This Is Why I Carry

A few weekends ago, I traveled by train to visit one of my daughters for my grandson's birthday party.

My return trip was delayed six hours, and I ended up arriving at a mostly empty train station well after dark.

The mostly empty didn't include the several shabbily dressed people loitering around the station.

Although most of these individuals appeared to only be interested in using the shelter of the roofs and the empty benches as a place to sleep for the night, at least one of them had a more threatening demeanor.

I had parked my vehicle in a parking garage on the opposite side of the train station tracks, and would have to use the crossover bridge to get to the other side, and then walk a several block distance to exit the station and backtrack to the entrance to the garage.

This was a fairly simple process during daylight hours, but after 10 pm on a Sunday night it became a whole different affair.

As I approached the cross over, carrying a backpack, a laptop bag, and my crossbody purse, I saw a very questionable individual standing right at the entrance.

His body position was partially blocking the entrance to the stairway, but he was also within reaching distance of the elevator.

As I approached he was watching me closely, and when I got nearer he reached over to press the elevator button.

When I was within about five feet, a different man, another passenger from the same train, came from behind and pushed past the lurker and headed up the stairway.

The elevator door dinged open, I waited until the man who had pressed the button got inside and the doors were starting to close, and then I hurried up the stairs.

I passed a group of three young women heading down the stairs, and that gave me a sense of relief that there would be people within hearing distance if necessary.

I reached the top of the stairs ahead of the elevator and saw the fellow passenger halfway across the walkway moving towards the other side.

I quickly called out to him, "Hey! Could you wait for me to walk with you? I feel uncomfortable right now."

He passed and turned towards me just as the elevator opened and the other man walked out and started moving towards us.

Meanwhile, I had been walking as quickly as possible and the fellow passenger waited for me to catch up to him.

As he saw the man from the elevator walking towards us, he told me he understood why I was concerned.

The elevator at the other side was already at the top, and we got inside. My walking buddy quickly pushed the button for the ground floor and I began pushing the button to close the doors.

The other guy continued to head towards us, so I lifted my phone and stated loudly, "I don't feel safe!"

At that point, the lurker turned around and headed back to the side of the station that he was originally on when I first saw him.

The rest of my walk was reasonably uneventful, and I arrived at my vehicle without any further issues.

But this entire episode brought home to me why I carry.

A female at night carrying multiple items in a relatively isolated area is not always safe.

Sometimes happenstance places us in situations where we may not have any options.

If there hadn't been someone else going in the same direction as me, I'm not sure what might have happened.

But I am not here to play armchair quarterback and nerd bingo (what if....).

Due to train regulations, I was not allowed to carry, even though I was traveling solely within a state in which I am legally permitted to do so.

I could have placed the gun in checked luggage, however that would have meant even more of a problem.

 There was no secure location at the end station to unlock the case, reload the magazines, and then place the gun in a concealed location.

But that is beside the point, and I'd like to get back to the original premise.

We live in uncertain times and law enforcement isn't always close by to help.

I carry so that I can protect myself, and my loved ones, when other resources aren't available, or will not arrive in time.

What happened at the end of my train ride is just confirmation that my decision is right for me.

Riding that Train, Hoarding, no Shame!

 I recently booked on the AutoTrain (IYKYK) to make a round trip for personal reasons, and this form of transportation was the most cost-effective convenient means to accomplish my ends.

I arrived early enough, and had no issues checking in my vehicle and getting my boarding pass.

After a relatively brief (1-1/2 hour wait) we boarded the train. 

I was in coach this leg of the trip, and I was seated at the opposite end of the second level from the coach dining car.

The train began the process of coupling together and then.....nothing!

Apparently engine troubles were causing a delay. After about 30 minutes trying to repair the current engine, they called for a replacement engine.

Meanwhile, the coach car lounge was providing cups and ice so people could chill their own drinks or fill them with water from faucets.

However, no engine means no power. Power = air conditioning, the meal systems, electrical outlets, wi-fi, even the toilets were electronic.

As 30 more minutes passed, one of the crew members manning the coach car broke out a few cases of the snack packs and small bottled waters - for free.

By that point in time, passengers had been an hour in the (not oppressive for Florida) stuffy warmth, and had begun to get agitated. 

Then the first voyagers back from the lounge car loudly announced "free snack boxes and water" and the feeding frenzy began (pun intended).

The occasional individuals passing through became a steady stream, and the reasonable division of the bounty morphed into hoarding selfishness.

People began returning, with each person carrying 2-3 snack boxes and several bottles of water.

And then, predictably, the free items ran out with over half the intended recipients not benefiting, while a small group took more than they needed.

This microcosm of an inconvenience is something we have seen repeatedly in the preparation time leading up to large-scale predictable events (COVID-19 lock downs, blizzards, hurricanes) and during the aftermath of unexpected events (floods, earthquakes, tornadoes).

Store shelves are wiped out of milk, bread, eggs (there must be a lot of French Toast aficionados out there), toilet paper, bottled water.

Gas cans and generators fly off the shelves, along with with batteries in sizes not often used anymore, only to have the remorseful buyers try to return them, obviously used, when they can't resell them on FB Marketplace or Craigslist.

When did we, as a society, become so focused on the self to the point that we no longer recognize that we are part of a community?

More to the point, how do we fix this problem? 

How do we redirect ourselves and others to function not just as one, but as many into one whole?

How do we come back together as a society interested in the good of all as well as ourselves?

(Serious answers only, please!)