The Wondrous Excursions of Dr. Dave and His Travelling Beard

I spent last night at a truck stop in Kentucky. I admit I was very nervous at the time, so I lowered the curtains in the auto and closed myself in. Before the trip, my mom made curtains for Betsy (my vehicle's name) out of camouflage material, and I fastened them inside the back of the vehicle. They worked quite well, but they turned the vehicle into a sauna by trapping in all the heat and cutting off all ventilation.
After the curtains fell, I rolled out my sleeping bag, but sleep was a long time coming. I woke up each time I heard a voice or a semi-truck rolled by. I kept a weapon close by in case I needed to ward off any angry truckers or psychopaths traveling the highways and byways. I have seen Deliverance, and I did not want to squeal like a pig. I carried a weapon that was more like a tool, because a real weapon would have presented a minor complication crossing into and out of other states and Canada. Actually it would have been a major offense rather than a complication. It's hopefully enough to scare someone off, and if questioned about it, I could tell any authority figures that it was just a simple tool, which it was if I chose to use it in that manner. My personal line of thought was the old better safe than gang-raped at a truck stop cliche. There'll be no pig squealing session for me.
I would always advise travelers to make preparations for personal security, for protection against man and beast, although it's more for a sense of confidence than any real need. Find something that can be used for multiple purposes, either as a tool or a means of scaring off big burly men or snarling hairy creatures, or large spiders. You'll probably never need it for anything other than the purpose of a tool, but it doesn't hurt to have it around.