Little bit of bad, little bit of good.
So, I go out this evening with the intention of heading off to A Piece of Ireland to play for a bit tonight. I hit the gas station to pick up a gallon of gas to tide me over until tomorrow when I hit my regular place that has 5 cent off Thursdays. While I'm pumping that one gallon, I get a guy who came up panhandling (I'm fairly certain he noticed I was carrying) and a couple of Asian guys at the next pump who were asking me questions about the mileage on my Prius.
So, I hit the pub, go in and setup. After playing for 40 minutes or so, a younger guy (maybe mid-20s) who was eating at the table next to me struck up a conversation:
Him: "I've gotta ask, are you into open carry, or do you work with a department?"
Me: "I actually open carry... How do you know about it."
Him: "I work for the City of Newark."
It was there that got me a bit confused -- I don't know if he meant he actually worked for the city or worked for their police department. He asked me if we ever had any issues, and I told him we've had one guy who was illegally detained, but outside of that, no issues.
He said that folks see someone with a gun and they think, "Oh, crap, he's got a gun, I better treat him like he can kill me," and I just said, "That's where they get the expression, 'An armed society is a polite society,' hoping to convey that, with regards to folks who might be inclined to aggress against someone, that they'll need the conviction of their words if the victim could fight back. He said, "Oh, absolutely."
After a tiny bit more small talk, I told him about the website and gave him a card, inviting him to stop by and say hello or drop by if he had any questions. He said, "You guys keep it up." I think he was genuinely supportive, but expressed what the generally have going through their mind.
Then, as I was leaving, the bartender called me over -- now, bear in mind that I've been acquaintances with him and the owners for quite some time. He asked me if I had my conceal license and if that was why I was carrying. I told him that I wasn't concealing, and he said, "Well, yeah, I know that, but you have a license?" I told him I did. He went on to very politely ask me to leave it in my car the next time because the owner felt uncomfortable. I smiled and nodded and left.
I'll probably wind up not going back there to play anyone -- after three years, it's time for me to move on to a more experienced group of people to keep my skills tight.
So, overall, it was a mixed night, but, on the whole, good enough.
Rob/Wynder
Delaware Open Carry, Founder
Notary Public