Well, it's official we have an offer on our house.
So why didn't I write that statement with an exclamation point you ask? In a short sale situation an offer doesn't really mean much. Once you receive an offer the process of negotiation starts with the bank and tends to take 3-6 months to close. By the time you get close to closing the buyers have fallen out and bought another house (there are just a few out there) so while we have accepted the first offer, we will be taking back up offers in the event that our first buyer pulls out.
I will hopefully know more in the next month or so what type of response the bank has to our attempt to sale and will update accordingly.
On another note, due to the untimely death of a close co-worker of Chris's (Rest in Peace David) the opportunity to purchase a very handsome shot-gun at a very reasonable price was presented to us this weekend.
For some reason I feel I need to justify our considering the purchase of a weapon, probably for many reasons...I know that my family reads this blog and we were not raised around guns AT ALL so it is a foreign subject. I also know that guns and gun ownership can be a touchy subject for many people.
However, after much though and discussion I feel that we have logical reasons to make this purchase. Our main reason is of course our neighborhood. Our home is lovely, our subdivision is lovely, but the surrounding area is if-y and since we have had a few direct experiences with violence in our vicinity we feel unsafe, especially with the idea of raising a family in the future (hence the attempt to sell the house).
Due to the crime rates surrounding us we have long deliberated purchasing a gun. I have only shot a gun on one occasion and it was a .45mm and an AR-15 on a camping trip with one of them super Arizonan gun folk. I did enjoy shooting the .45 but as we thought about what the gun would be used for, protection against intruders likely in the middle of the night, we didn't feel that either of us would be able to shoot a small gun with any accuracy in such a tense moment.
After talking to some people who are knowledgeable on the subject we came to the conclusion that the best "defense" weapon would be a 12 gauge, snubbed nose (shorter), pump action shot-gun.
This gun would provide power enough that you could practically aim it in the dark in the general direction of an intruder and be likely to do some damage. This would also lower the likelyhood that anyone could get close enough to take our weapon by force and turn it on us. I know, it sounds pretty brutal but I don't forsee our dogs attacking an intruder unless "licking to death" was a possible cause of death and or terror. Hopefully, the sound of the pumping of the gun (which is loud and unmistakable) would be enough to scare away ANY intruder in any case so it would never have to be fired.
While I realize that we are not likely to ever need to fire the weapon, we felt that we would prefer to have the extra protection to ensure our safety and so maybe, just maybe I can feel a little bit safer if I have to be home alone at night....or during the day for that matter.
So there you have it, my justification. I know many of you may not agree but we feel we have made a good decision. Now we just need to take it out several times and make sure that we feel fully comfortable loading, unloading and shooting it. Gun safety will be a VERY important principal that we abide by and teach our children in the future.
4 comments:
Though I didn't raise you around guns, I was raised around them and, in fact, I owned one. (I may still own it. I don't know what Mom and Dad did with the guns when they moved.) Dad had a revolver in his dresser for years and taught us to keep away from it. But he finally got rid of it because he thought it was too dangerous to have around. My only suggestion is that you take a gun safety course.
Really, the only reason we would never own a gun is safety. I totally understand the reasoning behind having one for you guys. I really don't have a problem with people owning guns but I'm also not a gun-loving proponent. For me personally, I highly doubt I really would be able to shoot anyone if I had one, no matter the situation - so it wouldn't really make me feel safer to have one. I would have to have my gun locked up in a safe, unloaded, with the ammo in a separate locked location, at all times in order for me to feel safe enough to have it in my house around my kids - but then how practical is that if the purpose is to ward off any intruders? So - it's just not realistic for us. ;-)
I second the gun safety course . . . we have 10 guns in the house (maybe 11?)now that Russ' dad is gone -- mostly shotguns but a few of his rifles, and even though I'm incredibly anti-gun, lots of people (read: my husband) grew up around them and are very comfortable and responsible with them. You don't have to justify your decision to anyone (even in our family!) but be safe. AND I WILL GO ON RECORD AS SAYING THAT YOU DON'T NEED 10 GUNS BECAUSE NOBODY DOES :) Good luck on the house sale!
I don't like guns at all. But maybe if I lived in a place as scary as you did, I might change my mind! Just be safe and smart!!
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