The Wally Walk has been completed!
Here's how it went down:
I drove to my nearby Walmart Supercenter, after donning my rig at home and snapping a few admittedly bad-quality photos:
One of the things I quickly discovered is that with my gun at 1:00 to 2:00, it was pretty hard to bend over and tie my shoes. I may have to re-think where I put the holster. But I got the shoes tied and climbed into my car for the short drive to Wally World.
So I pull into the parking lot. Instead of my usual practice of trying to find a space close to the entrance, per standard WW protocol I parked the requisite 75 yards from the entrance. As I exited my car, I "surreptitiously" adjusted my rig, making sure my untucked shirt came down enough to cover. I locked the car. Now I faced a dilemma, because I realized that my holster blocked my right front pant pocket, where I usually put my keys. Rather than stand there awkwardly trying to shove my keys into my pocket, with quick thinking I hastily switched the keys to my left hand and put them in my left pocket. Whew! That was close.
Now I began walking in leisurely fashion toward the entrance, all the while glancing left and right in case any BGs were lurking about. But alas, nothing but the usual soccer moms, etc., who were actually there to
shop, of all things! Well, in fact, I had a shopping list with me myself -- might as well make this a productive trip, right?
I entered the store and got a cart. Bob, an older gentleman from my church who is a greeter there, was busy talking to someone, so I skirted past him without him seeing me. Not that I was avoiding him, but I had other things on my mind.
I steered my cart first to the greeting card section (snagging a pack of Oreos on the way), and picked out a birthday card for my sister--one of those crazy talking ones. This one had a dog on the front, and when you open it he asks you to rub his belly . . . but I digress.
Next I tooled over through the sporting goods section and checked the ammo supply. Crud,
still no .38 spl, or anything else I need. Typical.
Continuing on toward the rear of the store, I perused some CDs for a couple of minutes, then hung a left and headed for the food section. Picked up some paper towels, Kleenex, Tide, dishwashing liquid.
Now for the real fun. I park my cart near the restrooms in the back of the store, and stroll into the men's room. As I enter, there's a dude (a
big dude, with a big necklace and a do-rag) checking himself out in the mirror, turning one way and then the other. My first thought was, this guy must be carrying, and he's checking to see how well concealed his gun is. Or, maybe he just likes to check himself out in mirrors. Who knows?
Anyway, I've got a mission. I enter one of the two stalls and get "down to business." And it was going to be a "live fire" exercise, not dry fire, if you get my drift. All went well at first, but then I suddenly realized that the only thing keeping the end of my belt, with the holster and gun thereon, from flopping down onto the floor of the bathroom is a little bit of friction between the belt and the belt loop on my pants. All it would have taken for disaster to ensue was a little shift in my position. Fortunately, though, I noticed it in time, and averted certain catastrophe. I did find it a bit difficult keeping the gun in place while attending to the various "duties", but managed to get through it without incident.
Okay, so I finish up in the bathroom (checking myself in the mirror, a la the big dude with the necklace) and exit and retrieve my cart.
Now on to the food section for a few items. My route was rather circuitous, and I wondered whether I looked "creepy" like I was cruising around, up to no good. Most people, though, paid me no attention. I suppose I'm the same way when I'm in a store, hardly noticing people passing by.
By this time, I realized that I still had about 15 minutes more to kill before meeting the required 45-minute duration of the Wally Walk. So, back to the non-food section to see what else I might "need" (i.e., possibly have a use for, at some time or other). I stumbled upon a rack of ultra-cheap DVDs and looked through them for a few minutes. I actually bought two of them, for $5 each. Not a bad deal.
Then, up through the automotive section--nothing there of interest.
Finally, I decided that I was just about to the 45-minute mark, so I cruised back to the frozen food area to get some ice cream (hey, got to celebrate the Wally Walk later), then headed for the checkout aisles. Checking out went smoothly, and I ambled to the exit. By now, Bob, the guy from church, was free and I shook his hand and exchanged pleasantries with him, and I was out the door.
Made it! Got back to the car and transferred my bags to the back seat (all the while conscious that a masked marauder may approach me at any time, so I was on my guard). But actually, it was just a typical trip to Walmart . . .
except that I was
CARRYING! What a feeling.
DD
How on earth am I supposed to pull that off? I'll be alone. I can just see it: There I am trying to blend in and appear unremarkable, while snapping pics (or asking someone else to do it! 
