TexasCHLforum.com

Oldgringo wrote:What are "Vans"?

A brand of shoes in the "sneakers" category.

Oldgringo wrote:That's a lot of ruminatin' that Tam has done. I don't spend a lot of time lookin' for 'bulges' on others or worryin' about my cover.

Heh, heh. Actually, I wasn't so much ruminating about the gun thing as I was wondering exactly how clueless does a person have to be not to notice that they are blocking a busy aisle and that there are people trying to move in both directions who are tired of waiting for that person to get the heck out of the way. It was after about the nth time of that happening that the thought popped into my head that if a person is that clueless (and there were a LOT of them there that day, just like that) then they certainly aren't going to notice that I have a bulge under my shirt, let alone wonder what that bulge is. It was just a random thought. No, I've been a long time proponent of "strap it on, cover it up, don't worry about it."

I was ruminating on this stuff a couple of days ago at the Walmart. Most people aren't even aware that they are walking too slowly and holding up everyone behind them. They aren't aware that they have parked their cart in a way as to block access to that aisle to anyone else. They will stand there and browse the shelves, blocking the way, with you standing right there, until you speak up and give an "ahem" or "excuse me" for them to come out of their coma long enough to get out of the way.

They certainly aren't looking at what you're wearing, or what is under it. They're not even in Condition White. They're half asleep. Automatons.

XtremeDuty.45 recognized that the guy at Lowes was heeled because XtremeDuty.45 is a gun guy and he was heeled himself. That, and he lives in Condition Yellow. Plus, those of us who carry but are not LEOs live sort of at the edge of the tactical world. We don't make our livings that way, but we care enough about it to learn at least a little bit about situational awareness, and we are constantly evaluating what is happening around us. It becomes second nature. But in the process, we are exposed to tactical clothing — not because we necessarily have a professional need for it, but because we recognize that there is a reason that professionals do. It works better. If a loose fitting pair of pants that affords lots of freedom of movement and has lots of pockets for storing incidentals is a good choice for a tactical professional, it is possibly a good choice for a CCW too. Ditto, but to a probably lesser degree, tactical shirts. And the fact that the makers of these things have gone out of their way to make clothing like this look "business casual" means that they blend well into the social background - recognizable only to people who would actually have a use for them. That guy's clothing choices probably meant nothing to anyone else in that Lowes on that day, but they stood out like a sore thumb to XtremeDuty.45 because he is tactically minded.

I have to say that, although I spot people like that occasionally, I'm not looking for them, because they aren't the ones likely to be a problem. No, I'm looking for the disreputable looking guy wearing a hoody with something obviously heavy weighing down one of the pockets; hoody pulled over head making it harder to see his face and eyes. Stuff like that. The weird part is that, while someone like that might stand out to someone like one of us, they are as invisible to the rest of the shoppers as was the guy in the tactical gear. People just don't pay attention. That's why I don't worry about "printing." I'm not deliberately sloppy about concealing, but I also don't agonize over whether I can see a bulge when I look in the mirror. Nobody else is going to see it because it just simply doesn't exist to most people. If a cop notices it, I don't care because I'm legal. If a bad guy notices it, he'll go pick on someone else.

To the thread topic, I have seen a number of bulges that I suspected might be a gun, but just like if someone does notice my own bulge, I have no way of knowing what theirs is. And of course a fanny pack is automatically a gun, whether it is or isn't. But I've only ever seen an exposed pistol, under a sport coat, a few times, and that person had 'COP!!!' written all over them, even if there wasn't a badge visible. Which leads me to something else....

...my wife has been trying to get used to wearing her Glock 19 around the house in a belt slide holster, instead of carrying her revolver in her purse. So she asked me the other day, "what if my shirt/jacket blows open and someone sees the gun?" Those of you who have met The Annoyed Woman know that she is built nothing like me. She is trim and fit and carries her 52 years very well. I told her, "Honey, look at yourself. You're a well put together middle aged well dressed woman with a gun on your hip. If anyone at the Walmart sees your gun (they won't), the last thing they are thinking is 'criminal.' They're going to assume you're an LEO and let it go."