I originally posted this on my Facebook page, but it bears repeating here in this forum.
A serial killer is loose in my neighborhood. The authorities have warned all of us to stay in our houses and to not approach any strangers. The authorities know who he is, but they have not been able to capture him or to stop him. He killed an innocent man, a year younger than I, in my neighborhood two weeks ago. Last night, he killed an elderly man in this town. A month ago, he hit a woman so hard that she was in the hospital for over a month. Then he attacked her husband, so he ended up in the same hospital.
This serial killer is so hard to capture because he has no pattern. He kills men and women, young adults, teenagers, children, and even babies. And he uses horrific means to murder the innocent. Rather than swift deaths, he tortures them. He inflicts his victims with terrible pain, and then he sometimes quickly and sometimes slowly suffocates them or starts a reaction in them which causes eventual death.
A few nights ago, my neighbor lady had a huge gathering of family and friends. They carried on as if the killer was not roaming the neighborhood. For all they know, he was right there among them! But the killer has no recognizable face that the police can put up in a wanted poster. He pretends to be like everyone else… until he chooses his next victim. I do not socialize with others; I stay home. When I must go out, I hide my face in the hopes that he will not recognize me later. I am scared, so I stay home.
This serial killer is here, and he is still at large. And do you want to know the most terrifying thing of all? He is in your neighborhood, too.
Noooooo!!! Are you living alone? Do you own a gun? It may be time for a local gun safety class.
One of the best safety mechanisms is a pair of cargo pants with pockets full of things you might need quickly - like, a cell phone that is always on you and a monkey fist.
You can buy a monkey fist, but this is how you make one. The elderly guys on the street carry these all the time (make one that is larger than this). Sometimes they tie it to a large metal crucifix that fits into the pocket. That makes it easy to grab and swing at someone on the street. An alternative is just a large metal ring tied to a handkerchief.
I don’t think he is in my neighborhood, or else he is really slacking off. I have lived here since 1974 and we have never had a murder in this town since I moved here. Some places in the US are still really safe to live and I refuse to live anywhere I need to fear for my life, as that would change my outlook from living to existing.
Does this mean we’re becoming too complacent about covid-19? Because, I too didn’t realize that’s what this was about, and I’m usually pretty quick on the uptake. I’m actually still not 100% sure it is, since it’s not in the covid-19 category.
It’s definitely about COVID-19. I thought it was a really neat analogy. Hopefully it makes the careless pause for a moment… though I suspect you won’t find too many of those here.
I started suspecting it was COVID-19 by the start of the second paragraph. Confirmed at the end that it is. I do get nervous that, with time, people will start to forget that COVID-19 is still as real a threat as it was back in March…
Robyn_H, I purposely did not put it into the Cover-19 category because we are all getting too complacent about this threat-- and it still is a real threat to all of us since we all have a “compromising medical condition.” Covid-19 is a triple threat to me because I also am over 65, and I have surpassed autoimmune system due to a medication I must take for the rest of my life. I have tested negative for Covid-19, but that does not mean that I won’t do something were I am exposed to it tomorrow. I wear a mask in public places not to protect me, but to protect others from me should I inadvertently become infected. I wear a mask as a courtesy to protect others, and I wish they would do the same for me. Medical personnel tell us masks, social distancing, and just using common sense is the only thing that is going to stop this killer, yet people take their children to grocery stores with no masks. I have distant relatives who are talking about taking their children to Disney World this summer in Florida-- which is predicted to be the next “hot spot” of the country – with no thought to possible danger. I see people flocking to beaches and bars, only to be surprised when some of them get sick. This serial killer is loose. He is looking for people like you and me, and he is in every neighborhood in America. Stay safe, my friends.
I want to thank you for thinking that a flesh-and-blood killer was in my neighborhood, and for giving me tips to keep myself safe. That is what is great about this forum; we care about the well-being of one another.
It took me until the 4th paragraph to realize it was covid. And then you go back and read it and it reminds of rewatching the sixth sense. where the words can be applied to the “new idea”.
I have been real complacent and made many mistakes when I have been out and about, but we haven’t had any cases for 2 months. Until now. So now I need to be a lot more careful and watchful. It was nice while it lasted.
At first I thought perhaps Covid-19 but then there is so much emphasis on “he” in the post that I thought killer being so fickle, so elusive and unpredictable would it not possibly be a “she” instead? Some of us are essential workers in essential businesses and in my town we have had a total of 6 cases, one in our company, and no deaths so it is not hitting us emotionally as hard as those that have lost a loved one, staying home with plenty of time to reflect on this pandemic and its carnage. We have been so busy just trying our best to keep up with customer order processing, it is certainly not business as usual, especially since workers are paid so much to stay at home that we are having a very hard time filling our available positions.
@meee, What do you think they would do if you walked over and started complaining about your covid symptoms?
2 people that I know from town have died. I knew them somewhat distantly, so overall, it hasn’t hit as hard as I imagined it would. But, it isn’t over yet.
According to the tracking site I follow, yesterday recorded a huge, record-breaking spike in cases worldwide (over 180,000 new cases in one day). Definitely nowhere near over. The idea that people would think it is is very worrying.
So true! In the city where I live, we have been hit hard due to having both a larger population and having three meat-packing plants where the virus swept through with a vengeance. (Makes me think twice about going to a plant-based diet!) I also have a home in Florida, and all of this week, Florida has been breaking records on new Covid cases. No place is safe. We cannot let our guards down. For most of us, that means adopting a new way to live for a while. Do I think the virus will be gone soon? No. I believe health experts who say that this could linger anywhere from 18 - 24 months yet, with many, many more deaths. Do I think that eventually it will go away or we will find medical ways to deal with it? Yes. But for now, masks, social-distancing, and avoiding large groups are a must. I can Facetime with friends and relatives. I can watch church services online. I can vote by mail. I can order products that I feel I need and have them delivered to my house. And I can make well-planned, limited trips to the drug and grocery stores for daily essentials. For the rest of the time, I am cleaning and organizing my house, sewing washable masks for family and friends, and catching up on books on my Kindle and through my online local library resource. That is enough for me for now. Stay safe, everyone, and please do not become complacent. Doing so can kill you.
It is by no means over, cases are spiking in numerous states due to reopening etc. and everyone still needs to use extreme caution. I would not do that to anyone. I know them and they are nice people, just not doing what should be done obviously. . there weren’t many people there and they did seem to be spaced apart, some sort of garage sale type of thing, I could not tell.
I am sorry to hear that two people from your town have passed, that is terrible. In my county we have lost around 2000, and there are huge numbers of positive tests for actual virus and antibodies.
