Tuesday, April 10, 2018

It once was lost, but now is found! Happy Day!

Ruger Bearcat
In 1959, in Anchorage, Alaska, (before digital anything, ballpoint pens, computers, seat belts, radial tires, color TV) my mom and dad entered a jitterbug contest (It's a dance.).  First Place was this pistol.  The next year, on my 10th birthday, my parents gave me the pistol, and the holster my dad hand-stitched for it.  We used it to finish moose, goat, caribou, squirrels, rabbits, monsters, lions, tigers, and bears. A few years ago, I took it to the Georgia Region NSTRA Ironman Trial in Sparta, GA.  It was the last I saw of it.  As much as I loved that pistol, I had to remind myself, "It was only a tool.  A tool attached to my past and my parents, but only a tool."

Yesterday, in a burst of energy, I was registering for the Veteran's Administration. They really didn't require any documentation (they said they'd verify everything), but I wanted to send along my DD-214 and whatever else I could find.  That meant rooting through file drawers and closets.  Lo and behold!  In one of the file drawers, I found this little beauty!  Cleaned, oiled and ready to go!  I think it would be impossible to be more surprised!  And delighted! My little Ruger Bearcat .22 was home!  Of course, it was home all the time, and my "age-appropriate" memory degeneration meant I lost it, then found it again. 

I looked up the Ruger website to try and ascertain the age of the pistol.  The Serial Number is N033. I think this is the 33rd pistol manufactured from 1958-1976.  I'm not positive about that, but it sure looks that way!  I sent off for a verification from Ruger.  That would be a nice way to remember my jitterbugging parents from "back in the day"