Gun blog
The entries below detail 1st hand accounting of citizens open carrying in Virginia. All entries are first hand accounts unless otherwise noted. Most of these social situation occur in restaurants because Virginia law 18.2-308 prohibits concealed firearms where alcohol is served for consumption. There are varying opinions on open carry among gun owners, this blog is presenting 1st hand observation of openly carrying firearms regardless of whether the encounter is good, bad or indifferent. The overwhelming majority of results are positive, but Bighammer.net encourages readers to read the entries and form their own opinions.
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I have decided to stop entries here unless they're notable.
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Saturday March 24, 2007 Willards BBQ in Chantilly, VA. Me and the Mrs. again. VERY crowded, almost a gun bumping good time. No problems though.
Friday March 23, 2007 Otani in Chantilly, VA. 5 patrons, 3 armed. Wouldn't you know we were next to birthday party of high school aged girls... Must have been a dozen of them. They were prolific talkers. Even so, we had a good time and nobody gave a whit about the 3 of us carrying.
Saturday March 17, 2007 Applebees in Alexandria, VA. Just me & the Mrs. No problems
Friday March 16, 2007 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 4 Patrons, 3 armed Winter tried to surge back today. Cold, blustery, and snow. Nobody had any problem though.
Saturday March 10, 2007. Willard's BBQ in Chantilly, VA. 4 patrons, 2 openly armed, 1 carrying concealed. The latter was an "agent of the MAN" and required by his employer to stay concealed. Another of us was former LE. Nobody had any problems.
Friday March 9, 2007. Logan's Roadhouse in Fairfax, VA. 4 patrons, 3 armed. It was busy I was late but despite all the people there were no problems.
Friday March 2, 2007 Dixie Bones BBQ in Woodbridge, VA. 3 patrons, 2 armed, no problems.
Friday February 23, 2007 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 3 armed patrons. We weore 2 booths away from a FCPD officer in uniform. There were no problems.
Wednesday February 21, 2007 Fuddruckers in Annandale, VA. Between 4 - 15 armed patrons at any one time. This was a post VCDL meeting dinner.
Friday February 16, 2007 Famous Dave's BBQ in Oakton, VA 4 patrons, 3 armed and as usual no problems.
Saturday February 10, 2007 Five Guys in Chantilly, VA. Just me, no problems
Friday February 9, 2007 Tequila Grande in Vienna, VA 6 Patrons, 5 armed, no problems.
Friday February 2, 2007 The Amphora restaurant in Vienna, VA. 4 patrons, 3 armed, no problems.
Friday January 26, 2007 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 4 patrons, 3 armed, no problems.
Saturday January 20, 2007 Picante in Chantilly, VA. 3 patrons, 2 armed, no problems.
Friday January 19, 2007 Dixie Bones BBQ in Woodbridge, VA. 5 patrons, 4 armed, no problems.
Friday January 12, 2007 Logan's Roadhouse Fair Lakes shopping center in Fairfax, VA. 4 of 5 patrons armed. Long wait, no problems.
Friday January 5, 2007 Ruby Tuesday Fairfax, VA. 3 armed patrons, once again no problems.
Friday December 29, 2006 ???????????????????????????? I've long since forgotten where we went, but it was uneventful.
Friday December 22, 2006 Don Pablos in Fair Lakes shopping center, Fairfax, VA 3 of 5 patrons armed, very crowded, but no problems.
Friday December 15, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 5 patrons, 4 armed. A couple people noticed, but said nothing, continued eating and everything went fine.
Friday December 8, 2006 5 Guys in Woodbridge, VA. 1 open carrying, the rest were concealed. No problems.
Friday December 1, 2006 Fuddruckers in Fairfax, VA. 5 people, 4 armed. Good times, no problems.
Friday November 24, 2006 Picante in Chantilly, VA. 3 armed patrons, crowded restaurant, no problems to report.
Saturday November 18, 2006 Baja Fresh in Chantilly, VA. 2 of 5 patrons armed, no problems to report
Friday November 17, 2006 Logan's Roadhouse in Fairfax, VA 2 of 3 patrons armed, no problems to report.
Thursday November 16, 2006 Fuddruckers in Annandale, VA. About 20 armed patrons. No problems to report
Saturday November 11, 2006 Casa di Scottos in Staunton, VA. 5 armed patrons. Peaceful, quiet and uneventful.
Friday November 3, 2006 Famous Dave's BBQ in Oakton, VA. 6 Patrons, 4 carrying. No problems to report.
Friday October 27, 2006 Five Guys in Woodbridge VA. 6 patrons, 4 carrying. No problems to report.
Thursday October 26, 2006 Casa di Scottos in Staunton, VA. 16 patrons, at least a dozen armed. Kudos to the staff of Casa di Scotto's for excellent service, great food and a generally good dining experience. No less than 4 of the staff PROFUSELY apologized for 07/15/06 incident, clearly indicating that THEY were not responsible nor any of the staff for engaging police. This is clearly indicated on the 911 call too. Scotto's made it abundantly clear that they welcome gun owners and want nothing to do with the lunatic fringe, nutjob assertions of Staunton's police chief & commonwealth's attorney. The staff patiently took SEPARATE CHECKS for anyone requesting it, served everyone quickly, kept wait staff close by for drink refills, they even stayed open late to accomodate us with absolutely no indication of wanting to go home until we were done eating and talking and talking some more.
Wednesday October 25, 2006 Fuddruckers in Annandale, VA. No less than 18 armed patrons and a few more unarmed. Not a single problem.
Friday October 6, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 3 patrons, 2 armed. No problems whatsoever.
Friday September 29, 2006 Long Horn restaurant in Chantilly, VA. There were ~20 patrons, I could not determine who was armed but estimate between 6 and 9. This was completely uneventful despite having to leave the restaurant and come back.
Friday September 15, 2006 Dixie Bones in Woodbridge, VA. 6 patrons, 4 armed. We stood around for no less than 20 minutes in front of a packed house. Despite this, nobody lost control of their gun, none of the guns were used or used against us and nobody made any bones (no pun intended) about it.
Saturday September 9, 2006 On the Border in Tysons Corner, VA. 2 armed patrons. No problems, even in crowded, packed Tysons Corner.
Friday September 8, 2006 Logan's Road House in Fair Lakes(Fairfax) VA. 5 patrons, 3 armed. It would have been difficult for our several co-diners to not notice the guns as the only table available was in the bar area. On the one hand that was good because we got to see the TV's which had some good race footage. On the other it was a bit loud. Even so, nobody had a problem.
Friday September 1, 2006 Famous Dave's BBQ in Oakton, VA. 4 patrons, 3 armed. Another exciting night of well... nothing happening.
Friday August 25, 2006. Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 4 patrons, 3 armed. We went in, got seated, ate some food, talked a lot, ate some more food and the next thing you know... Nothing happened. So, we all went home... Funny how that happens so often.
Friday August 18, 2006. Willard's BBQ in Chantilly, VA. Initially there were 4 of us, 3 of us were armed. Several others joined us later on. No problems here either.
Friday August 11, 2006. Tequila Grande in Vienna, VA. 4 of us, 3 armed. We were there for quite a long time, with no problems.
Sunday August 6, 2006. That's Amore in Vienna, VA. I'm guessing no less than 2 dozen armed people, and a couple more guests. Many more women this time. Quiet, peaceable and uneventful.
Friday August 4, 2006. Amphora in Vienna, VA 4 Patrons, 3 armed. Again, no trouble...
Friday July 28, 2006. Another Ruby Tuesday's meal; 3 patrons, all armed. No foolishness to report.
Wednesday July 26, 2006. On July 19, 2006, Scottos patrons FOIA the Staunton Police Department for records concerning the 911 call that initiated the 07/15/06 visit by the Staunton PD. The Staunton PD response is here.
Friday July 21, 2006 Logans Road House in Fair Lakes Virginia. 4 patrons, 3 armed. Fine outdoor dining in the very wealthy County of Fairfax. No problems or issues.
Saturday, July 15, 2006 Casa di Scotto in Staunton, VA. 3 patrons, 2 armed. Today we shared a restaurant with one of the 11 gun haters in Virginia. I'm not sure which one it was, but it wasn't that guy who runs C&E gun shows. At any rate, within about 10 minutes the Staunton PD arrived. This stuff doesn't seem to happen when I'm feeling great, but only when I'm really, really hungry. It was in this sentiment that simply showed my ID, and said as little as possible. Initially, this ID check didn't concern me, in retrospect it does since I recall it as a demand, not a request and we were in a public place... This will be discussed more later. Subsequent to our ID checks we were told the owner said no firearms in response to the PD call, accordingly they split - very fast I might add. About as fast as we decided Scottos could kiss our collective asses.
Prior to this day, I had maintained that I wouldn't give a dime to someone of this mindset, but in the brief consideration given to where to eat, I decided it was morally wrong to walk out without paying what I owed for the drinks. That's too bad, our waitress got along with us, and she's the one that suffered... Too bad, our food was ready as we told the to settle us up, we were leaving. No, we didn't pay for the food, we didn't eat it.
Here is Scottos - http://staunton.va.golookon.com/listings/casa_di_scottos
Don't go there. Tell everyone you know who has been, could go, or is incarcerated in Staunton and might get out for good behavior not to eat there. Everybody has a choice. Scottos could have catered to the well behaved, non problematic (and well paying) party, or the hysterical ranting party. They made their choice, we made ours.
Friday, July 14, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 4 patrons, 3 armed, no problems.
Friday July 7, 2006 Famous Dave's BBQ in Oakton, VA 4 of us, 3 armed. No problems to report.
Friday June 16, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 3 armed patrons. No problems. Friday June 9, 2006 Zarqawi is D E A D ! Too bad he lived as long as he did.
Dixie Bones in Woodbridge, VA. 2 of us, only I was armed. Not so much as a furrowed brow.
Thursday June 8, 2006 Fuddruckers in Annandale, VA. Approximately 15 patrons, best guess is 12 or 13 armed. Once again, no problems.
Friday June 2, 2006 Lupo II in Fairfax, VA. 4 patrons, 3 carrying. Just across from the Fairfax County court complex, a fine dining experience. Us and our weapons were welcomed in, and welcomed back. Needless to say, there were no problems whatsoever.
Friday May 26, 2006 Tequila Grande in Oakton, VA. 4 patrons, 3 carrying. We were sandwiched in between a group of diners with several small kids, and a loud talking computer geek couple. All of them were completely unphased by our presence, our discussion of the recent festivities in WV, or our discussions of future purchase plans... Once again, not a single problem.
Thursday May 25, 2006 Just a momentary stop at the local auto parts store off the Kings Highway in Alexandria, VA. My gun didn't make anyone even blink twice.
Saturday May 13, 2006 Famous Dave's BBQ in Chantilly, VA. 7 patrons, 3 or 4 carrying. Once again, completely uneventful. No problems whatsoever.
Friday May 12, 2006 Fuddruckers in Fairfax, Virginia 4 patrons, 3 carrying. Totally uneventful. Prior to entry a family noticed us. One of them cautioned us not to start any trouble; we assured him that would not happen. While it may sound 'snarky', the tone of his voice saying the words seemed to indicate he was making the remark in jest.
Wednesday May 10, 2006 Dixie Bones BBQ in Woodbridge, VA. 4 patrons, 3 carrying. We were served quickly, with smiles all around in a crowded venue without incident.
Friday May 5, 2006 Logan's Roadhouse in Fair Lakes, VA. 4 patrons, 3 carrying. We started out with more, but lost one along the way. Cinco de Mayo plans were quashed when our restaurant of choice was packed beyond belief. We bailed for a 2nd choice of Logans which turned out to be just fine. As usual, zero problems.
Friday April 28, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax. 3 of us, all carrying. If you want to draw attention to yourself, don't consider open carrying a gun in Virginia. You'll blend in like everybody else, and nobody will pay you any mind. This doesn't make the news because there's no drama, conflict or argument. The plain simple fact is that the only "controversy" in existence about open carry is in the minds of the press. Needless to say, there was no trouble once again.
Friday April 21, 2006 Five Guys Burger joint in Woodbridge, VA. About 12 in the party, 3, maybe 4 of us carrying open. Nothing once again to report. Nobody batted an eye in fact. It is Woodbridge after all...
Thursday April 20, 2006 Fuddruckers in Annandale, VA. At least 12, probably 15 carrying patrons. Post VCDL meeting food. Nothing exciting, and certainly no events of any kind to report.
Friday April 14, 2006 Logan's Roadhouse in Fairfax, VA. We had Luke & John, but no Matthew or Mark.... There were 5 diners, 4 armed. Once again, open carry does not alarm the public, draw unnecessary attention to yourself, or many of the other rumors spread on internet bulletin boards and email lists. Diners next to us probably thought we were a little...eccentric... since we were discussing which guns to bring to an upcoming shoot. Even so, nobody batted an eye at us. That was, until the waiter failed to return "Mr. HiPoint's" change. We were a little worried that Mr. HiPoint was "going to get medieval on his ass". He tries to hid them, but we've all seen that he carries a pair of pliers, and a blow torch in his trunk... Mr. HiPoint however calmly and with dignity reminded the waiter of his error completely without drama. Restaurant staff is always happy to have us... or customers like us. That's because gun owners are decent, responsible, good people, and we don't give the restaurants a hard time. When we leave, they can often be heard saying things like 'hey, those guys wearing the guns were cool' and 'I hope the gun guys come back'. It doesn't take much to set a good example, but it goes a long way.
Saturday April 8, 2006 Red Robin in Chantilly, VA. 5 diners, 3 armed. We had to break in a waitress, she was new. The guns never became an issue and once again, no drama.
Friday April 7, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. Only 2 of us, both carrying. The range was closed, so we went without practice. Even so, there was no drama to report.
Friday, April 1, 2006(no fooling) Red Hot and Blue in Fairfax, VA. 4 armed patrons. Just a hop, skip and a jump from the county court house you would almost expect to run into some of the local official types, but alas no. Thanks to my good friend Luke, aka "Mr. Hi Point" for saving the day. Our original destination was Lone Star, which turned out to be closed. I whizzed right by it and had to turn around. Luke already had a backup (plan for dinner, Luke carries a S&W, 'he don't need no steenkin' backup) so off we went to RH&B. It was fairly warm so we got preferred, outside seating. Once again, no drama. I'm proud to do my part as a law abiding citizen, practicing civil obedience through open carry. The General Assembly of Virginia does their part by insisting on prohibiting concealment in restaurants that serve alcohol, and we do our part by open carrying.
You've got 2 choices at a restaurant which serves alcohol in VA folks - 1: de-holster and leave the gun in your car/SUV/minivan or motorcycle. 2: Open Carry.
Option 1 leaves you succeptible to thieves, muggers etc. and God forbid that someone of lower moral values witnesses you taking off a gun and storing it. Situations like this are the way that dishonorable people get their hands on guns. Don't let that happen.
Friday, March 25, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 3 Patrons, 2 Armed. Just a quiet meal among friends. No drama. No panic. No crazed internet rumor worthy events. Just some guys carrying guns and dining quietly.
Friday, March 17, 2006 Dixie Bones BBQ in Woodbridge, VA. 5 patrons, 4 armed. Apologies for the delay... As David Lee Roth once said: "I don't feel tardy"... Some family committments have been interfering with my work.
We are all ambassadors of the shooting sports. St. Patrick's Day saw the shooters of the Friday Night Group land in Woodbridge for some short barrelled and full auto fun. While the range wasn't crowded, there were a few shooters. After a 150 or so rounds, I worked my way up the the full auto FNC. It didn't take long to draw a crowd with the FNC. About the time I ran out of ammo I spied a teenager, previously shooting with an older gentleman I assumed to be the parent/guardian. We'll call him 'Pat'. I could tell he wanted some trigger time, so I told him I was out of ammo, but if he could scrounge up some .223 from the range staff, I'd be happy to let him put some rounds on target. Rock and Roll style. I'm pretty sure I didn't get to finish the entire sentence... Before I knew it he was loading up magazines - an undertaking I find... soothing. Once complete, I grabbed a few rounds from him and demonstrated, then explained exactly how to handle the gun. He'd shot an AR before, so I explained everything - safe direction, proper hold, and how to work the selector lever... I think that was his favorite part. Right after the shooting. It wasn't too many rounds, but suffice it to say he had a good time.
He may not remember me for long, or even be able to remember my name, but he will remember the guy with the 'cool machine gun' and how he was a decent guy. He'll know when people lump all gun owners and shooters into the same company as thugs, criminals and miscreants that those people are ignorant liars. He'll get to tell his friends he shot a machine gun one Friday night because some guy at the range said 'go get some ammo so you can shoot it.' He'll know that guys with machine guns and 'arsenals' are just cool, every day regular folks.
After policing up the brass, we headed for Dixie Bones where we hung around and ate uneventfully. All of us secure in the knowledge that at least one new 'enthusiast' had been minted.
Friday, March 10, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 4 patrons, 3 armed. Just another week dispelling the all too common myths about open carry.
First, everybody was well behaved, so contrary to what VPC might say, the guns clearly have no psychic mind controlling powers to turn an otherwise law abiding person into a thug.
Second, for the entire time the guns were holstered. Each of us watched one of the guns, with the 4th patron acting as a "control" by verifying all of the remaining patrons, and not one of the guns un-holstered itself and started shooting the place up. I keep hearing this is supposed to be happening. So, there was no "gun violence".
Next, everyone had a full size autoloader in a plainly worn belt holster. No police were called for any breach of the peace, or other made up stuff as some gun writers have maintained.
There was no panic of the other patrons, or general public. Everyone just went about their lawful business.
Nobody snatched those plainly worn guns from their holsters and obviously nobody had their gun used against them.
Friday, March 3, 2006 Famous Dave's BBQ in Vienna, VA. 5 patrons, 4 armed. Short wait, good food and lively discussion punctuated a good evening. Once again, there were no issues.
Friday, February 24, 2006 The Amphora in Vienna, VA. 5 patrons, 4 armed, no problems. We even stayed late to be sure there were no problems, and there weren't.
Wednesday, February 22, 2006 Fuddruckers in Annandale, VA. No less than 20 armed patrons, post VCDL meeting. These things always go quietly, and tonight was no exception.
Saturday February 18, 2006 Dixie Bones in Woodbridge, VA. 4 patrons, 2 armed. For the 2nd week in a row, the plans for the annual Valentines day shooting got skunked. Last week by snow, this week by a shooting range with a 50 person wait! If it wasn't _actually_ 50, it was close to it because we were bumping elbows...
This brings me to one of life's little ironies... Here we are in a building with 30 to 50 people, no LESS than half are armed. If you were to believe the nonsense spewed by the VPC or Brady campaign, there would've been blood in the streets with all those armed people. Now I don't want to get off on a rant here, but this happens all across the United States folks, on a daily basis. The fact of the matter is that the truth that liars like the Brady Campaign and VPC don't want you to know is that places where guns are most prevalent are the least succeptible to general bad behavior and crime. Think about it for a minute, if you were to subscribe the the Brady/VPC silliness, you would be reading about police stations across the country coming under fire! But you don't. The truth is out there for people to find, but you won't find much truth listening to the serial lies of the VPC & Brady Campaign to make life easier for criminals. But I digress...
In frustration, we bailed for Dixie Bones, only to find... A WAIT 4 of us toughed it out. Seeing how my day was going so far, I decided to treat myself to dessert, so I had the waitress hold me a dish of cherry cobbler. Good thing too, because I got the last dish. At least one thing went right...
Friday, February 17, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 4 patrons, 3 armed. I keep waiting for these people who allegedly get spooked by open carry to show up, but so far I haven't run into any... Go figure, tonight was no different.
Saturday, February 11, 2006 Famous Dave's BBQ in Chantilly, VA. 6 patrons, 3 armed. It was a quiet dinner for 6. Nobody batted an eye at us. Another total non event.
Friday February 10, 2006 Fuddruckers in Fairfax, VA. 4 armed patrons. No problems, hitches, panic, terror or even anything worth mentioning. We came, we saw, we ate a few burgers.
Friday February3, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 4 armed patrons
Some sacrifices must be made for the cause...
I will spend 3 hours at work digging up facts to write a letter to the editor, for a one sentence error which in my estimation is an attempt to infringe my rights. I will spend money to save as little as 30 seconds a day. Most significant to this discussion, I spent more on my last firearm purchase than I've spent on maintenance for my '91 Ford Exploder in the 5 years I've owned it. In fact, one of my more recent firearm purchase cost more than I paid for the Exploder, plus every cent I've EVER spent on that truck... Tonight, I got a subtle reminder that I may have taken that mantra too far when upon starting the truck, we all heard a sickening "POP", then smoke from under the hood, and the truck stalled. Not the reaction we were looking for. I popped the hood, tried a restart but it wouldn't idle. Turns out it backfired through the manifold, blowing 5 hose connections off. Once plugged, it was back running again, after about 5 minutes and some frantic 'picking through the spaghetti' of vacuum hoses... Sure, I could spend some money on this truck... But then I wouldn't be able to afford all these really nice guns... Besides, my other truck goes 145mph
So anyway, I make it to Ruby's without being incinerated by the truck. There was some grousing because I did not bring out the GOW from 1/27/06 for a reprise. I pronounced that "if you miss the GOW, you miss it... tough cookies". Make it to Friday night shooting next time. The truth is that my hand just stopped hurting from shooting it the previous Friday. This should tell the ones who know me that this must be one bad mo-fo. So, back to the dining.
There was nothing worth mentioning. We came, we sat, we ate with no children harmed in the making of this blog.
A reminder that Feb. 14 is fast approaching, which means an honor to the tradition of Valentine's day ( and a tip of the fedora to the massacre ). This will mean sub guns, and shotguns. Which reminds me, we need some comparisons:
Rem 870 w/ Knoxx stock vs. OEM Rem 870 vs. Beretta 1201
for recoil comarisons. The last time I brought up a muzzle flash contest everybody balked at me bringing the 500 Wankers. Don't bring a .32acp to a muzzle flash contest.
2006 will definitely be an interesting year...
Friday January 27, 2006 Lone Star Steak House in Fairfax, VA. 3 of us, 2 carrying. This place was so packed the parking lot was full. We had to wait around for about 20 minutes in a packed house. Wouldn't you know...
Nothing happend. Nobody panicked. We ate dinner, and left uneventfully.
Saturday January 21, 2006 Red Robin in Chantilly, VA. 8 Patrons 4 armed. Yet again, the dining experience is unaffected by the presence of firearms. We had no problems to mention, or event to discuss. Clearly these tales of woe spread by those who do not know of being 'hassled' for open carry are greatly overblown.
Friday January 20, 2006 Famous Dave's BBQ in Oakton, VA. 4 patrons, 2 armed. We came, we saw, we ate some barbecue. That essentially tells the tale of how this went. A total non event as usual.
Thursday January 19, 2006 Fuddruckers in Annandale, VA. I counted no less than 15 armed patrons, several guests, and one Fairfax County P.O. grabbing a burger. I don't know if the FCPD guy noticed me noticing him, but he noticed a good many of the armed patrons. Kudos for maintaining his alertness, many of the restaurants other patrons no doubt missed seeing anything but their burgers and fries. We discussed the pending Virginia General Assembly session, politics, and various other things. There were no problems or issues and once again no panic, hysteria or 'trouble'.
Monday, January 16, 2006 Daks restaurant in Alexandria, Virginia. Just me & the wife. I had to get some take out, but to do this, I had to go into the "bar" area of the restaurant... And stand around and wait until the bartender was done talking... Anyway, nobody panicked or even shot me a sideways glance.
Monday, January 16, 2006 Today I exercised my privilege to carry concealed as my wife & I went to VCDL's lobby day at the Virginia General Assembly Building. Upon entry, one is warned that NO WEAPONS are allowed except by concealed handgun permit holders . This in and of itself is an example of unchecked lawmakers who haven't heard enough from their constituents. Nevertheless, I got to hob-knob with high muckety much Delegates and Senators and got to do it in style with my polished stainless 629-1 Lew Horton magnaported Smith & Wesson .44 Magnum. My wife was sporting pewter 'peacemaker' earrings. There was a significan portion of the "background checks save lives" stickers but a very significant number of them were children compelled by parents to wear them. Sadly, I'll bet they had no idea just what part they were playing in the undoing of the Republic. Even though my delegate and senator don't always see eye to eye, I was able to sway my delegate on a couple of issues, which is saying a lot. After a little lobbying, I went down to Senate room a to watch the Courts of Justice committee make sausage. When I came in they were considering a death penalty moratorium and I got my first up close and personal glimpse of the Great Satan, Socialist senator Janet Howell. As Bighammer readers may knew, Howell made infamy in late July '02 by slandering me and 12 of my good friends in the Reston Observer - a copy of her hateful diatribe is on Bighammer.net. I couldn't help think I was in the immediate presence of the face of evil. The pro-moratorium folks were a bit unnerved by my snide comments of 'kill 'em quicker', 'they probably deserve it'. Some people have no sense of humor. Next up was the freedom hating senator Marsh trying to shut down gun shows. Bob Ricker and Jim Sollo spoke. Together with the other 9 anti gun people in Virginia they tried to make a strong showing. Senator Saslaw took the Idiot award by proudly proclaiming that he knew this law, as well as all gun laws made almost no differenct in reducing crime, but that he felt that it was only a minimal burden on those wanting to buy a gun.... I see no reason why Saslaw shouldn't be censured immediately for ignoring Virginia's Constitution, and just plain stupidity. Fortunately, Marsh's attack on gun shows failed again 4-9. After this, we decided to head out, stopping at Green Top Sporting Goods. Yikes. They have a LOT of guns, but they are pricey.
One thing that Virginia, and the country as a whole suffers from is people who are just too busy to get involved, but have plenty of time to whine and complain on internet forums. Not only do these (as Bugs would say) Maroons have nobody to blame but themselves, I blame them too. People need to get involved again to stop some of these unchecked elected officials from running roughshod over us. If you've got the time to read anything on Bighammer.net, you've got the time to pick up the phone and call your delegate, senators and US elected officials on an issue of concern to you.
Friday January 13, 2006 Moby Dicks Kabob place in Fairfax, VA. 5 patrons, 4 armed. No possible way anybody in this packed joint missed the openly carred 3 full size & 1 medium sized guns. Moby's is a cozy Kabob place that is good and reasonably priced. Not a large waiting area, so we had to be careful not to bump guns on anybody. After dinner, we all adjourned to the ice cream parlor a few shops up. There we all treated ourselves to something our doctors would all respectively frown upon. We weren't the only ones in the shop, but it wasn't as "close in" as Moby's. We spoke briefly to a couple of other customers.
These close in quarters definitely make you appreciate the urban myth that someone will snatch your openly carried firearm. (note from Bighammer.net: Bunk. But it's a persistent rumor spread by self appointed and annointed Tactical Dieties of the internet gun forums and publications.) In these types of situations, one can appreciate the extra busy scene as one is patiently awaiting their food, getting a drink or utensils, or just chatting someone up in line. It is often that I find myself commiserating with somebody in a "wait" line for a dinner table, food service, check out line. Much to the chagrin of these self annointed "Tactical Dieties of the Internet gun forums", nobody has put the gun snatching smackdown on me, or any of my friends. Perhaps it's my charming wit, winning personality, engaging conversation...Or maybe it's just plain common sense. Maybe this urban myth is spread by a combination of an unhealthy dose of paranoia, and an overestimation of the stupidity of man. Just maybe the onlooking citizens are just smart enough to think better of trying to snatch a pistol from somebody else's holster. Just maybe they realize that if I have had the consideration of picking a particular gun, and just the right holster, I just might have given considerable thought to that sort of attack on or about my person, and the resulting felony larceny attempt. Just maybe they realize that such an idea is of considerable risk to their life, especially considering the aforementioned charming wit and winning personality. Maybe this urban myth has been blown way out of proportion. Sure, there is merit to the risk in some situations. A great many Law officers are victims of this, some have even been shot or killed with their own weapons. Of course, this is almost always preceded by a non consentual encounter between the officer and a criminal, most often for the purposes of an arrest. So certainly the context in which this scenario of holstered firearms plays out must play a part. The lesson in all of this is be aware of your surroundings whether it is in an internet forum full of tactical know it alls, or a crowded venue people.
Friday January 6, 2006 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 10 patrons across 2 tables, 5 armed. I believe we may have gotten 'extra special' treatment. Not because of any guns that were worn but because one of us was wearing a Redskins jersey. The Washington Redskins are due to play the Tampa Bay Bucs 01/07/06 in their first playoff bid in years. Bighammer.net does not take a position on anything as controversial as football... Anyway, at least our waiter noticed, and probably a couple behind us. There was as usual, no incident of panic. Everybody went about their business without trouble, drama, or incident...
Friday December 30, 2005 Lone Star Steak House in Fairfax, VA. 4 patrons all armed. A quiet evening discussing the previous year and hypothesizing what may happen in the next. Nobody gave us any indication there was any sort of problem. The waitress noticed we were armed later in the evening. It didn't seem to be a problem for her, or anyone else there for that matter.
Wednesday December 28, 2005 Famous Dave's BBQ in Fairfax, VA. 5 patrons all armed. The place was packed when we got there, but we managed to get a seat. I don't think we got a 2nd glance, even while we were waiting for a table. Not even the new guy waiter ( a good one ), Ernesto, batted an eye. So nobody got alarmed, panicked, ran out screaming or suffered a hysterical fit. The night was completely uneventful.
Friday December 23, 2005 Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA. 3 patrons, all armed. Not a single furrowed brow. No issues to report, just a quiet dinner and nobody panicked.
Wednesday December 21, 2005 Just me and the Mrs at Ruby Tuesday in Alexandria, VA (Hybla Valley). Nobody noticed the gun, but the guy with the gun definitely noticed the waitress, who was notably bad. I'm usually a darn good tipper, and pretty tolerant, but after sitting around for 15 minutes just waiting for the check, I plucked down some cash to cover the bill and we left. This was after 2 attempts to get the check. Some other guy came out with the check just as we were leaving. We settled the bill and that was it. For the first time in memory, my table didn't get a tip. That's really too bad for her, because I'm typically generous at Christmas.
Friday December 16, 2005 Red, Hot & Blue in greater downtown Fairfax, VA. 5 patrons, 4 armed. I might be the only one that picked up on this, but it felt as if we got extra nice treatment. It wasn't overt, but seemed to me that the staff took pretty good care of us. His Tacticalness arrived a little later, and you could tell the difference. It was like his tactical aura enveloped us, and all were awed . Who knows where we'll end up eating next week...
Saturday December 10, 2005
Picante in Chantilly, VA. 4 of us. I know I was armed, can't speak for anyone else. I did get a couple of approving glances from a few small kids, but nothing else to report.
Friday December 9, 2005
Tequila Grande in Vienna, VA. 4 patrons all armed. Tonight, "His Tacticalness" handed down a lesson in tactical to the Friday Night Group. H.T. bested all tactical posers and range staff by bringing his Glock & 31 rounnd magazine. __AND__ the facilities and willingness to carry it. Not to dinner, but of course, by that point, the rest of us were relegated to the "tactical coat room". As our respective tacticalness was eclipsed yet again by His Tacticalness, we skulked off to do our shooting. The PX4 eclipsed 1200 rounds tonight... 1200 rounds of grit and grime and it's only been oiled once. No failures to report. zip. nada. Blazer, Winchester white box, 115's, 124's 147's, 115 +P+, 127 +P+... So I guess it's proven ok to use defensively... I guess I had better clean it now So after we argue about as much as 4 people can about where to eat, we saunter on over to Tequila', where our server 'Rick' yet again(see Dec. 2) attempts to get intoxicated. Ok, he brought up a good point, the restaurant name _is_ 'Tequila' Grande... Point taken, but we all decline alcohol. Some of us do, however, defer to Rick's judgment on dinner, and must admit it was sage advice. As usual, there were no 'issues' or problems.
Friday December 2, 2005
Lucianos Italian Restaurant in Herndon, VA. I know of at least 2 armed patrons, probalby more in the party of about 20. Tonight was the first time I actually felt uncomfortable (openly) carrying a firearm. There was a special (large) table set up for the group for a Christmas (not Holiday) dinner. There were wine bottles on the table when I arrived. This is no big deal, I enjoy a good beer, or a good glass of wine, but not when I'm carrying, and not when I'm going to have to operate a motor vehicle. This is a personal rule, and I am not attempting to impose this rule upon anyone else. That said, the wait staff offered me, quite obviously armed, wine. I am pretty sure he was simply trying to do his job, and be a good waiter. Nevertheless, it makes me wonder just how many cops get served alcohol while armed & even more dangerous, who are driving somewhere afterwards. When I was a kid, I was jealous of other kids who got generous allowances. My parents made me work for my allowance, and it was a pittance next to what some of the other kids said they got. I'll bet I moved my grandparents' azalea bushes 2 or 3 feet no less than half a dozen times. They lived through the (not really so) great depression, and managed their money appropriately. My parents were wise enough to impart this hardship lesson upon me, and it sticks with me to this day. When you earn something, it is of the greatest value to you, but when something is given to you, often you do not appreciate it's value as significantly. The right to bear arms was secured for the People long before I was born, the best I can do to earn it is to be a responsible citizen. The privilege to carry concealed - regardless of your philosophical beliefs on the rightness or wrongness of concealing being a privilege, the law says it is - I had to earn, pay for, and maintain, this in addition to my other adult responsibilities. Guns and the privilege to carry them concealed were not deeded to me as a condition of or as part of my employment. There are a great number of disqualifiers for that concealment privilege, and I wonder if because of that permit holders tend to appreciate more this privilege than those who recieve more privileges and "leeway" in questionable areas? Yes, cops have to qualify, train and maintain proficiency with their job, which most often includes firearms training, but I have to qualify, train for and maintain proficiency for my job too, and on top of that, my proficiency with firearms. I just wonder if whole 'permitting' system has bred a more responsible citizenry...
Saturday November 26, 2005
I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. Dixie Bones in Woodbridge, VA. 7 Patrons, 4 carrying. Friday's festivities were rudely cut short by a closed range! YUCK. Website says open, door says closed... This throws the Friday Night Group into disarray. And of course, none of us could arrive at the same time, so each of us ended up going and finding the closed doors. Oh well. That doesn't resolve the week's practice though. A few postings later we resolved to meet up at Shooter's Paradise in Woodbridge. It was a short work week, but there was a lot to do for the Bighammer site. A LOT. You can see the results of this effort here. Accordingly, it was time for some theraputic, good, clean family fun. After cleaning up the group collected and headed for Dixie Bones. My only complaint: No hunting signs in the restaurant. Of course, being Woodbridge, those signs were perforated... There was NO wait, maybe 20 - 25 people there when we got there, and as usual, nobody gave us a 2nd look. No furrowed brows, no panic, no blood-in-the-streets, no hurt feelings and no offended sensibilities. As usual, a total non event.
Friday November 18, 2005
Fuddruckers in Fairfax, VA. 4 patrons, 3 carrying. Crowded, but not stuffed, no problems to report.
Thursday November 17, 2005
Fuddruckers in Annandale, VA. At least 2 dozen open carrying patrons. Post VCDL meeting eat. No problems to report.
Friday November 11, 2005
Bueno Appetito in Chantilly, VA. Light crowd, no doubt due to the holiday. 7 patrons, 6 carrying. A couple of new guns tonight, 2 Berettas, one 92F, and a new PX4 Storm. Because of the "wringing out", we got a later start on dinner. The crowd and restaurant staff no doubt made us, some of the staff asked for cards to get some class time. I keep waiting for someone to arrest us for some trumped up breach of the peace or brandishing charge like folks like Dave Workman say, but it doesn't happen. Once again, nobody had a problem.
Sunday, November 6, 2005
Petco / Wendys on Minnieville Road, Dale City, VA. Just me & the wife. I had buy my one gun for the month, and on the way back needed to stop for gas, dog food & people food in that order. Not having any ready concealment, I just open carried. Despite allegedly giving up my "tactical surprise advantage" I was not mugged, beaten, robbed, disarmed, or even scoffed at. Nobody panicked either. Heck, Petco even opened a new register for me while I was standing in line.
Friday, November 4, 2005
Tequila Grande in Vienna, VA. 5 patrons, 4 carrying. Total non event. We sat at an open table with belt-holstered guns in full view of the restaurant staff, and patrons. Zero problems. Incidentally, the food was excellent if you're ever in the area.
Friday, October 28, 2005
Fuddrucker's in Fairfax, VA. 6 patrons, 4 carrying. 1 was not carrying due to being a prohibited person. It's tough to be in to guns when you're 3 feet tall, and have an age measured in years that number less than 10. The 4 of us who were carrying all strode in separately, into a crowded Fudd's, with nary a furrowed brow or offended sensibility. Another total non event.
Friday, October 21, 2005
10/21/05 - Ruby Tuesday in Fairfax, VA
6 diners, 5 carrying.
Me and my bright ideas... Tonight was the October '05 THR (www.thehighroad.org) "Snub-fest". I brought S&W's 327, 325 & 629 3", along with the 625JM & USP .45 ACP. A fun time was had by all. The bullseye shooter in the lane to my left had an issue with muzzle blast. I'm a regular at the NRA Fridays, and frequently bring the 500 magnum. He's shot next to me before, and you would think at this point he'd be used to it. You'd be wrong. If I picked up a magnum, he put down his gun. I tried to respect that he was attempting precision work, but I'm a paying shooter too. The 629 was a hit for the fireball it throws off via the porting. There were some kids on the range tonight who were impressed. No doubt if they found that impressive, they'd have been much more impressed with the .500. I've had rifle shooters next to me stop to gawk after uncorking the .500. I had to get home early tonight, so the voting shooters overruled my 1st suggestion taking us to Ruby Tuesday....again. Oh well. Once again, a complete non-event. According to Internet rumors, we were supposed to be:
- Hassled by the local law.
- Arrested for brandishing, or at least 'disturbing the peace'.
- Targeted by all manner of thugs by giving up our element of surprise.
- Have our guns snatched away from us.
Hasn't happend. And it's not like this is an isolated incident. This happens weekly, and nothing becomes of it. Self professed open carry know it alls from the globe over Pontificate about how they know what is best for everyone. The more I open carry, the more these self proclaimed knowledgeable experts in carrying firearms sound more and more like some group like the VPC, or Brady.
10:51 pm edt
10/20/05 - Fuddruckers, Annandale, VA
After the October VCDL meeting, which was packed, close to 40 people, the Mrs. & I headed to Fudds. We were by ourselves for a while as the meeting finished up. We finished up as the rest of the group ... of about 20 all carrying arrived. As usual, open carrying presented a complete non event.
10:38 pm edt
10/14/05-N.F.M. Fairfax, VA
I went to the NRA's Fall in Fairfax dinner and guided tour of the National Firearms Museum. Much to my surprise, I was the ONLY one of about 50 carrying. I got to eat in the Atrium at NRA HQ & heard Kayne Robinson & Wayne LaPierre speak. Wayne made himself available to every table, and spent a good deal of time chatting us all up. He's a really personable guy.
10:34 pm edt
Saturday 10/08/05 at Otani in Chantilly, VA
5 Patrons, all carrying. We stood around for a looooooooong time while the Oakton HS homecoming students were seated. Nobody panicked, ran away or in any way had a problem. All of us interacted with some of the other waiting patrons at some point and much to the dismay of those who hate personal freedom and responsibility not one singe person had a problem.
Friday 10/07/05 - Lone Star in Fairfax, VA 4 Patrons, all carrying. No issues problems or concerns.
Saturday, October 1, 2005 To and from Shooter's Paradise in Woodbridge, VA via 7/11 ATM. No problems to report, carrying a smaller (relatively) revolver, a S&W 327.
Friday 09/30/05, Ruby Tuesday(again) in Fairfax, VA 5 patrons, 4 carrying.
First, I brought out my recently updated AK, with lots of tactical stuff. My good friend John brought us all a really cool gopher target, so I used that as the "off hand" verification of the red dot sight... After the shooting, the 5 of us headed to the restaurant, got seated, ate, paid, ran our mouths for a few minutes and left all without any issues whatsoever...
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
A Garand old Party!
09/28/05 some members of www.thehighroad.org brought our M1 Garands to the NRA range to shoot. Other Garand enthusiasts were also there, and I got my first trigger time behind an actual M1D sniper. Very nice. After that 4 of us went to Ruby Tuesday just up the street in Fairfax, VA to eat. All 4 were open carrying. Once again, noboody was alarmed, harmed or panicked.
11:08 am edt
Friday, September 23, 2005
09/23/05 - Ruby Tuesday, Fairfax, VA
5 diners all open carrying. Nobody had a problem.
11:35 pm edt
Saturday, September 16, 2005
Famous Dave's BBQ in Fairfax, VA
10 diners, 5 carrying. Long wait, but the food was good. Everybody and their brother noticed us. The place as packed, we probably stood for 45 minutes waiting for a table. Get this - NOBODY panicked. One person asked about us, and another woman something to the effect of "oh no, these guys are perfectly legal..." she went on to explain things to this other woman. I'm not sure if they knew each other or not. While we were eating, another woman came up to talk to us briefly, her child had apparently asked. See too, had a grasp of the law, not fully, and she was very polite. It was all in all a very good night out.
8:18 am edt
Friday, September 9, 2005
Picante in Chantilly, VA
5 diners, 3 carrying. No hitches, not even a 2nd look...
10:51 pm edt
Friday, September 2, 2005
Chutzpah in Fairfax, VA
5 diners, all carrying. Chutzpah restaurant staff treat us like kings. That's one reason we keep coming back. I actually think they might be asking their non carrying customers to go back to their cars and get their sidearms... Needless to say, not only was there no problem, we talked guns with the staff. So yeah, we got 'made', but they know us all!
10:46 pm edt
Friday, August 26, 2005
Thin night... Ruby Tuesday, Fairfax, VA
Just 2 of us, but both carrying. Plenty of folks noticed us, but nobody ran away screaming, had panic attacks, or tried to snatch the guns right out of the holsters as one reads constantly on the internet.
10:15 pm edt
Friday, August 19, 2005
Famous Dave's BBQ, Fairfax, VA
6 diners, 5 carrying. We were noticed by a couple of people while waiting to eat. Some stopped to talk. Dinner and discussion was lively, and good. There was no trouble...
11:19 pm edt
Sunday, August 13, 2005
Picante Mexican restaurant, Chantilly, VA
10 diners, 5 carrying. Crowded venue. There was a birthday party with an amplifier / MC there. Annoying, but at least they didn't have a pinata... No significant events to report.
10:48 am edt
Friday, August 12, 2005
Lone Star Steak House, Fairfax City, VA
6 diners, 3 carrying. No significant events to report. The wait staff did make one minor error. It seems their computers went down just before handling the checks. The wait staff was on top of this, and kept us updated. One time, they came over and said: "The computers should be back up soon. -- We're reloading now --" I'm sure he meant the computers, but it of course sparked the inevitable ...
yeah... right... Nothing happened. The restaurant was happy to have us, and we had a good time there.
11:07 pm edt
Friday, August 5, 2005
Famous Dave's in Fairfax, VA
7 diners, 4 carrying. A good time was had by all with no interference from anyone. Nobody got their feathers ruffled, nobody got disarmed, or targeted. Despite the "family restaurant" atmosphere, nobody ran away screaming in fear, and no little kids had to be consoled... 10:38 pm edt
Friday, July 29, 2005
Dinner for 2?
07/29/05 at Applebees in Chantilly, VA. 2 Patrons, just me carrying. Nope... Nobody panicked, or ran out screaming... just a quiet dinner for 2... 9:35 pm edt
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Well regulated means you need to practice!
5 of us showed at the July '05 THR shoot. That's not enough, frankly, and the Virginia contingent needs to make a better showing. Remember, it's "a well regulated militia...,therefore,the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed;..." 5 of us showed, all 5 shot, all five open carried to dinner at Ruby Tuesdays. Nobody so much as batted an eye or furrowed a brow. 11:07 pm edt
Friday, July 22, 2005
Chutzpah Kosher Deli, Fairfax, VA
5 patrons, 3 armed. Great service, food was excellent, and the friendly atmosphere - even though it has a New York theme - is tough to beat. These guys are 2 thumbs up. No problems to report. On the way out, as usual, the staff said "come back again soon yous guys"...
That speaks for itself. 10:15 pm edt
Friday, July 15, 2005
Macaroni Grill in Fairfax, VA
6 patrons, 4 carrying. No wait, service was a bit slow. On the way out, just as I passed, one of the wait staff says "Hey, I didn't notice that guy had a gun". I quickly replied "yeah, me either". At first he thought I meant I didn't notice, but then after the Mrs. corrected him, he says "OH"... you too... got it... The 'wait staff guy' & I had a good laugh about it & we left. The wife indicated some of the waiting 'soon to be diners' noticed on the way out as well. I would hope so for God's sake, I'm carrying an HK USP 45 in a paddle holster. It doesn't get more open than carrying that...
10:19 pm edt
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