We used to sometimes have Thanksgiving with family friends who made everybody go around before dinner and say what they were thankful for, like, out loud. I always felt squirmy, and roiled by the opposing urge to devise something clever and ironic to say, and the sense that I should muster up something sincere-sounding. Not because I wasn't sincerely thankful for various things, don't you know; just because, being a product of my generation and all, it felt tacky to express such things without a nice shiny coating of irony.So, yesterday our house got robbed (I guess the technical term is burgled), and all of a sudden this long-standing impulse was obliterated. I all of a sudden felt completely non-ironically grateful for all kinds of things: that the T&A kitties were still here and were unharmed; that the burglars didn't take my Gram's ring; that they removed items neatly, without making a mess, because that made the whole transaction seem much more polite; that all of our stuff wasn't destroyed in a fire or hurricane. When Mr. T&A described how the police officer had told him that, if this were a murder investigation, they would send the leaf that was mysteriously located in the middle of our bed to the lab for analysis (which then led him to detail his involvement in the search for Chandra Levy's body, and to boast that he had recovered part of her finger), but that since it was a burglary they wouldn't bother to send the leaf anywhere, I felt overwhelmingly thankful that nobody was out combing Rock Creek Park for my finger.
So, kidlets, that's it--just feeling pretty good about things. Have a good weekend!
P.S. Plus, Verizon finally made our internets work. Yahh! In the spirit of this post, I won't even remark on the fact that this took them nearly a month and that their "Surf tonight!" ad campaign is a steaming pile of crap. Thanks, Verizon!
7 comments:
Once, our apartment in Chicago was burgled (is it a burglary if it happens during the day?) and a cop told me that my cat had attacked him when he, the cop, went into the closet to see if the suspect was in there*. The cop told me I should be thankful he hadn't shot the cat. In fact I think he said, in a heavy Chicago accent, "You should just be glad I had the presence of mind not to shoot that little piece of shit."
Uhh, thanks, officer. Anyway, I felt thankful about that, and also thankful that I was not a stupid junkie stealing crap to get high, left to the moods and trigger fingers of Chicago's finest. My recent addiction** to The Wire has reinforced that thankfulness.
ANYWAY, I am super-thankful that you guys are okay, and that my guys are okay, and that I have you as friends.
*They caught the "burglar" in the
alley, who claimed he was just "receiving stolen property." A neighbor had called the cops while watching this skinny lil crackhead shimmy in a window.
** An addiction that rivals the heroin it so prominently features.
Awww, thanks, guys. :) Strangely, Andrea, the one of the cops who came to our house also drew his gun because of the cats--he heard something upstairs and Mr. T&A told him it was the kitties, but the cop got his gun out to go up and investigate. The cats didn't attack him and he didn't come close to shooting them, though, as far as I know.
Oh yeah, and I think burglary is breaking into someone's house with the intent to steal stuff, whereas robbery is using force or the threat of force. I think maybe it's a higher degree if it's during the night rather than the day? Where's a lawyer when you need one?
You are right: burglary involves "breaking into" a place to take stuff, without force or threat of force. So the presumption is that no one is home. Had you been home, and thank goodness you were not, I'd guess the charges could include robbery, too.
I too struggled with those Thanksgivings, even as one of the "adult" persons, but I honestly have lots to be thankful for, your well-being being foremost.
A Dad
Burglary used to require that it take place "under cover of night," but I guess that someone smart realized that he could just start breaking into places at dusk without fear of the burglary rap on his record, so the powers-that-were changed all that.
Glad you're okay, Mr. and Ms. T&A. I'll gladly replace your corkscrew.
My condolences on the burglary, T&A household.
See you soon.
PS: Does the T&A household watch the MTV music video awards? I am asking because I watched them for the first time in a couple years and was stunned to see that most of the members of the top alternative rock bands now dress like a cross between the Mad Hatter and Willie Wonka. Which seems like the sort of thing that you might, like me, be puzzled and appalled by.
i am also glad to hear you are both okay and the kitties are too. although i feel like T&A cat freddy was probably all, "bring those guys back here! i'll show 'em." because he's kind of a badass.
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