Ooops, I just freaked the girlfriend out with my gun.

[NightWind]

Uh oh, think I commited a major relationship felony this morning. I was researching OC and CCW as i've never considered the laws and regulations up until I got my first handgun. Now i'm get excited at the prospect of gun rights and laws and excerising my freedom as an armed US citizen. After a couple hours of research I thought to myself:

"Hmm, OC and CCW is BIG responsiblity to handle one I will have to slowly become accustomed too and understand my rights AND responsibilites of such a freedom"

My father had several revolvers when I was growing up and I learned to greatly respect and fear firearms at all times and learn proper usage and handling. I've only personally owned a .22lr rifle up until now, so i've never had the chance to even "holser" a gun. I decided to give it a try and see what it felt like just in my own home the "feeling" and "responsiblity" of carrying a firearm.

So I slipped my unloaded XD(m) 9mm in my stock holster and buckled my pants up and stood up with my first firearm attached to me. First thought was: "Man, this this is heavy, and its not even loaded!"

Second thought was "Man, this is a tremendous feeling of power and liberty yet ALOT of responsiblity to be doing this, and im just in my own home, let alone outside in city"

I moved into the bedroom where my girlfriend was starting to wake up and I smiled and held her hand softly and then she noticed my gun at my hip and said

"Uh, WTF are you doing?"

"What? I'm just carrying it seeing how it feels and stuff"

"Umm yeah, im awake now and completely F'en freaked out"

She goes to take a shower while I ponder what I did wrong, then goes to eat downstairs and comes back a little calmer. "We need to talk" she says. Uh oh.....

We had our open minded discussion and feeling "talk" with eachother. My girlfriend is a very open minded individual that grew up with a father that had lots of guns and knew how to use them, so she was comfortable and excited for me on getting a gun for fun and SD/HD uses. But apparently, I crossed the "comfort zone" line when I started to holser my weapon inside the house. Here opinion/viewpoint was something like this:

"Normal people, do not carry guns around their house. They also dont spend hours at a time online watching people shoot their guns off, even if your just "learning" from watching them You can only learn by actually going to the range and shooting yourself and get training. Carrying a gun in our home is way beyond my comfort zone, let alone even taking out to excersise your "patriotic freedom" as a US citizen"

Basically, I was caught AGAIN, going full bore into a new hobby so fast with little regard of my G/F's feelings on the matter. I have a real tendancy with past experiences to back it up in regards to getting interested into a hobby, dropping everything else I do, spending exubriant amounts of money only a few months later to say to myself "Eh, im burnt out now. This is to much work and or money. I wish I didn't sell "blank" now for this. I"m done"

I've done this with cars, R/C cars, gaming, PC's, game consoles and it usually ends up my girlfriend freaking out in her manner of stating " Would you slow the F---- down?"

Me being the new gun person I am, I was shocked and dissapointed in myself for being careless yet I also feel i'm being somewhat "controlled" by my girlfriend, which of course is another subject entirely.

I need to ask fellow gun owners, how do you and your significant other/family feel about your gun hobby? What does he/she about if you have a large collection of guns? Some of you have insane amounts of firepower in your home and you have the right to do so, but is it really "normal" or "healthy" to be doing this or is my girlfriend just wacking out?
Some of you REALLY take this gun ownership to the extreme.

For example in some of my threads about general gun ownership questions, I've had posts like "Become one of us in the NRA, we are nation of strong and our libertys are being taken away! Fight the good fight!" or "Carry your own at all times, if you are not an armed citizen, you will be a dead citizen!" For irony, even I was thinking: "Whooo dudes, back down, Im not sighing up for a lifelong NRA member and getting SWAT training to defend myself or home, lets go easy, I just bought my first gun and I just had some questions. I didn't want to join the 2nd revolution or anything"

Thoughts, feelings, comments, suggestions, critisicm needed/wanted.

[Se2002]

Yah, wait until you have a home invasion in your neighborhood like we did.

I understand where she is coming from but the bad guys won't.

Good Luck getting that resolved.

[ladromar]

lengthy post there fellow XDtalker...

I just would want to say/suggest the following:



Step 1.- Take your girlfriend to the shooting range; teach her proper safety and handling, let her shoot your gun.

Step 2.- then go out for the evening and grab a bite while you two discuss your little trip to the range.

Step 3.- explain to her it is not only a hobby of yours and a god given right if you will, to self preservation; and firearms in general do a mighty good job for home and personal defense.

From there I would say don't take a SWAT class or a carbine course with your $2000 AR.

Instead go out there and get a CHL (concealed handgun license) while in the process of getting your CHL chances are (depending on your state) they will give you a very good course regarding firearm safety and laws as well as regulations pertaining to conceal carry permits and other stuff.

My two cents...

Which by the way; with the inflation and the economy the way it is you may only end up getting about a cent and a half.

[Wired]

Try to educate her. My wife had questions too as to why I needed to carry around the house. Since I CC it's mostly out of sight, out of mind. This might be hard, but try to show her local reports of people being attacked in their own homes. I hear about it a lot (seems to be a new fad lately) and show my wife. She's cool with it now.

[devildog12210]

Well I must say I really applaud your researching the subjectr and educating yourself. My g/f , whom I live with, wasn't all on board when I first started carrying. She would get upset because I had to take "my stupid gun". Needless to say a few incidents occured and she felt safer knowing I had it. Now I end up taking her to the range more than we go out to eat. She is constantly wanting to get new and different guns. She is very recoil shy but other than that anything goes. Make going to the range a "date" and go often. She will come around. Best of luck to you my friend.

[XD9MMUser]

eh, my gf has no problem with my guns. she actually wants one now that got my xd9, but i told her she'd have to buy it. my immediate family thinks its okay to own guns. hell, if i buy one my dad quickly offers to give me my money back for it just becuase he likes it. the only person that is iffy about it is my stepdad. when i told him i had got the 9 he was like wth do you need that for? i just thought to myself, why the heck do you need the safe full that you have. anyway, im gonna freely excersize my 2M rights no matter what anyone says.

[bashman]

Originally Posted by NightWind

Some of you have insane amounts of firepower in your home and you have the right to do so, but is it really "normal" or "healthy" to be doing this or is my girlfriend just wacking out?

Yes.

Originally Posted by NightWind

Some of you REALLY take this gun ownership to the extreme.

No such thing. Sounds like something an anti-gunner would say.

[Joeywhat]

If you had a bazooka strapped across your chest then I see her point...

Unless I'm just in my boxers, my gun is usually on me or next to me. Anyone has a problem with it, they know where my door is.

[Destructo]

I carry my XD45 or my Kel-tec P11 around the house quite frequently holstered, even outside in my yard.

My wife doesn't mind one bit and has her own 1911 but doesn't carry it.

I don't see anything wrong at all with carrying a holstered gun around your own house, its no different than strapping an MP3 player to ya and walking around, its just a device thats all. It doesn't do anything unless you pull it out and use it.

[bama]

Long answer: You need to get comfortable with the concept of freedom and personal responsibility. You are responsible for your own safety, which includes all sorts of things, including carrying a pistol. If your GF can't go along with that, ditch her.

Short answer: Grow a pair.