Roving Meat "salesmen"

[JamisJockey]

Stopping in my culdesac, looking at my property, and writing notes or taking pictures is a red alert. And for good reason - the ultimate bad guy, the HOA Nazi.

I'm amazed that they seem flabbergasted in regards to their actions appearing borderline criminal, and are dealt with similarly. Then again, if my grass isn't 4" by the ruler they act like I have a "Sex Offender" sign on my lawn.

I'm assuming the HOA was there when you bought the house, no?

As for someone driving up and taking notes about my property, yeah, that would get my attention, too.
The worst is when the house was for sale (okay its still for sale but technically under contract now)....people show up, unannounced, without a realtor, wanting to see the place. Ha. Yeah right. And those people NEVER come back with a realtor when I send them packing.

 

[stonecutter2]

I prefer my meat fresh from the butcher or grocery store, not frozen for months before I eat it. So I'd definitely not fork over cash to some random guy(s) because they couldn't find the correct recipient. Frozen meat is more convenient, though.

 

[Bliggida]

JamisJockey

'm assuming the HOA was there when you bought the house, no?

Correct.
I was one of the first houses in a new neighborhood, with a new HOA. Back then it was great (what it should be) i.e. No bright pink houses, no car on blocks in your grass etc.
Fast forward 10 years, and with the market = good neighbors leaving, and some bad crowds move in to rentals or default in 6 months. HOA changed hands several times too.
So now my neighborhood in inundated with derelicts, and a bad HOA. Not to mention nobody that peddles or solicits has a license with them anymore. Aside from buying meat from an unknown source. I really wish that others in my subdivision wouldn't buy so the business-on-wheels won't come back. Apparently someone is buying. :banghead:
I've noticed that I don't see anymore ice-cream trucks anymore. I guess I don't mind it for the sake of the children but that jingle they play through the megaphone makes me want to put 3 rounds through it.
I'm always leery (but polite) with anyone who doesn't belong in our neighborhood (not living or visiting). I take the neighborhood watch stuff seriously in that I take care of my neighbors, and we all help each other out. I'm seeing more and more crime than I did 5 and 10 years ago in my neighborhood. More graffiti, thugs, and even local PD's search helicopter. Response time has gone from 5 minutes to 20 minutes. I hate to get myself any closer to wearing a tin-foil hat but who comes into our culdesac and what they are doing is becoming an increasingly important priority.

 

[rim]

Sorry, but the title of this thread is really tops! Roving "meat" salesmen".....


Ohm I carry at home all the time, too. 9mm.

 

[boatme99]

The "unsold meat" scam is prevelant with those guys. When I lived on a boat in Fla., they used to walk down the docks every couple of months pulling the same thing, "we're looking for Mr. Smith, if we don't get rid of the meat it'll go bad, do you want it? Cheap."
One of my neighbors actually did it once. Cr***y meat, he ended up tossing most of it.

 

[Cpt_Impossible]

I live in a new, nice development and had one of those meat guys show up once. It was after 7pm and dark outside. He didn't want to take no for an answer and seemed to get mad that I would pass up on this great deal that someone else didn't want.

When I answered the door, I had my concealed gun on and was holding my barking dog by the collar and told him I had already eaten but he seemed insistent on going through some phony pitch story anyway before I told him to leave. He ended up storming off shouting rudely about me making a bad decision or something. I was really annoyed because it was after 7pm, why the hell would I want hot steaks off of a stranger with no visible ID or uniform?

I have heard in WA, you can ask to see their license to sell and they have to present it and that most don't have one so asking will get rid of them. If they try again, I will try that I guess.

 

[junyo]

I sold meat, back when I was in school, for a couple of months. In a lot of these companies, you're considered and "independent contractor" who buys the meat at the beginning of the day, rents the truck and freezer, and settles up in the evening. The reason you try and clear the truck is the price you're charged for a case is based on the number of cases you sell, usually with an extra discount for coming back empty, therefore depending on how far the volume of sales will drop your price, it's profitable to give someone an apparently crazy deal at the end of a day. It's a hard job, and if you don't move volume, it's very possible to end up paying to work, so those who do it long term are extremely motivated, and frankly a lot of them would put a used car salesman to shame. FYI, if you tell one of these guys that you have a chest freezer and can take a case or two off their hands on a regular basis, you'll be first in line for a deal since you go on their list of people who can help them empty the freezer in an emergency.

 

[My(2)Cents]

Yah had several of these guys come by my place in the last 2 years or so. Having and no soliciting sign and a "beware of flying objects they contain lead" sticker on the door seems to help a lot.

 

[The Tennessean]

My area has these guys. No idea where the meat comes from, it's all frozen and my bet is "it fell off a truck." I can buy beef, pork, poultry, etc all local here so I had no reason to buy from them.

 

[lowracer]

I've often seen these meat vendors, small truck with a freezer compartment on the back and wondered who buys meat from a guy in a truck?

But yeah definitely want to have your gun on you when the crazy dudes in the rusty van show up with a BS story and rotting meat.

 

[Ben86]

I had a "meat vendor" approach me before. To get to my house you have to drive about half a mile into the woods (must have been a very determined and adventurous meat man), so I am reasonably suspect to all strangers who didn't decide to turn around instead. Anyway he approached me whilst I was pounding away at my heavy bag (also a courageous meat man) and started pitching his sale without even saying hello. This instantly put me off so I cut him short and said I'm not interested. Then oddly he took about a step and a half toward me, hesitated and then promptly left without a word. Bizarre. From now on I usually take one of my pet glocks to the outdoor workout area.

I chock it up to poor social skills. Maybe if he had better social skills I would have bought something.

 

[Crosswind81]

I was reminded by this whole episode of a video I saw on youtube witha "victim" attempting to use an ATM while a perp used the guise of asking a question or two to the guy while he tried to do his business...low and behold the perp hauled off and popped the guy and attempted to rob him....wound up that the "victim" actually choked the guy out MMA style and got his goods back. So the whole asking a question is a typical setup and that was my initial impression with these two meat guys...crooks rely on normal people being polite and engaging you in conversation esp when you may be at least in their estimation...vulnerable. We should all remind our wives and daughters/sons to "be rude" if a stranger attempts to engage them in conversation in a parking lot or any other remote or even semi remote area. Do it today and make it a point. Politeness and decency can get you hurt or worse sometimes. I also try to teach mine that the best opportunity to get away or get help is immediately (hit the panic button on the remote, scream RAPE, whatever) ...before the bad guy gains total control.

 

[Ben86]

Politeness and decency can get you hurt or worse sometimes.

That is so very true. Another thing that gets people hurt is attacking half heartedly. I tell my wife that your attack should be sudden, violent and at 100%. Completely overwhelm them. That is actually how predators do it, but with the element of surprise.

 

[wlewisiii]

We get them here, too. I don't consider them a threat to anything but my wallet - the prices are high & the quality usually very low. But then, I grew up on a farm and there is nothing better than grass finished beef & that's not what you'll get from them ...

As with any unknown person be alert but not paranoid.

William

 

[Sheldon J]

Yep they drive around here too, but it is in a PU with a freezer in the back... Now the Swan's ice cream truck.... I can blame at least 10 pounds of my weight on them...

 

[Zach S]

One way to weed separate the shady ones from the legit ones is to take a picture of the tag. The legit ones wont like it, but wont protest it either, especially if you add a line about the community watch mentioning a lot of suspicious vehicles lately (suburbia) or a neighbor or two nearby that was recently vandalized or broken into (suburbia and BFE).

The shady guys will protest it, argue about it, leave, and never return. I actually had one throw a fit take off in reverse. They warranted a phone call...

You really don't even need to take the picture. Often enough, just opening your phone works - even if it doesn't have a camera...

RE: notes.

I've left a few on cars, normally along the lines of "willing to sell? 828-xxx-xxxx," or "I'm parting one of these out, need anything? 828-xxx-xxxx." No one has called me willing to sale, but I have sold a few parts that would have otherwise been crushed. There have been a few times I had to write down directions though, and I could see how that would look suspicious, especially since I'm on the phone as well...

 

[tango2echo]

Those "meat sales" guys come around about every two months in my area, along with the "home security" sales guys that want to "check the security of your house with a free home inspection" (usually holding an ADT sign taken from someones yard). That's usually about the time I ask them something off-the-wall like "Do you know how hard it is to find a body on 550 acres of swampland?" They usually make haste for the highway after that.

T2E

 

[ClayInTX]

Did you know that horsemeat tastes similar to beef?

 

[NMGonzo]

Still waiting for the meat guy to show up.

 

[Ben86]

along with the "home security" sales guys that want to "check the security of your house with a free home inspection" (usually holding an ADT sign taken from someones yard).

Thanks for the heads up. I haven't heard that one.

 

[tango2echo]

Yeah, then they come back to rob the place. It has happened three times in the last few months in my area. In one case a woman was home when they came back and was raped by the guys, beaten, and left for dead. She recovered, but couldn't ID them. They are still at large.

t2e

 

[wishin]

That's what is really nice about where our home is, way back at the rear of a lake arm cove. Anybody out here who's not visiting or lost has to be up to no good. No meat guys. No home theater guys. Makes it easy to pick your target. Hell, we're lucky to have running water.

 

[Fred Fuller]

Aaaand we're done.

lpl