Saturday, July 16, 2011

On Homeowners Being Armed: It Was Oh-Dark-Thirty, the Dogs Were Barking...

...and I told them to shut up; I wanted back to sleep. Then they started barking and mixed in the deeper than usual sounding barks with deep down growling and there was no shutting them up. I got up and grabbed the nearest available firearm and headed upstairs from my man-cave resting spot to see what was amiss if anything. The two big dogs were at the front window, growling as if a Zombie, or a pack of wolves, was milling around the front of our house. The little dogs upstairs were barking too. I have not seen them that intense in a long, long time, in fact maybe never before. So I cautiously approached the side doorway on my way upstairs and gave a quick peak or two, then gave a good long scan, then I did the windows in the kitchen and dining room, then in the living room where the dogs were still at it. I wanted to make sure I missed nothing or no one on my way to the scene of the mayhem.

Once in the living room, just let them keep barking and I cautiously peeled back on of the curtains just a bit and took a look. Nothing. Then I looked out the other window, the one facing front, expecting to see an opossum. I got a surprise, there was a young man standing there on the sidewalk, next to the small strip of grass at curbside, and next to one of our cars, facing the car, looking pretty intent of some evil deed - like maybe stealing one of the cars. Suddenly he stumbled a bit. Just then, I saw a quick flash of something glistening in the moonlight and streetlight, it was long and thin and down around - well just a bit below his waist. Relief for both of us! I guess he was pretty drunk; he was taking a pit stop, right there on the sidewalk but apparently onto the grass and I was not happy about it but put at ease.

I have got to hand it to the dogs though, they got me up with a possible intruder in the area - they sure had a different bark than usual as when it is just an opossum or a cat or a drunk stumbling by. I imagine that was because the guy was not just passing by but standing there while he did his thing. As it was, once he was done, he stumbled onward to wherever he was headed in his less than coherent state of mind. Hopefully he made it there before letting it all hang out again in public. I could have opened the door, stuck my head out and admonished him but figured what the heck, why wake up the neighbors for a drunk and why maybe start a fight over something so pissant (oh the pun of it all). I guess that was because I remembered being there pretty much in that same situation when that young and that drunk. Piss drunk was what we used to call it, because you would pee anywhere although it was most appropriately called that though when you peed in your pants. At least he got it out of his pants and into the grass. A quick look this morning revealed one other 'at least', at least he did not get it on our car.

All is well and the gun stayed silent, out of sight, with finger off the trigger, muzzle pointed in a safe direction at all times, not retrieved until I was awake enough to do so and - imagine this - not one soul was injured by the gun toting homeowner whom the ultra leftists fear so much as being some sort of maniacal vigilante. Had it been someone who was in the act of breaking and entering and intent on doing us harm, well then it may well have been a very different story. In either case - I was prepared, ready, willing and capable of doing whatever might need to be done and I did what I chose to do both safely and sensibly. I would do it much the same in the event our dogs ever again become that agitated at something outside our home.

By the way, had he been trying to steal one of our cars, I might have given a shout to cease and desist out the window but I probably would also have called the cops instead of going outside alone. Who knows, maybe I would also have decided to let the dogs out just then too. That could have proven quite interesting but as I said, he turned out to be pretty harmless and pissant at worst!

All the best,
Glenn B

No comments: