LOL Not walk out, but at least have set aside until you get a little more coinage...

At the price the shotgun was listed for, and at the condition it is in, it wasn't going to be on the rack long. It still had what looked to be factory oil on it.

-Mark

But, if you are only using cup-holder-money they may not hold it long enough for you to actually finish the transaction.

No, there I was, heading out to run some errands, one of which was stopping off at a StopNRob to fill up.

I got out of the car, did the pay-at-the-pump thing, and started filling up. There was a guy at the pump in front of me, giving me kind of a funny look. Indian -- dots, not feathers -- but I didn't think much (well, anything) of it, when he went into the SuperAmerica. Not everybody pays at the pump, after all.

Pumping finished, I went in, too -- had a small check to deposit at the ATM -- and I stopped off at the counter to buy some cigarettes. He was still there, in some sort of discussion with the manager, apparently about how to get to downtown Minneapolis? The manager was giving him fairly complicated directions -- 55 to the Crosstown to I35W.

"Nah," I said. "There's all sorts of construction on 35; I don't even know if it's open to downtown today. Simplest way to get downtown is just to stay on 55, follow the signs." It turns into Hiawatha, and all.

He thanked me, and left.

The manager looked at me. "Thanks. Hey -- what department are you with?" he asked, gesturing at my right side.

Oops. Seemed that I'd gotten my covering garment hooked up behind the butt of my gun -- I was carrying the Birthday Present that many of you folks chipped in for (thanks again!), and had been mistaken for a plainclothes cop. (Well, I do have a distinct resemblence to Dennis Franz . . . ) He explained that that was one of the things that had concerned the nice Indian guy -- he wasn't used to seeing guns.

I explained that I wasn't a cop at all -- just a carry permit holder and instructor.

"Instructor?"

"Well, yeah. IActually, I'm the guy who wrote the book."

"Got a card on you?"

I gave him a card, and did ask if should wait around to see if EPD showed up. He shook his head; they probably weren't, because they hadn't been called.

I've got huge cupholders...biggest pair you've ever seen.

You know what they say about guys with big cups....

-Mark

Well, the new kid came home from Frontiersman today.

Don't get me wrong, I'm very fond of my handguns and I trust my (and my wife's) ability to use them if necessary.

That said, there is just something comforting about having 7 rounds of buckshot (Remington reduced recoil, to be kind to my wife) in the tube, plus another 2 on the stock along with a round of military buckshot, a reduced recoil slug, and a round of game load at your disposal. I'm all about flexibility.

Even when considering the venerable .45ACP...I'll now grab the 12 gauge first.

-Mark

Good. I remember some quote from some dead guy about pistols being only used for fighting to a rifle you were stupid enough to not keep in reach...

Yup.

My wife asked what the difference was between using one of the handguns vs. the shotgun for protection if you still have to aim COM. My response was, "more kick, more noise, and a lot more likely that the fight will be over after the noise."

You don't hear very often that somebody took a full load of buckshot to COM at under 20 feet and got up to keep fighting.

-Mark

Sure. When it comes to self-defense, about the only thing you can't do with a shotgun that you can do with a handgun are:

a: carry it discreetly in public, and
b: answer the door without unwittingly alarming the Girl Scout who is just there to sell you cookies.

I could pull off a)...baggy pants.

-Mark

you gonna put a hinge on that thing or walk around with a leg that you can't bend

I'll go with the second and just blame it on being a dirty old man. Think I can get away with that at 32 years of age?

-Mark