It really doesn't matter how technologically minded we are, how connected we are, or how virtual we are, we are still subject to the wonderful kick in the teeth that is petty crime. You can protect yourself... be sensible about not showing off with your fancy expensive gadgets and accessories, you can avoid dark alleys, walking alone at night, dodgy areas, leaving items on display in the car, having car/house/personal alarms, CCTV and wireless webcams... but you'll still get some little herbert knicking something when you, for once, let your guard down.
Last Sunday I left my car parked in a side street in a nice area in North London. I accidentally left the window on the driver's door open about half way (but the car was locked).
And, guess what?
Nothing happened! I came back 4 hours later and everything was still in the car, no vandalism, the car was still there.
However, last night, I left the car parked on the street outside our house. Not a bad area. Not ridiculously expensive or posh, but not a bad area. A residential area, people walk to the tube to commute into town. Not far from the above one either... and also in North London.
Nothing was on display, but said herbert broke the quarterlight and went through all my secret cubby-holes. And guess what he found? He left (I say 'He' as it has the marks of a male fuckwit rather than a female one, although perhaps that's being sexist?) the bluetooth handsfree thingie for my mobile phone. He left a hammer/knife multi-tool thingie I have in the car. He left the tyre inflater and first-aid kit (although, that I can understand) even tho' the first-aid kit is still in the original wrapper. The umbrellas were there. A very very old camera was still there. £3 in change was still there (but he stole about £6 more). In fact, the only thing Herbert Fuckwit stole was a cheap satnav (the cheapest on the market when I bought it) and a three-year old mp3 player. Oh, and a £4 mobile phone car charger.
Not the kind of booty that's going to keep Mr Fuckwit in heroin for very long. Nor that Herbie will be able to sell for much (the mp3 player is old and not Apple... who'd want it?).
The biggest pain is:
the window is going to cost around £140 to repair/replace
I won't be able to listen to podcasts for a while - having just spent a fortune on house and garden repairs, I can't afford to replace said mp3 player.
None of the items were on display, and my guard was let down in that they were still in the car. Bert missed the 6 CDs in the CD changer too. And the umbrellas....tho' they're not the most valuable of items, granted.
So, what should I do? Pass it off as an irritating aberration in the otherwise good experience I've had with crime so far (i.e. virtually none)? Set up webcams outside the house to monitor the street and house entrance and car (when parked) 24/7? Set up a Neighbourhood Watch scheme? Or just wait until Christmas and see if Santa will bring me a new kerchunk (that's a gadget, by the way).
Or, and this is what is in the back of my mind, set up a vigilante posse of neighbours and we'll roam the neighbourhood with sticks, garden implements and sports equipment (baseball bats, hockey sticks, rifles... that kind of thing) and look for Mr Fuckwit and his friends?
What a shame that we can't do that virtually. What a shame that with all the technology now available, I can't just put a Tweet out saying 'mp3 player stolen' and someone will know someone who'll return it to me with a tearful apology and a firm but fair clip around the ear.
No comments:
Post a Comment