House for Sale

Steve and I were packing our kids up to head over to some friends' for dinner last night around 5:15. I poked my head out the front door to see what the temperature was and this is what I saw.

I had looked out the window five minutes before and there was nothing. But when I popped out this time there were 8 cop cars, a canine unit and an ambulance. Okay, that was not normal.

A couple was walking their dogs and I stopped to ask what was up. They said a man had threatened his girlfriend with a gun one street over. I asked them to describe the house. It's the one that is across our alley and our garage backs up to theirs.
Within the next 5 minutes, most of our neighbors were out and about trying to figure out what was really going on. Our next door neighbor went to take a closer look and got shooed back into his house by an officer with a shotgun. Okay, really not good.

It became pretty clear real quick that we were going to be late, at best, for our dinner. So I phoned my friend, told her to turn on the news and see what was going on. I called back 15 minutes later when it became apparent that this thing was not going to be settled in the next 20 minutes. In fact, our alley, the street and pretty much the whole neighborhood was shut down. No one allowed in or out.

It was gorgeous weather for the middle of November so I sat in our window with it open and watched it all unfold. Within the next 30 minutes the news crews showed up and 45 minutes later the Dayton SWAT team showed up. I could hear an officer on a bull horn telling the man inside to lay down his weapon, turn on a light to let them know he was alright. I continued to listen to that same message for the next 2 hours. They also informed him they were not leaving until they talked to him.

Meanwhile, the wife/girlfriend who reported the whole thing was standing with the cops across the street from my window. We know her. She had a kitchen fire not even a month and a half ago. The kids and I were coming home after picking O up from school. We went to see if we could help. I ended up praying for her and later gave her some gift cards to some restaurants while their kitchen was out of commission. And now this; being threatened with a gun. I can't even imagine.

Because we had planned to be at our friends' house for dinner the kids got PB&J's and chips. Steve and I had nothing. I never felt like our family was in immediate danger, but I did find my knees knocking at points (like when the SWAT team arrived). I was nervous that we would hear gun shots and they would carry our neighbor/others out dead. I could explain all this other activity as the police trying to help a sick neighbor, but I didn't know how I would explain gun shots and body bags.

FINALLY 7:00 rolled around (thank God) and it was bath/bedtime. I just wanted to get the kids in bed in case this continued well into the night. I have to say because the weather was nice, it was like a stinkin' block party around here. What's with that? A bunch of boring Ohioans who don't get much excitement? Seriously, there were neighbors huddled together with wine glasses and snacks. As for me, I just sat at my perch in my window and talked with them from the comfort and safety of my own home thankyouverymuch.

Don't you know that as we were getting the kids to bed, all the cops left. By the time we got back downstairs all of the excitement was over. Just like that. I called one of our neighbors to find out what happened. She said that after all that the police decided he was not a threat, broke no laws and no longer posed danger to the neighborhood. So they left. With the crazy man with a gun IN HIS HOUSE RIGHT NEXT TO MINE. The news at 11 said he will be charged with a misdemeanor of inducing panic.

While I'm glad to say it ended peacefully, I have to say I'm not exactly thrilled that as I write this there is a crazy guy next door!

How about you? What did you do with YOUR Friday night?