Tomcantwell

Where is Mike?!? Seemed to remember that paid off well last time

After a fairly large shop at the local tescos I used a self service till as all the others had queues. After meticulously packing ALL my shopping into bags I realised I hadn't scanned any of it. Had to unpack all of it and try again. Was so annoyed at my mistake I hurriedly left the shop and forgot my card in the card reader.

First day of secondary school I remember, all the kids from different schools trying to make themselves look the big dogs of the year. My attempts failed, got jumped by a group and help face down in a fairly deep puddle, and had a knife held to my throat by another lad, who later turned out the be the librarian.

Customers!! All day long. Spent 2 weeks on the most awful, difficult fencing job, only for the customer to come back, complain about bits that hadn't been finished yet, shake the posts that weren't fully set, and tell me he wasn't going to pay me. Had a rather heated discussion, I took all my panels off, and left him with, literally, a ton of concrete in post holes to remove. Lost a grand, and now I have £800 worth of panels at my yard.

I cheat, one of my local grounds is run by a good shooting coach, turn up when it's a bit quiet and he can't help but wander round and help you out. A singular round of 50 took me 3 hours once, he was offering that much help and advice I think my £12 of shooting was worth 20x more! On the flip side, was having a bad few months, couldn't seem to hit much so went for a lesson with a different instructor. £75 later he told me I had good form, and he couldn't recommend anything. Next time out I hit nothing.

Had one keep buzzing round the hide today, 32g 6 is more effective than raid.

I'm not sure about anyone else, but by the time I'm at a point of binge drinking, I couldn't see straight enough to read the label.

I've always wondered about the birds seeing my span. She's mainly white with a bit of liver, and it makes me think I'm spending all this effort on camouflage, only to take a bright (ish) white dog with me, thoughts? Edit: not that it matters at the moment, I could dress her up in tinsel and lights, I don't think I could see less pigeons.

I'm in Glos too mike, Forest of Dean, and I've seen barely any, and even less that want to commit to the decoys. Sat in a field that I shot same time last year, had birds coming in when I was stood in the pattern and this year I've had 3 shots at far passing birds. Where are they all?!? Edited as I can't spell where I live.

Going out with a friend for them tomorrow night! Can't wait. Cheers all, I'm convinced this site is to protect pigeons, everytime it goes quiet I check PW, only to look up and spot a pigeon going just out of range!

Been on here for years but never had the time to sit down and say hello. I'm a landscape gardener from Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire. Love pigeon shooting, beating, wildfowling and getting back into the air rifles. Spent so many hours on this site I should probably have it as my homepage to be honest. All the best, Tom

Having been on here a while, and knowing what lovely, generous people you all are I thought I would post this up. 2 years ago today I almost lost my best friend. He was driving to meet family at a farm to go pigeon shooting (I know you can all relate to that) when his vehicle hit a patch of standing water, he aquaplaned and lost control hitting several trees. The car was unrecognisable, smashed completely out of shape, and my best friend, Josh, was in the same way. Broken back, neck, ribs, severe brain injury and in a coma. The air ambulance was quickly on scene and the team worked with paramedics to attempt to stabilize Josh. He was taken to hospital and we all hoped for the best, but expected the worst. The injuries sustained were severe and if he ever woke up, his brain was badly damaged and he would never be able to walk again, as a keen shooter and promising rugby player this was awful news. Josh stayed in a coma for a couple of weeks, but finally he woke up. Traumatised, not recognising his own family and still seriously injured. During this period his group of friends and I organised fundraisers, music nights, a pub sports evening, charity clay shoot and a rugby match with his leaque side, school side, and very unfit group of friends. Donations poured in to help a well liked local lad and help his family convert their house and buy specialist equipment needed to accommodate Josh and keep him alive, the pub where he worked helped massively along with many other local organisations. In total over £7000 was raised. However, the tremendous work of the doctors paid off, and not only did Josh walk again, but after a long journey, he recovered completely. He now runs the beating line at the shoot, won apprentice of the year in his new job, and he still beats my scores on the clays. Now his family no longer required the money we had raised, and asked us to donate to the people who saved him. We decided to split the money between intensive care (who helped him to recovery) and the Air Ambulance, who contributed massively to saving his life on the day. We took our cheque, along with Josh's family, a small group who organised his fundraisers, and Josh himself to Frenchay Hospital to present them our money. The work they do is fascinating with a dedicated team of staff who really do put the effort in, and all of them remembered Josh, even 6 months on, despite treating many patients since. Then we took the second half of our money to the Air Ambulance station in Filton and they were hugely greatful. None of us quite realised the work these guys put in. Most of the staff are volunteers, doctors and nurses on days off, and the service is run entirely on donations. Day in, day out these heroes save lives, change lives, and do it from the goodness of their hearts. We left the headquarters speechless, disbelieving such an important service had to find the money to carry on themselves and this is the point I am getting too. (eventually I know) On the 24th of August I am doing a skydive, with a huge fear of heights, to raise money for the air ambulance, in the hope they will save more people like they did with my best friend. Anything you can spare, even a few pence, will get the helicopter in the air and save more lives. https://www.justgiving.com/Tom-Cantwell Thank you for reading. Tom Cantwell Oh, I forgot to mention, Josh has recovered that well, he'll be jumping aswell.

He shot a known gangster, in the company of other known criminals, whilst illegally held firearms were in the car. Am I the only one who thinks its not such a bad thing?

As a landscaper it's amazing how many people ask me to dump tree cuttings etc in the woods instead of the fee to take to the tip. Worrying part is they all look so surprised when I refuse.

I have a 'work uniform' of tattersall shirt and brown jeans. I've got my own landscaping business and find it looks much smarter than the usual scruffy jeans and t shirt. I'm convinced it has helped me win contracts over older most established firms. I've done subcontracting and had to wear a t shirt, felt so untidy. Also all my shooting clothing is work wear, and I've claimed the tax back