Please take the time to read this. I know you are smart enough to know these pointers but there will be some, where you will go "Hmmm, I must remember that".

1. Tip from Tae Kwon Do: The elbow is the strongest point on your body. If you are close enough to use it, do!

2. Learned this from a tourist guide to New Orleans. If a robber asks for your wallet and/or purse, DO NOT HAND IT TO HIM. Toss it away from you.... chances are that he is more interested in your wallet and/or purse than you and he will go for the wallet/purse. RUN LIKE MAD IN THE OTHER DIRECTION!

3. If you are ever thrown into the trunk of a car: Kick out the back tail lights and stick your arm out the hole and start waving like crazy. The driver won't see you but everybody else will. This has saved lives.

4. Women have a tendency to get into their cars after shopping, eating, working, etc., and just sit (doing their checkbook, or making a list, etc. DON'T DO THIS! The predator will be watching you, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to get in on the passenger side, put a gun to your head, and tell you where to go. AS SOON AS YOU GET INTO YOUR CAR, LOCK THE DOORS AND LEAVE.

5. A few notes about getting into your car in a parking lot, or parking garage:

A.) Be aware: look around you, look into your car, at the passenger side floor, and in the back seat.

B.) If you are parked next to a big van, enter your car from the passenger door. Most serial killers attack their victims by pulling them into their vans while the women are attempting to get into their cars.

C.) Look at the car parked on the driver's side of your vehicle, and the passenger side. If a male is sitting alone in the seat nearest your car, you may want to walk back into the mall, or work, and get a guard/policeman to walk you back out. IT IS ALWAYS BETTER TO BE SAFE THAN SORRY. (And better paranoid than dead.)

6. ALWAYS take the elevator instead of the stairs. (Stairwells are horrible places to be alone and the perfect crime spot).

7. If the predator has a gun and you are not under his control, ALWAYS RUN! The predator will only hit you (a running target) 4 in 100 times; And even then, it most likely WILL NOT be a vital organ. RUN!

8. As women, we are always trying to be sympathetic: STOP IT! It may get you raped, or killed. Ted Bundy, the serial killer, was a good-looking, well educated man, who ALWAYS played on the sympathies of unsuspecting women. He walked with a cane, or a limp, and often asked "for help" into his vehicle or with his vehicle, which is when he abducted his next victim.

9. Another Safety Point: Crying Baby -

Someone said that her friend heard a crying baby on her porch the night before last, and she called the police because it was late and she thought it was weird. The police told her "Whatever you do, DO NOT open the door."

The lady then said that it sounded like the baby had crawled near a window, and she was worried that it would crawl to the street and get run over.

The policeman said, "We already have a unit on the way, whatever you do, DO NOT open the door." He told her that they think a serial killer has a baby's cry recorded and uses it to coax women out of their homes thinking that someone dropped off a baby. He said they have not verified it, but have had several calls by women saying that they hear baby's cries outside their doors when they're home alone at night. DO NOT open the door for a crying baby!

THANKS ILUV xxxxx

Your right - it helps to be reminded - and there were a couple of things I would never have thought of - so very sad though

Julie x

I think those are GREAT reminders!

Funny, I don't really worry about my public safety anymore. I feel like I could walk down the street stark naked at 3 AM and never be noticed. Old thing, nobody would give me a second look, much less bother to harass me.....women over 50 disappear into the backround like shrubbery. Somebody would bother to jump me? I wish.

Ms Mom, please don't say that!! I know you're joking a little but truely, any woman of any age needs to be on guard when alone. Also, it's when we allow ourselves to get comfortable that things happen.

Thanks for reminding us to be careful, Luv. I would like to add something that I heard years ago on the Oprah show, that ended up saving my life in 2001: if someone is attacking you with a weapon, fight back at all costs. The example in the show was a woman in bed being attacked with a knife, who grabbed the blade with her hands. She obviously had injuries, but the attacker was so freaked out that he left and didn't get the chance to rape her.

My experience was having a gun (a rifle type gun) held at me while I was in the driver's seat of my car. After what seemed like forever of screaming and waiting to be shot, I remembered the woman fighting back the knife attacker, and shoved the gun down and kicked him. He finally ran away just before my neighbors finally heard me.

Spin your head and spew the pea soup! That's enough, at times, to scare a man off even if he has a weapon!

Uh no, I wasn't joking. Perfectly serious.

PLEASE don't feel that way. Sent you PM.

Stay strong...

Thank you so much for sharing these wise knowledgable tips...

Blessings,
Stacy

here's a couple too..

When walking to your car, place your keys in between your fingers...you can do some serious damage with them key knuckles, and also it helps support your knuckles to have something in the palm of your hand.

Another... walk with confidence, even an angry face helps! Preditors usually go after the unsuspected and aloof women.

Be sure you are watching from all angles, when you are walking down a sidewalk, check the reflections of the people behind you in the store and car windows as you pass by.

When traveling alone at night , DO NOT stop at rest areas!!!! I repeat..DO NOT go to rest areas. Go to a well lighted resturant or gas station. Park right up in front. If a space isnt available, wait for one if at all possible, or drive to another store.

Iluvtolaff --

Thanks for the tips. I spend a lot of time by myself (single, currently man-less, and probably better off ) and sometimes forget to be careful. I remember once I had to work late, and so had to walk four blocks in downtown Houston at 9:30 at night. The route was well-lit and I figured I would be fine. Did the confidence walk -- head high, purposeful stride, looking like I needed to be somewhere. When I got to my car, I realized that I was squeezing the notebook I was carrying so tightly that I practically had to peel my fingers off it to put it down. So I was scared and didn't even know it.

I'm one of those who carries my keys looped in my fingers. I'm not much of a fighter, but I imagine I -- even accidently -- could claw somebody.

Ms Mom --

Sexual assault is a crime of anger and power, not a crime of passion or desire, so it doesn't matter what shape you're in. If you come upon someone in that mind frame, you will be his next victim, young chickie or old hag. So it always pays to watch your back.

But aside from that, where's some self-esteem? What's wrong with being 50? Does that automatically mean a death sentence to a woman's attractiveness? I say NO!! There's lots of beautiful women out there who are over fifty, and not just moviestars. I'm sure you are a perfectly fine specimen of womanhood, but one who needs to get a better opinion of herself. But if you're not, why not? Is it something that a little effort will fix? Find something you like about yourself. It can be anything -- career accomplishments, sense of humor, great eyes or legs -- and build some self-worth around it. And don't let anybody stand in your way. Soon you'll be worthy of being attacked -- by someone you WANT, that is. Coco Chanel once said "There's no such thing as an ugly woman...only lazy ones." Not implying that you're lazy, but I hope you get the drift.

And stop telling yourself that you're an old lady! I'm 45, 60 lbs overweight and have salt-and-pepper hair, and yet most people tell me I could easily pass for my early 30's. Why? Because I believe that age is a state of mind. I wanna be 25, so I act like I am. I laugh -- A LOT. I enjoy friends and good food and music and hobbies and sex (with a man when available, and on my own when necessary). I keep my mind sharp with books and puzzles and debates with my friends. I just refuse to "Get Old". Yeah, my birth certificate says 1960, but my brain doesn't believe it. I just tell anyone who tries to tell me to "Act Your Age" to go jump in a lake.

Sorry to get mildly off-topic. But good self-esteem also keeps us careful because we need to believe that we're worth taking care of. Be careful out there, ladies. The world is full of wackos.

Webalina;

I Love your post. I particularly must commend you for the part which I have Quoted. Thank you for the lesson on living. Not life so much, but LIVING.

Linderful

You are so-o-o-o right! I'm 55 and look younger and I definitely ACT younger! My name says it all--I love to Laugh!! I enjoy my family, friends, and co-workers and they all tell me that my humor has brought them out of 'the deep' many times. So, keep on truckin' fellow meno-maniac!

I know this seems like a logical thing to do and used to be taught in self-defense classes, but if you punch this way (like brass knuckles) the keys actually tend to bend back and cut into the web between your fingers. It's better to take the single largest/sturdiest key and hold it by the base between your thumb and finger just like you'd have it to insert into a lock. Then you need to be prepared to thrust it into the appropriate soft target (eye, throat, etc). I suggest using the key that opens whatever door you are planning to open (car, house,office) because it allows you rapid entry or use as weapon.

Sima, hun, I am not seeing what you are saying how the keys bend back and cut the finger webs. I have actually used my keys like this 2 times..I didnt get any cuts on my hand from it..Im a visual person, and i need to see a picture....

They teach this in self defense? hmm, didnt know that either, never took a lesson, or read anything. Just had to learn street...now I can carry a gun. I will use it if need to.

DaMomma-

Maybe I don't understand how you use the keys...we both probably need a picture to figure out this one!!

Oh, well..

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Ok, all of this makes sense. BUT the part about the recording of a crying baby ? ! That scares the **** out of me. That's one sound that any woman is going to investigate, even me before reading this post and I don't answer the door past dark unless I am expecting company![size=3]