The most serious crime I've ever been the victim of in my life was the 1993 burglary of my startup, Prophet Financial Systems. It just about destroyed the business, and it took me over a year to recovery from the damage.
In my personal life, I've been spared crime, by and large. But last week, for the first time in my 19 years of living in The House That Charts Built, one of our two cars was burglarized. It was a very easy target, because the doors were unlocked. The lovely fellow who did the deed got away with our GPS and camera. Total loss: about $1,000.
Mrs. Bear was understandably upset about this (and promptly got replacement equipment), and I pledged never to bellyache again about her habit of locking the doors of the car at night.
Well, just about an hour ago, I strolled out to the driveway and saw the other car's doors were wide open. Yep – sure enough – the same guy came back and rifled through that vehicle. (Luckily, there was nothing of value to take, and the van – – with its new GPS inside – – was locked and undisturbed).
So the withering of the economy is starting to literally hit home. I live across the street from a former NFL linebacker, and I'm thinking of paying him $5,000 to wait up all night with a baseball bat to introduce himself to the clown who keeps prowling our street.
