One week in Hawaii. No checked bags. I am my husband’s hero.
A photo posted by Nancy French (@nancyjanefrench) on
2. I was (correctly) filled with anxiety over the thought of carrying a gun in my purse
I don’t have great “purse awareness.” When I’m in a restaurant, I hang it on the back of my chair. When I’m sitting at a ball game, my kids might be digging through it for gum or mints. The idea of carrying a weapon in my purse filled me with dread… If I had my gun in my purse, I couldn’t ever let my guard down regarding the location of my purse, ever ever ever. If my purse was ever stolen, the thief would not only get lipstick, five broken crayons, and ten receipts from McDonald’s Whole Foods, they’d also get my gun. That scared me.
(Notice where my purse is in the above photo? Slightly out of eyesight range, which is about right for me.)
What I learned in this class is that carrying a gun in your purse is only optimal for revolvers — which can be used to shoot right through your purse. Because of the simplicity of the revolver, it won’t get jammed. However, I carry a 9 mm Glock 43, the mechanics of which are more complicated. The instructor said you could get one shot off through your purse with this semi-automatic weapon without a malfunction. In other words, it wasn’t even a great idea for me to purse carry. For some reason, the idea of carrying on my person was a lot more comfortable for me.