Craigslist, Butcher Knife, & One Crazy Wife

Please people. It's true that it can be rough out there . Life is like a russian roulette. One can never know when it'd go off. We just try to enjoy while we can. But do not forget that our lifes are much more valuable than a few dollers saved. If it's a must, think safety first. Yes??

OMG yes! not only am I afraid of those types of situations, but anyone who comes knocking on my door! If my husband isn't home, and it's me and my 3month old, the doors are locked! Even if my 6year old step-son is with me, the doors are locked.

Also, I own a shotgun... but we have no gun cabinet, so we do not keep bullets in the house.... my husband keeps telling me that's dumb, we should be able to use it as self defense if we need to, and without bullets, we can't. I keep trying to tell him the gun is heavy, it can by all means be used as a baseball bat to knock someone over the head :D

It's not just you, I think it's every Mommy. I was never so worried before the children.

When I sold a stroller on CL I met the buyer in a church parking lot at 10 am.

And the Craigs List killer was responding to ads for sexual services so I don't feel that I am in danger from someone like that. I'm not like posting a picture of me in my undies next to the stroller.

Ya, I want to know about Christmas Day too. I want to hear how Monkey likes all his toys! Does he have a favorite? My little guy got a Handy Manny tool bag from great-grandma and I think it's pretty much his favorite thing. It's the first thing he grabs for if it's in reach. That and a Lamaze "fish bowl" thing that came with little stuffed marine life.

Hi I sold my bridal bustier on Craigslist and the person that bought it was a big construction worker! He was very polite but after he put it on he asked that I remove the garter straps for him! I think I'm scarred for life! I knew it was a man coming over so my husband waited in the bedroom till he left. I would try and meet them somewhere else though.

Pepper spray might be a good investment if you're going to have someone come to your house. You could have it in your hand, which would be easier than trying to grab a butcher knife from your sock. Story gave me a good laugh though. Next time I buy something on CL, I'll be wondering if the person is secretly hiding a weapon waiting to pounce :)

I must say i have never worried about that... we dont have craiglist here in OZ but we do have ebay abd i have gone to people's house a many a time to pick up an item never once worried that the person was selling a fake item and was trying to kill me.. Also what happen Christmas day we really want to know all aobut Monkey's first christmas I hope every went ok....

Not CraigsList related, but we once had someone pound on our door at 3am demanding to be let in. When he saw me peeking out of my son's window (closest to the door), he began pounding on that too. I grabbed the nearest available weapon - a hammer - and surprised myself by realizing that the claw section could do more skull damage than the hammer section. I'm a non-violent person by nature, but my wife and child were being threatened and I was prepared to do whatever was needed to protect them.

Luckily, our "visitor" turned out to be a college kid who was so ridiculously drunk that he thought he was at a friend's house (which turned out to be a few blocks away and across a major road). He really sobered up quickly once a few big police dogs had him cornered.

All this is a long ways towards saying that perhaps Tarzan should carry a hammer. You can excuse it by saying he was just doing a little work around the house and it can be just as effective as a knife should anyone attempt harm upon you. (Plus, it has the benefit of not stabbing Tarzan as he tries to hide it.)

I wasn't worried before but now that you mention it..lol j/k I think it's too cute that your husband accomodated you! lol

lol the "with my fist" comment made me laugh. I can totally see me or my fiance saying that. It is weird when dealing with CL and I use it al0t too. Sometimes you cant meet in public though, like when selling furniture. Anything small or portable I always take to the mall and meet in the food court. Its ok to be cautious. I like everyones suggestion of the garage but if that isnt possible at least close all the doors to other rooms so they cant see in and whatnot...

I'm afraid of them too!

I've done some dealing with CL and other used listing sites and have never had a problem, but I have the same fears as you! When I'm the buyer I try not to go into the person's home at the door. As a seller I let the person in my garage once. She was a buying baby stuff.

While you may have been "overly cautious" because you were pregnant, I don't think that feeling will go away anytime soon because now you have your precious baby boy to protect and those mama bear instincts have kicked in :) Better to be safe than sorry. I agree with the previous posters, try neutral territory if possible. As sad as it is to say, you just can't trust people like you used to.

I hear ya. If possible, I try to have whatever we're selling in the garage. I don't invite them in unless absolutely necessary. And thus far, it hasn't been necessary. And I only have people over if my husband's here too.

We live outside the city, so I'm not driving all the way into town to meet someone who might be interested in what we're selling. I've never met anyone on neutral territory. I've bought tons of stuff off craigslist and have always gone to the person's home. Stupid? Maybe. But way more practical. I've never had a bad experience. It's a risk I take, I suppose.

Oh my goodness, neither would I! Jane, Tarzan, next time meet them in a mutual shopping center or something, or maybe a park? You just never know about people.

Doesn't Craiglist specifically state to meet people in neutral territory? I would never give out my address. I'd meet them in a parking lot somewhere.

When I lived in Los Angeles I absolutely would not ever let anybody come to my house. I never really wanted to go to their homes either. People usually meet up at a coffee shop or something near the seller's house. People have been murdered off of craigslist: I definitely see where you're coming from.

I just want to add that I had to walk with a very awkward limp in order to prevent the knife from stabbing me. Walking around was pure agony and I thought for sure I had stabbed myself in the leg a few times.

As I stood there talking to the couple, I moved my foot around because the knife handle was digging into the side of my foot. I felt the knife shift, scrape along the side of my leg, and then I felt it get looser. UH OH. I forgot to tell Jane about this part, but I was deathly afraid that the knife was going to fall out of my jeans and onto the floor right in front of this nice couple.

Can you imagine!? I would have no clue what to after than. I have a feeling that the couple would have run out completely freaked out - thinking we were the Craigslist Killers! LOL

Jeesh... What husbands do to make a wife happy, eh?