Let me tell you a story that happened Sunday night.
I was at home around 10pm watching tv, winding down for the evening. I was alone, in my pjs, cuddled up on the couch with the cat on my lap, watching tv. I heard some strange noises outside and lowered the volume to hear. Suddenly I hear a man yell, "GET DOWN ON THE GROUND! GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!" It was so loud and forceful I sprung up, practically flinging the cat, and dropped to the floor instinctively. Waht was going on?! I moved over to the window to see what was happening outside but stopped myself short for fear that someone would see me. So I ran into my bedroom where there were no lights and peered through the blinds.
Surrounding my apartment building were the policed dressed in full body armor carrying assault weapons. In the next instant I hear them in my building, again, screaming at someone to "GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!"
My apartment building is fairly small; 2 floors, 4 apartments, so I knew where they were entering at that moment, but I had no idea why. Could someone have snuck into the laundry room downstairs? Was it a drug raid? Was it one of our neighbors? In that same moment I felt alone and confused. Sport-o was playing hockey and there was no real way of reaching him. I called my Dad. But instead of getting him, I got my mother. There's nothing like unintentionally scaring your mother.
I didn't know what to think. Was there going to be gun fire? Were the police going to come here? So many questions. My Dad was telling me about different survival tips if I hear gunfire. "Get in the tub!" he says to me. That's so comforting to hear.
A few minutes later I hear a knocking at the door. It was my neighbor Dave who lived across from me. I let him in and he bursts out, "What the fuck is going on!?!?!!!" I look right back at him and say, "shit if I know!" We were both totally clueless and helpless. And what about the old lady downstairs? She has health problems and all this action may have given her a heart attack- it sure did scare the crap out of me! My heart was about to jump out of my chest!
The police told us to stay in our apartments. A cop stood by the door not letting anyone in or out. A few minutes later Sport-o calls me from his cell phone. Turns out he was sitting in the truck at the end of the road. They wouldn't let him come home. He asked the police barracade what was going on. The cop said, they were dealing with someone who has "issues."
Sport-o went on to say that he wanted to get home to his wife. They asked where he lived. When he said it was the yellow apartment building on the left, the policeman stopped short in his tracks and walked away. This scared Sport-o. Could it be his beloved Sport-a in trouble?!!! His mind wandered into so many scenarios. And he had no answers! So you can imagine his relief when I answered the phone.
Meanwhile I am entertaining my unexpected guest while cops are arresting someone downstairs. We compared notes. Now we could see an armored vehicle outside and sharpshooters across the street. Now through all of this I'm in my pajamas: Strawberry Shortcake pants with a t-shirt, covered by a blue bathrobe. Definitely sexy.
Some time lapsed and they allowed Sport-o to come home. He was able to see more from outside of the building than we could inside. After all the men left and our neighbor was arrested, there were crime scene photographers in that apartment. Eric saw a pile of firearms in the doorway being confiscated. He heard a photographer remark on how awful the smell was in that apartment, but nothing else significant.
Then poof! The police were gone. It was all over.
What do you do after something like this? My heart wasn't pounding like before, but I was wired. It was late and I had work the next day but I couldn't sleep. Neither could Sport-o or neighbor Dave. Dave said it about right when he proclaimed, "I need a beer." Sport-o agreed. So I got dressed and we walked to the only bar in town that would be open on a Sunday night after 11:00pm. It was a dump, but the beer was perfect.
Sport-o and I woke up the next morning and both had the same thought, "What the hell happened last night?"
In Wednesday's paper it said the following, slightly edited:
"An incident involving the ... Police Department's armored tactical vehicle ended peacefully Sunday night. About 10 p.m. a caller reported someone being a threat to themselves or others on ... Street. The armored vehicle was activated and during the incident police carried assault rifles. But the incident with solved without issue. Due to privacy laws police were unable to release additional information. "
That still does not answer any real questions, but at least we are safe. "A threat to themselves or others".... hmmm.
The police never notified us when they left to say that everything was "ok" or anything. I don't know if that is a policy for them, but in thinking about how scary the whole incident was, and how small the building is, it would have been more reassuring. It also would have been nice if they knocked on the old lady's door to make sure that she was ok. Sport-o and neighbor Dave went to check on her later on and she was fine, but you get my point.
Sport-o was bold yesterday when he saw that neighbor who was arrested and asked him what happened. The man dodged the question, just saying "a lot of issues" went on.
I have lived near the downtown of a major city for most of my life and I've seen many things, but I never would have thought in moving to a small town of 9,000 people with a low crime rate, where people leave their doors unlocked and are very trusting, to have such an event happen so close.
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