Posted by MOANDCHEERIOS on Wed, 11/29/2006 - 18:01 :: Stories
Between 2001 and 2003 I was being harassed by a male neighbor. He was a big guy about 5’9” and 220lbs. He would make sounds, whistles, sexually suggestive comments, watch me when I’d wash my car, etc. It got to the point that I never went out in the front yard. He never really did anything that warranted a police complaint or anything like that he just made me feel really uncomfortable.
Our household consisted of 6 people, my husband and daughter and in
2001 my dad, mom and sister moved in. To accommodate the arrangement I moved my Amazon parrot, Cheerios, into my bedroom. I had a door in my room leading out to the back yard. Cheerios’ cage was positioned next to the door.
I hardly slept at night and would just close my eyes a wink once and a while, I would leave my computer on which was next to my bed so there was a constant night light. The door leading to the outside also had a screen door on it and I would leave the solid door open and just close the screen door until I’d fall asleep, if ever.
Well, August of 2003 I was working on my computer ‘till about 1 a.m. I decided to sit next to my sleeping husband in bed and leaning up against the wall my eyes closed…I didn’t even realized I had fallen asleep. I woke up to the sound of flapping about 40 minutes later! Cheerios was upset. He was on top of his cage flapping…not a peep…just flap, flap, flap and stop (very deliberate): also pointing his beak and body toward the bed…
“what’s wrong Cheerios??” I asked, looking towards the back door.
He would flap again. Now keep in mind that before this if anything scared him he would scream like a girl…not squawk…scream ”AHHHHHH!” but he wasn’t doing this so I was puzzled. What would make him flap and point toward the bed.
I asked him again, “what’s wrong cheerios??” and added, “what do you see?” He hung on the side of his cage with both wings stretched out still pointing toward the bed. I got up slowly and walked to the foot of my bed trying to look out the screen door…because the screen door was shut I thought that whatever was bothering him was outside that door and he was looking at it through his left eye not thinking that he was pointing to the man crouched at my feet. Cheerios flapped again and my eyes moved down to find this huge shadow moving towards me…..I SCREAMED at the top of my lungs and fell backwards! My husband jumped up and saw this man run out the door…he chased him down the street and he got away, but not before my husband identified him as the man that was harassing me the past two years!! The police was called, reports were made and finally a court date was set (family court, turns out this man was a boy a 15 year-old that surely didn’t look like one) . He pled guilty, never said what his intensions were, but did say he was higher than Mars. He got a year probation because nothing was stolen.
Of course, I was criticized and blamed by police, (“this would’ve never happened if…”) for only having the screen door shut that night, for not making previous reports of harassments, and for not having dogs, yes, dogs.
Many lessons were learned outside of those. Some include 1) do not underestimate how brazen a person can be even when entering a home with that many people in it. 2) Never rely on the parenting of your neighbors. 3) Lock all doors and windows even if you don’t think you’re going to fall asleep. 4) Use all provision available to keep away and silence predators! (kids can be predators too) And 5) listen to your pets.
Had it not been for my Cheerios waking me and showing me where the danger was, who knows what would have happened that early morning. He still screams like a girl when something scares him but since that incident I’ve never seen him act that way again, I hope he never has to.
Our household consisted of 6 people, my husband and daughter and in
2001 my dad, mom and sister moved in. To accommodate the arrangement I moved my Amazon parrot, Cheerios, into my bedroom. I had a door in my room leading out to the back yard. Cheerios’ cage was positioned next to the door.
I hardly slept at night and would just close my eyes a wink once and a while, I would leave my computer on which was next to my bed so there was a constant night light. The door leading to the outside also had a screen door on it and I would leave the solid door open and just close the screen door until I’d fall asleep, if ever.
Well, August of 2003 I was working on my computer ‘till about 1 a.m. I decided to sit next to my sleeping husband in bed and leaning up against the wall my eyes closed…I didn’t even realized I had fallen asleep. I woke up to the sound of flapping about 40 minutes later! Cheerios was upset. He was on top of his cage flapping…not a peep…just flap, flap, flap and stop (very deliberate): also pointing his beak and body toward the bed…
“what’s wrong Cheerios??” I asked, looking towards the back door.
He would flap again. Now keep in mind that before this if anything scared him he would scream like a girl…not squawk…scream ”AHHHHHH!” but he wasn’t doing this so I was puzzled. What would make him flap and point toward the bed.
I asked him again, “what’s wrong cheerios??” and added, “what do you see?” He hung on the side of his cage with both wings stretched out still pointing toward the bed. I got up slowly and walked to the foot of my bed trying to look out the screen door…because the screen door was shut I thought that whatever was bothering him was outside that door and he was looking at it through his left eye not thinking that he was pointing to the man crouched at my feet. Cheerios flapped again and my eyes moved down to find this huge shadow moving towards me…..I SCREAMED at the top of my lungs and fell backwards! My husband jumped up and saw this man run out the door…he chased him down the street and he got away, but not before my husband identified him as the man that was harassing me the past two years!! The police was called, reports were made and finally a court date was set (family court, turns out this man was a boy a 15 year-old that surely didn’t look like one) . He pled guilty, never said what his intensions were, but did say he was higher than Mars. He got a year probation because nothing was stolen.
Of course, I was criticized and blamed by police, (“this would’ve never happened if…”) for only having the screen door shut that night, for not making previous reports of harassments, and for not having dogs, yes, dogs.
Many lessons were learned outside of those. Some include 1) do not underestimate how brazen a person can be even when entering a home with that many people in it. 2) Never rely on the parenting of your neighbors. 3) Lock all doors and windows even if you don’t think you’re going to fall asleep. 4) Use all provision available to keep away and silence predators! (kids can be predators too) And 5) listen to your pets.
Had it not been for my Cheerios waking me and showing me where the danger was, who knows what would have happened that early morning. He still screams like a girl when something scares him but since that incident I’ve never seen him act that way again, I hope he never has to.