Everyday danger

I was listening to a Dane Cook CD in my car today and he was doing a joke about luring women out of the bars. While it was a funny joke it brought my mind back to some moments in my life that I faced some scary men alone with obvious intent to hurt me. Unfortunately every woman has a few of these stories. It's a sad thing to realize how many bad people and life threatening moments we avoid in our lives. I have three stories I remember that could have ended pretty badly.

1) I was living in Oklahoma with my boyfriend Chris (at the time) we had decided to try and live out there for a while with his friends and family. It was short lived due to our apartment burning down. One day I had to pick up Chris from his job which changed places everyday because he was a tar roofer. He went where ever the job was. I didn't know my way around and got lost all the time. This particular day I was on my way to pick him up I was on a two lane road. There was a lot of traffic and I was lost while sitting bumper to bumper. I felt someone staring at me. I looked to my right and saw a Mexican looking man looking at me from his car in the other lane. When he saw me look at him he gave me a look that chilled me to the bone. It was a look that I understood it's meaning right away. I panicked, I wasn't sure where I was... I knew that one of the side streets was were Chris was waiting but I had no idea which one. I made a rash decision and turned at the first street I saw. This man cut off traffic and almost hit a car to get into my lane and turn behind me. When I turned I noticed it was a coldisac. I was so freakin scared. I tried to speed up and go around the circle and get the hell out of there before he cut me off. I saw a movement out of the corner of my eye and it was Chris standing on the sidewalk waving his arms to get my attention. The man speed by me turned and speed by me again. I had to sit for a moment and compose myself. My rash decision to turn may have been a god sent.

2) I was a cocktail waitress at 18 years old. I was really young and the guys there kinda saw it as their role to watch after me. Which was a good thing. I had worked there for a while and wore very sexy little skirts. Not by choice, the owner Glendi believed that sex sells. She'd always ask me to wear shorter skirts in her Korean accent. "skirt need be shorter, bring men in" hehe ... I laughed it off and did my best with out being a hussy. One night while the bar/club was really busy. A middle aged black man was sitting in the corner alone. I had been serving him drinks all night. Towards the end of the night he told me he could not afford the tip and took off his watch which he claimed was really expensive, and told me to take it. I told him I could not take it but he kept insisting. Eventually I took the watch and walked over to the bartenders and showed them the watch. They were suspicious, as was I, and told me to give it back to him.. So I tried, but he man would not take it. Then he said, I have more money in my car, when the bar closes meet me at my car and give me the watch and then I'll tip you, like collateral. I was immediately aware of his intentions and went again to the guys - they got really pissed off and told me not to leave the bar with out them. Later we all walked out together. The man was sitting there in his car waiting. The guys were surrounding me as we walked over, we gave him his watch and he just left. They watched me leave and followed me partly home.

3) I worked at a pet store in marmora, I was living at home with my mom. I used to walk back and forth to work, it was a few miles and the longest road was all woods. My mother lived next to a house that was bought by the owner of our local diner. He filled the place with his workers from I believe Mexico. There was probably ten of them living in the house and they also would walk the same route to and from work. We never had any issues with them. They were quiet and didn't talk to the neighbors. Except for the road being littered with empty tequila bottles from their walk home at night we rarely new they were there. One night after I closed the store it was dark and I had to walk home. When I got on the stretch of road that was dark and all woods. A man came up behind me. It was one of the men that lived next to us. He tried to say hello and start small talk in his broken English. He then put his arm around me and tried to touch my breast with his hand. I stepped away and said "no"... He continued walking with me and did it again. I jumped back and said "no" again. He looked at me with cold eyes grabbed my breast again and said "YES" I was petrified, and said in my coldest, I'm gonna kick your ass, voice "NO" he walked away. I had to walk behind him at a safe distance until I arrived home. My sister being the little spitfire she is, walked over to their house the next morning walked in and cursed them all out. Never heard from them again.

It's a scary world and so many people have all these close calls with danger. I'm very lucky to have avoided it so far, but some aren't.