Please do NOT come to Texas. We got everybody we need and then some. On my ranch alone we got fire ants, snakes, gators, sticker bushes, varmits of every kind and scorpions.
People don't seem to understand that asset values go in cycles - about like everything else in this world. The fact that gold has been down so long usually means its due for a rise - if the fundamentals are right. Lets see, fiat currency, fed pumping liquidity into the system, war looming, depressed commodity prices... yep, time to stock up a little on those out of favor asset classes and dump overpriced stocks. Invest when nobody else wants it and sell when everybody does. I'll buy stocks in a few years when everybody thinks that's the craziest thing they ever heard of.
Gold is a "bizarre asset"? I have to chuckle. Perhaps putting your money in a stock market that has the highest P/E's in history is bizarre. Assets go up, assets go down. The trick is to find the hot one and ride it. The fun thing about gold is the booms and crashes. While one must be careful about "buy and hold" investing in gold, speculating can be a lucrative matter.
When gold starts to run, it usually runs pretty far before crashing again. A great way to play it is gold stocks. Catch it right and returns can be 10 to 1. Just hide and wait til the time is right.
I've owned and shot many fine pistols of Colt, SW and Ruger. I recently bought a Taurus Titanium in .45 colt. It is by far the finest I have ever shot. Dead on accurate with extremely tight groups. Moderate recoil with the titanium. Excellent power with the large caliber. My pistol of choice.