I slammed my alarm clock at 6 am. I grumpily get myself out of bed, and reach for the TV remote wedged in between the bed and the wall (where I had left it last night), press the power button, throw it back down on the bed, and head to the bathroom. I bring my bowl of Kashi cereal (Crunch- Honey Almond Flax is the best) with soy milk back into my room as I attempt to get myself focused enough to decide what I should wear.
As I go about my business sluggishly, I faintly overhear… “Fresh meadows..” on the Fox 5 News. As the camera shifted back to Greg and Rosanna in the studio, I missed what they had mentioned about my neighborhood.
I make sure I wasn’t going to be too late for my 8 am study hall (which ends soooooooon BOOOO YAHHHHH!!!!) and google “fresh meadows, news” on my laptop. Whadd’ya know, I find 5 different articles on the several consecutive muggings that had been occurring in the past few weeks… in FRESH MEADOWS! Yikes!!!!!!!!!! I change the channel to the NY1 news, which seems to broadcast more local news than Fox5, and keep researching online. If you don’t know the NY1 channel, it basically replays a whole bunch of the same stuff over and over for those (like me) who only want to catch the news for a bit in the morning. As I’m freaking out a bit researching, the fresh meadows mugging report comes on the NY1. Fresh Meadows. Muggings. Girl knocked down on “___th St. and ____”… I couldn’t believe it was right in front of my house! The mugging had occurred at the bus stop I usually get off at. Three men approached a girl who had just come off the bus, knocked her down, and ran with her purse. Other incidences reported the men threatening for money at knife point, and these were closer to the St. John’s University campus.
As the video images of my street were on TV, I didn’t know what to think. I was scared. I usually stay at school very late till around 11 pm-ish and go home with someone who’ll wait with me at the bus stop, but I’m alone for the walk home from the bus stop, which isn’t long at all, but STILL!!!!! I don’t usually get home till 11:30 or sometimes even later, accounting for the time waiting for the bus and such.
http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/129226/three-suspects-sought-in-fresh-meadow-muggings
This happened last week Wednesday. Since then, the first time I had to walk home alone late at night from the bus stop was last night. I decided to carry my “weapons” and run home. The 20-second run seemed like it lasted forever. I guess I’m not really concerned about someone taking my belongings. Things don’t really mean anything… I just want to be safe.
It just sucks that a so-called “safe” area like Fresh Meadows has to become this way. There are enough places in New York where people call “dangerous” or “sketchy”. Let’s not make Fresh Meadows one. And please, don’t make Queens College one. Though it seems like it has already become that way, according to the last two mugging incidents that had happened in the past several weeks. I mean, WHO PUTS A PLANTER (I’m guessing what that means is a plant??) ON TOP OF SOMEONE’S HEAD TO BLIND THEM?! WHAT?!?!?! What kind of a low-level person is he?
Anyway, point is, just be careful be aware of your surroundings at all times.
Have a safe week,
jx
