Northwestern University seems like a safe campus.  And our dorm, Jones Residential College, is located right behind the campus police station.  So I questioned my brother’s insistence on giving me one item for my protection.  Defense spray.

The night before I had left, my brother gave me a speech about how there are a lot of bad guys out there that might try to hurt me.  I was used to these kinds of talks but this one included a going away gift of defense spray, otherwise known as pepper spray.  On the tube, it said there was enough for about 24 sprays, because “sometimes, there’s more than one attacker.”  It made me laugh, and I was ready to get back to packing before my brother insisted that I practice.

He led me outside where I found a bucket laying upside down on a chair.  I was told that this was my attacker.  The bucket had two holes poked in it, which were supposed to be the attacker’s eyes.  My brother demonstrated how to take it off lock and then push down the button that released the spray.  I tried pushing it down but nothing came out.  I continued fidgeting with it until he said that it was too late and the attacker had killed me.  I realized I still had the spray on lock.  Trying again, I unlocked it and sprayed within two seconds and was able to hit the target on the bucket.  Curious of the pepper soaked bucket, I went over to take a look.  That was a bad idea.  The smell of the pepper hit my nose with a sting and my eyes began to water.  I couldn’t even imagine how a direct hit in the eyes would feel. 

The pepper spray has been sitting in my dorm, on my shelf, for the majority of the past five weeks.  My brother would be upset that I only carried the pepper spray around with me the first week.  It was simply too much of a hassle, especially when I found there was no need for it.  Maybe when I visit Miami I’ll use my defense spray but in Evanston, the only attackers you’ll be threatened by are bugs.