hey, good job!

I’ve heard that you never know how you’re going to respond to a difficult situation until you’re actually in one. That being the case, last night I learned that I’m damn lucky to have made it to the ripe age of thirtysomething because, apparently, my survival instincts suck.

Last night, unable to sleep, I rolled over in bed to find a man’s face pressed to my window, his hands pushing and pulling on the bars as if to test their strength, and do you know what I did? I said “Hey” and clapped my hands. Yeah, that’s right, I greeted and then applauded the man trying to break into my bedroom. Good job, well done, pull a little harder, I’m sure one of those bars will give soon…it’s amazing I’ve made it this far in life isn’t it?

Thankfully, he was as surprised by my response as I was and took off, running up the stairs to the rooftop and back to where he came from leaving me all alone, in the dark, completely freaked out. I checked the clock, 12.57am. That left four hours until daylight, four hours to sit and stare at the window waiting for the would-be intruder’s shadow to reappear. Four hours, alone, in the dark, while freaking out is a very long time so I did what any independent, adult would do – I called my little sister who called the rest of my family who called me. In between phone calls, I had long conversations with myself to pass the time and to let anyone hanging around know that I was awake.

Interesting what comes up when you’ve four hours to talk smack. I dove into some issues, resolved some stuff, and surprised myself with the stuff I’d already resolved without even knowing it. When the sun rose I packed my belongings and left the flat but I left much, much lighter than when I arrived. What a blessing.

I’ve since moved into a gorgeous flat with a lovely family and a very big dog named Don. This is a house I’ve always noticed for it’s awesome rooftop terrace and wondered who got to live here. Now I know. It’s me. Very, very lucky person I am.