I’ve been lurking on this site for over a year. I finally joined a couple months ago and thought I should get around to introducing myself.
Short version:
I’m in my 40s and got into handguns 2 years ago when I bought a Beretta 92FS. I got my Minnesota, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania carry permits about a year ago and am waiting on my Utah permit. I now own, besides the Beretta 92, a Beretta NEOS 22, a Taurus M905 9mm revolver and a CZ 2075 RAMI 9mm.
I found out about this site through the carry class I took over here in western Wisconsin. I live in Wisconsin but commute to Minnesota every day. I appreciate the focus on local carry issues that this forum provides over others that I peruse. Thanks!
Longer version (grab a cup of coffee):
I grew up in Minnesota without handguns or rifles in the house. My dad didn’t hunt or shoot, and most of the information I had about firearms was through the media. Needless to say, it was a biased view. However, being a guy, I was always somewhat fascinated with them and have always enjoyed target shooting of some type or another.
A couple years ago, I made some new friends who were firearm enthusiasts. Between that and my older son wanting to go into the military, I talked myself (with some help from my son and new friends) into buying a Beretta 92FS, since this was the civilian version of what my son would eventually be carrying. I took a class at Bill’s on basic handgun safety, because I knew nothing about handling handguns and took my son with me. We had a great time and learned a lot.
My wife grew up in a similar household to mine in terms of firearms. Needless to say, she wasn’t crazy about having a handgun around. They were “evil” and only used to shoot people. I assured her that I was only planning to use it for target shooting, which was true. At that point, I hadn’t really thought about handguns for self-defense. That’s what the police were for, right?
In the summer of ’07, my friends told me they were taking the Minnesota carry class from a local instructor, and they invited me along. I was curious enough about the legalities of carrying and self-defense to take the course, but I still had no plans to actually carry much less actually get the permit. The class itself was an eye-opener. I started to realize the importance of an armed citizenry in a free country. I started reading a couple different forums on carrying to see what I had gotten myself into and to try to decide if I really wanted to get my permit and then to even carry a handgun. It was through sharing the information I found on this and other boards with my wife that she began to soften in her stance, and I became convinced that I should indeed get my permit and then actually carry.
I got my Minnesota permit in January of 2008. I didn’t actually carry until the summer of ’08 when I got my 9mm revolver. It can be pocket carried with a pocket holster that the previous owner included in the sale. Meanwhile, I talked my wife into taking the basic handgun safety class that I took. She agreed that if there were going to be handguns in the house, she should be able to know how to handle them safely. She talked a friend of hers into taking it with her, and she actually enjoyed the class and shooting a pistol for the first time in her life. She also announced that when she gets a handgun, she wanted a revolver. Her thought was that she wanted something she could pick up and shoot without thinking about it (is the safety off? do I need to rack the slide? etc.). I had her try out my revolver, and when she liked it, I told her it was hers. It was shortly after that that I bought my CZ RAMI (darn).
Last fall, when it was becoming increasingly apparent who would likely be our next president, she announced that she wanted her carry permit. She wasn’t sure she would carry, but she thought that if the right to carry was ever taken away, she wanted to be one of the people that it would have to be taken away from. She took the class with another friend of ours. It covered both Minnesota and Utah, so I sat in as well (it was a good review for me). My wife now has her Minnesota, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania permits and is waiting as well for her Utah one. She isn’t sure when and if she will actually carry, but she does take the revolver with her when she goes with her friends on scrapbooking weekends in the north woods of Wisconsin. Her friends’ husbands sent chocolates and other things with their wives the first time she went. I sent a handgun with mine. The last time she went, two other women had handguns with them as well. She is also comfortable with me carrying when we are in Minnesota.
My point in all this is to let you know that this forum serves a good purpose in that people like me who are new to handguns can use it to find out information that is not readily published in the mainstream media. It gives the other side of the story on events that are painted one color by the media. It helped me decide to carry, and in so doing, it helped my wife change her mind on firearms for personal protection as well. So, thanks and keep up the good work!
Welcome to the forum!
