"I want to OC. I won't, though, until I have something worth carrying openly in a decent holster."
I would suggest that, once you receive your wife's blessing on carrying, you consider carrying CC for a little while. My reasoning is this: Your wife will know your carrying, of course, but the constant reminder that OC will provide might take more time for her to become more comfortable with the idea. CC should allow her to forget a little quicker, and, when she remembers you are carrying, she will realize that you haven't blown her, or anyone else, up.
Totally agree, Rookie, and it is relevant to this conversation as well. I won't OC around her or the kids for a LONG time, if at all, that is given. I will, however, OC when the opportunity presents itself and I'm out by my self.
CCing to dinner this Saturday might be a bad idea, though.
My case Isn't really relative to yours, me being so young and not haveing kids, I got it started when my girlfriend said we needed to do more together, of course I seized the opportunity I would go bowling but she would come skeet shooting. some chat about firearm safety and the fact that if handled right they did'nt just randomly go off helped. I don't think that she really liked it but she has 4 brothers that she wants to prove something to and them all living 2 doors down from the high school and having a single mom, guns never really came up.
I think us buying her first shotgun was more so she could show it off than shoot it but whatever it worked. the handgun seemed to bother her more but I just fed her full of safety talk and kept it put up for a few weeks, I started watching CSI SVU which is not really our kind of T.V. for a few weeks after I had quietly went and applied for my LTCH. The finally was when a kid who sits 2 rows ahead of me in a night class at my local college was robbed when some guy jumped into his car "I think with a knife" when he was leaving school and made him go to the ATM and dropped him off in an alley. OKay yea I know this kid was a bit silly being in the neighborhood he was, with the doors unlocked and let someone jump in. I think he was sheltered or something. And yes I know this dos'nt mean alot because if I was leaveing school obviously I dont have a gun. But I ran with it, not that I was trying to scare her but she is a pretty blonde and the world is not exactly full of kind, careing people. I think she took more notice to some things after I kinda kicked up the dust, I now keep it on the nightstand and a while back we were leaving with out my beretta and she mentioned that I had might aswell bring it even if we were just grabbing something to eat.
We just purchased her a p226 that she picked out, and it came with to family dinner monday night to be shown off to her brothers of course =)
It can often be a mistake to try to debate one's spouse into agreement regardless of whether you have logic and reason on your side.
Fear of guns or of using a gun as a defensive weapon is almost always an emotional thing, rarely logical. Unless there is something your wife knows about you that we do not (i.e. history of mental instability, nasty temper, tendency to abuse drugs, etc) then her concern is probably not based in lack of faith in you, but rather an irrational fear of firearms, or discomfort at the idea that a firearm might be used as a defensive weapon. Emotional aversions are not something you can reliably overcome with statistics or arguments.
I don't know your wife, but I know that when I drop into a debating mindset when talking with my wife, she - rightfully - gets defensive and digs in. If, on the other hand, I don't press an issue and let her noodle on it on her own, she is much more likely to approach it with a more open mind. It doesn't always mean she comes to the same conclusions I do, but at least she isn't digging in against an opposing debater.
My wife is completely against CC or Open Carry. But I do it anyways. If I am concealing correctly two things happen. 1) She doesn't know and in turn doesn't bitch about it. 2) I know since she didn't see it, most of the public won't either.
Either way it doesn't matter, her bitching about me being paranoid and "always needing my gun" has gotton less and less over about 2 yrs. Now all I get is a roll of the eyes when she catches me "packing" as she puts it. However when we go to the city (indy) she is all too happy knowing that she is safer because of it. We both know it, but it will never be said.
I wonder if DTI would be "too intense" for a first class. I've never taken anything with them, so I don't know, but it might be something to ask about.
DTI can be a little intense, but Vicki does an excellent job. One of the two best ladies doing instruction out there. There will be class in Rochester in May. Let me know if you need info or help.