Not At Gunpoint

(An explanation as to why I haven't felt much like blogging for several days)



I learned a hard lesson several days ago: never let your purse get out of your sight in any public place, including the public library.

The thief was clever. I didn't discover that I'd been robbed until nearly twenty-four hours later.
---------
When I got up to go to the ladies' room about an hour and a half into a two-hour tutoring session at the public library, I noticed that my purse, instead of being next to my chair, lying on its side behind my chair. I thought to myself at the time, "What is my purse doing there?" I immediately reached inside, felt for my wallet (which was indeed in my purse), and breathed a sigh of relief. I didn't open my wallet until the next morning, when I stepped up to the coffee machine at work and found an the cash compartment of my wallet totally empty.

The best I can figure out, the thief slid my purse from beside me on the library's floor, removed my wallet, stepped into the stacks of books, removed the cash and clients' checks, and placed the wallet back into my purse, which he had slid into a spot which was not the place I had originally placed my purse. Stupid as it may sound, I would not have noticed my purse being stealthily moved because I was concentrating on the tutoring I was doing. Like most of my tutoring sessions, the work the student and I were totally absorbed in the task at hand.

I have, of course, spoken to the library manager. She told me that such thefts, identical to the method described above, have occurred at least five times before in that particular library and near the section where my student and I were working. Those previous thefts happened some time ago. The thief was never apprehended. It is possible that the same thief is again stalking purses in the study section of the library.

The library has filed a report for use in the library system. I have filed a report with the police. The checks can be replaced, but the cash, possibly as much as $300, will not be recovered. Five days have gone by, and nobody has turned in either the cash or the checks.

What an ugly start to my week! I'm just now getting over my feelings of anger and violation.