Look Out, Annie Oakley

I've got a pretty comprehensive "bucket" list going.

You know, that's the elusive agenda of feats -- daring and otherwise -- that one wishes to do before one, er, kicks the bucket.

And, at the ripe old age of 54, my index of desires continues to grow.

But some items have remained constant for at least two decades now. For example, I want to speak French fluently. Swim the English Channel. Make a felony arrest.

Yes, you read that last one correctly. That fantasy likely began in the 1960s with Jack Lord, who never missed a shot as ace detective Steve McGarrett on Hawaii Five-O. How I loved that television crime drama. Between the strong-jawed McGarrett and the lush scenery of the Aloha State, I was a law-and-order believer.

In the 70s, it was the rumpled, cigar-smoking Columbo that caught my fancy. After Peter Falk's memorable character, my tastes ranged from Magnum, P.I., to the stylish Miami Vice.

Heck, even now, I'm likely to go through Monk-withdrawal.

So it was this weekend that I came one step closer to the whole woman-with-gun fantasy.

No, I didn't get to read a grisly drug dealer his Miranda rights, nor did I slap handcuffs on a wormy miscreant.

But I did fire a 20-gauge shotgun.

Invited to participate in the Central Coast Young Republicans annual skeet shoot, I decided it might be the closest thing to an arrest I'm going to get to make anytime soon. So I donned my cowgirl boots and joined young conservatives -- as well as three San Luis Obispo County Sheriff candidates -- for the competition.

The setting was beautiful, on the hillside of Mike Zimmerman's Arroyo Grande ranch. Zimmerman, the best choice in the race for SLO supervisor, hosted the event and his son, Joseph, loaned me the family rifle.

Thanks to the amazing instruction of my liberty-loving gun guru Thad Fendon, within short order, I was actually hitting those evasive clay pigeons when they flew into the air.


I'll have you know that at one grand moment, I nailed 5 in a row!

We've had a lot of exhilarating days since the campaign began, but this was the best for me. I loaded that wooden rifle, cried "PULL!" and pretended I was Annie Oakley. It just doesn't get much better than that.

Maybe I can't cross "felony arrest" off my bucket list yet, but I'm one step closer. And it was even more satisfying than I imagined.

Book 'em, Danno.