Saftey Tips?

[crying moo]

I'll be moving into my apartment in downton Richmond next week. Richmond is kinds sketchy... sure I may be from the Washington DC area but I feel that DC is safer than Richmond. Plus I've been in Blacksburg where you don't lock your door and 3 am is the best time to go running- by yourself.

What bothers me is that I'll be living downtown by myself (my request for dorm got rejected), and I don't know many people there.

Any saftey tips for a fellow pharm student who is a small helpless naive weakling female living alone?

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[Brill]

Buy a gun

 

[chunkyb]

Let people know not to mess with you by being assertive and vigilant whenever you're out walking alone at night. Maybe you should carry around mace/pepper spray. Also make sure that your apt. is very secure. Maybe you should get a pit bull or something---those dogs usually scare the crap outta people.

 

[crying moo]

Mace/pepper spray..... hmmm...... Gun haha I wouldn't want to ever use one. It will probably be used against me b/c I have slow reflexes. (But don't let that get out) And me being assertive is like a Chihuahua being assertive.

Methinks I'm just going to lock myself up in the apartment and never come out. Richmond is a baaad baaad place!

 

[LVPharm]

You're a single HOT 21 yo lady...go find yerself a single HOT male (?) pharm student...or since VCU has a med school, a med student. You'll eventually need some big strappin' guy to move your furniture You can keep him in your living room, and unlike a pitbull, they usually come house-trained

....or just as Brill suggested, you can pack some "heat"

 

[crying moo]

too funny!

 

[loo]

Don't "look" like a victim, i.e. head up, acknowledge folks, be assertive,etc. I would suggest a knife or hat pin to carry with you. You may want to take a womens' defense class if possible (call the local police dept.). Don't walk alone late at night in areas with bad lighting. Be vigilant and vary your route home. If your instinct tells you something aint right...believe it!

If all else fails, act CRAZY! Trust me, nobody wants to mess with a crazy person. Had to do this once on the subway at 3 AM and four gang members got on and started hassling me.

Good luck...I'm sure you will not have too much trouble if you use common sense

 

[Motiv8]

This is an important thread because many people forget how important location is in choosing the right pharmacy school. Location (safety) dictates how we can function in a livable area. When we consistently become hampered by fear of 'what surrounds us' or what is 'looming in the distance' our sense of being and belonging diminishes. Our character becomes constrained in the chaos of a dysfunctional city.

Having said that, I can tell you that DC is the most dangerous city in the US (NY comes close too). Everything awful happens there even our minds cannot comprehend. My suggestion is to find an upperclass area where these kinds of things are uncommon. Sure, it may cost you more, but in the long run you'll be safe.

Location is crucial in our success. Unfortuanately, if one cannot arrange his/her saftey, then more time will be spent trying to protect oneself than actually learning from the curriculum.