westernrover
Member
- Joined
- May 4, 2018
- Messages
- 1,613
I used to be proud of the fact that if I had money in my hand, my pockets were empty -- not that I was poor, but that I didn't carry junk around with me. If I had cash. What more did I need?
That changed with what I would describe as a sort of Walter Mitty like fantasy. I needed a pocket knife to cut through the ropes I could be bound with as a hostage. I needed a lighter to light the way through a dark cave. A compass to find my direction if I should encounter a thick fog bank off the coast. And a driver's license, proof of insurance, credit card and those other mundane things.
I began to carry a concealed firearm. Whether that was part of the "secret life" or a more practical necessity, I'm not sure. Certainly, people aren't irrational for carrying. It has most definitely proven to be a practical necessity and while the occasion to need it doesn't occur often, when it does, there is nothing else that will do. Nevertheless, I'm not convinced that all the choices I make around the particulars of what I carry aren't also influenced by the "secret life."
Whatever the true motivation for the things I carry are, I don't carry any of them as a talisman. I've endeavored to acquire the skills to be expert with all of them, and my firearm is no exception. While the classes and expert trainers have helped me acquire the skills and understanding I need to know when, why, and how to operate it, I've also had to figure out how to carry it and keep it concealed within the context of my other life choices like my activities and wardrobe.
I learned early on that carrying a gun comes with some baggage -- like holsters, belts, magazines, spare ammo, and so on. They also added some things to the first aid kits in my vehicles and backpacks -- tourniquets, hemostatics, chest seals, and so on. It's not the gun that made those things necessary, but it was the gun that made me aware that things happen to people that are worse than small cuts and minor illness that could be treated with a band-aid and some aspirin. I actually traveled out of state to attend premier training in wilderness first aid and I maintain my certifications in that, cpr, aed, and the epi-pen. Those with even more training as EMTs or Paramedics will understand that as your skills increase, so do the contents of your kits.
[Ppst edited to delete text not within the scope of ST&T]
That changed with what I would describe as a sort of Walter Mitty like fantasy. I needed a pocket knife to cut through the ropes I could be bound with as a hostage. I needed a lighter to light the way through a dark cave. A compass to find my direction if I should encounter a thick fog bank off the coast. And a driver's license, proof of insurance, credit card and those other mundane things.
I began to carry a concealed firearm. Whether that was part of the "secret life" or a more practical necessity, I'm not sure. Certainly, people aren't irrational for carrying. It has most definitely proven to be a practical necessity and while the occasion to need it doesn't occur often, when it does, there is nothing else that will do. Nevertheless, I'm not convinced that all the choices I make around the particulars of what I carry aren't also influenced by the "secret life."
Whatever the true motivation for the things I carry are, I don't carry any of them as a talisman. I've endeavored to acquire the skills to be expert with all of them, and my firearm is no exception. While the classes and expert trainers have helped me acquire the skills and understanding I need to know when, why, and how to operate it, I've also had to figure out how to carry it and keep it concealed within the context of my other life choices like my activities and wardrobe.
I learned early on that carrying a gun comes with some baggage -- like holsters, belts, magazines, spare ammo, and so on. They also added some things to the first aid kits in my vehicles and backpacks -- tourniquets, hemostatics, chest seals, and so on. It's not the gun that made those things necessary, but it was the gun that made me aware that things happen to people that are worse than small cuts and minor illness that could be treated with a band-aid and some aspirin. I actually traveled out of state to attend premier training in wilderness first aid and I maintain my certifications in that, cpr, aed, and the epi-pen. Those with even more training as EMTs or Paramedics will understand that as your skills increase, so do the contents of your kits.
[Ppst edited to delete text not within the scope of ST&T]
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