[gremlin]

Last Friday my father woke up at 5:00 AM to a woman screaming and sobbing hysterically. Still half asleep he approached the bedroom window, when he looked he saw a the pregnant woman who lives across from us standing by the front of her house. Her husband was next to her, holding her arm and telling her to calm down.

At first we thought that maybe the husband and wife had been arguing. But today my parents found out that they had been robbed. Yeah. They are also not the first people to be robbed on my street.

The guy had gone in through their kitchen window. Unlike my house their window is near a few inches above the ground. The woman had woken up and immediately saw the man's reflection in her mirror in her room. He had a hood on, covering his face. She screamed and she was so terrified that she bolted past him and dove out of her front window. The man fled, her husband woke up and ran after her. My other neighbour was up, getting ready for work and ran outside to see what the commotion was about. He didn't even hesitate to jump in his car to try and find the man. But he couldn't. They didn't catch him.

The other people who had been robbed live a bit further up my street. I'm really scared. You know why I'm scared? My window is one of the easiest entrances for a bugler to access. My window is where our back porch is. The other entrance is our kitchen door. My brother's window is above the ground, same for the living room and my parents room. My basement window is low to the ground, but would be a hassle to get through. Bleh, I'm really paranoid now.

I'm hoping that this man doesn't choose to target my house next. I have a high fence because we have a pool so... maybe he won't make the effort to climb it. It would also be too much of a hassle for him to flee if he gets caught. And to be honest my dad would probably break his neck. So let's hope that he makes the wise choice to stay clear of my house.

There's also been unfamiliar cars lurking on my street. Filled with people. They just park and sit in the car for a few hours. This is what another neighbour told my father. She's been taking down their license plates. My parents also said that they have noticed an unfamiliar man riding his bike up and down our street for the past few weeks. He also stopped in from of my drive way and was eyeing my driveway. He left when my dad went outside in to the driveway because my mom said she had heard his squeaky breaks.

I hope that whoever it may be ( one man or many ) that they get caught soon. I'm going to be so paranoid for a very long time.

Ever had similar circumstances?

[Demonskid]

Oh my that sounds scary! My mom and I were robbed once when I was really little.. I remember my guitar, trainset, and radio were taken and a lot of moms valubles. I don't remember much else I was about 4-5 a the time. I do remember being sad though.. I was gonna start learning to play guitar soon and then when it was stolen we had to cancel the lessons and stuff.

I hope they catch that man soon.. =( sleep with a weapon near you! Baseball bat or a crowbar >x<

[gremlin]

That's really shitty. D:

I know that when my mom lived on a bad street she was robbed a few times before she finally moved away. She suspected that one of the other tenets in the building where doing it. It's kinda pathetic how low someone can go.

I'm brainstorming on what I can keep close for protection. I put a bar in my window, if they try to open my window them it won't open more than a few inches. I think that I will also live my small light on.

[CupcakeDolly]

Damn, that's so sad. Here's hoping karma comes back to bite them in the ass and never lets go.

Hopefully whoever did it will be smart enough to realize that, since they've been seen, the whole neighborhood will be on watch for them. If you're really worried, I'd talk to your parents about setting up fake security cameras or other deterrents. And like Demonskid said, keep a weapon near you if you can.

[Demonskid]

Hehe I sleep with a wooden baseball bat next to me.. I'm paranoid. Half the time my mind plays tricks on me but one time my MOM heard the same thing I did.. I freaked out and stayed up in the living room watching the door the whooole night. we found out the next day it was someone stealing out door magnet *we live in an apartment complex that has monthly news letters and stuff so they put them on the door using a magnet clip.* someone went around stealing them.. ._.,

[Reyoki]

My neighbors keep getting robbed, too. Not their homes, but their vehicles get broken into. One of them had their rent money stolen, and another had her purse stolen.

Nobody has tried to steal stuff from my parents or my grandmother, but I sleep with a sword next to my bed in case shit goes down.

[Echo-chan713]

We don't get robberies, we usually have those sex offenders

[Stars]

Booby trap that shit!

[Trakadon]

Pretty much what Satsuki said o .o

Put anything by the window that would make it hard to enter through and make sure all the doors and windows are locked before leaving. But its also possible that this man didn't realize she was there and wont try to break in to anyones homes again OR he will take more time in making sure that no one is home which is risky because I'm sure by now everyone on your block will be watching closely for anyone acting strange or anyone they don't know.

My best friend walked in on a robbery once. Luckily he made it to his room and got to his shotgun in time. But after that he pounded nails into his window frame in such a way that if someone tried to come through from outside would see rows of sharp points.

@Reyoki~ I have throwing knives taped to my head board o uo b

[gremlin]

Bleh.
I fell asleep at 4:00 AM with the TV on.
Do you know what I had with me in bed to protect myself?
Febreeze. Why? It smells strong up close, it would sting a burglars eyes and would taste awful. I'm so pathetic.
I put a lamp in front of my window and a chair full of clothes and items. If either knocked over it would wake me up. I also put a long metal stick in my window. No one can open the window more than a few inches. - feels smart -
Hopefully I can sleep better tonight.

[gremlin]

Originally Posted by CupcakeDolly

Damn, that's so sad. Here's hoping karma comes back to bite them in the ass and never lets go.

Hopefully whoever did it will be smart enough to realize that, since they've been seen, the whole neighborhood will be on watch for them. If you're really worried, I'd talk to your parents about setting up fake security cameras or other deterrents. And like Demonskid said, keep a weapon near you if you can.

Yeah, they have been seen more than once so.. everyone is now fully aware that our neighbourhood is being watched. Like I said, my neighbour has been taking down license plates. That could be really useful if the burglar is seen fleeing in a vehicle and she has the matching license plate.

[Quiet Man Cometh]

You know, febreze is not a bad idea actually. Things like that or pepperspray are probably better to have around than some weapons. I don't think it's a good idea to stash a weapon nearby unless you really know how to use it. You'd be in trouble if you had a knife on hand and the robber is better with it than you are. Announcing you have a weapon is also generally considered a bad idea if there's an intruder in your house because if that intruder has a weapon he is more likely to use it if he thinks you have one too. Self preservation and all.

Bar or chunks of wood in window tracks make dandy window blockers. There are also attachable door chimes that you can buy. Magnetic things that make a noise when they separate, ie when a door is opened. It would let you know someone is opening the window.

[Jurinjo]

I cant' remember ever being robbed or if there were any near me growing up. However I do remember in a couple of our houses my dad hammered the window frames so they couldn't be opened. I was raised to ALWAYS lock doors both to the house and car no matter what time or where.

Like some of y'all I am paranoid. Though I don't keep my room door locked at all times, or a weapon on hand I used to do just that in the previous house I lived. I had a kid's stick baseball bat thing. I'm not a fighter or an atheletic person. But its length and weight made it ideal for providing reach without me swinging cumbersomely like I would with a real bat.

[gremlin]

Originally Posted by Demonskid

Hehe I sleep with a wooden baseball bat next to me.. I'm paranoid. Half the time my mind plays tricks on me but one time my MOM heard the same thing I did.. I freaked out and stayed up in the living room watching the door the whooole night. we found out the next day it was someone stealing out door magnet *we live in an apartment complex that has monthly news letters and stuff so they put them on the door using a magnet clip.* someone went around stealing them.. ._.,

I sadly do not have a wooden baseball bat and I bet that my parents would think that I was overreacting if I brought a knife to bed with me.
And that's creepy. What a bunch of idiots... * A*

[gremlin]

My parents are buying beware of dog signs and putting one in my window and one in our living room window. Or they will probably just put one on our gate's door and one on the front door. * A*

[Jurinjo]

haha once my parents moved into a house that read "Never mind Dog, Beware of Owner" with a picture of hand holding a shotgun. xD