I was awakened from a sound sleep this morning (6:30 AM) by the sound of someone knocking at my door. It’s still completely dark where I live at that time. Three distinct knocks, coming from the front door. Since I had turned in after watching some late night TV (about 2AM) I should have been totally zonked out, but the knocking was unmistakable. I was wide awake by the time the second knock was over. No, it wasn’t the cat knocking over something, There were three evenly spaced, equally loud knocks, and they seemed to be coming from the front door.

There are only three reasons someone should be knocking at my door at that time of the morning. Either a neighbor is having an emergency and needs help, a first responder is wanting to ask me or warn me about some ongoing event, or a thief is testing to see if anyone is home before he breaks in.

I am prone to suspect the third, so I jumped out of bed and grabbed the .45 off the night stand. I keep it with the hammer down and one in the chamber. I double checked to make sure my wife was still in bed, sound asleep, and I walked barefoot out into the house. The low-wattage outside security LEDs were still on, and enough light leaked in that I could see clearly with my dark-adapted eyes.
An intruder would have no night vision, so for the time being, I had the advantage.

I quickly verified there was no one in the house, that my doors and windows were all secure, and a glance through the peepholes and window blinds convinced me there was no one outside, either.

OK. I dreamt it. I don’t believe in pookas or poltergeists or other paranormal phenomena. It was s nocturnal hallucination, albeit an exceedingly realistic one. It scared the hell out of me, and if I hadn’t been armed, it would have completely terrified me. I’ve had these dreams before, both auditory and olfactory. A quick google tells me a lot of other people have them too, and they seem similar to mine.

I don’t like the idea of prowling about my house nude in the dark with a locked and loaded handgun, especially since I’d been fully conscious for only about 15 seconds. That sounds like the kind of scenario that could quickly get out of control. But the alternative, waking up to find an armed intruder standing over my bed is even less appealing.

Any comments or suggestions?