Well that's the kind of burglary you want...
The Builder and I got home on Friday evening at around ten past six. At just before half past six we repaired into the lounge room with a glass of wine. Each, not to share. Shortly after, I thought I heard the back door open. Odd, thought I -- wasn't really expecting Freyja this evening. Then I thought I heard it close again. No hint that Freyja had come in, so assumed it was Liz-Next-Door who had come back as we were moving into the lounge room and who I could hear vaguely, moving about. Paid no further attention. At about ten past seven there was a banging on the door. Went to answer it and found Rebecca from number 23 clutching my pink tote bag. My wet pink tote bag. My open, wet pink tote bag. With all my cards and things liberated and lying about inside it. She had found it on her front wall as she was coming home. Odd, thought I. Could have sworn I brought it in with me. Must have dropped it when I got out of the car, rushing in the rain, and carried all that stuff inside. Then I realised that my shopping bag was missing. Bugger. I know I had brought that in. Should have investigated when I thought I heard the back door open! (On further reflection, though, it was probably best that I didn't. Whoever broke in might have threatened me. Or shouted at me. And The Builder does not take at all kindly to people threatening me. Or shouting at me. Unless it is him, of course!!) Probably a druggy looking for cash. S/he had removed the 32p I had in the wallet but left all my cards and my Waterstone gift vouchers and obviously dumped the bag in Rebecca's front "yard". Perhaps they have done the same thing with my shopping bag and its contents -- 2 videos and 2 books from the Learning Centre. The Builder went out armed with the torch and searched the street. Alas. No shopping bag. Oh well. Nothing much lost really, I suppose. And I would have regretted the loss of my pink tote bag and my colourful wallet (not to mention all my cards. AGAIN!!) much more than the M&S bag. Returned to the wine and then to the chicken parcels we had for dinner.
On Saturday it crossed my mind at some point in the morning that perhaps I should really tell the local constabulary. After all, they are not psychic and they might find it of interest that someone is prowling the kitchens of Khartoum Road and removing people's 32p. To be honest, I expected them to express virtually no interest. But no. The woman on the phone was astounded that I hadn't bothered to tell them the day before and said that two officers would be around to talk to me sometime during the day. Bugger. I had been intending to amble up to Hunters Bar, where The Builder was working, relieve him of the car and trundle off to Chesterfield to badger a few estate agents. Now I need to stay at home and await stray passing police officers. What shall I do to fill in the time?
Actually, what I did was to notice that it was strangely warm and that strange, peculiar light was shining in the sky again. I wandered out into the courtyard and spent a merry couple of hours tidying it up after a long, long winter of neglect. It's spick, span and orderly now. The unplanted containers are ready for their flower seeds and seedlings. I've planted salad seeds in planters. The cabbage, broccoli and cauli seeds are planted in the little greenhouse. At one point I was talking to Taffa on the phone, looked around and there was the female blackbird down by the mealworm dish. I could have reached down and picked her up. The male blackbird is not quite so trusting!
Eventually, two ten year old police officers turned up to discuss my excitements. Later a scene of crime officer appeared but decided that there was nothing useful he could do. Liz-Next-Door popped in to commiserate -- the police had given her to understand that we had been comprehensively done over -- and mentioned that the nurses in number 17 had told her they had found a pile of videos and books and a black bag (and my purple gloves!!) in their front yard as they were heading out at about quarter to seven on Friday evening and had taken them in for safe keeping, and to dry them out. Round we all ambled. And I am now reunited with absolutely everything that the Random Robber nicked, apart from 32p and a hair grip.
So that's the sort of burglary you want. One where you get all the excitement of having the police come around in a police car and then go and question all the neighbours to see if they've seen anything or also had the Random Robber visit them, then get all the neighbours chattering to you about it all and to lose nothing at all.
There is now a large wind chime thingy on the back door. You can't get in now without alerting us to the fact that there really is someone coming in through our back door .
We had fish and chips last night from a newly opened chippy just up the road. Very nice they were too.
Our clocks have gone forward (NB Aussie readers, for yours, unusually, have not!). The Builder has finished working in Mansfield. But I *still* woke up when the clock said it was half past five. Must retrain my bod!
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