Day 3

Today my friend showed me around her University, Oakland University in Rochester Hills. I had a look around and got some ideas of the different shots I would like to capture and am planning to go back to shoot some images. Later that day we had a stroll through the shopping mall called "Great Lakes Crossing". Whilst in the mall we went for some lunch at a place called "Johnny's Rocket". They served mainly burgers and fries and divine milkshakes and malts. They had small jukeboxes were you could pay to get your song played, and, at busy times the staff would get up on the counter and dance to certain songs.

The lady who served us at "Johnny's Rocket"



The little juke boxes on each table



After lunch we carried on shopping and went into a shop, Bass Pro Shop, that had equipment for hunting, fishing, camping etc. As we were looking around I came across an area that had a massive variety of guns. The smaller hand guns were in display cabinets and one would take a ticket and wait for their number to be called to feel and look them. In contrast, the larger guns such as riffle guns were out on the shop floor for people to pick up and test out. I held one and couldnt believe I was holding a weapon that could potentially kill someone. It felt like it wasn't real and was just a heavier version of toy riffle. In the US, it is a norm for guns and firearms to be this easily accessible, in fact, the age for buying rifles, AK47's and 'sniper' type firearms for example is 18 years, however, the age to buy normal hand guns like 9mm hand guns is 21 years. It seems unusual that the larger and/or longer distance, seemingly more dangerous firearms are available to younger people than the 'normal' hand guns.

Riffles for sale



Customer testing one out



Another customer testing one out.



Riffles are heavy and so big



We went through the rest of the shop and came across some clothing and it was interesting to see little toddlers tops saying "Future deer hunter". In America deer hunting is a popular sport and they don't think anything is wrong with the concept of hunting, whereas I do because I've not grown up with it and so thought it to be wrong and even cruel.

Toddlers tops for hunters