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I had a homeless man try to climb in my van today. I was parked at WalMart doing an Aussie mix like I have been every month for the last 2 years. Halfway through the groom, a rickety old-looking guy (coulda been 70, or maybe 40 with a bad drinking problem) pushing a shopping cart walks past the van. He gets even with the window, glances to his right, and sees the dog on the table.
"HEY! THAT'S MY DOG!!!", he shrieks, then begins beating on the side of my van, yelling for me to give him back "his" dog. "You stole my dog! Gimme back my dog!". By now, I was getting a little worried, and Lady, a tremendous bundle of nerves on her best days, was beside herself. Just as I thought, Hmm, perhaps time to make a call to 911? Oops, left the damn phone in the cab, - this guy reaches up, slides my window open, and starts to climb inside, shouting the entire time. He actually managed to get about halfway in, propping his upper body on the window sill.
I went from worried to freaked, grabbed my bear spray (foaming mace, don't leave home without it), pointed it at his face and screamed, "STOP NOW, SIR!" When he paused for breath (presumably to continue with his own screaming), I told him, "Sir, if you don't get the hell out of my van I'm gonna mace you right in the eyes!" (polite under pressure, thats me). The whole time my heart is goin 100 mph and Im just about ready to pee my pants, Lady is shrieking at the top of her lungs, and Im damning myself six ways from Sunday for leaving the phone in the cab, which I almost never do.
He called me many, many foul names (a few of which I had never heard before, and I thought I'd heard em all) and declaring that he was going to "call the cops", he backed out the window. I informed him that the mace had a range of about 20 feet, just to encourage him to move along. Shouting dire threats in my general direction, he grabbed his cart and scurried off down the street. I took Lady off the table, put her on the floor of the van, slipped out the door, and grabbed my cell. I dialed 911, told them what happened, then had to wait 1/2 an hour until the cops showed up to "take my statement". The weird part (yeah, weirder than that imho) was that there was NOBODY on that end of the Wal Mart parking lot. By the time the cops got there the guy was long gone.
I wanted to share this to illustrate how very very important it is for us to not only be hyper-aware of our surroundings, but also to be prepared and have an appropriate means of self-defense (and your cell phone) within arms reach at all times. Although I have a concealed weapons permit, I dont carry my pistol when I work (although I may rethink that position after today). But Im damn glad that DH insisted on the bear spray. Bear spray is an excellent choice, but if it is prohibited in your area, then start looking at your shears with a new (and aggressive) eye. Always remember that blade coolant and a bic lighter make an excellent flame thrower. A metal comb across the bridge of the nose is painful and effective. Hell, screaming like a banshee while brandishing your buzzing clippers with a skip tooth blade on em would probably do the trick. Whatever your choice, make sure you choose SOMETHING. Take stock of your cab AND your salon - you need to be ready for anything in both areas - and take a few moments out to insure that should the need arise, you are prepared to go down fighting. After a discussion with DH & da bossman, I'll be carrying my pistol from here on out - but that's just me.
"HEY! THAT'S MY DOG!!!", he shrieks, then begins beating on the side of my van, yelling for me to give him back "his" dog. "You stole my dog! Gimme back my dog!". By now, I was getting a little worried, and Lady, a tremendous bundle of nerves on her best days, was beside herself. Just as I thought, Hmm, perhaps time to make a call to 911? Oops, left the damn phone in the cab, - this guy reaches up, slides my window open, and starts to climb inside, shouting the entire time. He actually managed to get about halfway in, propping his upper body on the window sill.
I went from worried to freaked, grabbed my bear spray (foaming mace, don't leave home without it), pointed it at his face and screamed, "STOP NOW, SIR!" When he paused for breath (presumably to continue with his own screaming), I told him, "Sir, if you don't get the hell out of my van I'm gonna mace you right in the eyes!" (polite under pressure, thats me). The whole time my heart is goin 100 mph and Im just about ready to pee my pants, Lady is shrieking at the top of her lungs, and Im damning myself six ways from Sunday for leaving the phone in the cab, which I almost never do.
He called me many, many foul names (a few of which I had never heard before, and I thought I'd heard em all) and declaring that he was going to "call the cops", he backed out the window. I informed him that the mace had a range of about 20 feet, just to encourage him to move along. Shouting dire threats in my general direction, he grabbed his cart and scurried off down the street. I took Lady off the table, put her on the floor of the van, slipped out the door, and grabbed my cell. I dialed 911, told them what happened, then had to wait 1/2 an hour until the cops showed up to "take my statement". The weird part (yeah, weirder than that imho) was that there was NOBODY on that end of the Wal Mart parking lot. By the time the cops got there the guy was long gone.
I wanted to share this to illustrate how very very important it is for us to not only be hyper-aware of our surroundings, but also to be prepared and have an appropriate means of self-defense (and your cell phone) within arms reach at all times. Although I have a concealed weapons permit, I dont carry my pistol when I work (although I may rethink that position after today). But Im damn glad that DH insisted on the bear spray. Bear spray is an excellent choice, but if it is prohibited in your area, then start looking at your shears with a new (and aggressive) eye. Always remember that blade coolant and a bic lighter make an excellent flame thrower. A metal comb across the bridge of the nose is painful and effective. Hell, screaming like a banshee while brandishing your buzzing clippers with a skip tooth blade on em would probably do the trick. Whatever your choice, make sure you choose SOMETHING. Take stock of your cab AND your salon - you need to be ready for anything in both areas - and take a few moments out to insure that should the need arise, you are prepared to go down fighting. After a discussion with DH & da bossman, I'll be carrying my pistol from here on out - but that's just me.
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