My recent scare.....

tjhands · July 15, 2005, 12:20 PM

I'm a pretty level headed guy, and rarely see boogey men where there aren't any, so when I get nervous in public, it's for good reason.
I pulled into the McDonald's drive-thru at about 10:30 the other night. A couple cars pulled in behind me, both filled with noisy kids who sounded drunk or otherwise "altered." A couple of kids in the first car were hanging out the windows yelling, "F YOU!" at the car behind them while I was ordering. Then they sarted yelling at me to "HURRY THE F UP AND ORDER!!!" I had the top off my Jeep, so all this was very loud. In between the seats I had my Kershaw folding knife and a 2oz Fox Labs OC spray. After I ordered, and was waiting for my turn at the window, I had one eye in the rear-view mirror and the knife and spray in my hands. As I was hearing echos in my head of my ex girlfriend telling me how paranoid I am, I see the door open and two of the kids get out behind me and look at my vehicle. I opened the blade and had the flip-top open and fingertip resting on the spray button as these kids both came walking up to my Jeep on the driver's side. I gave the can a quick shake, undid my seat buckle, and opened the door as they arrived so I could get out quickly if I needed to. I won't lie here - I was on high alert and was very close to spraying the first guy in the eyes, when he comes up and says, "hey man, we love your bumper sticker! Where'd ya get it?" Whewwwwwww.........I exhaled audibly and told the kid to NEVER come up behind someone at night like that unless he wanted to be hurt.

They were admiring my "Got Border Security?" bumper sticker. I told them I got it online for $4.00 at illegalimmigrationbumperstickers.com

After I got my food, it took a few minutes before I was calm enough to eat it!

Damn KIDS!!! LOL

XavierBreath · July 15, 2005, 01:10 PM

It's amazing the tension a few harsh cuss words can cause. I'm not faulting you or your preparedness, but i think that many people do not understand how their words can place another person in a defensive mode, and as result, those words can end up biting them in the butt.
Glad it worked out OK.

tjhands · July 15, 2005, 01:44 PM

Zave, you are right. If they hadn't been so loud and obnoxious I would not have been so excited. People actually quite often ask about that very sticker.

The words they were hurling out their windows suggested to me that they were riled up about something and didn't need much of a reason to raise hell of some sort. It showed me just how FAST my hands and mind can go from neutral to high gear!

Dwight55 · July 15, 2005, 07:37 PM

Actually, TJ, . . . I would have stayed on alert, . . . figuring that the conversation was just a ploy to get closer without setting off alarms.

On the other hand, though, . . . if it had been me, at my age and physical ability, in an open top jeep, . . . they could have admired the bumper sticker real well as they watched me leaving, . . . at whatever rate of speed that I would be sure they couldn't catch.

Glad, though, . . . it all worked out OK.

May God bless,
Dwight

Hardtarget · July 15, 2005, 09:35 PM

Someone approching like that should set your alarms clanging! My daughter-in-law's cousin was sitting in a drive through when a drugged out punk walked up and stabbed him in the neck! Best to stay away from me when I'm in a line like that. I get antsy when I feel trapped. You did a good job to keep things cool.
Mark.

LAK · July 18, 2005, 03:05 AM

As irritating as it is (at least for me), bad language does not necessarily indicate hostility. A significant number of youth (and young "adults") often use it affectionately. I do however treat it as a red flag, and usual cautions apply.

Bravo25 · July 18, 2005, 06:12 AM

I hate being made nervous. When I get nervous, I get scared, and when I get scared, I get mean! I have no problem speaking my mind, and my wife goes nuts over it. But I figure I wasn't meant to have to travel through this world taking crap from people, and being afraid.

Netzapper · July 18, 2005, 09:27 AM

I curse constantly, and at whatever volume I would normally be speaking. Hell, I curse when I write.

It rarely has anything to do with hostility.

tjhands · July 18, 2005, 11:59 AM

Yeah, I curse a lot, too.

But there's a drastic and easy-to-recognize difference between conversational cursing and yelling the F-word out your window at someone you don't even know. Am I right?

July 15, 2005, 12:20 PM	#1
tjhands Senior Member Join Date: January 20, 2005 Posts: 1,718	My recent scare..... I'm a pretty level headed guy, and rarely see boogey men where there aren't any, so when I get nervous in public, it's for good reason. I pulled into the McDonald's drive-thru at about 10:30 the other night. A couple cars pulled in behind me, both filled with noisy kids who sounded drunk or otherwise "altered." A couple of kids in the first car were hanging out the windows yelling, "F YOU!" at the car behind them while I was ordering. Then they sarted yelling at me to "HURRY THE F UP AND ORDER!!!" I had the top off my Jeep, so all this was very loud. In between the seats I had my Kershaw folding knife and a 2oz Fox Labs OC spray. After I ordered, and was waiting for my turn at the window, I had one eye in the rear-view mirror and the knife and spray in my hands. As I was hearing echos in my head of my ex girlfriend telling me how paranoid I am, I see the door open and two of the kids get out behind me and look at my vehicle. I opened the blade and had the flip-top open and fingertip resting on the spray button as these kids both came walking up to my Jeep on the driver's side. I gave the can a quick shake, undid my seat buckle, and opened the door as they arrived so I could get out quickly if I needed to. I won't lie here - I was on high alert and was very close to spraying the first guy in the eyes, when he comes up and says, "hey man, we love your bumper sticker! Where'd ya get it?" Whewwwwwww.........I exhaled audibly and told the kid to NEVER come up behind someone at night like that unless he wanted to be hurt. They were admiring my "Got Border Security?" bumper sticker. I told them I got it online for $4.00 at illegalimmigrationbumperstickers.com After I got my food, it took a few minutes before I was calm enough to eat it! Damn KIDS!!! LOL __________________ "If the sole purpose of handguns is to kill people, then mine are all defective." - Uncle Ted Nugent

July 15, 2005, 01:10 PM	#2
XavierBreath Senior Member Join Date: December 6, 2002 Location: North Louisiana Posts: 2,800	It's amazing the tension a few harsh cuss words can cause. I'm not faulting you or your preparedness, but i think that many people do not understand how their words can place another person in a defensive mode, and as result, those words can end up biting them in the butt. Glad it worked out OK. __________________ Xavier's Blog

July 15, 2005, 01:44 PM	#3
tjhands Senior Member Join Date: January 20, 2005 Posts: 1,718	Zave, you are right. If they hadn't been so loud and obnoxious I would not have been so excited. People actually quite often ask about that very sticker. The words they were hurling out their windows suggested to me that they were riled up about something and didn't need much of a reason to raise hell of some sort. It showed me just how FAST my hands and mind can go from neutral to high gear! __________________ "If the sole purpose of handguns is to kill people, then mine are all defective." - Uncle Ted Nugent

July 15, 2005, 07:37 PM	#4
Dwight55 Senior Member Join Date: June 18, 2004 Location: Central Ohio Posts: 2,568	Actually, TJ, . . . I would have stayed on alert, . . . figuring that the conversation was just a ploy to get closer without setting off alarms. On the other hand, though, . . . if it had been me, at my age and physical ability, in an open top jeep, . . . they could have admired the bumper sticker real well as they watched me leaving, . . . at whatever rate of speed that I would be sure they couldn't catch. Glad, though, . . . it all worked out OK. May God bless, Dwight __________________ www.dwightsgunleather.com If you can breathe, . . . thank God! If you can read, . . . thank a teacher! If you are reading this in English, . . . thank a Veteran!

July 15, 2005, 09:35 PM	#5
Hardtarget Senior Member Join Date: May 3, 2001 Location: Nashville, Tn. Posts: 683	Someone approching like that should set your alarms clanging! My daughter-in-law's cousin was sitting in a drive through when a drugged out punk walked up and stabbed him in the neck! Best to stay away from me when I'm in a line like that. I get antsy when I feel trapped. You did a good job to keep things cool. Mark. __________________ ...even a blind hog finds an acorn every once in a while.

July 18, 2005, 03:05 AM	#6
LAK Junior member Join Date: May 14, 2002 Posts: 2,251	As irritating as it is (at least for me), bad language does not necessarily indicate hostility. A significant number of youth (and young "adults") often use it affectionately. I do however treat it as a red flag, and usual cautions apply.

July 18, 2005, 06:12 AM	#7
Bravo25 Senior Member Join Date: June 19, 2005 Location: Kansas Posts: 432	I hate being made nervous. When I get nervous, I get scared, and when I get scared, I get mean! I have no problem speaking my mind, and my wife goes nuts over it. But I figure I wasn't meant to have to travel through this world taking crap from people, and being afraid. __________________ If more laws restricting our rights will make us free from harm, why aren't we safe yet? We are only less free. When faced with impossible overwhelming odds, prudance would dictate the only thing left is to figure out what is possible, and to do it. Punishment for all crimes should increase until the recitivism rate approaches zero.

July 18, 2005, 09:27 AM	#8
Netzapper Senior Member Join Date: April 1, 2005 Location: Gilpin county, CO Posts: 261	I curse constantly, and at whatever volume I would normally be speaking. Hell, I curse when I write. It rarely has anything to do with hostility.

July 18, 2005, 11:59 AM	#9
tjhands Senior Member Join Date: January 20, 2005 Posts: 1,718	Yeah, I curse a lot, too. But there's a drastic and easy-to-recognize difference between conversational cursing and yelling the F-word out your window at someone you don't even know. Am I right? __________________ "If the sole purpose of handguns is to kill people, then mine are all defective." - Uncle Ted Nugent