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Whoops...it was my being nosy that did it, too.

I was waiting tables (I work at Red Lobster now) when a family of three came in to eat. They were very pleasant and seemed like they wanted to be as little trouble to me as possible. They asked if there was a nearby park that was pretty for taking family photos, so I pointed them to Herman Baker, the only park I've been to. The dad pulled out his smartphone to look up directions and I dropped their ticket. When I returned, the dad had put his card in the booklet, and was showing his kid his license. I thought it was cute but when I looked, I realized that license looked an awful lot like one I carry in my own wallet -- and I'm not talking about a driver's license!

I think his wife saw my eyebrows raise when I saw it, so I wanted them to know I wasn't alarmed. I said, "I couldn't help but notice your license...I have one too. Mind me asking what you carry?" He didn't give any specifics and seemed a little embarrassed (darn, I should have left it alone) but he talked a little about a gun show he wanted to go to. Overall it was pretty cool to finally meet another license-holder outside of the guys at the range, and it was even cooler that his wife seemed pleased that I was interested! I wonder if she carries too...

But even more so, I wonder if I made a member of this forum! If this sounds like you, let me know because I'd think that's awesome. And sorry for calling you out. I was just a little excited.

randomoutburst wrote:But even more so, I wonder if I made a member of this forum! If this sounds like you, let me know because I'd think that's awesome. And sorry for calling you out. I was just a little excited.

Wasn't me... but I often wonder the same thing. I haven't "made" anyone yet, but some of those people who just seem to hang out at gun shops have got to have CHLs.

Dave2 wrote:

randomoutburst wrote:... some of those people who just seem to hang out at gun shops have got to have CHLs.

If you've seen a couple hanging around gun shops, pawn shops, etc, you may have seen me and my husband. We haven't had the time lately, but for the past year or so we've just been frequenting the shops to chat with the clerks/owners and we occasionally find something we want to buy, too.

I think I remember reading someone suggest a "secret handshake" on the forum for members to use as identification of other forum members, but I rarely shake hands with others...so maybe I should just make us all t-shirts and we should wear them everyday, everywhere we go.

randomoutburst wrote:

Dave2 wrote:

randomoutburst wrote:... some of those people who just seem to hang out at gun shops have got to have CHLs.

If you've seen a couple hanging around gun shops, pawn shops, etc, you may have seen me and my husband. We haven't had the time lately, but for the past year or so we've just been frequenting the shops to chat with the clerks/owners and we occasionally find something we want to buy, too.

I think I remember reading someone suggest a "secret handshake" on the forum for members to use as identification of other forum members, but I rarely shake hands with others...so maybe I should just make us all t-shirts and we should wear them everyday, everywhere we go.

CHL tiara and sash. Accept no substitutes.

randomoutburst wrote:If you've seen a couple hanging around gun shops, pawn shops, etc, you may have seen me and my husband. We haven't had the time lately, but for the past year or so we've just been frequenting the shops to chat with the clerks/owners and we occasionally find something we want to buy, too.

I don't recall recognizing any couples, but there's guy I've seen in Gunmaster in Plano a couple times. Taller dude with white hair and a white gotee. The first time I ran into him, we chatted about... well, something gun-related for almost an hour. Real nice guy. The last time I saw him (maybe a month or so ago), he bought a heavy-barrelled AR-15 upper for a varmint gun he was going to build. Anyway, you're more likely to find me at the Bullet Trap, Big Slim's, or Target Master. (Nothing against Gunmaster... the Bullet Trap has a bigger selection, Big Slim's is right by a couple friends' houses and nearly on the way to work, and Target Master is where I usually practice.)

apostate wrote:

randomoutburst wrote:I think I remember reading someone suggest a "secret handshake" on the forum for members to use as identification of other forum members, but I rarely shake hands with others...so maybe I should just make us all t-shirts and we should wear them everyday, everywhere we go.

CHL tiara and sash. Accept no substitutes.

randomoutburst wrote:Whoops...it was my being nosy that did it, too.

I was waiting tables (I work at Red Lobster now) when a family of three came in to eat.

Sorry I haven't made it up to Chili's yet, but it looks like I was too late anyway.

I was walking out of church yesterday and a gentleman in his mid 60's was ahead of me. He had on a grey Tommy Bahama type shirt (untucked), with something on his right side, well above his pants waistline that didn't move with his shirt. His bible in his left hand swung freely and naturally, but his right hand was more rigid and at his side as if to protect something on his waistline. I'm 95% sure that he was carrying...but I'll never know for sure. I discreetly pointed it out to my wife, and she disagreed...so he was very concealed!

Blindref757 wrote:I was walking out of church yesterday and a gentleman in his mid 60's was ahead of me. He had on a grey Tommy Bahama type shirt (untucked), with something on his right side, well above his pants waistline that didn't move with his shirt. His bible in his left hand swung freely and naturally, but his right hand was more rigid and at his side as if to protect something on his waistline. I'm 95% sure that he was carrying...but I'll never know for sure. I discreetly pointed it out to my wife, and she disagreed...so he was very concealed!

Let's see, not counting the women CHLs ...
Couldda been, wait no I had on a guayabera shirt
mighta been, no he had on a tucked dress shirt
Deacon Dale, no he had on a suit coat and tucked
probably was Pastor, wait no we had 2 visiting preachers ...

Musta been a different church

randomoutburst wrote:

Dave2 wrote:

randomoutburst wrote:... some of those people who just seem to hang out at gun shops have got to have CHLs.

If you've seen a couple hanging around gun shops, pawn shops, etc, you may have seen me and my husband. We haven't had the time lately, but for the past year or so we've just been frequenting the shops to chat with the clerks/owners and we occasionally find something we want to buy, too.

I think I remember reading someone suggest a "secret handshake" on the forum for members to use as identification of other forum members, but I rarely shake hands with others...so maybe I should just make us all t-shirts and we should wear them everyday, everywhere we go.

No, no no! HAWAIIAN shirts.

Dave2 - I stopped frequenting Gunmasters after two different clerks treated me like a little girl when I was looking to buy my S&W M60. They kept recommending Airweights that could "fit in my purse" and insisted that I would "only want to shoot .38 sp anyway." Made my blood boil. I like the guys at TargetMaster a lot, but we live in Grayson county now so I very very rarely make it down that way. I steer clear of the Bullet Trap, and advised my mother (a new CHLer) to do the same.

Dragonfighter - If I could find female Hawaiian shirts that didn't look like a bag on me, I would TOTALLY wear them! For now I have to settle for a tank top and a button-down shirt to cover my piece.

apostate wrote:

randomoutburst wrote:

Dave2 wrote:

randomoutburst wrote:... some of those people who just seem to hang out at gun shops have got to have CHLs.

If you've seen a couple hanging around gun shops, pawn shops, etc, you may have seen me and my husband. We haven't had the time lately, but for the past year or so we've just been frequenting the shops to chat with the clerks/owners and we occasionally find something we want to buy, too.

I think I remember reading someone suggest a "secret handshake" on the forum for members to use as identification of other forum members, but I rarely shake hands with others...so maybe I should just make us all t-shirts and we should wear them everyday, everywhere we go.

CHL tiara and sash. Accept no substitutes.

randomoutburst wrote:I said, "I couldn't help but notice your license...I have one too. Mind me asking what you carry?"

Were you carrying at work? I hope the answer is yes!

randomoutburst wrote:Dave2 - I stopped frequenting Gunmasters after two different clerks treated me like a little girl when I was looking to buy my S&W M60. They kept recommending Airweights that could "fit in my purse" and insisted that I would "only want to shoot .38 sp anyway." Made my blood boil. I like the guys at TargetMaster a lot, but we live in Grayson county now so I very very rarely make it down that way. I steer clear of the Bullet Trap, and advised my mother (a new CHLer) to do the same.

I think I know which clerk was pushing the airweights... Without exception, I've only ever heard this guy suggest little .380s or .38s. Nice guy (at least to me), but he does think he knows what you want better than you do.

I keep wanting to hate the Bullet Trap, but for the stuff I'm looking for their merchandise really is very competitively priced. Maybe their sales just happen to overlap with my interests. <shrug>

I'm not up in Grayson county much, but what gun stores should I check out next time I'm that far north?

Since getting our licenses, my wife and I have started noticing more and more CHL holders.

AEA wrote:Were you carrying at work? I hope the answer is yes!

I want to, but I have yet to find a way to do so. White dress shirts do not mix well with my black weapons. I thought about trying to rig one of my apron pockets to hold my revolver, but they're too small. Maybe I will purchase a smaller gun just for the purpose of concealing at work. After all, I carry a 1911 or my S&W M60 in normal attire and those are a little beefy for work where I'm bumping into others all the time...not to mention my guests' faces will be right at my midriff where I'd likely be carrying. Eep!

Dave2 wrote:I'm not up in Grayson county much, but what gun stores should I check out next time I'm that far north?

Bullet Trap's prices are alright, but we generally purchase used weapons from 3rd parties or pawn shops where we can get a steal by doing a little research into what we're buying.

There's not much in Grayson, but Red River Firearms is a nice indoor range with awesome clerks. Some guy just put his entire gun collection on consignment there, and let me tell you...they are NICE guns. We were there the day they came in and the owner let us look at all of them as he put them in the cases. I loved the Python, but my hands are so gosh darn tiny that I can't even reach the trigger. Their prices seem reasonable with some guns underpriced and others overpriced on occasion, and they seem to move them fairly quickly.

Best Pawn off Texoma has lots of ammo for decent prices, and we've stumbled across a few good guns there. They have a lot of new Kimbers in there, which I'm not particularly interested in, but hey. I don't see their guns move very fast. They have a lot of the same stuff they had 8-10 months ago, with very little new inventory (at least in handguns).

Wild West Pawn in Sherman Square has turned up a few good finds as well, usually for a pretty good price. My husband bought a 30.06 with a custom stock, original Mauser action, and he loves it. The guys there are nice to talk to as well.

There is one pawn shop in Denison...I can't remember the name, but it's a green and white building...that has an alright selection of semi-autos but the revolvers tend to be lacking. Their long gun selections are generally better than the handguns. The clerks are fun to talk to, and we end up spending an hour or two just talking every time we go in.

There's also The Gun Shop that has the occasional nice handgun, and the guy there custom builds handguns and rifles. They fixed my 1911 safety when I broke it and did good work. I like the new safety better than my old one. The guy who fixed it has very strong opinions, most of which I don't agree with, so talking to him gives me a headache. Still, like I said, he does good work so I'll probably be back when I want to upgrade my sights, trigger, hammer, etc.

There's not much else that I've found to be worth visiting up here, but we make do with what we've got. I really like getting down into the Dallas area where there are a lot more stores to choose from, but unfortunately that's not normally an option. I'd love to go back to the pawn shop where we got an excellent condition Colt King Cobra for $400 out the door. They tend not to know when they've got something good, which means we tend to find great deals.