And now For Something Totally Different

Yesterday, I had an unusual experience.

Something that has never happend to me in my ten years of experience as a tactical firearms instructor. I was working with some agents from a different agency, helping them and their instructors through pistol and shotgun qualification, when I noticed something. Something important.

Most of the agents, and their lead instructor were women.

It's not unusual* to be shooting with female officers and agents... I work with quite a few women, but generally speaking, women do not make up the bulk of the agents I work with.

Of the seven shooters I had yesterday, five were women.

On top of that, they were all very young... the youngest was only 21! They made me feel very old... especially as I was giving instructions... they were all calling me "sir". I'm not sure if the sir business was a matter of respect for my skills and position or just because I'm an old dude (probably the latter).

Most of them were at least decent shooters, which was a plus.

ADDENDUM: I am self-aware enough to realize that I am probably most-bothered by the fact that they were women... not girls, not teenagers... Adult women, calling me sir.

Friggin' middle age!

*Hat tip to Tom Jones