Blip on the Creepy Radar

[morgana]

Though now I sort of wish I had "accidentally" mentioned in my conversation with Mr. Creepy that I take Taekwondo and I'm quite good with push and ax kicks (which is NOT a lie ).

No, no, no. Much more fun to surprise him with it when he shows up in the parking lot.

[thansal]

Haven't seen the guy again, which is good. To be on the safe side though, I now carry my pepper spray with me to work and one of my male coworkers walked with me to my car since I got off late tonight. I'd rather be a little paranoid and play it safe than be careless.

This, completely this.

I was just going to say that you should make sure to bring this up with your boss, and/or your co-workers.

If you are nervous/worries/whatever, let other people know.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

No, no, no. Much more fun to surprise him with it when he shows up in the parking lot.

Exactly. Never show your hand till you're ready to play it. You tell someone what sort of heat you're packing, he'll make sure he's packing bigger and badder when he makes his move.

No, let him underestimate you.

[protege]

Exactly. Never show your hand till you're ready to play it. You tell someone what sort of heat you're packing, he'll make sure he's packing bigger and badder when he makes his move.

Sort of like my mother and her Hopkido skills. She's in her 60s, about 5'6" or so, and doesn't look like she'd be into martial arts. Yet, during her black belt ceremony...she was sparring with one of her classmates, and dropped his ass. A guy, who was about 20 years younger, and probably had 100+ pounds on her and several inches taller. He "attacked" her, and she kicked his ass. Truly amazing to watch

What's hilarious, is that unless you see the framed certificate (and plaque) in her office, nobody knows that she can kick ass and take names

[SeasonalSlave]

Exactly. Never show your hand till you're ready to play it. You tell someone what sort of heat you're packing, he'll make sure he's packing bigger and badder when he makes his move.

No, let him underestimate you.

True. And in the underestimating department, it probably helps that I'm barely 5'1", pale, and overall very geeky. I look utterly harmless. I'm not as awesome as protege's mother in the martial arts department, but I know how to strike where it hurts the most/does significant damage. Oh, and I will bite if I need to. Hard. I have very, very, very sharp canines.


Still haven't seen Mr. Creepy again though. Thankfully. But still walking to my car on the alert and with my pepper spray at the ready. And locking my car the second I'm inside, even before I buckle up.

[Andara Bledin]

And locking my car the second I'm inside, even before I buckle up.

This is a good idea, no matter who or where you are.

My driver's ed teacher told us that it didn't matter if you locked your car when you weren't in it; stuff can be replaced. But to always lock the doors when you are in it because you never know who is out there.

As a story, he told of a kid that went to our school that had stopped at the corner while heading home, and some psycho ran up, yanked the car door open, and knifed the kid. He didn't survive. It wasn't even anyone the kid knew, either.

^-.-^

[Rapscallion]

Interesting. My driving instructor chided me for locking the door when I got in. He pointed out that in the event of a crash, the emergency services would have one more obstacle between them and me.

Rapscallion

[JustaCashier]

Raps, IIRC, you are in your 40's. I wonder if it just one of those things where the advice has been changed over the years. Kinda like how it seems like we were always told to to give in to a mugger's (or worse of a person's) demands, and now there's a school of thought that say Scream! Kick! Yell! Fight! Get Away! whenever feasible.

I took driver's ed way back in the Summer of Nineteen Aught Seventy Four, and frankly don't remember if we were advised/told one way or the other whether to lock the doors once we got in the car.

I do remember, however, getting scolded for "punching it", on the simulator, and making a couple of dumb moves in the actual car, on the road, out of sheer nervousness!


Also, on the topic of security in and around your car; before getting in it, check in, around, and underneath the car.

Mike

[SeasonalSlave]

I always lock it anyway when I drive, it's just not usually the very first thing I do. Now it is.

Also, on the topic of security in and around your car; before getting in it, check in, around, and underneath the car.
Mike

I always do that if I'm traveling alone anyway, even before Creepy Guy.

[Andara Bledin]

The reasons to lock your doors far outweigh the reasons to not lock them.

Plus, if you do end up in an accident and your doors are locked, it's a trivial thing for someone to smash out a window (if you've been knocked unconscious, there's a good chance one might already be broken) and get the car unlocked.

^-.-^

[dalesys]

Interesting. My driving instructor chided me for locking the door when I got in. He pointed out that in the event of a crash, the emergency services would have one more obstacle between them and me.

Your driving instructor was probably of the same generation as Cosby's ambulance staff, who liked seat belts because they didn't have to go looking...

[Rapscallion]

The reasons to lock your doors far outweigh the reasons to not lock them.

Oh, there are areas where I consider locking my doors, but I think this is regional. We apparently have far fewer such areas over here.

Plus, if you do end up in an accident and your doors are locked, it's a trivial thing for someone to smash out a window (if you've been knocked unconscious, there's a good chance one might already be broken) and get the car unlocked.

^-.-^

It's still an extra step between you and the emergency services. Besides, when my car is locked, the buttons aren't pullable - can't unlock it that way. If the electrics are out from a crash, they couldn't use the button to unlock it.

For me, it makes more sense to only lock it when in there as and when necessary.

Rapscallion

[thansal]

As I don't drive I can't say much on the ethics behind, however:

Most newer cars I have been in as of late will lock the doors once you go over a certain speed (generally around 20 mph).

[blas]

Most newer cars lock when the driver shifts out of park. My door locks as soon as I move the shifter out of P and into R or D. I feel a lot safer that way.

I have it set so that only my door unlocks if I unlock the doors as well, unless I hit the button on my fob twice, then they all will. Just because I almost always drive alone, no reason to have all my doors unlocked.

[Rapscallion]

Interesting. Never heard of that feature.

Rapscallion