Alittle Nervous

[SgtMathyis]

I know you guys say its ok to OC but for some reason I always feel like i am being watched, so when i try to OC i end up CC. Like yesterday I went to the park with my kids and we where the only ones there cept a couple of guys fishing amd i kept getting dirty looks from them when they saw my S&W so i pull my shirt over it and well it shows back up pushing the kids on the swing, 1 guy came to me and said you cant have that out so everyone can see it, i said sure you can its not illegal, he said yes it is and if you dont put it in your car i am calling the police, i said ok you can call the police <not in a rude manner>. So i go about my things with the kids and behold PSP show up and ask me is i have a LTCF i said yes i do but its not illegal to OC he said yes i know but wanted to see it, so i showed him and he went on his merry way and we left because the fella's fishing where making it hard for my kids and myself to enjoy our day at the park,

[BerksCountyDave]

I really can't stand people like that. All I can tell you is that for the most part, situations like that are the exception, not the rule when it comes to OC.

[Emptymag]

Note that while SgtMathyis was made to feel a bit uncomfortable, he was not splayed out on the pavement and no SWAT team was dispatched.

[headcase]

You should have left, went to the store, bought an aluminum bat, drove back, and bashed his skull in............Jeesh I am in a foul mood... ok just kiddin. I think you handled that very well. Just because I have not gotten that kind of reaction, doesn't mean that attitude is not out there. It is one of the reasons I do OC. The more of us that do it, the less of them there are going to be. I would hope that seeing the Trooper check you out and then leave you to go about your business, would have opened his eyes but I am guessing his attitude didn't change. Two things of note in your story:

1.) You were OC'ing in a park, with your child.

2.) PSP Trooper showed up answering a complaint, made sure all was in order, and went on his way.

That goes a long way toward showing that OC is a normal activity. Thank you for being a little put out. Your hard time, may save one of us from having one

[buster]

You definitely fit the description of a mad man looking for trouble-taking kids to a park to push them on a swing.(sarcasm)

[CommonHighrise]

Well done I would say. Should be proof positive that you dont have any real reason to be nervous OCing, aside from maybe having to explain to your child why you had to talk with the policeman. As for the LEO, while he had no real reason to need to see your LTCF, from what you said it deems he handled it professionally. Like Headcase said, he just wanted to respond to the complaint and verify all was in order. Thanks for not giving that LEO any reason to think poorly of us OCers.

[bjf41]

I am curious. Did the PO go and talk to the guy that called him?

Bill
Denver, PA

[SgtMathyis]

yes he did but i do not know what was said, i saw the guy throw his hands up in the air and the trooper left

[38SnubFan]

I know it's not the type of first OC experience any of us want to have, but the fact that the PSP Trooper confirmed you were not doing anything wrong or illegal should help with your confidence in future situations.

I know this is a bad analogy, but here goes: OCing is like sex. We're all a bit nervous the first time we do it; and the first time is either going to be really great....or it's really going to suck (no pun). However, with enough practice, encouragement, and confidence, we get better at it. (At least we sure as hell hope so!)

And I'm glad I'm sitting at work when I just typed that, because my wife would probably bitch-slap me for making such a smart-assed comment.

Hope you get up the nerve to try it again sometime when you're ready.

All the best,
38SnubFan

[4XLT]

good job, i agree with highrise, that experience should only enforce that OC'ing is perfectly fine and that closed minded people should educate themselves on subjects they want to argue about !!!

this is just another reason i am more and more in favor of OC'ing, wish i had more things to do that i could go more places lol