Dirtyboy,
I am truly glad that you and BCMjunkie are okay. I say this, not just as a Deputy, but as another regular guy....and I say it without caveat.
I work in the Orlando area and I can tell you that, without any sarcasm, a home invasion cannot occur without entry being made (or granted) into the home.
Home hardening techniques are a mandatory first step. You can replace the screws in your door/lockplate/hinges with 2 &1/2" monster screws for cheap is an easy way to start that can be done even if you rent.
I once stayed in a VERY high crime area of Orlando for one year before becoming a cop, but after I started owning guns. I replaced every other screw in the door hinges, lock plate, deadbolt, and the door frame hinges with hardened 2.5" drywall screws (skinny enough to not require the drilling of pilot holes and still not split the wood frame). It was a metal door. I was out of town on business and returned a few days later to find an ENORMOUS foot-shaped dent in my door and my door jamb cracked, but still intact. The door had withstood a break-in attempt and remained secure.
I spoke with the property manager about it and he had never seen a door at that property withstand an attempt and hold fast.
This is just ONE thing that can be done to discourage home invaders. I can tell you that, if they are not successful in making a fast entry, 9 times out of 10 they will completely abort the effort. If you can harden your entry points enough to slow them down....your chances of success go through the roof.
Lastly, I do carry a handgun on or near me (literally, always within arms' reach) everywhere in my home. I spend a lot of free time on my couch, and I usually will place my AR leaned-up against the couch cushions next to me (stock on the floor).
An AR or shotgun is terminally superior in all aspects to a handgun for the purposes of killing a human being (and that's really what all this boils down to, doesn't it?). If I'm in a lethal encounter, I want the bigger gun, that shoots faster and more accurately, and creates superior terminal wounds in my enemy.
It's been said that you bring a handgun to an incident where you're not sure there is a gun...you bring a Rifle/shotgun to a gunfight. I'm not telling anybody how to run their lives, but some quality live training from a respected trainer would serve you well. You're obviously more well versed in personal armed conflicts than most. And, yes, you did revert to the level of your training, which was none. I'm not making fun of you...we ALL revert to the level of our training. That's why many train so hard to turn proper training into instinct. It can be done, brother.... and I encourage you to do so.
Be safe, be smart, and train hard.


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and that sure would have helped.
). Anyway, I was scared outta my mind and had the gun pointed right at them and I could have easily shot one but thank God I didn't. It was basically pitch black besides the very little ambient glow from the fish tank so when they either heard the slide rack or I just startled them by jumping outta bed so quickly, they had started their Turnaround to get the he'll outta there as fast as they could
There was definately a few moments where they were facing me with gun pointed at them and honestly this was from like 7 or so feet away. Since they didn't come at me I luckily held my finger but I was right on the very edge of taking a shot. I had to check around two door corners before I could make out to the porch behind them but they were already 100-150 yards away getting in their car and with no car lights on I couldn't get their plates. My front porch was 15-20 feet tall with a long staircase leading up to it so they had to have been so scared the hurtled the railing and fell a good way because as fast as I checked the rooms (just quick head poke around the corner) and got to the porch there's no way they took the stairs and were that far away. Anyway, big cowboy footprint on my door which was laying on my kitchen floor. Landlord replaced it with a nice steel door but I moved out 3 days later. 

).

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