Wednesday, March 23, 2011

shut up crime!

have you seen the trailer for super yet?  i've been thinking about the line "shut up crime" a lot lately.  blame it on the rain or the super moon or whatever you want, but our neighborhood has seen a dramatic increase in crime this past weekend.  okay, okay, so i don't exactly live in what some people call a super "safe" neighborhood.  so maybe there are what other people might call "muggings," "car thefts," and "periodic drive by's." but it's cool, you know?  it's home to dozens of artists & musicians, and it's where the film industry originally began {before they moved to hollywood}.  one of our neighbors is even the famous museum of homoerotic art!  so what i'm saying is, it's a nice place, really.  but lately, things were a little more out of control than usual.  and by "out of control" i don't mean more dangerous, i just mean the crime was extra ridiculous.  

for example, on saturday there was an attempted robbery at the bank a few blocks from my house.  a bank robbery?!  seriously?  people still do bank robberies?  come on criminals, you can do better than that.

and if that wasn't enough, last thursday there was a manhunt in our yard.  yup, true story.  it was around midnight and the mister and i had just climbed into bed.  i commented on how eerily quiet it seemed that evening in our neighborhood, to which dannon replied "i think that's because there were no helicopters tonight."  i'm sure several minutes went by, but looking back it seemed that as soon as the words were out of his mouth, there came the helicopter.  we looked at each other with a "wah-wah!" and assumed it would just do the usual fly by or would hover a few streets over.  but no such luck!  unfortunately it circled right above us, with our house as the target.  and as if the extreme noise and rumbling of our home from the helicopter wasn't enough, there were search lights.
big, bright, scary search lights!

i felt like i was in a movie looking out my windows.  the trees were being blown about from the low-flying ghetto bird and the bright lights were shining all over our yard, even into our apartment.  eventually our whole neighborhood was shut down and a perimeter was formed around us.  over the loud speakers the cops informed all of us to stay in our houses while they searched for the criminals.  with hearts pumping we realized we were definitely not going to be sleeping anytime soon. the mister calmly read his book {he's a very stable person} while i, a much more anxious individual, did jumping jacks and watched the office {which i still stand by as an awesome way to pass the time during a manhunt}.

things were like this for a little over an hour {an hour!}, when suddenly the helicopter sped away and news reports began announcing a suspect had been taken in for questioning.  we wondered, what was this horrible crime that warranted helicopters, search lights, and a manhunt at 1am?  a murder?  a kidnapping?
you would think so, wouldn't you?  no, this horrendous crime was but a lowly car theft.  now i'm sure if my car was stolen i would want the cops to work hard to find it, but this was ridiculous. a manhunt? scaring people in the middle of the night?  all i can say is, that better be one amazing car.  i mean, it better be a war hero or a world famous pediatric heart surgeon or something!  

so, there it is.  crime is such a bother, isn't it?
{and mom, please don't worry, we're just fine here in the big city.}  

{i think i'm going to make this fierce getup so i can help during the next manhunt}

other than a million helicopters from 3:30am-12:00pm during the LA marathon, the rest of the weekend was pretty quiet. the mister was off starting a band with some friends {so cool!}, so i got the house to myself for a few days. you better believe i filled my time with all that stuff he hates doing and/or stuff i used to do living alone, but am too embarrassed to do in front of another person!  it may or may not have involved shameful amounts of cheese, my "single girl" sweat pants, & a tv marathon.  good times!

22 comments:

  1. that is extremely scary !!!! Just be extra careful wherever you are dear.

    I reckon 'me' time is always the best !!

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  2. How frightening!!

    Glad you got to have your me-time! I know those sweat pants very well, considering Zack isn't here 27/30 days of the month. :]

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  3. Wow, I can't even imagine that. Your photos always show your home and surrounding as so pretty and peaceful!

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  4. Wow. You don't always think about that on the blog world do you. I see your pretty home pictures and just think "CUTE" and not always "I wonder about the crime rate and helicopters in their neighborhood". It's good to know, even if it is annoying that there's no murderer on the loose or something. It'd be more of a bother than anything with all that noise at night! We have trains right next to our apartment that blow horns periodically but that's the end of the story for us. Hope you get god sleep and less crime this week!

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  5. Yikes! How scary!

    They once had a manhunt in the house next door to me in the middle of the night. I secretly watched it all while peering through my bedroom window. There were search dogs, lights flashing everywhere, it was quite the scene.

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  6. 1. You better be safe! Urgh, this post makes me want to install an alarm system in your place.
    2. Your husband started a band? What does he play? That is so cool!
    3. I heart The Office like none else.

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  7. Gosh how scary- I would be like you, full of nervous energy:) I love your outfit - hopefully you'll get wings and fly like a superhero, Awesome.
    I guess we are lucky in little old Denmark, not much happens here, crime is fairly low, people leave things outside, some keep their doors unlocked, the ladies in the bank are NOT behind glass - the Queen drives in open horse cart on her birthday !! We are fairly safe!!
    I lived in London for 11 years, very different story :O)
    Take care of eachother :O)
    a xx

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  8. OHMYGOLLY, I SO want to see that movie. And I'm glad that you're okay with all that's been happening in your neighborhood lately. It really can happen anywhere, and the most important thing is that you feel safe at night. If you don't, do whatever you need to do to make that happen. Maybe your community needs to get together and pledge to look out for one another?

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  9. Okay this is so scary! I remember a couple of years ago a thief broke in my old apartment and took all our gadgets and some money/bank cards from our bags while we were all sleeping :( I mean, the terrifying feeling of a crime happening within the boundaries of your home is really crazy! I hope you guys are doing well now. I can just imagine how shaken you were when helicopter search lights spotted your house.

    ps. i saw the trailer of Super last week. it's hilarious! :) "SHUT UP, CRIME! Face the wrath of the crimson bolt!"

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  10. You're going to look awesome in your fierce get-up, Super Kim!

    I would have been freaking out. Good for you for watching The Office instead. Hilarious distraction is an excellent plan.

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  11. I love "single gal" time! Hooray for sweat pants and a good tv marathon!
    You know, I was just telling Avi yesterday that the helicopters and sirens have been out of control lately! I think you and I only live a few miles apart, and boy can I empathize!
    Best of luck to your mister and the new band! When they start playing out, I'll definitely attend! :)

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  12. I forgot to tell you... I got your letter yesterday and it totally made me smile. And laugh out loud! Did you make up that joke yourself?
    Thanks, Kim. You're awesome.

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  13. over a car theft, that's so wrong. but i'm glad it was nothing worse! i feel your pain, we have gun shots in our neighborhood one or twice a week. i'm always kind of surprised at how long it takes for the police to get on the scene - if they do at all

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  14. The crime is a major bummer but that picture is the cutest thing on earth, I love it.

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  15. glad to hear everything is ok! i would be terrified if that happened to me! eek.

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  16. My first reaction is to say, "Kim, come back home where it is peaceful quiet and safe!" But than I have to remind myself that you have to live your own life where ever that may be. I will be praying for the both of you that the Lord is watching over and keeping both of you safe. Love you, but still can't help but worry a little bit.

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  17. Yikes! Stay safe, Kim. I know how it is. I went to college in the Bronx (at Fordham University). I was extra stupid though, and used to wear my Boston Red Sox baseball cap outside the gates. (Yankee territory). Fun times ;)

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  18. Sounds EXACTLY like my neighborhood, ha! Gotta love those helicopters. We've had a spike in crime as well this year, mostly petty stuff like people getting mugged for their cell phones, etc. Still, it's a little unsettling.

    Right before Christmas my local bank (a couple blocks from my neighborhood) was robbed. I was in line waiting to deposit my paycheck, it was so ridiculous there aren't really words. Needless to say, I have switched branches to one that doesn't have to lock all the tellers behind bullet-proof glass :)

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  19. OMG, I was terrified reading (but was incredibly relieved the overhead helicopters were only for a carnapping). I'll be honest, my neighborhood is loud, but I dunno how I'd do with that kind of noise in the middle of the night! The Office sounds like it would be a perfect distraction though :)

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  20. This post was so entertaining, and I loved the photo at the end.

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  21. this summer we had a spree crime this way. it was scary.
    Oh, cool about the mister and the band. I hope you guys upload a few tracks in the future.
    hehe, single girl sweat pants. yep, I have a blue pair, myself.

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