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What they were thinking

What they were thinking: Saluting the Patriots

Karen Hayden (far left) and Charles Walsh (second from left), members of the End Zone Militia, firing a salute after a Patriots score against Baltimore, at Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Jan. 22, 2012.Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

Every Sunday, Boston Globe photographer Stan Grossfeld asks the subject of one of his photos to explain what’s happening in the shot:

Up today: Karen Hayden (far left) and Charles Walsh (second from left), members of the End Zone Militia, firing a salute after a Patriots score against Baltimore, at Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Jan. 22, 2012

Hayden - “I got this gun as a Christmas present. Most women are happy to get jewelry or whatever. I was excited to get a new musket. I was hoping the gun would go off, because with muskets, it’s not 100 percent guaranteed - more so if it’s damp and the powder gets gooey. I got singed maybe once, because if you put too much powder in the pan, some of it comes out and it hits you on the side of the face. But you learn quickly not to do that.’’

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Walsh - “I was just excited over the points being scored. When the Patriots score a touchdown down on our end, we wait till the extra point is made. That’s because of Adam Vinatieri. He was getting ready to kick an extra point and the smoke cloud drifted down to where he was kicking. The word got passed down to us. It’s a pretty violent thing - the pan flashes, and if you get a lot of powder, there’s quite an explosion and then it comes out of the muzzle. I try to use ear plugs.’’