this *my* hood! nobody gonna run me up out of it like a bitch!

for someone who is always pontificating about crime being everywhere, unavoidable, you can't live in fear, don't assume the worst in people, i now find myself in the perilous position of having to sit back and accept the gang activity that is making its presence known more and more in my immediate home vicinity.

as i was coming home from work one night last week, i parked at the end of our block and immediately came face to face with a chicago p.d. paddywagon, skulking the intersecting street. the two officers stopped the vehicle and gave me the staredown. thankfully, i was not blazing a blunt. they moved on and as i climbed out of the car, i noticed a couple with their faces pressed to the window of the second story apartment above me. gave them a jaunty wave and headed across the street to my building. my downstairs neighbor was being dropped off, so i held the door for a moment. i noticed an unusual plain car creeping up our one way street in the opposite direction with all these flashing jolts in the headlights. modified sirens, if you will. at the same moment, a man approached from the opposite direction on the street and asked us if we'd heard the gunshots.

the what????

literally, while i was pulling onto our street, someone was shooting into a house on the next block. we briefly chatted with this man who'd heard the shots, said they were a few rounds, like a short series of taps. the police cruisers pulled up, asked if we'd seen or heard anything. i got the hell up in my house, noticing the new gang tagging that had taken over both the houses at the end of our block. our first floor neighbor briefly joined us, and needed some explanation about the danger signs of tagging. (i think she may be new to the city.)

not two days later, i was finishing another long night at the office when Mole called. "just wanted to give you a head's up that there was just another shooting down the street."

oh, hell no.

twice last week -- TWICE -- rounds of gunfire was exchanged in the next block from our apartment. about six houses from mine, turmoil was raging. you know, i still won't buy in to any needless frenzy over people's skin color or perceived social status, but i also will not tolerate some punk ass gangs taking over my neighborhood. i will not be creeping around my area, worried about either someone bearing down on me, or worse yet, just happening to be on the wrong stretch of sidewalk, tagging WeeBeastie for a stroll, when a bunch of bullets start flying around.

when i left for the office this morning, again there was a shower of sirens and an ambulance perched further down in that block. i didn't hear gunshots and the vehicle's appearance may just be coincidental, but i don't feel like we can be too hasty with putting our concern to bed these days.

Mole sent an e-mail to our alderman a few days ago and received a prompt response assuring increases in police presence and suggesting we attend the next CAPS meeting in our area. we shall.

i won't be leaving this street without a fight, no sir.