I am NOT going to sleep tonight...

[Scruit]

Two things just happened that are going to keep me awake tonight...

1) Took the dogs out to 'go potty' just before going to bed. We have two poodles, 5lbs and 10lbs. As we're going back into the house one of them starts growling into the darkness. To set the scene here, the house is on a multi-acre property which is mostly grass, and we're in the middle of nowhere so dark is DARK. The house has a bunch of motion-activated lights on the back that light up the pool/workshop and about 1/2 an acre of the grass. Beyond the edge of the light cast by the floodlights there is pitch darkness, no distant lights or anything visible - just utter darkness. Anyways, the one dog starts growling into the darkness as we're going back in and as I call to her from the doorway the motion lights suddenly turn off. Then I stepped back out onto the porch to make the motion lights turn on again - the dog is gone. Crap. I don't have time to fetch a flashlight so I run out into the field and start to follow rustling sounds to find her, and the jigjling sounds of her tags - I can only see the grass around me in about a 10' range and even then just from little bits of light from the floodlight reflected off the wet grass, so I have to search by sound. THen the jingling stops, she's stopped moving, but I can still hrear the ruslting of the grass. After a minute or so I find her cowering in the field, scared of something, so I pick her up. I'm not behind the bar, hidden from even the floodlights. Then I hear more rustling right in front of me - something large, very large, moving right to left quickly just beyond my sight - a variation in the darkness, like an even darker dark, very large, human/large deer sized, moving quickly, fleeting past me, distinct fotsteps, many of them, quick. Doesn't take much more than that to convince me that I don't wanna figure out what THIS is by sound - I set off running back to the house at full tilt, carrying the dog, deposit her in the living room, grab a huge 2m spotlight out of the library and run back out to the field (no gun, duh - what if I'd found someone breaking into my barn?) - I'm one inside the house about 30 seconds, and when I get back there's no animals or anything to be seen in the field, and I can see for about 300 yards with this light. I run a quick check of the workshop, barn and pool and then go back into the house, thinking it's probably a deer. Still, my heart is going like 140 at this point...


2) So I take the dogs upstairs to go to bed - The dogs sleep at the foot of our bed. I set them on the bed and then go to my bathroom down the hall. I'm in the bathroom, taking care of business, (and not standing up, if you know what I mean...) when I see a shadow pass by the door - you know how you can see the crack of light under the door - well a dark shadow passed slowly by without making any sound. I thought it was one of the dogs had jumped off the bed but then I remembered I closed the bedroom door... And the dogs' tags jingle as they move. I remember thinking; "Holy crap, if I'm gonna confront an intruder I don't wanna do it with my pants around my ankles...." So I jump up, wash my hands (always gotta wash!) and step quietly out into the corridor - the bedroom door IS closed. No dogs out here. Sh!t. I go back to the bedroom and check the alarm panel, the alarm is not set. Double-sh!t. The look at the security camera monitors and see nothing. Triple-sh!t. I remember the fact that my dog saw something outside, couple with the 'large animal moving' sound outside, coupled with the alarm being turned off so someone who break into the house undetected, couple with the shadow passing by my bathroom door... Put it all together...

So now I just go back from 'clearing' the house with my 12ga. Put the intruder plan into action... Agreed on the bedroom password with my wife plus "If I'm not back in 2 minutes, hit the panic button on the alarm then call 911 on the emergency cellphone that's always in the bedroom. Go from room oto room with the 12ga with attached lights, sliently checking each room.

The house was clear and secure. I have no idea what that shadow was. In fact, I have no idea what the fudge is going on. I haven't been watching any scary movies, doing drugs or drinking... nothing that would make me unusually edgy...

I'm going to bed now, but I can guarantee I won't sleep. I just spent the last 5 minutes watching the security monitors but the cameras I have all over the property are not seeing anything unusual.


Talk to you in the morning, hopefully!

Scruit aka "Sleepless in Ohio"

[txinvestigator1]

Scruit

Giving you the benifit of the doubt, call the cops and wait for them to clear your house. You will sleep much better. I will telll you a story tomorrow.

DO IT!

[txinvestigator1]

Or send your trained GSD to search the house.

[Scruit]

At this point I'm off to bed. I appreciate the suggesting, tx, but I'm 100% sure that the house is clear at this time, plus I have motion sensors in every room meaning any motion in any room (except the bedroom) will instantly trigger the siren/alarm drop, coupled with a reinforced bedroom door that will take a cop-style battering ram to open...

Thanks for the concern, TX - I'm looking forward to the story. See you tomorrow.

[Stump]

OMG.. I just read your story, and I won't be sleeping tonight now.

I would have called the police and have them check out my property/house, as TX said. Hell, I had one of 'em come over 3 weeks ago because of a 'bat' in my garage!

[sparrow803]

Good God Scruit it sounds like you live in a fortress.

[Norm357]

That is why I have a pitbull and a shepard.

[sparrow803]

I have crappy lil weiner dog :rolleyes:

[Scruit]

Fortress... Well, maybe.

Couple of updates;

- During my house clearing I found an open window in the nursery, but I also remembered my wife saying we should open that window to let the new paint air out. I asked her about it - it was her. I closed the window and re-cleared the house before going to bed.

- I was thinking about the 'shadow' under the door and went back to look at it again. The bottom of the door is not parallel with the carpet strip, so if I move my head at the right angle I can see all of the carpet (with glow of light from outside), then if I move my head a little I can see only half of the carpet (other half looks dark) and then if I move it a bit more it all goes dark. I probably just moved my head at the right angle and saw the 'shadow' going across the bottom of the door, then when I jerked hy mead around to look I moved it to a position where I coudl see all the carpet. That gives the impression of a shadow moving across the carpet.

- On of the cameras recorded an unusual flare of light at 3am - this was an interior night vision camera in an darkened room... I have no idea what it was. Attempts to scientifically recreate this as with the sahdow above have failed, although the closest I got was with dust floating past the lens being reflected brightly by the IR emitters for the night vision. Still... I'll see if I can grab that section of video and post it so you can see the flare.

I got 2 hours of sleep last night. :p

[Zendik]

Sssssppooooookkkkkyyyy!!
Sounds like that movie, Signs!

[Jack D]

Scruit, I did chuckle mate, imagining you sitting on the can, waving your head from side to side, to re-invoke the shadow.
Glad you`re safe mate, maybe you need some landmines in the garden too? :D

[Scruit]

How about a trapdoor.

nah - I'd only ever catch Penguins.

[Lfpdlieu302]

can you say panic room? lol!!! glad everything turned out ok.....so far...lol, just kidding!

[Scruit]

Originally posted by Jack D
Scruit, I did chuckle mate, imagining you sitting on the can, waving your head from side to side, to re-invoke the shadow.:D

I guess you could say I truly shat myself when I saw the shadow... :D

[yangnome]

plus I have motion sensors in every room meaning any motion in any room (except the bedroom) will instantly trigger the siren/alarm drop, coupled with a reinforced bedroom door that will take a cop-style battering ram to open...

Alot of good that will do you since I'm already sitting in your bedroom closet....oops, so much for the element of suprise