It was two years ago and I was in Pontiac Michigan on a business trip. I've never been to this city or Michigan before. When I'm in a new city I like to get out of my hotel and get a chance to your around and see what the city has to offer. I always have a rental car on these trips but this time I didn't as the meeting was in a hotel close by and there wasn't a need to travel so no rental.
I've always wanted to try White Castle burgers since that infamous movie came out years ago. Most cities I go to don't have one but Pontiac did. I went online and checked out the area on Google Street view to ensure I knew where I was going and what was around that area. It looked ok to me so I called an Uber and away I went. Once we got close the Uber driver asked if I was sure this was where I wanted to go which was a little odd. I confidently said yes and he let me out. This is where things started to get real for me. I was still dressed in my business clothes which was a lot over dressed for this neighborhood, I really stood out! I went in, ordered my food and sat down. Everyone that came in spent a lot of time looking at me. I quickly ate and headed out the door. I wanted to pick up flavoured tabacco for a friend which they don't sell in Canada so I headed across the street to gas station. Here is where it gets interesting.
As I waited for the light to turn and allow me to cross a very sketchy man approached me. He asked me if I could spare some money for food. I reached into my pocket and pulled a significant amount of folded US money. I started to flip through it to get to the one dollar bills which of course where in the middle. I gave him two dollars and right then I realized what I just did. He looked at me, how I was dressed and the money in my hand and basically called me out for only giving him two dollars. I quickly peeled off a five and walked as quickly as I could across the street. The whole time I was looking for reflections, to see behind me. I was thinking about how I can keep everything in front of me. I instinctively remembered the multiple attacker training I had taken years ago. I was looking to keep my back safe against anything that could prevent anyone getting behind me. I felt my heart rate starting to really climb. I went in, got what I needed and called an Uber. The next ten minutes where very nerve wracking. More and more people where noticing me and there wasn't much I could do about it. I calmed my breathing, kept my back safe and tried to keep any threat in front of me.
My Uber arrived to my great relief. The driver took one look at me and said the following. "What are you doing down here? One block in any direction and you would've been shot". That statement really hit me hard.
However, I stayed fairly calm and my training instinctively kicked in. Not until I got back and reflected on what happened did I realize how my Kung Fu helped me and I didn't even throw a punch.
Mr. Repay
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