Armed

My apartment complex has been the location of many break-ins recently, that would be break-ins of cars and actual apartments.

We had three cars broken into early Monday morning. There is no rhyme or reason to what's being hit. The guy I know that got his truck broken into wasn't even a Soldier (some people thought there were targeting Soldiers). His stereo was taken and his amp was almost taken.

Yesterday afternoon a police officer came by the complex. My neighbor was outside talking to him so Joe went outside to be noisy. The cop asked Joe if he saw or heard anything last week because an apartment in MY building was broken into at about 12:45PM!! Broad daylight, in the middle of the day! Joe was home because he's still on leave. But he didn't see anything. Can you imagine what would have happened if the burglar had picked our apartment??

I can't believe this kind of violence has hit so close to home. We were talking to our neighbors about how foreign this feels. We're mostly from the South; Joe and I are from Arkansas, our neighbors are from Louisiana. Little old ladies leave their purses in their cars and families don't lock their doors and windows where I grew up, there just isn't a need. We don't have crime like this where I grew up. Maybe I've been sheltered. And I do live in a major city now. Precautions must be made.

Don't let the Southern act fool you. We're armed. Really armed. I have my own weapon that I can handle comfortably. I was trained from a young age to handle weapons responsibly. Joe got me my own gun while we were in Kansas, right before we thought he was going to deploy the first time. I recently fired it again while we were in Arkansas just to have a refresher, and can I say, I'm a damn good shot! Little did I know how timely that was. However, I would absolutely HATE to have to use it on an intruder. I don't know how I would function afterwards. But I WOULD use it if I had to. I will protect myself and my family, no question.

I've been thinking about starting a neighborhood watch. I've never done anything that big before, but I think with the recent events, a lot of people in the complex would appreciate one. Joe will talk to the apartment management today. That conversation will affect if I start the group or not. Joe wants them to hire a full time security guard. But what are the odds of that happening really? Joe's argument is that if they can afford a grounds crew that comes out every 10 days or so to mow the grass and plant trees, they can afford a security guard. Most of the people living in my complex are military. And a big group just left Ft. Carson. I would hate to leave any spouses high and dry when it comes to their safety.