what's the problem?

So the bad news is, hubby went out to get into the truck Tuesday morning, on the way to work, and discovered some unknown individual had during the previous night tried to break into the vehicle. Despite the motion detector flood lights on our garage, the rear window had been pried open, to the point it was almost completely off track. But the good news is, evidently, the perp saw the prominent yellow anti-theft device on the steering wheel; or perhaps the alarm served as the deterrent; whatever the reason, said individual evidently decided it was just too much trouble, and went away without actually breaking the window.

 

There have been other incidents through the years we’ve lived here in Suthren Country. The main example is, while hubby was away on military duty, several Sunday mornings I went out to go to church and discovered my car had overnight mysteriously developed a flat tire. No, not slashed, or harmed irreparably to the point of having to buy a new one, the air had simply been let out. Now, how did I know that was the problem? Because each time I also discovered that the cap that twists onto the valve stem had been replaced and twisted on too tight, and as a result was broken. I took to keeping cans of flat fix in the car and in the garage, purchased a portable tire inflator, and bought a couple of packages of valve stem caps at the local auto parts store. And learned to never try to leave late for church. Ha!!

The incidents stopped when I began parking my car differently, so that all sides of it were prominently visible in the light of previously mentioned garage floods. Oh, by the way, the other thing I discovered was that on all the nights when the incidents occurred, someone had also broken the closest street lamp. Coincidence? I don’t think so. Maliciously broken street lights are not only bad for our city budget, but make it harder for the local police patrol to spot potential problems. Which, of course, was the whole idea.

 

What constitutes terrorism? Anything that makes me afraid to live my life normally. Anything that has the potential for harm to my life or my property is, as far as I’m concerned, a terrorist act. But how do you combat the unknown? Constant vigilance is the only answer. I must always be aware of the possibility that somebody out there somewhere has no respect for me or mine. Hyper awareness is no longer hype, it’s the norm.