Living in desperate times

An unfortunate thing happened on Wednesday.

I was at the Kedai TNB along Old Klang Road to run some errands. There wasn't parking so I decided to stop by the corner of the road while Val waited for me in the car. I was in there barely 5 minutes when I got a call from her. She was frantic and at first I thought that there had been a hit-and-run accident involving my car but then she told me she was bleeding and only then did I realise what had happened.

A malay-looking guy had been standing by the corner and at first, Val thought he was just waiting for someone but when the coast was clear, she saw him pick up a rock from the ground and charge towards her. She sat there frozen in shock, not knowing what to do. He smashed my front passenger window and because I had 3M tint installed, it shattered but was still held up by the film. Knowing this, the guy whacked the screen again and this time, the whole window fell onto Val and he proceeded to grab her handbag. For some reason, she clutched on to it tightly and screamed for help and he gave up a few seconds later, escaping with his friend (also suspected malay but fairer) who was waiting on a bike.

When I rushed out, she was surrounded by 4 kind passersby (all ladies, presumably colleagues who were walking back from lunch) helping her wipe down her wounds and calm her down. I was in quite a panic seeing the blood flowing down from her forehead, near her eyes and limbs. Also was not very familiar with the area and didn't know the way to the nearest hospital so we ended up at Pantai A&E. It was scary indeed driving around with no window just after that harrowing experience.

Everything happened so quickly that she didn't know how to react and I don't blame her at all. On hindsight, she could have honked the horn continuously when she saw him coming at her. She could also have opened the car door and slammed it against his body but then again, I doubt a lady's strength could match that of the guy who was obviously prepared to harm in the pursuit of quick money.

Val got away with quite a few cuts and grazes, mostly superficial, from the shattered glass and not to mention, the mental trauma. Looking at the deep cuts in my dashboard plastic, the injuries to her could have been a lot worse. Thank God for His protection!

So to anyone reading this, try not stay in a stationary car in PJ/KL (especially if you have kids) unless you're in the driver's seat and can drive away at the sight of anything suspicious. Even lady drivers stopping at traffic lights are not spared as experienced by my friend Jessica recently.