THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT

DON'T NEED TO CAUSE A FRIGHT!

 

 

Over the past twenty years or so there have been five or six occasions where I've been awakened by strange noises in or around the house that required investigation.  The sound of a garbage can being knocked, the dog alerting to a sound within the house, and a number of other indicators that something out of the ordinary may be occurring have gotten me from the comfort of my bed.  A single random noise from an unidentified source is not sufficient reason, in my mind, to call the police.  The police would not appreciate, nor do they have the resources, to investigate every noise residents hear in the middle of the night. 

So what do you do when something goes bump in the night?  Do you stay in bed awake the rest of the night listening and worrying?  I don't.  I make a check of the premises to make sure everything is okay so I can return to bed and resume restful sleep.  

What do I keep at my bedside to respond the possibility of an intruder in the house?  Some of the core items are shown above:

1)  Glock 35 pistol.  This is a .40 S&W caliber firearm with a 15-round magazine loaded with Winchester Ranger ammunition.  This ammunition is designed for law enforcement use and it offers the features of a good ammunition intended for self-protection:  reliability, reasonable accuracy and adequate stopping power.

The Glock is equipped with Meprolight night sights.  For anyone unfamiliar with night sights, they are small glass vials that contain Tritium, a radioactive isotope of Hydrogen. Tritium causes phosphors to glow and requires no outside electrical source.  Such illumination is used in a number of ways besides night sights for guns, e.g., on watches.  Tritium night sights will give off a continuous glow for 10 years or more.  Defensive shootings occur very often in low light conditions.  I have done a considerable amount of shooting in very low light conditions and I can attest to the advantage of using night sights from my experience.

The Glock also is equipped with a Streamlight M6 Tactical Laser Illuminator weapon light.  I do not carry this equipment for the laser beam, but for the very bright flashlight it features.  Lasers as gun sights have a certain amount of merit that can be discussed at another time, but I consider them a specialized piece of equipment with both advantages and disadvantages, depending upon the situation.  But I am a advocate of "light as a weapon" to make it difficult for a attacker to see.  A weapon-mounted light allows me to shoot with both hands, which is the preferred method of shooting, and it also allows me to shoot with light with just one hand and to use the other hand for other tasks when necessary, e.g., to open a door or to drag an injured person to cover.  I do not advocate using a weapon-mounted light for searching, because the gun muzzle points where the light points, and you do not want your muzzle pointing at anything you're not willing to shoot, i.e., an innocent person.  

For that reason, I also have at my bedside,

2)  A handheld flashlight.  Actually, I have three flashlights nearby.  Shown here is a Surefire G3 Nitrolon flashlight, which produces a very bright and concentrated beam of light.

3)  Spare loaded magazines.  Do I really expect to get in a firefight that requires that much ammo?  No, and I hope I never do!  I hope I never need to use a single round.  The Glock is as reliable as a gun can be, and mine has performed with 100% reliability through thousands of rounds fired.  This is why is earns a spot next to me at night.  But any mechanical device can fail, and the most common reason for a malfunction in a semi-auto pistol is magazine-related.  The middle of an attack is not the best time to experience the first malfunction of a gun.  I practice draws and reloads almost daily, to make sure I can do them smoothly, quickly and automatically without fumbling and to do it by feel alone.  A second reason I have spare magazines is because if I actually had to shoot, as soon as I could I would reload a full magazine (tactical reload.)  I read good advice once, and I don't remember the source, but to paraphrase the wise words: 
"Reloading a gun during a fight is like taking needing to take a piss:  a fool does it only when he has to, and a wise man does it when he can." 

4)  Cell phone.  It doesn't need much explanation.  A cell phone is portable, and works when your land line phone has been cut off.  I try to make sure that my phone's battery is freshly charged each night.

5)  Police scanner.  Certainly not essential, but it is good to be able to hear what's going on if something is happening in the area.  Also if I've called the police to my house, I want to know how far off they are, when they arrive, and to make sure they've been given correct information.  

6)  Electronic ear muffs.  I've recently added this to my night stand.  Electronic ear muffs amplify sound greatly, and cut off loud ear-damaging noises.  Both a big advantages.  When worn with the volume turned up, I can hear the cat walk across carpet.  An intruder in the house would be at a disadvantage when I possess dog or cat-like super hearing.  Second, guns are loud-- shooting a gun inside a room makes it seem that much louder.  I want to be able to continue to enjoy music and I don't need further damage to my hearing.

Items not pictured:

A)  Shotgun.  If I'm fairly confident that the noise that woke me up is an intruder, I might arm myself with a shotgun and use the pistol as my backup weapon.  I have a couple of shotguns nearby and lately I've been favoring my double barrel 12 ga. Stoeger coach gun.  Sure it's only two shots, but two shots of OO or OOO buckshot will decisively end most attacker's plans.  I favor the Coach gun because it is compact and much more maneuverable and quick to use inside the close confines of a house.

B)  Knife.  Unlikely I'd take the time to arm myself with a knife, but nonetheless I keep a Roton Talon attached to the coach gun scabbard.   

C)  Dog.  Our dog is small, but he has a larger dog's bark.  Better yet, he's alert and has excellent hearing and seems to have developed the ability to distinguish noises that belong from those that don't belong in the house. 

D)  Partner.  Last, but far from least, I have a very capable partner.  If an intruder thought I was the worst thing he could encounter breaking into the house, guess again.

Andrea is also a certified firearms instructor and together we make a pretty decent home-defense team.  And you know she won't let anyone get the upper hand--- she's Sicilian.