So I decide to take my Ruger Blackhawk out for some target practice down at the local range, and there's a whole heap of kids milling around like the Hot Topic let out. They were pointin' some at the wall and going "that's neat". That's when I looked at the wall myself and at first thought they were doin' somethin' for the impending Hallowe'en.
Cute targets have existed a while - I go with the standard bullseyes and the formal targets for target practice, but they got them some posters that people can use to shoot at something that looks like someone - there's ones with photos of bad guys that look like they came out of some 1980s video picture, and of course, when the 9/11 thing happened they had Osama targets and "terrorist" targets to shoot at. Back in the 1980s they had ninja ones and all that. Well I'll be damned if someone didn't up and make some targets for shootin' ranges that look like the living dead.
They got them some Nazi zombies, some girl zombies, and some feller zombies. They even come with a disembodied brain alongside - I understand you're supposed to shoot em in the brain to make em stop, though why they keep their brains outside their heads is beyond me.
They put actual target lines over the where the brain would be, like a vitals target for deer or turkey, as well as ones over the disembodied brain. Guess it's so you can practice finishing off ones with their brains in or their brains out - kinda like folks my age keepin their teeth in or out depending on the social occasion and time of day.
To the great surprise of the maniac with the high and tight behind the counter, I purchased four of them, for the goodly sum of two dollars each. He was surprised - normally I don't go for the fussy stuff, and full color disembodied living dead targets aren't typically a "thing" for a man my age. But I bought em anyway - rolled em up - brought em into the pistol range, and kept em rolled up.
That kept em all surprised, even as the kids were plinkin' away at them. One kid with the earrings was a damn fine pistol shot, most of the Asian girls they was with couldn't shoot a damn, and they all seemed to like this Ed Hardy feller, whoever he is. They saw me buy the same targets, but set up the ones I brought from home, saving a mess o' money by buying them from the mail order.
When I got home and put my Bulldogs cap on the table, she asked if I was planning on joining in with the Hallowe'en this year. Her and Joan were off buyin' all manner of Target things, magazines by Martha Stewart and all that, Mr. Potatohead style accessories for the impending pumpkin they're gonna drive miles out to hand-pick even though the Kroger will have them in a week or two.
That's when I pinned up "Roxie" and "Becky" in the kitchen, and said I was done with my help with the decoratin'.
They got to sayin' I wasn't really doin' any decoratin', and them posters was creepy, when the kids came home. One of the grandkids saw them targets and thought I was the coolest Paw Paw ever. Went to his room and cranked some kind of highway construction noise pollution he said was a White Zombie. I'll take cool, at my age a man'll take any "cool" he can get.
If you're fixin to take a look at or order some of these, they're at but Lord knows fer how long.