While doing yard work the other day, I discovered a pair of gardening-type work gloves between the bushes in my front planting bed and my house.  You know the type of gloves, cloth on one side with a rubberized, non-slip palm.  I knew the gloves weren’t mine, and I knew they didn’t belong to my wife or daughter. Would they do yard work?  No way.

My initial thought was that someone had tried to open a window and gain access to my house.  In my mind, I pictured the would-be burglar being startled by a vigilant neighbor, and dropping the gloves as they ran off.  Who knows?  All I’m sure of is that I found a pair of gloves – not mine – in a strange location at my house.  And suddenly, I felt very vulnerable.

Sure, I have an alarm system, and it’s monitored.  But there are other things I could do to make my home even safer.   Little, common sense things.  Like making sure my windows are locked, and making sure my deadbolts are in place.  And, like making sure my bushes are cut low enough so that an intruder can’t hide behind them.  I’ve been meaning to cut them – honest I have.  There’s nothing like a little common sense, and a little incentive to get the job done!