The marksmen of the Point

Thus far, I have not delivered on my promise to provide entertainment by way of Point stories. And it has not been for lack them. It's that my blogging-binge tendencies aren't able to keep up with the randomness of everyday life in the Point. There were three recent stories, however, that deserve to be mentioned.

Before I delve into the stories, let me first set the stage for those of you who have never been to the Point. The Point (or Locust Point if you want to know it's correct title) is a historic peninsula town that serves as one of Baltimore's earliest ports. In the mid-1800s, rowhomes began to pop up to meet the needs of the ever-growing workforce that was employed by the shipping industry. In fact, the house that Ryan and I used to live in was built in 1875. Many of the "locals" in the Point live in the same houses that their families have lived in for years. The locals are refreshing to me as they remind me of my Pittsburgh roots. For the most part, they're blue collar workers that stress the importance of families, friends, and good neighbors. On any given evening, you can go outside and see them sitting on their stoops chatting the night away while they wait for the ice cream lady to drive by. Anyways, back to the history...Within the last 5 years, the Point began to flourish in the real estate boom. Many of the rowhomes that were originally purchased for a few thousand dollars were being renovated or knocked down entirely to fit the needs of the incoming yuppies flocking to the area. There is currently a clear distinct between the locals and the newbies. Lucky for Ryan and I, we had a great neighbor who was well connected with the locals and introduced us. Ryan used to enjoy his nightly chats with the little old ladies of the neighborhood. But then Ryan and I moved a few streets over into one of those new developments that I mentioned. Our new community, while in the Point, is somewhat sheltered from its glory.

1. Ryan and I were walking Hudson one afternoon. We were back in our old neighborhood. I happened to glance over at this one basement window (these are rowhomes, so the basement window is in line with the sidewalk). This is what I saw:

I wasn't sure whether I should take this as a threat or feel privileged that such a sharp shooter is living down the street.

2. Our old neighbor Melissa is in the know when it comes to Point happenings. We also go to her for the latest gossip. So, we asked her about the drug dealers that used to live next to us. (If I haven't already posted this, the greatest Point story of all came from one of the drug dealers, Mike, that sat down with us one night and told us everything about his life, including how he got his old girlfriend pregnant and his current girlfriend's dad's friend bit him on the shoulder - we even got to see the scar). She said that she wasn't sure Mike was still around and I mentioned that I saw him down the street, so maybe he was living with his mom now since that's where she lived. Well, Melissa says "I wonder if his mom is the woman who was found dead in that house". She proceed to tell us this story:

There is a rowhome broken into multiple apartments (this is where Mike's mom lived). Apparently, there was a dog there that kept barking. So, one of those damn yuppie couples called the police. When the police came, they found a woman dead inside. Following the police visit, the yuppie couple started to find pieces of cut-up baby doll on their front step. Eventually, they moved out of the Point.

Yep, someone made "threats" by mutilating a baby doll. I couldn't make this stuff up.

3. I was working in my office at home the other day. There was someone at my door. I opened it to find a young (early 20s) guy on my front step. I was prepared to tell him that I didn't want to buy a newspaper subscription so that he could go to college (yes, I'm mean.) Instead, he asked me if I wanted to buy some steaks and seafood. The confused look on my face prompted him to tell me that it was raining and he didn't feel like working so he wanted to get rid of the steaks and seafood in his delivery truck. I told him that I didn't have room in my freezer for that (which is true) and he told me that he'd throw in a free freezer. Uhhhh...what?!?! I told him no thanks and quickly locked the door.