How well do you know your house?

[ladyhk13]

Every night when I go to bed I walk down the hallway and adjust the thermostat, come back and walk through kind of a formal room that goes to the kitchen to the fridge to get a bottle of water, come back through the formal room to the living room and turn off the tv and light, walk in the dark (count steps) open the bedroom door, walk through bedroom to where I know the end of the bed should be (count steps), turn right to go into the bathroom (count steps), go through door and close it, turn on light. I take my shower, turn off the light, open the door walk out and count steps to where the end of the bed should be, turn left, count steps to where the closet should be, hit dead on where the door is (yahoo - took months to do that one in the dark!), turn around count steps back across the floor to edge of bed and around to my side. Please don't forget the water or I have to go all the way through the house to get it - and I don't turn on the lights so I can count steps and make sure I don't hit any furniture or dog cages, counters or tables. I do this as an exercise to make sure I know my house better than any intruder. If it's night time and someone comes in I know I can count the steps all over my house and know where I am. I also figure if something happens to my eyesight this will also benefit me.
Do any of you do this as well or am I being paranoid?

[GunnerMax]

Its a good thing to know, of course. I dont walk in the dark. I have broken bones that way. wait, alcohol was more of a factor with that....

I used to be able to do that in the house I grew up in.

[bacpacker]

I don't count steps, but have developed a good feel for getting around our house, both levels, with no lights on. To me you just gotta give yourself a couple seconds to get your eyes focused.
Great idea, I think everyone should be able to do this to some degree or other.

[mitunnelrat]

I don't count steps either, but I'm able to navigate my entire house in the dark now. It'll help to some degree, but the bigger thing I do is work on sounds from when my dad is moving around. I've got enough confidence in my awareness of the layout and noise in the dark that I can stay in one place, know when an intruder will be in my line of fire, hit them with a flash of white light to disorient/ blind them, line up, and drop the hammer.

Then get me some of them biscuits and honey after I call the cops. mmhmm.

[Taz Baby]

5 steps between bed and bathroom and 1/2 step from one side of the room to the other. Yep I know my sardine can trailer.

[helomech]

My house is never dark enough to worry about it. Even during a power outage those flashlights that plug in the wall turn on. Besides my dogs will be on an intruder long before I would.

[Katrina]

Know my home well enough to traverse it in the dark. AND I also have the lights that come on if and when power goes out

[realist]

Yes you are paranoid, but that is a good thing. And yes I have it down too. Although I have to admit I have forgot to count and have run into the wall separating the living room and the Hall. I'm just glad it wasn't during the day.......

[Sniper-T]

Out in the boonies... If it is a dark night, it is pitch black in my house. There is no letting your eyes adjust, because they cannot adjust to complete blackness. I don't count steps, but I do visualize each room as I cross it. I know what angle I need to take from the bottom of the steps to make the kitchen, or the bath, and return trips. The only light that is on, is the timer on the coffee pot. If we have people over, then we'll put in a few nightlights, because most people find that complete blackness somewhat un-nerving.

[msomnipotent]

I can avoid all the creaks in the stairs and even have a feel for where all the toys and junk on the floor are, yet somehow I never fail to stub my toe on the footboard of my bed.

[ladyhk13]

We live in the country and unless the moon is out it's complete darkness. I move furniture around so I try to remember how far it is from doorways and the bed and across a room...things that I know won't move. then I have to visualize where the dog kennels are (we don't let them run the house at night but the male would bark up a storm if someone came in). I also think if something happened to my eyesight could I adjust and still know where I was. The only noises out here are crickets, dogs or cows in labor and coyotes. I also think that if I know where everything is I would have hiding places too. Like I could get under the bathroom counter or in between the clothes on our lower level shelf of the closet, on one side or the other in the shower and catch him as he tries to look in...I could even let the dog out of the kennel or get in there with one of them (he's getting kind of big now so it's harder for me to get in with him to take naps) or even in the fireplace. But I think of unusual places that I could hide and wait the person out since I could never overpower them physically. Ok, I'm not a nut, just trying to use my head and my strengths!

[Katrina]

I also try to think of safe places to hide. It may be crazy but I want to keep my daughters in laws, Niece, and grandchildren safe. We had a bit of a scare this am. The deputies woke us up about 5:30-6:00 this morning, they wanted to know if bath window was forced open or we had it open last night. Seems there was somebody(ies) going around the houses in the neighborhood with a flashlight in wee early hours of am. The hubs left our bathroom window wide open last night. I have tall crank out windows big enough for someone to climb into if opened more than a couple of inches. I never leave the windows open at night even if it's hot out just for that reason.

[The Stig]

I know my house pretty well.

Knowing what sort of landmines the 3 year old has left for me is another question.

[Sniper-T]

drag your feet bro...

drag your feet!

[bacpacker]

Right into one of my dog's bones!

[msomnipotent]

Right into one of my dog's bones!

I can say from experience that dog bones really hurt, about as much as getting a strand of beagle hair embedded in the bottom of your foot. Why does beagle hair hurt so much???