In Memory...

We were ROBBED tonight!!!! I felt silly calling the Sheriff's Department over it, but it was still an invasion and robbery of my property. Let me tell the whole story:

It's 8:30 pm. I'm watching Desperate Housewives from last night that I missed. I hear tires squeaking on the front driveway (but all tires squeak b/c of the stain). I figured Matt got off early or someone was turning around. Then I heard a really loud thud! I jumped off the couch to look out the window while I hear tires burning rubber out of my driveway! As I look out the window, I see this small white truck that looks like one my neighbors' down the road. So I figured it was one of the boys. But I'm still trying to comprehend why they are peeling out my driveway. Still questioning, I go out the front door. The truck then stops on the street in front of my neighbors' mailbox. The driver gets out, walks around, puts several garbage cans in the back of the truck, walks slowly back around to the drivers' side, gets in, sits in the street for a few seconds, and drives off casually. Hmmm... Still trying to comprehend... I think to myself maybe its my neighbors picking up their garbage cans...they do have a long driveway afterall. But the truck didn't pull into their driveway. While ALL of that was happening, I realized my favorite trees on my front porch were GONE! My big spiral heavy trees. Pots and all. All of this took place in about 2 minutes.

Then as my eyes are leaving the neighbor's yard, before I could turn around, I see this man walking down the street. 8:30 at night by himself. He was so close behind the truck that I thought they were together. So I started yelling at him. "Did you see that truck?" He proceeded to tell me that yes, he saw it. He sounded surprised when he learned of them stealing my trees...but yet he said he tried to get their tag. If he didn't know they had just stolen my trees and my neighbor's garbage cans, why was he trying to get their tag? So I asked him who he was. He wouldn't give me his name, but said he lived in the orange house on the corner down the road. Whatever. I was so mad, I went back inside the house.

Called Matt, called the police, called a hundred people to get my neighbor's phone number to see if his garbage cans were actually missing. Which they were. Called another neighbor to check on them. So I'm outside waiting on the cops to show up (feeling silly about calling over trees). I lock the front door and have a phone in each hand. I decide to see if the rest of the neighborhood was outside like myself (about half were). I get a little past my mailbox, and I hear a really weird "animal" sound coming from the woods across the street. I have lived in the country my entire life and I've never heard this sound before. It was changing noises...it began to sound like a person trying to imitate an animal of some kind. I yelled something and said the cops were on the way. Never heard it again. Weird. But scared me enough to stay inside the rest of the while.

Cop shows up like an hour later! My trees are probably on the other side of Mississippi now. They said they would start patroling this neighborhood now and would consider it a 'marked' street. I know it's silly to be upset over trees...but that guy was literally on my front porch. What if it had been worse? I can not imagine what it would be like to have your home burglarized by an intruder. You can imagine the thoughts that have run through my mind. Of course it's midnight and I still can't go to sleep.

Silly trees...that I watered EVERY day! That Mom and I spent days trying to re-pot. I spent weeks picking out the perfect pots. Even bought trimming shears specifically for those trees. My green thumb was on a breakthrough with those trees. Spent $ on those trees. Now there's no point in buying more to replace them. I'm very upset. I mean, does this mean I can't put holiday decorations out on the front porch for fear that someone will steal it???? That's insane! Seriously? Trees and garbage cans? Why? I'm not so sure that it was kids out for kicks.

At least the burglars didn't get IN the house. Praise God. That's the only peace I have right now.