Tuesday, September 6, 2016
Boom!
My second son and his family lived on a very busy street in the city. The noise from traffic would be unbearable if you were not used to city traffic sounds.
This is also a city known for violence. Drive-by shootings were not unusual even if they were not as frequent as some news reports would have you believe.
For those who do not know a drive-by shooting is when a car drives by and occupants of the car shoot guns. Sometimes they have a specific target in mind such as a person sitting the the porch or a certain house where someone they were angry with lived. Sometimes they simply want to shoot their guns.
One night we had a family get-together at my son's house. We were sitting inside and talking. The children were watching television. It was a relaxing evening.
We all jumped when we heard what sounded almost like cannon shots one after the other. There were four in all. Boom, boom, boom, boom!
Of course we knew it must be a drive-by. We made sure all the little ones were accounted for and safe. Then we asked each other if we were safe. Then we started to wonder if the neighbors were safe.
Having no idea what had actually happened we were puzzled. But you cannot rush outside because the shooters might go around the block or something. So we waited.
There was no one screaming outside. No police came.
After a considerable amount of time a few of us went out to see what damage had been done and where it had been done.
My son's house had no bullet holes. We saw no damage to neighbors' houses. My son went across the street to where he parked his semi truck. Nothing there.
Then he started to laugh. When he was finally able he pointed to my car. I had four flat tires!
No they were not shot. I had little money and desperately needed different tires. They had chosen that day to all explode and go flat.
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Incredible story, scary, sad and funny all at the same time.
ReplyDeleteI have often said that my experiences would make a great book. The problem is that they are so strange that no one would believe them.
DeleteWhat a story, Emma...almost like something you would see in a movie.
ReplyDeleteIt must have been very frustrating for you...but at the same time a blessed sigh of relief!!!
Jan
I was relieved that no one was shot at or hurt. I was upset that I would have to replace all those tires because I could not afford them. My former brother-in-law was kind enough to help me.
DeleteHa!
ReplyDeleteIt is funny now.
DeleteToo, too funny.
ReplyDeleteMy life is a series of funny tales. A good thing too. Laughter is so much better for a soul than being unhappy.
DeleteIt must have been a great relief.
ReplyDeleteIt was until I started to wonder how I would replace the tires. It was funny though.
DeleteWe don't hear much traffic here but the sound of gunfire is not uncommon here especially during hunting season.
ReplyDeleteI would probably fear for the safety of your dogs during hunting season. People get excited at movement when they are hunting.
DeleteHow could all four tires have blowouts within seconds on a parked car? Could your son have been protecting you by saying this?
ReplyDeletePeggy and I lived on a busy street for just over a year, and that was enough for us to say “never again.”
It could have been possible that my son did it, except that he was sitting inside with the rest of us. The tires were not slashed; they blew. I know it seems unlikely but it really happened.
DeleteStranger coincidences have occurred so doubt, but what I want to know is this. When people slash tires, what do they use, a machete? I mean, tires are tougher cheese, yet I do well to slice cheese with a knife.
DeleteHaving a small bit of experience in this area I can tell you that a good sharp paring knife works quite nicely.
Delete“I can tell you that a good sharp paring knife works quite nicely.”
DeleteI want you to know that I’m committed to staying on your good side, and that if someone pisses me off, I’ll give you their name and address, and will bake you a pie for after you come back from dealing with them.
Now, please allow me to humbly say that I’m amazed that one could shred tires with any kind of a knife. I’ve heard of it being done, and you obviously have ENORMOUS experience with doing it, but I just can’t envision it because tires are made to stand up to so much physical abuse. I know that the sidewalls are less thick that the bottom of the tires, but they're enough to cause me to reflect that shredding them isn’t a job for the old and infirm.
"Slashing tires" is simply a term used to say that tires were intentionally punctured so that they will no longer hold air. I have not performed that juvenile task for many years and regret that I ever did. What is done is that a sharp object is inserted into the side of the tire. Sides cannot be repaired. I am sad that I will miss out on that pie though.
Delete"'Slashing tires" is simply a term used to say that tires were intentionally punctured so that they will no longer hold air."
DeleteI had no idea. Now, I just want to go out and try to poke a hole in someone’s tire (that would be someone ELSE’S tire) to see how easy it is. I did know that a hole in the sidewall was fatal to a tire (having been there, done that when I was driving across some sharp volcanic rocks), but not that slashing meant poking a hole through. And at my age too! You’re quite a girl.
Neither of us has an email address on our blogs, so if you want to share yours, just put it on my blog, and I won’t let it appear. I’ve accumulated quite a few addresses over the years, some of people whom I write to often, and others of people whom I rarely correspond with. The reason I like having the addresses of my favorite people is simply that I never trust Google to not make some change in their Blogger policy that would cause me to lose contact with those people. After all, Google has no commitment to us in this regard. However, if you prefer to not let me have your address, it won’t affect our blog relationship at all because I’m not sensitive about such things, and because I recognize that being a person of integrity means honoring other people’s boundaries.
You know I enjoy our conversations. I may or may not agree with you but the exchanges are always interesting.
Delete"I may or may not agree with you but the exchanges are always interesting."
DeleteIt's much of a conversation if all that can be said is, "You are so right, and I agree completely." Differences are far more stimulating, and I appreciate your willingness to dialogue.
As long as I can have an intelligent and non-aggressive discussion with anyone I have a good time.
Delete