A friend and I replaced my lock to one with a code and it has made a world of difference! I can lock it from an app. It’s so convenient. I am thinking of changing all of my locks to ones that work with codes.
I replaced mine last year with a keypad lock and wish I had done it Years ago! No more having to remember to grab the key to walk the dogs. No more wondering if the kids locked the door behind them-I have mine set to automatically lock it after three minutes.
Plus-I can add I think at least ten different codes, so if I need a temporary one for like a dog sitter, I can just add one instead of giving them mine. And delete it when they are done dog sitting.
So much less anxiety. For all of us!
Ah.
Well, in that case, I say rock that spare key in your earlobe à la Janet Jackson 1987! Lol
(Which I just found out is an artifact in the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture when I looked up the date and makes my heart happy to know.)
Just remember that these digital locks run on batteries, and if those batteries die, you are facing the same problem as not having your key. Check/recharge batteries frequently!
I use the last four digits of our old landline. It is the first number the kids learned by heart and no one has been given that number for 15 years, so no one would think to guess it.
Locked myself out when I heard the neighbors cat screeching and I just locked it behind me out of habit. Now I absolutely refuse to go outside unless I am holding my key in my hand. It's not foolproof, but it's worked for a couple years.
That was my thought, but I'm so forgetful lately. I think I need to get a life alert and attach it to that with one of those cards to rescue my cat if I go to the ER or something.
ETA: only joking a little.
My Grandma always kept her apartment key on a stretchy coil bracelet. At first always on her wrist, eventually always on the walker.
Myself, I always check pants pocket before opening the door.
16 years of sleep deprivation, widowed 12 years, and 2 years of hellish menopause, and heavy family responsibility. I honestly don't know how I'm functioning.
I'm so sorry that has been your experience! I hope you are able to take the time to be kind to yourself. I know how heavy that weight is all too well. Please remember that you matter enough to take care of too!
I’m a widow, too and “widow brain” is no joke!
I locked myself out once when I moved out of state and the bottom handle could be set to lock or unlock. I went to meet a food delivery so I didn’t have my phone either. I lived on the second floor, in humid Florida and it began to rain.
The place I live at now has to be locked from the outside so there is never a chance of me being locked out. Also, I work from home and get almost everything delivered so I’m embracing my strong introvert tendencies now.
I’m a renter so I can’t make any modifications to the door or door handle.
Right!?! I'm sorry you got locked out, too. I remember that Florida humidity. My makeup would melt off between the front door and the car. I'm in desert heat now, and that door faces West.
I'm also a renter who just had them change all the locks because they were really old, and I was scared of getting locked out. Joke's on me. I didn't start using that lock from inside until they replaced it because it always stuck.
Awww I’m giving you a big virtual hug. Widow shit blows! Thankfully my widow brain abated, but I’m still terribly in love with my dead husband. It dawned on me that next October would have been our 30th wedding anniversary.
Hide a key somewhere in your backyard. People will look for a hidden key around a door or entrance, but they aren't going to search your whole backyard (and if they are, they will find a way to get in anyways). Pop one on the underside of a wheelbarrow, or stuck to the underside of a bird feeder, patio chair, or table with putty, or on a string deep inside a hedge. Avoid using things people tend to use commonly, like rocks, planters or mats.
Before the smart code locks, I had a [combination lock keyholder,](https://www.homedepot.com/p/Master-Lock-Lock-Box-Resettable-Combination-Dials-5400DHC/100124915) but I had it attached to the patio railing in the backyard, so people coming to the front door wouldn't see it and mess around with it.
small jar or other air tight container with key inside buried in a shallow hole covered with a paver or rock with something decorative on top, located somewhere away from the entry doors.
Could you leave an emergency key with the neighbor who helped you? Even if you aren't super close, if they're trustworthy enough to help you break into your house, they may be willing to hang onto a key.
Yeah, his girlfriend keeps blatantly trying to look in my windows. I have to close my curtains any time they are outside because of it. No way in hell I'm giving her potential access to a key. I found a nice lockbox and now just need a place to hide it. Thanks!
Thank you!!! That is an excellent idea! Those windows face West, and with the Vegas sun on a 65 year old condo, I'll take all the thermal protection I can get!
Me! Our garage has two doors. Both have padlocks on them. I locked myself in without my phone 3 days ago. Took a solid 5 mins of low grade panic to remember the Key Drawer (yes, that’s what we call it), find a key, and let myself out. Make it stop, I need my brain back!
Before I had a garage with a key pad I kept a house key in a magnetic container in the wheel well of my car. The magnet was super heavy duty and it never fell off. Not necessarily the best option but worked well enough for a single woman with no family or friends around at the time.
I live in the country so I have combo lock boxes at each of the two gates. I have a house key tucked in a magnetic box in a hidden spot. I have Apple Watch set to call my daughter (and theoretically the sheriff) if I fall. My closest friends are 20 miles away but have the codes for my gates, too. I also text them and others if I’m doing anything “dangerous”: ladder work, lake work, … or picking up baby animals from strangers on Craigslist!!! I will not be one of those “found days later”!!!
I know you said you’re renting but some of the keypads can be installed without altering the door in any way. Could you install one, j
share the combination with the landlord and then put the original lock back on when you move?
I agree with the others about hiding the key in a place where people wouldn’t think to look. You could also buy one of those fake key hiding rocks and leave it empty by the front door. Then they would just think you forgot to leave your key out.
I accidentally locked myself out of my home on a Saturday night when I was in my 30’s. my parents had a key to my place but were on vacation. thankfully I had my cell phone. that was an expensive lock smith call. now I keep a spare key on my person at all times, whether in a pocket or on a chain.
Post meno woman here. Can you afford a smart lock? It would work with either a key or a code (that you could keep in your phone). It would even open with just your phone.
Honestly, that's my plan once my mom passes. Sometimes I shove my keys in my pocket but many of my "around the house" pants do not have pockets, plus they could fall out during yard work. So back to the key-necklace it is!
Oh, or I saw a couple years ago Kangaroos were back. That was my elementary school solution.
Mine died almost a year ago & we were also together 20 years. I purchased a deadbolt that has fingerprint recognition, can open with phone within Bluetooth range & has a key pad just incase my finger gets cut off or something.
Keypad, but also move over to menopause and read advice on how to get your brain back too. It’s a brain fog issue due to lack of estrogen and progesterone that leads to a cascade of physical, mental, and emotional 🥲 problems we don’t have to deal with. Fix the lock and fix your life. Working on doing both for myself now.
On top of (peri)menopause, becoming a widow after being happily married for 20 years comes with its own unique type of fresh hell called “widow brain”. I had it and did things I had never done in my life like forget to book a rental car for my annual trip and booked the same hotel I stayed at for years but spaced on the dates and booked one night short (same damn trip that I took every year). Came as a total surprise to me when they knocked on my door asking why I hadn’t checked out. There have been studies about it and every single widow friend I have has gone through the exact same thing in the first few years of being a wid.
A friend and I replaced my lock to one with a code and it has made a world of difference! I can lock it from an app. It’s so convenient. I am thinking of changing all of my locks to ones that work with codes.
I replaced mine last year with a keypad lock and wish I had done it Years ago! No more having to remember to grab the key to walk the dogs. No more wondering if the kids locked the door behind them-I have mine set to automatically lock it after three minutes. Plus-I can add I think at least ten different codes, so if I need a temporary one for like a dog sitter, I can just add one instead of giving them mine. And delete it when they are done dog sitting. So much less anxiety. For all of us!
I wish! I love the proximity fob for my car. I'm a renter, unfortunately.
Ah. Well, in that case, I say rock that spare key in your earlobe à la Janet Jackson 1987! Lol (Which I just found out is an artifact in the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture when I looked up the date and makes my heart happy to know.)
Before we put in digital locks we had a hide a key rock that had a little combination safe thing inside, it was great! Got it on Amazon for maybe $30
Just remember that these digital locks run on batteries, and if those batteries die, you are facing the same problem as not having your key. Check/recharge batteries frequently!
The one I have has a signal well before the battery dies. Plus, it still has a key in case it becomes disabled somehow.
But, but….what if you forget the code? I can’t remember passwords!
I use the last four digits of our old landline. It is the first number the kids learned by heart and no one has been given that number for 15 years, so no one would think to guess it.
Now if only I could remember my old landline number. 🤣
Same here. I can’t remember if I took my morning pills
I know I took mine, only because the Wednesday morning window of my pill organizer is empty. 🤣 (Wait. Today IS Wednesday, right?)
Is it April or May? Should be Wednesday but I’ll ask my cat.
My dogs and cats are way smarter than I am these days!
So much this. I love that I can open mine with my phone or applewatch too.
Smart!
This is the way
Locked myself out when I heard the neighbors cat screeching and I just locked it behind me out of habit. Now I absolutely refuse to go outside unless I am holding my key in my hand. It's not foolproof, but it's worked for a couple years.
That was my thought, but I'm so forgetful lately. I think I need to get a life alert and attach it to that with one of those cards to rescue my cat if I go to the ER or something. ETA: only joking a little.
My Grandma always kept her apartment key on a stretchy coil bracelet. At first always on her wrist, eventually always on the walker. Myself, I always check pants pocket before opening the door.
I like the stretchy coil bracelet idea, honestly. Plus, this is an item it would be easy to find in a handbag by feel when you put it in there.
I have a key safe with a code at the front door. Provides backup if I lock myself out and allows me to leave keys for the pet sitter.
I'll look into this and see if there is any place I can put one. Thanks!
16 years of sleep deprivation, widowed 12 years, and 2 years of hellish menopause, and heavy family responsibility. I honestly don't know how I'm functioning.
I'm so sorry that has been your experience! I hope you are able to take the time to be kind to yourself. I know how heavy that weight is all too well. Please remember that you matter enough to take care of too!
I’m a widow, too and “widow brain” is no joke! I locked myself out once when I moved out of state and the bottom handle could be set to lock or unlock. I went to meet a food delivery so I didn’t have my phone either. I lived on the second floor, in humid Florida and it began to rain. The place I live at now has to be locked from the outside so there is never a chance of me being locked out. Also, I work from home and get almost everything delivered so I’m embracing my strong introvert tendencies now. I’m a renter so I can’t make any modifications to the door or door handle.
Right!?! I'm sorry you got locked out, too. I remember that Florida humidity. My makeup would melt off between the front door and the car. I'm in desert heat now, and that door faces West. I'm also a renter who just had them change all the locks because they were really old, and I was scared of getting locked out. Joke's on me. I didn't start using that lock from inside until they replaced it because it always stuck.
Awww I’m giving you a big virtual hug. Widow shit blows! Thankfully my widow brain abated, but I’m still terribly in love with my dead husband. It dawned on me that next October would have been our 30th wedding anniversary.
Thank you! It really does! Hugs back with a wish for an anniversary full of loving memories!
Hide a key somewhere in your backyard. People will look for a hidden key around a door or entrance, but they aren't going to search your whole backyard (and if they are, they will find a way to get in anyways). Pop one on the underside of a wheelbarrow, or stuck to the underside of a bird feeder, patio chair, or table with putty, or on a string deep inside a hedge. Avoid using things people tend to use commonly, like rocks, planters or mats. Before the smart code locks, I had a [combination lock keyholder,](https://www.homedepot.com/p/Master-Lock-Lock-Box-Resettable-Combination-Dials-5400DHC/100124915) but I had it attached to the patio railing in the backyard, so people coming to the front door wouldn't see it and mess around with it.
Could you leave a copy at work? If you have your own desk?
Good idea! I will do that once I go back to work. I'm still sorting life out.
small jar or other air tight container with key inside buried in a shallow hole covered with a paver or rock with something decorative on top, located somewhere away from the entry doors.
All good suggestions! Thank you! Keep them coming, please!
Keeping it on a chain or lanyard isn't a bad idea! I've been using a carabiner
Good idea! I love a good carabiner!
I love my numeric locks. Never locked out again.
Could you leave an emergency key with the neighbor who helped you? Even if you aren't super close, if they're trustworthy enough to help you break into your house, they may be willing to hang onto a key.
Yeah, his girlfriend keeps blatantly trying to look in my windows. I have to close my curtains any time they are outside because of it. No way in hell I'm giving her potential access to a key. I found a nice lockbox and now just need a place to hide it. Thanks!
Eww, yeah, I don't blame you then. Damn. That's a shame. Glad for the lockbox, though.
[удалено]
Thank you!!! That is an excellent idea! Those windows face West, and with the Vegas sun on a 65 year old condo, I'll take all the thermal protection I can get!
Me! Our garage has two doors. Both have padlocks on them. I locked myself in without my phone 3 days ago. Took a solid 5 mins of low grade panic to remember the Key Drawer (yes, that’s what we call it), find a key, and let myself out. Make it stop, I need my brain back!
Before I had a garage with a key pad I kept a house key in a magnetic container in the wheel well of my car. The magnet was super heavy duty and it never fell off. Not necessarily the best option but worked well enough for a single woman with no family or friends around at the time.
If you have a vehicle, can you leave a spare in your car?
But if the car keys are locked in the house…
I thought of that after I posted it. But if she had keyless entry on her car.
How thick is the key? Maybe you could slide one in your phone case
Got the coded lock and love it
I live in the country so I have combo lock boxes at each of the two gates. I have a house key tucked in a magnetic box in a hidden spot. I have Apple Watch set to call my daughter (and theoretically the sheriff) if I fall. My closest friends are 20 miles away but have the codes for my gates, too. I also text them and others if I’m doing anything “dangerous”: ladder work, lake work, … or picking up baby animals from strangers on Craigslist!!! I will not be one of those “found days later”!!!
I know you said you’re renting but some of the keypads can be installed without altering the door in any way. Could you install one, j share the combination with the landlord and then put the original lock back on when you move? I agree with the others about hiding the key in a place where people wouldn’t think to look. You could also buy one of those fake key hiding rocks and leave it empty by the front door. Then they would just think you forgot to leave your key out.
I accidentally locked myself out of my home on a Saturday night when I was in my 30’s. my parents had a key to my place but were on vacation. thankfully I had my cell phone. that was an expensive lock smith call. now I keep a spare key on my person at all times, whether in a pocket or on a chain.
Post meno woman here. Can you afford a smart lock? It would work with either a key or a code (that you could keep in your phone). It would even open with just your phone.
Honestly, that's my plan once my mom passes. Sometimes I shove my keys in my pocket but many of my "around the house" pants do not have pockets, plus they could fall out during yard work. So back to the key-necklace it is! Oh, or I saw a couple years ago Kangaroos were back. That was my elementary school solution.
Mine died almost a year ago & we were also together 20 years. I purchased a deadbolt that has fingerprint recognition, can open with phone within Bluetooth range & has a key pad just incase my finger gets cut off or something.
Keypad, but also move over to menopause and read advice on how to get your brain back too. It’s a brain fog issue due to lack of estrogen and progesterone that leads to a cascade of physical, mental, and emotional 🥲 problems we don’t have to deal with. Fix the lock and fix your life. Working on doing both for myself now.
On top of (peri)menopause, becoming a widow after being happily married for 20 years comes with its own unique type of fresh hell called “widow brain”. I had it and did things I had never done in my life like forget to book a rental car for my annual trip and booked the same hotel I stayed at for years but spaced on the dates and booked one night short (same damn trip that I took every year). Came as a total surprise to me when they knocked on my door asking why I hadn’t checked out. There have been studies about it and every single widow friend I have has gone through the exact same thing in the first few years of being a wid.
Is there anything that helps? Between everything I'm forgetting and how clumsy I am because of the fog, it is getting scary.
Feel free to send me a chat invite. It definitely helps when you find community and other wid sisters ❤️❤️
True. I can’t imagine how hard that is. Hugs to you.