Backpack Stolen, Peptalk Needed

[ejchase]

Aargh.

When I drove home with my toddler daughter last night after we'd had dinner out, she fell asleep in the car, and after my SO and I transferred her into bed, I forgot or maybe was just too tired to make myself go back outside and make sure my car was locked. Well, overnight, someone went into my car, then unlocked the trunk and took my backpack full of student papers and my gradebook and calendar.

Fortunately, the grades in the gradebook are almost all recorded in an online gradebook, and many of the papers are stored online too.

I didn't let it ruin my Thanksgiving, but I'm just so mad at myself about it. I have sometimes been cavalier lately about locking my car, mainly, I guess, because I rarely leave anything worth stealing in there - 99% of the time I bring my backpack in, not because it has anything valuable in it (to anyone but me) but because I know it looks like it does.

I know I just have to let this go, but I'm having so much trouble not beating myself up over it. Any words of wisdom any of you could share would be appreciated.

[Float On]

Oh that's horrible. I just never think about someone coming into our driveway and taking things out of cars - I leave my purse in mine a lot....unlocked. So sorry.

[catherine]

That is a bummer, and I also know how you feel. I had a computer taken out of my car in broad daylight while my DD and I walked around at a farm market in VT--I also hadn't locked my car, because I thought "I'm not in New Jersey--people in Vermont are a lot nicer."

It happens to us all. As you said, at least you had already graded and stored most of the papers, so just consider that it might have been worse.

Glad you didn't let it ruin your holiday!

[kib]

Sorry to hear this, it's a hollow feeling to come and find something's been taken, isn't it?

People will do what they will do, I guess. I once parked in NY and transferred all valuables to the trunk before locking the car and leaving for 20 minutes (well Duh, in front of lots of people who observed all this stuff going into the trunk.) Came back to find the lock smashed and all contents removed, including a 16 pound bowling ball.

[iris lilies]

Once I left the car unlocked and unclubbed, and it was stolen. It was a time when I was wrestling a rescue dog out of the car, trying to keep him from bounding away.

DH however has not forgiven me. :)

We, however, will forgive you for being human. Sometimes we humans mess up.

[ToomuchStuff]

Happens more in the holiday time, but when I was a kid, we had five or six cars all broken into at a party. Someone's federal id badge was taken and that was a mess.

[pinkytoe]

Sadly, that happens around here a lot. So much so that most folks leave cars unlocked with no valuables inside just so their windows won't get smashed. Many residents have put cameras on their driveways and porches.

[Tradd]

I've always been super vigilant about locking my car, which is a good thing, as I now must leave my pistol (hidden) in my car while at work and various other places (such as the post office). Current car and the previous one have a "clicker" where I can hit the lock button twice and hear my car horn beep twice in response. I've been doing that for years. It's to the point where muscle memory takes over and I always get the two horn beeps.

Might be something you want to try.

[ejchase]

Hi All,

Belated thanks to all of you for sharing your stories and your sympathy. It helps a lot.

I'm still smarting from the whole thing. Tomorrow, I will need to tell my boss what happened just in case there is anything from the missing gradebook and papers I can't reconstruct. I am in a probationary period at work, which makes dealing with it scary, but she is very wonderful, so I'm hopeful she'll be understanding and supportive. Then I'll need to just move on and do what I can. I'm feeling very, very grateful for online gradebooks and the site that I have that gets students to turn in their papers online. I only started using both about ten months ago - thank goodness I did.

[Gardenarian]

Hi -
My car was stolen in the spring. I left it unlocked and the keys were in the glove box. I know people think, "you were asking for it" but I've been doing that for decades without a problem. And my car was found about a week later in perfect shape. Anyhow, you can't protect yourself from everything.

Have you put up signs that you need the papers and grade book back, no questions asked? Couldn't hurt.

I think it's sad that we live in a world where if we don't keep everything under lock and chain at all times we are considered irresponsible, and that we can't trust other people even that little bit.

This is not your fault; it is the thief who is at fault here. Good for you for doing the online stuff - it's good to have a plan B in any case.
I hope things go well with your boss tomorrow.

[gimmethesimplelife]

This thread reminds me of Gone With The Wind. Seriously. There is a line in there mid way through the book when Scarlett is in Atlanta after the war and running a lumber business and shocking Atlanta pretty much daily and she says to someone - "Carpetbaggers will steal anything that isn't red hot or nailed down." I remember that line sometimes and it came back to haunt me when I was a victim of identity theft. Nowadays I have cleaned out my wallet and my backpack and anything I don't need on a particular day stays home and it if it's something that could cause me grief due to identity theft not only does it stay home but it remains locked up. It's just not worth the hassle with stressful phone calls and trying to fix something that I didn't create to begin with but yet am vulnerable to. Now I don't have a car but if I did I wouldn't leave anything in it that I wouldn't care if said item were stolen. Going back to the Carpetbaggers line - and realizing that the economy has not healed from 2008 - I just make what effort I can to minimize these kinds of risks without going overboard about it. That said, if someone really wants something, I understand that they will get it and my efforts will have been wasted. It's about making things that are worthwhile harder to get I guess.

And I'm sorry you went through this - it's never pleasant to have your space and your things violated this way. I'm just glad you had so much of it available online. Rob

[Tradd]

EJ - do you have a police report? I would suggest providing a copy of that to your boss, as that should smooth out any issues you might have.

[Teacher Terry]

EJ: hope your boss is understanding. In the 1980's my then hubby worked at a big factory in a bad neighborhood in Milwaukee. He worked from 3-11pm. It go bad so he left car unlocked so they could open the door & look instead of smashing the windows. Then they started to rob the workers leaving at nite so they had to fence in the entire parking lot. Then a few people were killed inside the plant. The vending machine guy for the $ he took out of the machines.

[ToomuchStuff]

Hopefully, none of the information you had taken, had kid's personal information (addresses, phone numbers, or worst yet, social security numbers), because if it did, you need to notify the school right away. (there is liability of identity theft, involved)
The only reason's to leave things locked up in a car, is because it is locked in the garage at home (multiple layers of security, not outside of the garage), or your on the road, not at home yet. (no choice, errands, etc)
But nothing is safe. A few years ago, a friend gave someone on the side of the road a lift, and went into the store to get something (leaving the keys in the vehicle as they do), and the guy they gave a ride, didn't take his vehicle (because he gave him a ride), but instead, carjacked someone, and drug their kid to their death whose coat stuck in the door. (and somehow we were linked to everyone involved)
Then there is your online presence, that you can restrict what you put up, but not your digital fingerprint of where you have been. My problems have been from places I have done business with, being hacked.
If they want it bad enough, they will get it.

[Zoe Girl]

I had a coworker with her laptop stolen out of her trunk. We traveled back then to 3 or 4 after school programs so our 'office' was portable in many ways. The laptop bags and small file boxes were a lot to take in everywhere we went. After that we did just take everything in each time, at least child information was safe because all of it requires passwords to get into any database or even our documents.

I hope it worked out okay, I agree with loving it online. Works for broken equipment too