Monday, July 15, 2013
A Taser/Stun Gun in the Face: Yard Sale Danger
As I sat in a chair, waiting for my merchandise to be bagged, I noticed something in a little pouch on one of the display tables. I picked the whole thing up to look at it. As I took the little squarish black item from the pouch, I wondered what the buttons were for and what they did. So, I punched one of the buttons. There were lights, so I looked into what appeared to be the business end of the device. I kept punching buttons and looking at the strange lights. Finally, I just put it down. When the homeowner came back, I asked her what it was, that I could see light but nothing happened.
She almost fainted. She told me it was a taser or a stun gun (forgot which), that it could hurt me. (I am almost positive she said it was a taser.) It seems the last woman got a buzzing noise but no light. That woman had been frightened by the noise, screamed and threw it back on the table. I was furious and told her so, saying that I was pretty sure it would have blinded me, that if I heard of anyone getting hurt at a yard sale with a taser/stun gun, that I would report what happened to me. Let me tell you--I was a very controlled livid. She just did not know. However, she did remove the taser from the table, putting it into her pocket and calling out to her husband.
Why I wrote this? Be careful what you handle at yard sales!
Even now, I cannot help but think what the outcome could have been.
Update: The woman did look appropriately frightened and sounded horrified that I had it pointed toward my face. So, I assume the danger I felt was justified. I really do think she said taser.
Your turn
Have you ever had an experience that was dangerous or had the potential to be dangerous at a yard sale? What damage could a taser do to my eyes if deployed about three inches from my eyes? Let's assume it hit me in the eye! If it were a stun gun, I suppose I would never put it to my eyes, but what could it do to a tiny child fumbling around with it?
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I don't go to yard sales so I've never had a dangerous experience. It's appalling that someone would have a taser out.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
Janie,
DeleteYou would be surprised at dangers. I had a dog bite me and the woman said it never happened when she grabbed the dog and pulled it back. My pants were torn and wet. She said she could not imagine what happened to my pants, but it was that way when I got there. ???
People leave all sorts of heavy, leaning objects out where little children are walking by. Things that should be on the ground.
DeleteWhen I was a kid with a paper route I used to get bitten by a dog about once a month. Not ONCE did the owner ever admit their dog had bitten me. Not even the time the dog was still hanging off my shin.
Chad,
DeleteAmazing! These people anticipate court cases and lost money, so they just think denial is the best defense, obviously right from the start. You were brave to keep going back.
No, I have never had a dangerous experience at a yard sale. I would recognize a tazer or a stungun though because I own both. Although I carry a concealed handgun, a female law enforcement officer friend told me that there are times when using a tazer or stungun on something would be more appropriate (such as on a vicious dog near another dog etc) So I bought them at the gun and police supply shop. In the vast majority of times, a tazer or a stun gun is truly a non-lethal means of stopping an assailant, however, once in awhile, they cause something called r on t phenomenon, and the shocked person dies of a cardiac arrhythmia. These devices should be contained in the same manner in which one manages a handgun.
ReplyDeleteJane,
ReplyDeleteI, too, think they should be handled like a gun. So, you're packing heat? I really need something for dogs. Devil dog would be sorry.
Can't tell you how many boxes I have reached a hand into only to uncover something rusty, metal, and very sharp. Many narrow injury escapes.
ReplyDeleteProbably the worst, though, was when looking through a box of stuffed animals. I pull a panda up and stuck my hand into a very soiled pair of boys' underpants. Not an old one. A very fresh one that probably still cooling. I'm not sure I have ever said "WHAT THE F***" quite that loudly. When I pulled my arm back it was stuck on my wrist. I flung it across the table in the direction of the woman running the yard sale. I don't remember exactly what I said after that but I probably created several new ways to use the F word. I ended up grabbing a sweatshirt from her clothing pile, wiping off everything I could, and driving straight home with that arm hanging out the window.
Chad,
DeleteI, too, have missed being stabbed or cut by trash in a box. People store glass and then years later throw it down for people to search through.
Now, that was just gross. I would have been screaming at the woman, too. I love that you used her clothes to clean off the poop. It will be hard to put my hand into a box again after that story! I am still shuddering over your experience.
Yikes, PP!!!
ReplyDeleteSue,
Deleteditto.