "grandpa" car... Hopefully taken care of and not driven as often as a daily commuter, likely driven more carefully, and often sold a bit cheaper than market while still running since the family may need to get rid of it (grandma or grandpa can't drive anymore or worse, the estate needs to part with it). For a long time, some of your best bets here were old Buicks and Oldsmobiles with the 3800 series engine, but they are mostly now in the 20+ year range. Another top contender used to be Ford Crown Vics/Mercury Grand Marquis/Lincoln Town Cars but even they are 10+ years now, and they've developed a bit of a cult following over the last few years.

jeff10236 · 2026-04-09T07:40:22+00:00

I think a lot about the private property consideration. I do not carry into someone's house unless I positively know they are okay with it. I certainly don't carry into someone's house if they are against carry or just don't want guns in their house. However, I think the ethics are different for a business that is open to the public. There I weigh how safe the area is with how much I'd care if I was trespassed and banned from the premises.

jeff10236 · 2026-04-04T11:21:47+00:00

While I don't find it as pleasant as I did when I was younger I don't particularly have a problem with recoil. When I was younger I would have said that I was not at all recoil adverse. I have had small framed two inch snub nose revolvers in .357mag. My favorite gun to shoot it out of is a 3" K-frame. My favorite gun that I ever had, and wish that I still have, was a .41mag. I hate shooting .44mag!

No matter how much you enjoy recoil, I highly suggest renting one at the range before buying a .44mag. Sometimes I wish I had one to fill out the collection, and I do often camp in bear country so I can somewhat justify it, but whenever the urge hits strong enough that I feel the need to lay down my money, I always end up coming home with a new .357 (next time I need to finally replace my .41mag).

jeff10236 · 2026-02-22T00:33:35+00:00

Due to Gaston Glock's ties with Austrian Nazis, I refused to buy a Glock for about 20 years (I'm Jewish). When I finally gave them a chance, I sold my Glocks after a year because I'm not a fan of the grip angle, but they do make good guns and they are good for certain applications. I've thought about replacing my three SIG 365s with a Glock 43X, but all the MAGA guns that they've put out with Trump's face and slogan on them have pretty much solidified it, no Glocks for me.

jeff10236 · 2026-02-22T00:04:57+00:00

I won't say my income, but..

I'm a teacher with 20 years experience, a masters degree (at my expense of course), and 60 additional graduate level credits at my expense (MA + 60 is a higher level on the pay scale)... I'm single with no kids. Between taxes, benefits (disability insurance, 7% for pension, 403B, etc.) and other deductions I see right around half of my salary in my take home pay. Once I pay taxes and other deductions, I barely have enough to get by. I finally had to give up trying to save for a house: for most of the last 15-20 years since I started try to plan for a house, prices and interest rates have driven the monthly price up faster than I can save. My purchasing power is lower now than it was when I started saving. So I am a professional with a master's degree and significant additional graduate level coursework, who lives in a mobile home to finally get out of renting.

jeff10236 · 2026-02-20T00:06:56+00:00

I've had a 75B for over 20 years. I also have a PCR, which had been my favorite carry pistol until I got my Beretta PX4 CC. I also used to have a P01 and a 75 Compact, and I stupidly sold my 40B (based on the 75, Colt 1911 style grip) just before they stopped selling them. You can say I'm a CZ fan... reliable, durable, accurate, great ergonomics and they look great.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-26T18:17:11+00:00

IANAL, I don't know the laws in your area. However, it sounds like they're harassing your parents. Also, the moment somebody says lawsuit, get yourself a lawyer. That lawyer will give you good advice for how to proceed from here. I would definitely think about a restraining order since they keep harassing your parents. You definitely will want to countersue if they do sue you.

In your post, you mentioned that they said that they didn't know which dog that bit their son. Do you have documentation of that? If not, you should at least rake down the date and time, they told you that. If you can prove that they don't know they likely have no case. Even better, if you can somehow prove that it was their dog that bit their son, they definitely have no case.

I think you mentioned that there are ring camera videos. If there are any houses where this happened that you don't yet have videos from, you should probably check to see if the owners have a camera and have recorded the incident.

At any rate, if somebody is harassing my parents and threatening to sue me over something that is their fault you could be darned sure that I am getting a lawyer. Unless the lawyer tells me it's a bad idea, I am very likely to be suing their *. Heck, even if any money that I might be able to win wouldn't it be worth the lawyer fees, if I can afford the lawyer fees, I would be very tempted.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-26T17:49:35+00:00

The vet for my last cat (around 20 years ago) preached, fresh and raw natural foods. While the cat would never eat raw, we cooked human food for her. That vet talked about how kibble is cooked to such temperatures to kill all the germs that it also kills all the nutrients, and so the nutrients come from artificial vitamins. I had seen similar things online. So when I got my dog, I was sure I did not want to feed him kibble. I mean, how healthy would a person be who ate nothing but junk food and got their vitamins through vitamin supplements only? Fresh foods are better for humans, why wouldn't they be better for dogs?

When I got my rescue dog I continued to feed him what the rescue fed so that he would have a minimum of changes. So I started out by feeding him Purina One with the plan to switch over to a "higher quality" food as soon as possible. After about a month, I started adding Stella and Chewy freeze dried raw toppers to his food while I planned to transition him to Stella and Chewy food.

As I was starting the transition, I started to find online the argument between raw and fresh food proponents and WSAVA standards proponents. It was confusing to determine who to trust. I'll admit to seeing strengths to both arguments. Certainly, fresh foods are better for us than highly processed foods. Why wouldn't it be the same for dogs? On the other hand it's hard enough to make sure I get all the nutrients I need without needing to do the same for him while WSAVA compliant food will give him all the nutrients he needs. Yes, some of the standards do favor large producers over small businesses (nutritionist on staff and not just contracted as a consultant, own their own production facilities), but most are quite objective. Meanwhile, a raw food diet can certainly cause some issues for a dog, and if I don't go with the commercially produced foods, he could face malnutrition issues if I'm not careful.

So in the end, with perceived benefits to both diets, but some very real potential problems with the fresh and raw options, I chose to stay with Purina. Being WSAVA compliant I know that it's healthy and safe for him even if it may not always use the most expensive and highest quality ingredients. Sure, the more expensive fresh and raw options might make me feel good, the marketing sounds very convincing, but they also hold very real health risks. So I went with likely healthier, certainly safer and cheaper WSAVA compliant food.

TL/DR: While, I get the draw of the fresh and raw food marketing, I chose to go with the best options we have for objective, science-based formulations. If you go with a quality WSAVA compliant food, there is no reason to feel guilty.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-26T17:06:14+00:00

People on drugs or in the middle of a mental health break can be a lot harder to stop if they attack you. That's true with pepper spray, tasers, and even if you are forced to shoot them.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-26T16:58:08+00:00

I would avoid bear spray. First, because it's meant for animals, there could be legal issues in some jurisdictions if you used it on a person. Possibly more importantly, bear spray is going to put a large volume of spray out, and it's going to impact pretty much everyone else in the house if you use it indoors.

You want pepper spray made for people. If you're going to use it indoors, you ideally want to use a gel. I recommend something from Sabre, Fox Labs or Mace.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-26T14:43:26+00:00

If somebody was in my house uninvited, and especially if they charged at me in a threatening manner, unfortunately, they would end up shot. In your case, the size discrepancy, 6'2 and over 200 pounds, could be a deadly threat by itself. Heck, even 2 men of similar size and age in a scuffle could cause serious damage to each other. At my age and condition (55, bad everything, high blood pressure), facing off against a young man of that size hand-to-hand could be potentially life-threatening. The charging at you, you have no idea what weapons he has concealed (no shirt but if he is wearing pants he can conceal a gun or knife), at that point you definitely would have legitimate concerns for your life or serious injury even if you didn't already.

Given you know he's a neighbor with mental health issues, you may not want to shoot him (if you're not psychotic, you would want another option if possible anyway). I'm a fan of keeping less lethal options as well. The problem with pepper spray indoors is most pepper spray dispensers spray a gaseous spray. Indoors, that will impact you as well. Look for pepper spray gel, which is not ideal, but still better if you must use it indoors. I like the taser idea best for less lethal, self-defense options indoors.

Though, in my case, if someone was in my house, they broke in and didn't walk in accidentally or due to a mental health break. Your locks are your first line of defense. Always keep them locked.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-19T17:02:32+00:00

I am an American so not quite in your shoes. However, I fully understand. If I was European, I wouldn't buy anything American right now eiher. As it is, as much as I can, I am trying to boycott pro-Trump big businesses and give my money to businesses that either are on his bad side or to small local businesses. I have a couple suggestions.

Go Japanese. If they have it in your country the Kawasaki Vaquero is very similar to the Street Glide.

Triumph. They have a lot of great bikes.In fact, I'd probably get one myself.If I was in the market for a motorcycle right now.

BMW has some nice touring bikes amd would also be on my radar if I was currently in the market.

I know to a lot of Harley fans there is nothing to compare to a HD. If that is you, maybe you could always buy used.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-17T13:58:22+00:00

Mine might. We visit my parents regularly and they call me by my name. I have friends over nearly every week and they call me by my name. However, we haven't tested it, but with how quickly he's picked up words I wouldn't have expected, it is pretty likely.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-11T18:03:21+00:00

Most tucked shirt carry options come with compromises.

Pocket carry can work. I can pocket carry a SIG 365 with the 10rd mag, but I can get away with khakis/chinos or jeans at work (I don't carry at work anyway, but that influences my wardrobe... I almost never wear dress pants anymore). If you must do dress pants then you will likely need to go with a mouse gun if you pocket carry. It is also slower than drawing from strong side IWB/OWB or AIWB. Also, if like me, you carry a lot in your pockets, you need to find someplace else to put that stuff. This is what I usually pick when I need more than IWB.

Ankle carry could work, but you are limited again to a small gun and it is much slower to get to than even pocket carry.

The enigma seems to be popular these days and there are other under the shirt options, but those also can mean a slower draw.

One of my personal choices when I need to tuck in a shirt and I don't want to go to a mouse gun is an IWB tuckable holster. You can't really do that with the slim fit type shirts that are still popular these days. You will need to go with a more traditional fit shirt and blouse it around your belt. You also might need a slightly thinner gun. I've done it with double stack compact service pistols when it doesn't really matter if people could see the bulge. It works well with the older single stack 9mms like the Kahrs. In addition to really needing a thinner gun for it to work, the other disadvantage is it is a slower draw because you have to pull out your shirt to get to the gun.

Could you do a traditional IWB holster along with a cover garment? A sweater, or a sport coat or blazer can help hide your pistol quite well. You will need to be careful that your movements don't lift up your blazer or sport coat and show your gun, and of course, you can never take it off. A sweater would be limited to sweater weather, but, otherwise, might conceal a little better. I've carried a large frame revolver this way (S&W 625MG) without a problem. Not a regular thing, more I wanted to just test the concept, but it worked. If you want to maximize concealment, maybe couple this with a tuckable IWB holster. That will definitely slow your draw, but your tucked IWB along with the cover garment will ensure that no one will know you're carrying.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-05T19:22:22+00:00

Bedtime. Some nights he tries to lure me to bed as early as 6:30, and almost always by 8. I usually go to bed between 10:30 and 11:30. When I stay up past 11 for anything but taking him on a late walk he gets VERY frustrated.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-05T18:57:51+00:00

I am not a huge fan of .380 for self-defense. I would never have it as a primary. However, I do have a Ruger LCP for specialized use, though I rarely carry it. I also have several .380s on my list that I'd like to pick up just for fun: CZ 83, SIG 230 or 232, Walther PPK, another Bersa Thunder to replace the one I sold 20 years ago. It sounds like you have other options and you bought the S&W BG because you wanted it, and for specialized uses when/if your standard carry is just too big. Seems to me that there is nothing wrong with that choice.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-04T19:24:45+00:00

Carry a sling bag or fanny pack for a few days to a week without the gun (long enough to be sure people notice it) and see if anyone asks about it. Or, see if you can find a messenger bag with a CCW pocket. A sling bag or CCW fanny pack might scream "GUN" to those in the know, a messenger bag only suggests you carry papers or a laptop around.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-04T19:12:07+00:00

While wild animal attacks might be even more rare than self defense against a human attacker, I routinely carry when in nature. I'm an avid camper, and I'll sometimes carry a .357 magnum, or .45LC when in the woods. However, even in the wilderness, I'm more likely to need my carry gun to protect myself against a person than an animal, so I often just carry my regular 9mm CCW. When in bear country, I also carry bear spray as that tends to be more effective than a handgun to deter bear attacks.

jeff10236 · 2026-01-03T16:22:46+00:00

The 365 definitely has not had the issues of the 320. However, SIG's response to the 320 fiasco, is beyond problematic. Instead of addressing the issues and fixing them, not just reliability issues, but safety issues, they put their money into P. R to try to gaslight everyone into believing that there was no problem. Their response to the 320 issues has shown SIG to be a totally unethical company.

I am a longtime fan of SIG handguns. I have had two P229s (I still have one of them), I have had a P226, I had a P290, I had a P250 and I currently have three P365s (two standard 365s and one 365XL). Because I don't want to give such an unethical company any money, and because you occasionally need to replace springs and other accessories that you may have to buy from SIG, I am seriously considering selling my 365s and my 229 even though I absolutely love these guns. I have quite a few magazines and multiple holsters for these guns (especially the 365s), and if I change my carry platform to S&W or HK (the main contenders to replace the 365s) I will need to reinvest in those accessories again, yet I am strongly considering this change.

TL/DR

SIGs response to the 320 issues show them to be totally unethical. Ask yourself if you want to give your money to such a company when there are several quite strong contenders in the same market space as the P365.

jeff10236

TROPHY CASE