Got caught in the middle of a take-down!

Not many exciting things happen to me and after last night I’m thinking that’s a good thing! On our way to speak at our monthly CANSCAIP meeting, fellow author and good friend, Deborah Kerbel and I get caught in the middle of a take-down. An actual take-down. It’s still so surreal. Deborah parks the car on Orchardview, just north of Yonge and Eglinton. There we are, crossing the street, prattling on about our latest writing adventures, ups, downs, contract or no contract, interest from a publisher, blah, blah, blah, when these two guys run—no race past us nearly knocking us down. I had to step back and I swear they grazed Deborah’s jacket. The world suddenly slows—or maybe just my mind—as I watch them chase each other across the street. My first thought is, “how rude” for nearly knocking us down. My second thought is, “Wow. Did that guy steal something from the other or what?” My third thought was, “OMG GUN!!!!” as the one guy pulls a gun on the other. I hear Deborah yelp, “Gun!” as she grabs me and we scurry for cover around the corner, where we practically run into another guy who has this other guy pinned. Then it all starts to sink in. This is a take-down. The guy with the gun is a cop. OMG—what if the other guy would have pulled a gun and started firing??? We could easily have been caught in the crossfire! My knees were shaking. It’s still so surreal. I’ll take my boring old life any day…