"What can you do, you're a woman!"

-creep on the subway

The 59th Street Subway platform, not where my incident occurred. Photo by me.

I have ridden the New York subway for 40 years. You amass plenty of stories in that kind of time. This is what happened today.

A man who was either mentally ill or on drugs acted like he had a gun and threatened to grab my kid(the 12 year old boy I babysit and was escorting home on the subway.)

This is how it started. We were waiting for our train when this hyped up man approached me and asked if I had pepper spray, I didn't really respond and he asked a couple more times, getting aggressive. ALL the alarms in my head were going off. He's pacing a bit and I put myself between him and the kid. Man says, "I'm a cop" (not a cop) and “ever since Biden became president illegal immigrants have flooded in, over 64,000 kids have been abducted from the subway system” (oh boy, here we go.) Then he said you should have pepper spray too and approached my kid, pointing his finger at him. I stepped forward and said I can take care of the kid. That seemed to piss him off. Facing each other just a few feet apart. He said to me, "what can you do, you're a woman! I could grab your kid right now!" Then he pulled up the front of his shirt like he was going to reveal a weapon in his waistband. I 100% expected to see a gun. I thought I was going to be shot to death. I did not back away, I stepped FORWARD and there was no weapon, he dropped his shirt. I played the scared little woman needing help from a big man, and told him, "But we're safe, because you're a cop." That totally threw him off. He sputtered and said, 'Yes but you need pepper spray!" I kept saying thank you so much for the advice as the train pulled into the station. I was able to get me and the kid away and onto the train.

When we sat down, the kid was pale, I said that scared me, but we're ok. He said it scared him too. I told him he had done the right thing by standing behind me and letting me talk to the man. I got him home and told him to tell his mom(he did not in true 12 year old fashion.) I texted his mom so that she can talk to him about it.

When I could finally get back to my own home. I closed the door behind me and just started crying. I will not let anyone hurt my kids, you want to know what this woman could do, TRY ME. You think the only reason I carry a steel water bottle is because it keeps my drinks cold? It's a good skull thumper too. I didn't have to fight my way out of that situation. I used my smarts. Although right now I'm really feeling like adding some dents to my water bottle. 

I should probably call my therapist.