Stolen Laptop, Stolen Life
Last Friday at approximately noon in Starbucks in Shangrila Edsa Mall, someone stole my laptop. I’m not trying to boycott Starbucks (like some anti big establishment chain email) nor do I want your pity, okay maybe a little bit of pity. Mostly, I’m writing so that I could warn others to be careful and maybe give some meaning to my loss. I think that’s what my laptop would’ve wanted.
I was in Starbucks for a meeting with 3 other people. I had my Mac Powerbook laptop, iPod video, a checkbook, vehicle CR, and the rest of my life in that black Timbuktu laptop bag. We moved a couple of times until we found a table in a nook that had an electrical outlet. I put my bag and trust on the floor behind my chair and against the wall, and my companions sat across from me as we watched a presentation from my friend’s laptop. When we were done, I turned around and was shocked to find my bag missing. My first reaction was that someone was playing a joke on me. But there were no hidden cameras around. My second reaction was of panic. I quickly ran around, hoping to catch the culprit before he could leave, but I knew in my heart it was too late. Then I felt queasy and sat down. It’s that same feeling you get when you can’t find your car in the parking lot, but this one was worse because I knew I didn’t misplace my bag and I didn’t have an alarm to help me. I didn’t cry, there was something in my eye.
When you something like a cellphone or cash gets stolen from you, you tend to blame yourself. “It’s my fault, I shouldn’t have put my cellphone on the bar while I took those 7 shots of tequila!” And it doesn’t help when others tell you what you should’ve done. Let me just tell you, it’s not your fault. How can it be your fault that someone stole what belonged to you? It’s only your fault if you leave your belongings on the table while you go to the bathroom with no one watching your stuff, which is something I’ve done before but I was lucky. You just need to forgive yourself for the loss, give yourself a good cry while listening to Allanis, and move on.
I believe that when you lose something, something better will come along to replace it. I also believe that people who steal should have their hands cut off like in some Muslim countries. My laptop was pretty old so it wasn’t worth much monetarily to me but it was all the information I had in it that I’ll miss. I had passwords, financial statements, meeting notes, and most importantly, all of my jokes. It’s a good thing I didn’t have any naked photos in it. And the iPod was pretty new and was given to me by my fiancee. I think there are several lessons here: 1. Do not be attached to material things 2. It’s always good to reboot and start over on a clean slate 3. Never leave your bag behind you.
I hope my experience will at least help you become more alert and careful when you’re in a busy cafe or any crowded place. Please always have your valuables in sight or on you. And if you ever see someone perform jokes about being “matapobre”, you know that person stole my jokes!