Runnin' In The Hood

So I've run in some scary places. I mean, I am from Houston after all. Seriously...in college we raced several times at Van Cortland Park. While the park is nice, once you venture out I affectionately called it, "Rumble in the Bronx." Oh, and how can I forget that special place...good 'ole Baghdad. When we would run around the "lost lakes" at Camp Victory I would race around as quickly as possible in the case of indirect fire. Talk about speed work! In any event, I expected it there. I was in a combat zone, isn't that what happens there? However, today took the cake as far as bizarreness...
I met up with Rob for a long run. He's doing St. Croix so his long run stopped after an hour. I continued north around the river, but decided to go on the other side in order to hit up the bathroom. As I'm headed south my stomach is upset and I immediately know I'm not going to make it to the bathroom. (Sorry, gross I know, but it happens). I pop a quick squat by the river and then get going again. Suddenly I notice a few cop cars. I think, "Man, I'm busted!!" But wait a second, would they need half a dozen cops to bust the indecent blond river runner ? At this point I run into a few runners coming the opposite direction and they say, "You have to turn around! The police are blocking the river. There's a man with a gun in the bushes!" What?? I'm confused, annoyed, but strangely not scared. So I turn around and start heading back and sure enough I hear gun shots. No one warned me about Tulsa being the hood! Turns out a suicidal guy was hiding in the bushes with a gun. The police got him--no injuries to anyone. I am really lucky that I decided to hit up the bathroom or else I would have run right past him! And what if I popped a squat in his bushes? Okay, that came out totally wrong, but I think you get the point....