My Negligent Discharge

First off, the four rules (as I learned them) of firearm safety:
1. The firearm is always loaded.
2. Don't point it at anything you want to keep.
3. Don't put your finger on the trigger until you are ready to shoot.
4. If what you are pointing it at can't stop a bullet, make sure you don't care about what's behind it.

Those are paraphrasing the "official" four rules; but the meaning is essentially the same.  Basically, if you break two rules and it goes off, you won't hurt anyone.  This is a bonus feature, not the actual intent of the rules.

My negligent discharge was with a 2nd Gen Glock 21.  I had just purchased a Springfield 1911 GI and wanted to take some pictures comparing the barrels; so I was taking the Glock apart.  To take a Glock apart, you must pull the trigger.  Foolishly, I was also talking on the phone while doing this.

I had the gun pointed at the wall to my left, dropped the mag (loaded since this was my carry gun at the time), forgot to rack the slide because I was talking on the phone, and pulled the trigger.  BANG!  Hole in the wall.

230gr .45 ACP Gold-Dot v drywall.

Good thing I was following 2 and 4!

This was totally my fault, but it's soured me on Glocks.  I don't like that I have to pull the trigger to take it apart now.  Of the guns in my safe, only the Glock cannot be disassembled with a live round in the chamber (not that doing so would be any smarter).

What did I learn from this?  I learned that I had become complacent about following the basics.  I learned the four rules of safety in the Army; and the first two lines of instruction for disassembly for any weapon are: 1. remove the source of ammunition; 2. clear the chamber; 3+ weapon specific instructions.  I forgot 2.

The result of my discharge has given me new religion about the rules, and soured me on Glock.