Sorry to hear that Riku, how scary!

alida

Oh that is horrifying. Crime can happen anywhere, even the very expensive neighborhoods.

Something for the Quebecois to tsk-tsk at-- wild and wooly Alberta.

Oh my, Riku - I live in a city where drive-by shootings are a relatively common occurrence and I've never experienced one so close to home. How utterly unnerving!

Unfortunately, jerkwads are everywhere and they have cars. :-(

You made me remember and that's good.
In New Orleans, we didn't hear that many gunshots. But we heard three that killed three different people. We were a block from the Mississippi and the one sound I was always attuned to was ships' horns. Five short blast means collision imminent, and there was always a moment of panic for fear of what the ships were carrying.
Up here we hear a lot more shots, yet no one has been killed or injured in the 15 years we've owned this place. We even had someone introduce himself and tell us how many deer he had taken out of our woods the previous year. Our neighbors told us he was the local poacher. He's moved on, now, to where civilization isn't encroaching.
So, how DO we define civilization?

Someone unloaded a clip the other night a few blocks from here. I dialed 911 immediately but they were already "on it."

My second night in this house I woke up at two a.m. to go to the kitchen for a glass of water and "thought" I saw someone in a hooded sweatshirt at the front door. I did an immediate doubletake and they were gone, so I dismissed the whole thing as being tired.

Two nights later, he broke into the house across the street and beat the elderly couple living there up enough to send them to the hospital--and I awoke to the sound of police detectives banging on my door.

We got a police mailout a few days later with an artist's description of the ------- rapist who's been working up here for about four years. I had no idea. It was the guy I thought I saw.

I just felt like an idiot for not calling it in. I'm just glad I was here. I can't imagine what would've happened if I hadn't gotten up to get a drink of water or if the other two had been here alone.

MichaelAT

Apparently rumored a hit - 1 deceased - strangely enough hard to go in the back garden as looking at the portland bed results in looking into their backyard - a young couple moved in a couple of years ago and kept to themselves ... well got to get back on my horse when thrown ... out I go.

So sorry to hear that happened so close to home! We had our first random shooting up and down a quiet street earlier this year in our small town here, about 15 minutes from my house, and it was bizarre to say the least. No less than five for-sale signs went up on that street immediately afterwards.

I once had bullets from a drive-by enter my own apartment. The shooters aimed into the neighboring apartment (which was empty) but a few were angled and made it through my wall. No one was hurt, but it did leave jangled nerves and sensibilities for a long time. Riku, hope your neighborhood heals soon.

Someone drove by and fired birdshot at my bay window when we were all in the living room, admiring my new baby. He's 21 now, but this certainly brings back memories. It's the only shooting I know of in this neighborhood, but we were quite wary of sitting in sight of that window for a long, long time. The pellets didn't go through, but cracked several panes. Scary.

Even as minor as my incident was, everybody in the neighborhood was upset. I can just imagine the shock that you all are going through.
Anita

Very ugly; very frightening. You have my sympathies. I hope you, and the situation, heal up soon.

Melissa

Riku, I hate hearing about this happening to you. Do you think you will want to move, or do you think it was an isolated incident that you and your neighbors can shake off? I know given your situation, I would have a very hard time dealing with the aftermath of so much violence so close to me. Our homes are supposed to be our castles, supposed to be safe, and our neighbors are supposed to be like extended family. it is shattering to learn we are naive about things we have taken for granted!

Hugs to you, and best hopes for an easy recovery and resolution in your neighborhood!

Allison

I am so sorry. I live in the inner city of Nashville and gun shots are not uncommon, although they are rare in my immediate environs. I had a client a few years ago who was a retired minister in his 70s. He and his wife were the victims of a home invasion and they were severely beaten. They lived in a gated community in a very upscale area. It can happen anywhere, anytime.

Jean

Was on the sofa watching tv and heard what I thought was a transformer blow close by. Walked outside and got to the end of the driveway and there were cars all over at the three way stop on my corner. My house is a corner lot. Across the street was a man holding a shot gun to his hip, police man Ive known for quite a few years yells to me to get my *posterior* back in the house take the family and get to the back and lock the doors. Crystal Meth lab across the street...who knew. I live in a upscale area, an old area. They still didnt catch him, house is for sale we are moving to Port Saint Lucie Florida. Im done.
Angela

Don't allow the thugs to take your neighborhood. As we run from one neighborhood to the next in search of respite from these incidents, so do the thugs. Don't give in to them. Don't let them drive you away from what you have worked long and hard for. As Allison says, your home is your castle. Do not allow yourself to be driven from it.