Goodbye Marin City

I had to wait until we moved out of our apartment to tell this story so my mom didn't worry herself sick. Matthew and I have lived in the great Marin City the last two years and we often joked that we lived in the ghetto. Now I hope I don't offend anyone with this story but what can you do. Marin City came to be when the government built some affordable housing units in the area for low-income families. It was all up on the hill behind our complex and I'll be honest, there was a fair amount of hoodlums about at time. They were usually just walking through our complex on their way to here and there and although I never felt in danger we were cautious about going out after dark and such. There were other dental families who had moved out because of experiences they had, bu nothin that concerned me too much. We knew a couple families who lived there for 3 years without incident. I loved my apartment and I really like the area we lived in. We really enjoyed our time living in the Marin City, that is until the last night Matthew spent in that glorious place.

I had been packing and sorting all day and had acquired a large mound of trash. So after I got the boys in bed I wanted to clean things up and asked Matthew to take the trash out with me. He of course was dragging his feet and just wanted to do it in the morning, but I threw a fit and so we loaded up and headed down to the dumpster area. As we walked out our gate we both noticed some young punk walking around the end of the building about 50 m away. No big deal really because we see them a lot at night passing through. Our dumpsters like in most apartment complexes are tucked away in a cinder block area. So we walked in and I threw my bags in and was bossing Matthew around about where to put which bags where as I started walking out. I was startled by someone walking into the area and then even more when they stuck a gun in my face. He was just pointing at me and yelling for me to give him all my money and everything I had. I couldn't believe what was happening. I just kept saying I don't have anything, we're just taking out the trash, all I have is a bag of toothbrushes, you can have my toothbrushes. Matthew was kind of around the corner a bit from him and couldn't see the second kid walk in, but heard him join with the other guy in asking for everything we had. Obviously they didn't care what we were doing so Matthew just took out his wallet and gave it to him and they took off. I wasn't thinking to clearly I suppose. I see two boys with a gun mugging people and I just want lecture them about how this was not how they should behaving. In fact when they ran out I started to follow them because I didn't want them to have Matthew's wallet and I wanted to get it back. Matthew who was thinking a little more clearly and knew that some young kid with a gun shoving it in to people's faces is not rational and could easily do something very stupid whether he meant to or not. So he pulled me back in until they were gone. Once we got up to the apartment it all kind of sunk in and I started to freak out a bit as I called the cops. They of course have several units near by and responded right away. We told the police officer what happened and tried to describe the boys, but all we could say was a black kid in a big black hoodie with dark jeans and a gun. The second guy wasn't much different except with a different jacket. So I got in the car with the officer and he drove me down to the area that the kids hang out at night. That was almost as scary. They call it the 200 circle and it's just a parking lot by some of the low-income housing. There were about 8 black kids in black hoodies and dark jeans among the 30 or so kids there. We drove through the area real slow and I got to hear all their smart remarks about the white girl and the cop as I tried to pick the attackers. I of course couldn't pick out the kids and most likely they weren't there. So we went back home and finished our reports and cancelled all of our cards. I sure hope those 2 were happy with the $12 they got. Matthew was concerned because he was flying out the next morning for some job interviews in Boise and his drivers licesnse was out there with our home address on it. Everything was fine though and the last few days were just like all the others, but I'll be honest it sure left a bad taste in my mouth. Nobody likes to have a gun in their face. I guess I can still say that our time in Marin City was pretty good, but I'm sure glad we don't have to live there any longer.

The next step

I know I've been neglecting this sad little blog, but life has been a little bit hairy. It's been a couple of whirl-wind weeks and I have so much to catch up on; Alumni banquet, OKU, Graduation, Disneyland, getting mugged at gunpoint while taking out the trash, and moving out of our very last apartment. The most exciting right now is that we now know where the next step is going to take us. We're headed to the Beaver state, the land of giant teeth. More specifically, Matthew will be working at a practice in Hillsboro which is about a 1/2 hour from Portland and 1 1/2 hours from the coast. So if any of you need a place to stay on your way to the Tillamook factory feel free to call. I'm headed up there to find us a house to rent, but for now we're just relaxing by the pool at Matthew's parents house and filling our bellies full of plums and peaches. Stay tune for all the great stories to come and accompanying pictures. They are quite a treat.