"The scene was chaotic and joyful, with several young kids running around and scattering croissant crumbs on our sofa while their parents attempted adult conversation over mimosas. Inevitably, the moment arrived when a child knocked over a drink on our coffee table. It was an old West Elm design with a panel on top and a storage area underneath. The spilled beverage was dripping into the seams, so a crowd of parents rushed to open the table and mop up the liquid pooling within."
"To be perfectly honest, I'd forgotten I had the gun. Ever since my wife and I moved into a place with more closet space, we rarely used the storage capacity of the coffee table. I was reminded of the firearm in my living room only when someone brought up the topic of recreational gun use-which, in our queer, left-leaning urban social circles, was next to never."
"But there I was, facing a crowd of these wide-eyed friends, who were politely dabbing the seltzer off my gun. They were clearly shocked. I choked out some nervous laughter and assured them that the case was locked, the gun inside had another padlock, both keys were hidden, and I had no ammunition in the house. I then explained why I owned the gun, which I will also share with you shortly, and everyone made a few jokes at my expense."
A child’s spilled drink at a birthday in a child-free home revealed a padlocked gun case inside a coffee-table storage compartment, soaking the Smith & Wesson pamphlet. The gun owner had largely forgotten the firearm after moving to a place with more closet space and infrequent discussion of recreational gun use in their queer, left-leaning social circle. Wide-eyed friends dabbed seltzer off the case and reacted with shock as the owner reassured them the case and gun were double-locked, keys hidden, and no ammunition was in the house. The scene encapsulated tensions around queer gun ownership amid reports of increased firearm interest for self-protection.
Read at Slate Magazine
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