Well, I have had my permit for a couple of days. Anytime I was out of the house I have had it with me. I wanted to see if anyone else's experience was similar and also ask a couple of questions, especially to those recommending the Wally World trip.
I received my permit on Weds in the early afternoon and didn't start carrying it until Thursday. I wore it to work, where I took it off (I am in the courtroom frequently and even with a CCW it is illegal to carry in a courtroom, although one of the bailiffs told me he would not care. Not sure how the judge would take it; one of the judges carries on the bench). I promptly put it back on after work for the trip home.
Anyway, that night, we went to get boxes for an upcoming move. We went to a shoe store who had boxes for us. When we first got there I felt very self concious. I thought that I was very obvious and everyone could see. However once we got to loading boxes, everything went fine. I also went to McD's that night to get dinner. I was thinking to myself that everyone around must notice but then again no one looked at me strange. It was an odd feeling to know that I was the only one armed in the entire restauraunt.
Anyway, Friday we went to the mall. We sold my wife's bicycle to a guy that my wife found on the net. As we were going to meet him, the wife actually asked if I was packing and when I said yes, she was pleased about it. That was interesting. She told me that she felt very comfortable that I was armed.
Anyway, we went to Macy's to look at belts and when we entered the alarm sounded. This is where my questions come from. One, is it normal for the alarms to go off when you enter stores. As we went into the store, the alarm sounded. We entered by the entrance that is connected to the rest of the mall. Any stories where people come up and ask if you have anything on you? Anyone had to show your permit to a security guard or something like that? I decided that if someone asked I would show my badge (yes, shock and horror, some DA's actually have real shields). I thought this would probably solve the problem.
I acted confused when the alarm went off and the girls at the makeup counter told me it was ok to enter. Oh if they only knew what I had on my hip. When we left the store, the alarm didn't go off. I didn't run into any more difficulties for the rest of the day. Not everywhere has alarms but a lot of places do. Any experience dealing with them?
Beyond that the first few days have gone well. I am starting to get used to the weight and experience of having my weapon by my side. Any tips out there for alarms or feeling more comfortable would be appreciated.
I received my permit on Weds in the early afternoon and didn't start carrying it until Thursday. I wore it to work, where I took it off (I am in the courtroom frequently and even with a CCW it is illegal to carry in a courtroom, although one of the bailiffs told me he would not care. Not sure how the judge would take it; one of the judges carries on the bench). I promptly put it back on after work for the trip home.
Anyway, that night, we went to get boxes for an upcoming move. We went to a shoe store who had boxes for us. When we first got there I felt very self concious. I thought that I was very obvious and everyone could see. However once we got to loading boxes, everything went fine. I also went to McD's that night to get dinner. I was thinking to myself that everyone around must notice but then again no one looked at me strange. It was an odd feeling to know that I was the only one armed in the entire restauraunt.
Anyway, Friday we went to the mall. We sold my wife's bicycle to a guy that my wife found on the net. As we were going to meet him, the wife actually asked if I was packing and when I said yes, she was pleased about it. That was interesting. She told me that she felt very comfortable that I was armed.
Anyway, we went to Macy's to look at belts and when we entered the alarm sounded. This is where my questions come from. One, is it normal for the alarms to go off when you enter stores. As we went into the store, the alarm sounded. We entered by the entrance that is connected to the rest of the mall. Any stories where people come up and ask if you have anything on you? Anyone had to show your permit to a security guard or something like that? I decided that if someone asked I would show my badge (yes, shock and horror, some DA's actually have real shields). I thought this would probably solve the problem.
I acted confused when the alarm went off and the girls at the makeup counter told me it was ok to enter. Oh if they only knew what I had on my hip. When we left the store, the alarm didn't go off. I didn't run into any more difficulties for the rest of the day. Not everywhere has alarms but a lot of places do. Any experience dealing with them?
Beyond that the first few days have gone well. I am starting to get used to the weight and experience of having my weapon by my side. Any tips out there for alarms or feeling more comfortable would be appreciated.