Why I Carry A Gun: Crazy People, Crazy People Everywhere.

Join a Gun Rights Advocacy group. I am a member of several, including NAGR. (The gun was safety checked before letting my finger touch the trigger.)

Good Day All. I was sitting around trying to think of a good topic to discuss this week and I was thinking about the places that I carry and why I purchased my first firearm. I really try to carry at all times, since, those that seek to do harm never rest. Some people carry every once in a while and some carry at all times, I am sitting right in the middle and only because my place of work has a metal detector when going in. But, before I go off on a tangent, I will share a few stories of where having a gun available, even when not used, has made me and those I live with safer, or at least be reassured.

When I first picked up my Hi Point C9 handgun for the cheap $125 new in box price, it was on the coattails of a few break ins at the apartment complex I lived in near Noblesville. A friend of the friends that I was staying with was at home when a man came to the door asking weird questions. Asking what they were doing, if they were going to be home later, etc. Of course, being good trusting people that they were, they thought nothing of it. When they came home later that evening, the entire place had been ransacked. The thieves stole a tv, video games and consoles, a cell phone, stereo, and various other items, including a handgun. Needless to say, they were devastated. And for the rest of the tenants, including us in our apartment, there was a gun in the hands of some bad men. The idea drove me to pick up my first gun.

 Like many first time gun buyers, I knew next to nothing about guns; not the difference between calibers, not how a blow-back operated pistol worked, not even the difference between a pistol and a revolver. I grabbed a box of 9mm at the guidance of a friend of mine and I felt nervous, but safer being at home. And for good reason. A few weeks after buying the gun, I was cleaning the apartment (two young men and a poor young woman lived there, poor girl) and I had the front door open so I could take the trash out. I was down the hall and heard a noise; thinking it was my roommates, I went to say "hi" but I stood looking at two young men, who I didnt know, who started to step into the apartment. I yelled "Hey!" and they turned and ran. Meanwhile, I went and grabbed my gun out of its hiding place and pocketed it. (as well as you can pocket a Hi Point pistol) For the next several minutes I continued to collect the trash and take it outside, with one eye on the door at all times.

Since that day, I have been more diligent about not leaving my home open to any prying eyes. I also practice as often as I can for the case of home invasions. I can have a gun in hand anywhere in the house within a few seconds. Which is good considering what happened not long after we moved into the house will currently live in.

My buddy bought a house off of 38th street in Indianapolis, not the greatest of neighborhoods but he was from the neighborhood nearby and used to the types of people that come and go. My girlfriend also moved in with me so we now had a young lady in the house to look after. So, 3 months after we moved in, my buddy got a call from the security company saying that the motion detectors at the house had gone off. Of course we all went home to see what had happened. It appeared that someone had gotten the back kitchen window open and came into the house through it (which is amazing considering the window is 7 feet off the ground). It also appeared that when they set off the alarm, they ran off, the only thing bothered was a bunch of empty liquor bottles on the counter near the window. When the police arrived, they had a K9 search the house to ensure that noone was there before we went in. Thankfully, the only thing that the K9 found was, apparently, a VERY tasty pillow from my room.

Of course, this helped us to rethink how we did things at the house. Everything is locked and checked before going to sleep and we even turn on the alarm when we go to bed. My roommate and I also have gotten creative with how we hide/ready our guns for defense. We have both practiced doing a sweep of the house from the front door and our bedrooms in the case of a break-in. Since the first break-in, we have had other attempts, unruly neighbors who started fights with people in the neighborhood, random people walking around behind the house at night. Basically, not the nicest place to live. The crazy neighbors have moved out (after the property owner evicted all 30 of them from the duplex), so that is a plus but we still have random, suspicious folks around.

My latest story involves my girlfriend: On Christmas Eve 2012, she was working the fine jewelry counter when a young man came in asking about a ring for his fiancee. For an hour she showed him around the rings, all kinds of shapes, sizes... and prices. She ended up showing him a $16,000 diamond ring. He looked at it for a while then turned tail and ran with the ring in hand. Of course, my girlfriend was understandably freaked out, even more so when, upon identification by police, she was told that he was wanted for armed robbery. We thanked our lucky stars that the man just ran instead of sticking around and bringing out a gun. Because of that episode, I have started to show my girlfriend how to use a handgun, despite her protests. (She is from California so that should explain a few things)

I don't say any of this to whine or cry about the state of things in the neighborhood. But I say it to show, exactly, why I own a firearm. Those that know me know that I am no street fighter. I would do my best to fight someone trying to harm my home and friends/girlfriend, but a 9mm Beretta pointed at someone's face just entertains a whole new level of seriousness that fists don't. As the quote goes, "God made Men, Sam Colt made 'em equal". It doesn't matter who your adversary is, a firearm puts you on equal terms with someone who intends to do you and your family harm. A bullet is as deadly to a body builder, as it is to a gangster, as it is to a computer nerd.

That is why, in a nutshell, I own and carry a gun. I haven't had to use my gun, thankfully, I haven't even had to pull it out of its holster. That doesn't remove the chance that I may have to use it in the future. I hope that time never comes, but should it come, I will be as ready and prepared as I can be. I will not be a victim if I can help it.

This wraps up this episode of Blued Barrel. If any of you read this and have a story for why you carry a gun, please share! Until next time, Don't hide your guns in between your clothes in the closet/dresser, it is one of the first places that thieves check during a break in. God Bless our America!