Tuesday, Aug. 04, 2009

Let me get my shotgun...

No matter where you live, safety is always an issue. How safe the neighborhood is, how friendly the people are, how often the police do patrols, etc. In the back of your mind, you never stop worrying.

I used to think growing up that my neighborhood was safe. We left the doors unlocked, the garages open. Everybody knew everybody. Then, our house got robbed.

My sister, about 17 at the time, walked in on the perpetrators. They had broken into my father's gun safe, so they were clearly armed. Luckily, after taking a few steps inside, my sister sensed danger and quickly ran to our neighbors to call the cops.

While I was a bit young to really have it all sink in, my sister has been scarred forever. And I will never forget having all those police officers at the house dusting for fingerprints and asking us to list everything in detail.

After that, a few more crimes hit our neighborhood, including people stealing boat motors and breaking into one's backyard. It was a cruel awakening that the world isn't full of honest people.

When I moved to WSU, there was a rapist on the loose. I lived at a relatively nice apartment, but then moved to a more "seedy" area. I always locked my doors and carried mace and had a steak knife in my room. Life was always about taking precautions.

When I moved in with Mr. Big, I was excited not only to start our life together, but also because he lived in a nice neighborhood with neighborhood watch.

The other evening we were watching TV in our living room, when suddenly there was a loud boom at our front door. Someone was trying to kick it open.

We sat there, dumbfounded for a second. My nerves half-paralyzed me as I stared into Big's eyes.

A couple seconds past and there was an aggressive knock.

I got up and ran to the bedroom, grabbing my phone and searching for a nearby weapon just in case.

Big crept to the door and pulled open the blinds. As I peered through the kitchen, I saw shadows take off running from the house. Big said there were three teenage boys crouched right in front of the door. Once they saw him, they took off.

I called the police right away and they sent out a dispatcher. I wasn't shaking, but my confidence in the safety of our neighborhood sure had been rattled.

The metal part of our door had a dent in the bottom from being kicked. I sure hope that boy has a sore toe.

Nothing else had been vandalized, so we were lucky in that sense. However, the teenagers might not be so lucky the next time they attempt to get inside someone else's home.

For instance, people who mess around with the wrong folks (folks with GUNS, perhaps) might have this happen to them. As far as I know, the video is entirely true.

Big spent the rest of the evening trying to prevent me from going into shock. While I have no doubt that Big could have taken on the three teenagers, there are a lot of other questions that are left unanswered. Like WHY?

Still, just to be safe, Big pulled out his shotgun and taught me how to load it. I might be a Lara Croft just yet.