hunter vs. sort-of hunter

last night we had our neighbors over and, as it goes with meeting any new folks, you skirt around the issues of politics, race, social status, student loans ... all those scary big-people issues. after they left, lou mentions something gun related and i reply with a "well, i am a hunter ... or, sort-of hunter .... well, new hunter." so all day i've been thinking about just that. when do i get to call myself a hunter? am i a turkey hunter if i've never shot a turkey? am i a prairie dog hunter ... since that was the thing to do on weekends in wyoming? i wanna be a pheasant hunter but does one (okay, maybe two) times out in the field count?

i get around the college friends and start throwing out tidbits like why i like my 20 gauge better than lou's 12. why i had to go with a full choke on my benelli for turkey hunting as opposed to getting a turkey choke.

but, then i realize i'm just talking myself up. i don't own a single piece of blaze orange ... how un-hunter of me. my top trap score was a twelve and even that was mostly beginners luck. i've never shot anything bigger than a goat and as much as a i want to go deer hunting, i don't know if i could actually go through with it. my shoulder gets bruised after two rounds of trap and more often than not, lou has to remind me what the heck the difference is between a size four shot and a size eight.

so, sometimes i feel like a badass lady hunter ...

and, sometimes i feel like i'm a kid sitting at the adult table when i shouldn't be ...

i guess the word here is patience. and practice. and that it all comes with time.