My wife and I are on the go a lot, We stop and eat in many different places. Heres my point, or story. I WILL NOT sit in an eatery with my back to the entrance door. I CAN NOT eat if my back is to the door. I dont know if I am paranoid, but I MUST be where I can see everything coming in , and I am VERY observant, and aware of everything going on around the place. Its not hard to do, and does not interfere with my eating or conversation. My wife says I have been that way since I got home from the Army in 1968. I started looking around at people everywhere we stopped , and made a point of it to discuss the people in these places, with my wife,we sort of made a game of it, as none of them seemed to be aware of their surroundings, and sort of oblivious to everything. Most all the males were sitting with their back to the entrance door. Whether alone or with someone. I cant help thinking about recent shootings, and wonder, if people were more aware of their surroundings , would they have a better chance of not being harmed. Am I paranoid? do any of you do this ? Of course I am always armed also. Just curious guys. What ya think? Jim
Better paranoid than dead. With these morons sucker punching people and robbing businesses it is better to be aware of our surroundings. I realize I should be even more aware before walking from or to my car. Yep sitting towards the back of a restaurant facing the door is a good practice to get into. I knew a guy that was filling up his truck with gas and he noticed a black kid on the property sticking something in his pants. The kid came over to my friend and said give me your wallet as the kid pulled his shirt up exposing the gun. My friend picked his pistol off the truck seat and told the kid....I think we have a problem here. The kid took off running. We never know when someone might get stupid and so we better be aware of our surroundings. The other day I went to the store and when I got there I realized I felt a little lighter. I forgot my gun. Call it paranoid or whatever but I would rather be packing these days.
I don't call it paranoid at all. I never have my back to the entrance when I'm not with my husband. He's the only one I will sit across from with my back to the entrance. I trust him completely with my life. He's aware of his/our surrounding and has our best interests in mind at all times. Not only are we aware of the entrance but always a secondary escape as well. Always know a second escape route.
Observant for sure! I have a female in-law that insists she sit facing the door. She worked in a bad area for years. Problem is she is never armed, could not fight and would probably freeze if anything happened. Don't tell her I said that please. I have to get there before her for "proper seating". Most of the family thinks it's just a cute little funny thing we do. (Paranoid? Not!) My wife and I do the same as you phideaux. We even have a few code words that would not sound out of place to others. If I say one of those words, she knows it's about to hit the fan. Observant for sure!
I always sit facing the doorway......................my wife is trained to sit on the opposite side of the table. Just works out better that way.............she knows that I have our best interests in mind..............
Observant....NOT paranoid Brother !! In todays F-Up world...where you can be shot in a school, church, on the job, movie theater, strip mall, bank, ATM, Stop & Gulp, and on the street... it's a wonder why anyone would be anti-gun and not armed for self protection. I always sit facing the door, with my back to the wall if possible...and my wife always let's me pick the seat anywhere we go... knowing full well that if I say "perp" ( active shooter action word ), she is to grab her own gun ( SGM USArmy CID VET ) as she moves to my left ( I'm a righty ) to offer cover and help return fire if necessary. It is a drill we practice a lot...
Jim, I do the same thing. I want my back towards the wall. When I first enter a building, I take a sec and look around to see who and how many are in there. Restaurants I always want to be sitting in a booth. Maybe some of the booth might absorb some shock if a round is shot. Many times I can overhear conversations, (which is not polite) but I can hear them. And then there is times when my wife will ask me "where is your mind at?". I tell her something but not the truth as I don't want her any more paranoid than she is. And when we walk out the door, I always allow the outside people to come in first, by holding the door open. I want to see who and how many are going in. Paranoid? I don't think so- just being observant is all. Tommy
Tommy, you mentioned something, I had forgotten about, but is always MO also, That's getting a Booth if possible, I don't like open back chairs in a restraunt. Watch for people wearing winter clothing in summer heat....that's not right. You can also watch for erratic acting , like they're scared of something... That always gets my attention. My wife is on the same page as myself, and is also always armed, if she ever says down, or I say down, we both hit the floor. No hesitating.. We will worry about getting up later.. Jim
I'm a back to the wall kinda guy. Always try to face the door even though I can't see well. Wife and I gon't go to the movies much now. When we did, we always tried to sit where we could see the entrances and emergency exits. It just a good practice to be aware of your surroundings.
