It occurred on my way home after work around 9:00 PM. By that time, it's quite dark in Toronto, Canada, the temperature dropped just below 1-degree Celsius, and the poorly lit street lights didn't help much. Exhausted from work, I took my time walking home but relieved to know that my place was just right around the corner. Until...
A black car pulls up and parks ahead in the distance.
Now, there's been occasional home invasions and robberies in my area. Once in a while, somebody gets shot/murdered, but rarely. That said, I've always thought my area was a fairly safe area and I still do. So, I didn't expect any threats.
My place was just right around the corner pass the car. When I walked closer to the vehicle, which was parked on the side of the road, a guy (we'll call him Guy) stepped out and started looking through his trunk. As I was walked pass, he had mumbled something in my direction. I peered in his direction and asked him to repeat it.
"Shoot his leg"
At that moment he immediately grabbed my arm and told me to give him all my belongings. I stepped back but he wouldn't let go, so I grabbed his arm and squeezed it until he eventually let go. Then, his friend stepped out of the car. He had a black balaclava on with his hands in the kangaroo pocket of his hoodie.
Balaclava threatened to shoot me if I didn't give him my belongings. I called his bluff. I exclaimed, "Fuck that! You're not getting shit!". Pointing to my right leg, Guy then said, "Shoot his leg". Balaclava pulled out his gun from his kangaroo pocket.
My immediate thought was, if I get shot in the leg, then I wouldn't be able to work and if I don't work, then I can't pay off my debts. And if I don't pay off my debts, then I'll be in more debt.
So I forfeited by belongings, i.e., my phone, wallet, and my backpack. Balaclava took my phone and returned to the car. Guy ravaged through my backpack and realized I had nothing of value so he returned it. As he looked through my wallet hoping to find cash, I was hoping he wouldn't take the lottery ticket I had just bought. I know! The percentage of winning $60 million is close to impossible, but you never know! Anyway, I never carry cash -- only cards. So, Guy returned my wallet. How thoughtful. He jumped in his car, then drove off.
Unfortunately, I couldn't recover much detail from last night mainly because I was too exhausted from work. All I remember from that incident was that they were just kids -- as in high school or a bit older.
I went home grumpy and sulky about my now-gone notes and write-ups. Strangely enough, I wasn't frightened or traumatized. I think the fact that all my notes were gone might have overwritten those emotions. If only they were decent enough to at least email me my notes!
On the plus side, they may refer to this incident in one of their rap songs! That's right folks I could be in a rap song one day!
What have you accomplished??
So what did I learn from this experience?
1. Backup valuable notes.
Over the years, I wrote a lot of ideas and concepts on my phone -- screenplays, stories, business plans, marketing strategies, and even more recently a lot of content for Steemit and more miscellaneous notes. The gun threat and having my phone stolen was least of my worries. I was more annoyed that all my written material was gone. AND I have a short-term memory.
So I realized, moving forward, I should keep a backup of any valuable information, either in the cloud or my laptop (which might be a bad idea, since it's slowly dying now).
2. Self-reflection is necessary.
I was reminded that I'm essentially working to pay off my debts. I'm aware a lot of people are in that situation -- grinding at some miscellaneous job to pay off debts. However, for me, I thought that perhaps I need to re-evaluate my priorities, because if my initial thought when having a gun pulled on me paying off my debts, then self-reflection is necessary.
3. Lock your devices.
I've never pattern/password locked my phone until two years ago. So I'm glad I did. Especially now because of cryptocurrency. If you haven't done so, I highly recommend it, especially if you used your phone for ANYTHING related to cryptocurrency.
In retrospect, I was fortunate to not have started a physical retaliation when Guy first grabbed my arm. I didn't even consider another person in the car. For all I know, there could've been more kids in the car and the outcome could have been worse.
I'm sure there are people on Steemit who've experienced similar situations where you had no control due to a gun threat. Ain't that a bitch?