Husband almost got drawn on

[C-dub]

I always let Mrs. dub know when I'll be home and then again when I'm only blocks away. I don't usually come home at odd hours, but it's still good to let her know. When I'm not home, she keeps gun right next to her on the end table. What chaps me is when she doesn't let me know when she'll be home. I'm always awake, though, since she also isn't out at odd hours and my first clue that it's her is that she unlocks the front door.

[mr surveyor]

if it's after dark, I ALWAYS call .... even if I'm pulling into the driveway

[Oldgringo]

I always let Mrs. dub know when I'll be home and then again when I'm only blocks away. I don't usually come home at odd hours, but it's still good to let her know. When I'm not home, she keeps gun right next to her on the end table. What chaps me is when she doesn't let me know when she'll be home. I'm always awake, though, since she also isn't out at odd hours and my first clue that it's her is that she unlocks the front door.

Who's on first.....

[TexasGal]

My husband learned to call or whistle a familiar tune the same way, Mamabear. He had left for an evening job. The driveway was empty because my truck was in the garage. The place looked like no one was home. A while after he had gone, I heard a door shut in the garage and I knew someone was about to come through the door into the kitchen right where I was-- leaving no time for me to retreat safely. My hubby opened the door and froze when he saw me about 12 feet away in a firing stance and my gun at low ready. His face went and, as we both relaxed in relief, his face went like this ... .. He had forgotten his cell phone.
Now I always get a call or hear his whistle before he comes in.

[CHLLady]

Great job being ready!

[MadMonkey]

that's good it was just your hubby coming home early! I test my wife every now and then when she doesn't want to go in academy or something and waits in the truck. I'll try and sneak up on just to keep her on her toes. she hasn't failed yet and it makes me feel great!

Be careful... one of the instructors I've learned from says that doing that can actually be bad for her defensive mechanisms because she's expecting the person sneaking up on her to be you and will be less likely to react appropriately when/if it's the real thing. He was specifically talking about a woman who said her husband would never let her know when he was coming home at unexpected times, which meant that if she heard noises in the middle of the night when he was working late she had to wonder if it was him or an intruder as she tried to decide what defensive measures to take. The husband was trying to help her stay alert, but it really had the opposite effect: she was scared to get out a gun and be prepared for an intruder because she was afraid she would mistakenly shoot her husband.

My husband is usually really good about calling first, and he even knows that if he works late and plans to get home around 1 or 2 a.m. he should still call and wake me up to say he's on his way because at that hour if I hear someone moving in the house and I don't know it's him, I'm preparing to defend myself and my children. Much better a phone call than that adrenalin rush. ;)

I'd recommend good communication constantly, which a good marriage should have anyway. That way anyone trying to be sneaky is immediately flagged as suspicious

[Abraham]

Now, if I could just get my wife to be as ready as the rest of you ladies.

I have a hard time just getting her to lock the front door.

Some folks simply live in condition white and there's no amount of cautioning that'll wake them to the bad guys that populate our surroundings...

[captainkbt]

So many people go into condition white when they are at their house (inside or out) and don't have even quick access to a firearm, much less one on their person. Good job!!

To each their own.....but I just cant see carrying in my own home.

[Dave2]

So many people go into condition white when they are at their house (inside or out) and don't have even quick access to a firearm, much less one on their person. Good job!!

To each their own.....but I just cant see carrying in my own home.

How else would you keep your gun close by? I mean I guess you could get a gun per seating position and hide them around your home, or something, but that sounds excessively expensive (though the subsequent reliability testing would make for a fun week at the range). Plus, carrying around an extra whole 3.44 pounds (just weighed my heaviest carry rig) counts as exercise. See? Being armed 24, er, 14/7 is part of a healthy lifestyle!

Seriously, though, for me, if the gun rig's not comfy enough to wear around the house, it's not comfy enough to wear around town.

[WildBill]

So many people go into condition white when they are at their house (inside or out) and don't have even quick access to a firearm, much less one on their person. Good job!!

To each their own.....but I just cant see carrying in my own home.

If I carry around my house, the gun will be in my hand.

[03Lightningrocks]

So many people go into condition white when they are at their house (inside or out) and don't have even quick access to a firearm, much less one on their person. Good job!!

To each their own.....but I just cant see carrying in my own home.

If I carry around my house, the gun will be in my hand.

I don't carry in my home either but I have very fast access to weapons in a couple key rooms. Like wild bill, the times I am carrying the gun is in my hand. To be fare about it all, I am no slouch at the art of brawling and at 265 pounds can inflict some serious hurt. This physical advantage allows me a little bit more flexibility. True, a guy kicking in the door and opening fire is a formidable challenge but even having a gun on my hip is not going to be a lot of help in such an extreme circumstance.

My kids are all grown so having guns in drawers here and there is not a problem. Having children in the home changes things a bit. When mine were young and at home, I still didn't carry on my person while the accessibility of firearms was much more limited.

[Deltaboy]

Good rules to remember; 1. Call if your coming home at a odd time. 2. Remember good safe weapons handling. 3. All these stories remind us to remain alert even at Home.

[RPBrown]

<SNIP>
Kids are like boom-a-rangs, you throw them out and they keep coming back.
<SNIP>

What a ridiculous statement. I have thrown dozens of boomerangs and not one came back.

[goose]

A really great thread. Thank you and well done MotherBear.

[Dreamer42]

I often find I can sleep through a locomotive coming through my living room, but find I wake to tiny creeks or outside noises. Many years ago my brother-in-law was knocking on the back door. We had a fence at the time. He almost got shot. I sarcastically asked why the *&@# he didn't use the front door? Not a good feeling.

- Dreamer42