I don't know where I went with this one

Safety

So tomorrow's blog post is going up a bit early because I wanted to get this off my chest.

Since we moved to a new area, apparently we are in a "less safer" part of town. Now, this doesn't mean a whole lot to me, but it does to my sister and my mom. My mother is a bit paranoid about strangers and things and my sister is just afraid of everything. So I had to walk Meimei 500 ft across the street to the neighborhood gym tonight. Which bothered me because she's almost 18 and is also incredibly annoying. Now, aside from the whole "if the world wasn't so unsafe" and "male vs female stereotypes" and "rape culture" etc that goes on, there are precautions a lot of my friends (mostly female) take to hopefully prevent horrible things from happening to them. I.e not going out alone at night or taking pepper spray or having those cat key things that stab watermelons. I do none of those things. Granted, part of me thinks that because I'm unattractive (ish, because I weigh more than most people) guys (or girls) will look for a much scrawny target, easier to take down and keep down. Or that I just kinda blend in with the scenery. I don't stand out like the people who have the winged eyeliner or the make-up or the crop tops and short skirts. (My sister)

And even when I've enjoyed taking runs and walks in the middle of the night in all black, no one's even payed attention to me. (Makes getting noticed by cute boys difficult, but whatever.)

Plus, in my head there's an element of, "I don't want to be afraid my whole life to walk where I want to." So I choose not to be afraid. 

I guess it's kind of silly, but I've walked the streets of downtown Tampa and San Francisco at night by myself, I've been to a concert on my own, I never let the fear get to me. And maybe that's foolish in some regards because I don't know exactly how well I could defend myself, but I have so much other stuff to worry about that I don't really care. 

Everything can kill you, you can die from everything and get hurt by anything. And no pepper spray or cat key chain is going to stop a bullet from 20 ft away. Protecting yourself involves quick thinking, not necessarily strength. 

It's definitely not something that bothers me as much as it does other people, and that's ok. 

If you're worried, get things to help defend you. If pepper spray gives you piece of mind then have it. But if you're constantly talking about how worried you are and do nothing to try and protect yourself or are concerned but never take precautions, then it's your own fault if something bad happens to you. You weren't prepared. And I get that it's our entire society's problem, but you knew it was a possibility. And until society is fixed, it will continue to be a possibility. Blaming society is fine, but there is a level of personal responsibility that needs to be taken because the U.S. And the world isn't going to change overnight or because you say it shouldn't be the way it is. It's like taking birth control. You know getting pregnant is a possibility, but you're at least working to prevent it as much as you can (when you're sexually active and not ready for children.) You know getting mugged walking down the street is a possibility, so you try and prevent it by hiding your wallet in your pocket and not your purse. 

I kinda lost my point there, but like most things I don't really edit these. But, they're what they are. My point is, if you're worried, carry some sort of protection. Don't just complain about society or talk about how unsafe the neighborhood is. The neighborhood probably won't change. But you can take steps so you can feel safer and be prepared in case something bad does happen.