“I think I got him Chief.â€
Qualified for my concealed carry permit today 
One of the things I enjoyed growing up in a military-heavy city and living in the South is that firearms have been a normal part of life. They’re not regarded as these mythical creatures with minds of their own to be avoided at all costs. They’re machines that serve a purpose — and should be respected accordingly — but just like automobiles and other tools they’re totally harmless without a human user behind them.
During the summer, the kids in my neighborhood would even gather up all the water guns we could find,1 Â split off into teams, and roam the neighborhood playing a game that was a cross of hide-and-seek and capture-the-flag. My first “real” water gun was even molded to look/function like a single-action Beretta (though painted bright orange so law enforcement wouldn’t confuse it for a real gun 
).
I don't think he's getting up 
But since moving to North Carolina I’ve eschewed firearms, since state law requires educational institutions to be Easy Target Zones and up until last year I lived on campus.2
Until, in a bit of serendipity, I discovered one of the 1Ls at NCCU Law is a former Chief of Police and firearms instructor. He mentioned he was running a concealed carry handgun training course out in Maiden so I signed up.
Though I didn’t realize at the time I’d have to leave around 4:30am to be there when it started 
After several hours of reliving through CrimLaw to get re-educated about when the use of deadly force in self-defense is justified under NC law, we headed out to the open-air shooting range. The actual qualification routine requires shooting 40 rounds from 7/5/3 yards in a certain timeframe, with at least 28 rounds hitting the target.
I was a little nervous since it was my first time firing a real handgun (in my case a .22 Ruger Mk I) instead of the fake Beretta from my youth… but it turned out pretty well. Â Sufficiently so that I asked to try from 25 yards against one of their metal knockdown targets about half the width of the paper — and hit it 8-for-8 
Where was this precision when I tried winning stuff at the State Fair? 
Anyhow, now I’m back in Durham and get to go fill out a bunch of paperwork with the Durham County Sheriff’s Department before waiting a few months for my permit to come through. It was a fun day 
I hope all of you have a great night — and check back tomorrow for a surprise 
- This was before the abominations known as Super Soakers. You actually had to be a good shot in those days, not just have a parent willing to shell out $$$ to buy you a mobile aquarium you could strap on your back
[↩] - Except for the years I was a dropout, when I couldn’t afford buying a gun anyway [↩]
