budget buster...theft

[Sagginit]

ok i know people hate budget busters but there are not many places i can go with this that people will seriously feel my pain. so i budget and try to spend smart.... not to go into exact details but i went into my wallet to discover that somone stole all my money. i would never think that if i left my bag out of my site in a room where the only people who have access to it are people i know that someone would steal every last dollar out of it. its not a huge amount but enough that i am upset and feel violated. this i think is worse than a dr bill or broken car part. i get nothing for what was taken from me....and it relates to the whole people assuming b/c you spend smart in one area of your life and have money to spend on other things you are wealthier than them. since many of you nickle and dime to afford disney only to get serious attitude from people i think you can realte to it. i would like to have a three year old tantrum at the moment and stomp my feet and scream give me my money! ok it wouldnt get me my money but maybe i would feel better.

 

[pennymom]

I'm so sorry that happened to you! You have every right to be angry and upset and even throw a tantrum, what a horrible thing for someone to do! Are you going to file a police report?

I sincerely hope you can find out who did it, and if not, I'll hope that whomever took it is in terrible need of cash for food or some other desperate reason.

 

[hambirg]

I'm sorry! That is so crappy! All I can say is that I hope Karma gets them.

 

[tink2dw]

I feel your pain!! Dh's wallet was stolen with $200. in it, that we were using for gas money for the uhaul!! We had to borrow money from our church! Not a good feeling. Now that we are here, Dh has had to borrow money from his brother for food and Electric! I feel so poor.....

 

[ssawka]

....and it relates to the whole people assuming b/c you spend smart in one area of your life and have money to spend on other things you are wealthier than them.

I am so sorry this happened to you.

I also wanted to comment on your words above. If someone is going to steal, they are going to steal. I do not believe that much thought goes into it, such as "does this person have more money than me?" Was your's the only wallet/purse that was in the room? Did anyone else get "hit"?

 

[Gigi22]

File a police report promptly. Reading your post, I understand that your money was likely stolen at work? You should immediately alert the owner of the business--no one wants a thief around. At my former work, if an area reported theft, our security people installed hidden cameras--and the thief, when caught, was fired for cause.

 

[sdzimm]

I fully understand how you feel. I am also sorry it happened to you

I agree with the pp. People who steal do not give too much thought to financial status of the victim. They just know they want what they are stealing.


It is doe not matter if it was $1 or $1,000. It was yours and only you had the right to it. It may be a long shot, but I hope it was misplaced.

 

[Karenj2]

If someone is going to steal, they are going to steal. I do not believe that much thought goes into it, such as "does this person have more money than me?"

I agree with the pp. People who steal do not give too much thought to financial status of the victim. They just know they want what they are stealing.

That's not quite true... Our neighborhood has had a rash of stuff being stolen from our cars, and the police think that it's because we live on a golf course, so the person/people doing it think we're well-off. We've had both of our cars been broken into (not really - each time we were idiots and left the door unlocked by accident). A while back they stole DH's GPS & phone chargers, plus a jar of change. This latest time they stole my makeup bag (a Coach clutch) thinking it was a purse. Ironically enough, they apparently were stealing the purses, taking the contents and dumping the bags, so I got the bag back.

I don't understand the mentality of someone who would do such a thing! DH and I are thinking of getting a security camera to try to catch the punks!!

 

[crispychicky]

Ugh. How awful!

I would keep a very close eye on my credit card statements as well. I've heard stories that some thieves are getting sneeky and copying down cc info and leaving the cc's physically behind so they don't appear to be stolen.

I hope you find out who did this and get your $$ back!

 

[AmongMadPeople]

That's not quite true... Our neighborhood has had a rash of stuff being stolen from our cars, and the police think that it's because we live on a golf course, so the person/people doing it think we're well-off. We've had both of our cars been broken into (not really - each time we were idiots and left the door unlocked by accident). A while back they stole DH's GPS & phone chargers, plus a jar of change. This latest time they stole my makeup bag (a Coach clutch) thinking it was a purse. Ironically enough, they apparently were stealing the purses, taking the contents and dumping the bags, so I got the bag back.

I don't understand the mentality of someone who would do such a thing! DH and I are thinking of getting a security camera to try to catch the punks!!

I take your point, but if you were going to steal merchandise from someone instead of cash, of course your perceived financial status would matter to the thief. Sorry, but I don't have a Coach clutch, or even know anyone who does! Any one who tried to steal from me would be pretty disappointed Are they stealing from you because they think you're so rich you won't care or because you just have the best stuff?

In any case, this is an important thread to remind people of the dangers of theft. If you can't park in a garage, get in the habit of hiding your valuables, and locking your car the second you step out of it. Our neighbor had a serious theft happen because they left their vehicle unlocked. I take my purse with me everywhere, to the point my husband makes fun of me, but I'm not going to leave it unattended anywhere (my parents' and in-laws' being the only exception). I have an aunt whose purse was stolen when she left her car window down while running in to pick up her granddaughter from an art class. Maybe I'm a little paranoid, but bad things happen everywhere, and I just try to prevent as much as I can.

 

[ssawka]

That's not quite true... Our neighborhood has had a rash of stuff being stolen from our cars, and the police think that it's because we live on a golf course, so the person/people doing it think we're well-off. We've had both of our cars been broken into (not really - each time we were idiots and left the door unlocked by accident). A while back they stole DH's GPS & phone chargers, plus a jar of change. This latest time they stole my makeup bag (a Coach clutch) thinking it was a purse. Ironically enough, they apparently were stealing the purses, taking the contents and dumping the bags, so I got the bag back.

I don't understand the mentality of someone who would do such a thing! DH and I are thinking of getting a security camera to try to catch the punks!!

That's not exactly what I meant. In your case, being on a golf course may have made your neighborhood a "prime target" for the theives. What I was saying is if there were a bunch of purses in a coat room, a theif will probably not think about who's purse belongs to who and how much money the owner has. They most likely will hit all of them, unless the owner of the purse is someone that the theif knows and has a reason to dislike. Like in the case of your neighborhood, I would be willing to bet that the theives did not stand in front of each house and say "I wonder how much these people have versus their neighbors" or "Will this car net more money than that car?". They were probably just looking for cars that they thought they could easily hit.

 

[SandrA9810]

If its at work, in a small building, it can be very frustrating to know some one went through your stuff when you stepped out. It's no better when they go through the fridge stealing food. How do they know if you have the money to go out and buy some thing now? How do they know if that's your only meal for the day?? They very well know that they didn't bring it in but still take it. At the same time you can't point a finger either.

I can't stand purses. Never used one. I learned very early on, if it doesn't fit in my pocket, i don't need it. Although i did have 200$ of christmas money fall out of my pocket when i thought i only pulled a 20 out. That's when i got a wallet, and keep cash in there now. No accidents since.

If it was at a friend's house and you left it in a bedroom for safe keeping... Well i'd be furious and would stop talking to all of them until the money turned up. If they care enough about you, the innocent ones will try to find the guilty one, because they don't want to tolerate it either. If they don't, well maybe they're not good friends. I know i would try to seek out the theif.

 

[ssawka]

If its at work, in a small building, it can be very frustrating to know some one went through your stuff when you stepped out. It's no better when they go through the fridge stealing food. How do they know if you have the money to go out and buy some thing now? How do they know if that's your only meal for the day?? They very well know that they didn't bring it in but still take it. At the same time you can't point a finger either.

I can't stand purses. Never used one. I learned very early on, if it doesn't fit in my pocket, i don't need it. Although i did have 200$ of christmas money fall out of my pocket when i thought i only pulled a 20 out. That's when i got a wallet, and keep cash in there now. No accidents since.

If it was at a friend's house and you left it in a bedroom for safe keeping... Well i'd be furious and would stop talking to all of them until the money turned up. If they care enough about you, the innocent ones will try to find the guilty one, because they don't want to tolerate it either. If they don't, well maybe they're not good friends. I know i would try to seek out the theif.

This is preciously why I do not carry cash. I use credit cards for everything and pay it off at the end of the month. It is much safer! At least when the credit card company robs me, I know who the thief is.

 

[Sagginit]

If its at work, in a small building, it can be very frustrating to know some one went through your stuff when you stepped out. It's no better when they go through the fridge stealing food. How do they know if you have the money to go out and buy some thing now? How do they know if that's your only meal for the day?? They very well know that they didn't bring it in but still take it. At the same time you can't point a finger either.

it was at work. i have to keep my bag in a designated area which happens to be in the bathroom so anyone who goes in can close the door, and use it w/o anyone knowing what they are doing. legally you cant put a camera there. ironically we have had someone who eats other peoples food and i have been suspicious someone was taking pieces of gum and candy out of my bag but since i dont count them i cant keep track. i am allowed to report it but i am not allowed to tell anyone else at work which is frustrating b/c i cant warn them....someone told me a while ago that there was a rumor people had reported thefts but again, its confidential so i dont know any details. i feel like i got targeted b/c i have had people make comments about things i own, bags i use, places i got (disney) etc. i hardly ever carry cash but i was supposed to go somewhere after work and needed to have the money with me and since i dont feel safe leaving it in my car it was in my bag. im also not allowed to have money in my pockets since we have cash on hand at the bussiness- even the men will leave their wallets elsewhere since its considered suspicious to be walking around with cash in your pockets when there are people dealing with cash everywhere.

thanks for the support. i think i am more angry that someone is messing with my perfectly planned budget than someone stealing from me. did i mention im going to disney in less than a month too? i was wondering if i should get photopass, do this etc and now im like well thats half of photopass cd or that would have paid for this. ugh i hope the karma catches up to them.

 

[cm8]

it was at work. i have to keep my bag in a designated area which happens to be in the bathroom so anyone who goes in can close the door, and use it w/o anyone knowing what they are doing. legally you cant put a camera there. ironically we have had someone who eats other peoples food and i have been suspicious someone was taking pieces of gum and candy out of my bag but since i dont count them i cant keep track. i am allowed to report it but i am not allowed to tell anyone else at work which is frustrating b/c i cant warn them....someone told me a while ago that there was a rumor people had reported thefts but again, its confidential so i dont know any details. i feel like i got targeted b/c i have had people make comments about things i own, bags i use, places i got (disney) etc. i hardly ever carry cash but i was supposed to go somewhere after work and needed to have the money with me and since i dont feel safe leaving it in my car it was in my bag. im also not allowed to have money in my pockets since we have cash on hand at the bussiness- even the men will leave their wallets elsewhere since its considered suspicious to be walking around with cash in your pockets when there are people dealing with cash everywhere.

thanks for the support. i think i am more angry that someone is messing with my perfectly planned budget than someone stealing from me. did i mention im going to disney in less than a month too? i was wondering if i should get photopass, do this etc and now im like well thats half of photopass cd or that would have paid for this. ugh i hope the karma catches up to them.

 

[SandrA9810]

I would seriously consider using a luggage lock on your purse. Most jobs do require you to keep your personal stuff out of sight from customers, but I've never heard of requiring to keep your wallet/cash away from registers. That's just a little absurd if you ask me.

I think you should ask your fellow co workers how they would feel if small lockers were placed in the back room. There's no reason why your personal belongings shouldn't be secured. If most agree with you, then maybe you can request it with the managers. But I'd make the report now. Sometimes reporting the problem without a solution doesn't help the situation.
Even at Disney, there were lockers at our base locations, but we were responsible for anything left in them, and providing a lock. However we were not allowed to use the locker for more than our shift, and they could be cleaned out at any time.
Same thing with the fridge. A note would be placed on it a few days before, saying "on thursday night, the fridge will be cleaned out". If they didn't collect their stuff, then it was all tossed.

As far as food. One suggestion, rinse out a bag from frozen veggies and place your food in it. Then place it in a lunch bag. People are probably gonna be turned off by eating broccoli for lunch.

 

[Jex]

Put a plastic liner in a purse, fill with red dye, hang up in your work bathroom, than catch the thief redhanded. The person with due on their hands is the one going thru purses.

 

[mickeymaker2003]

It stinks that you have to leave your purse in an unsecured (and private) location. Can you lock your wallet in the trunk of your car instead?

 

[AmongMadPeople]

The details of this situation are absolutely bizarre. Any workplace that has such stringent rules about money handling and personal belongings should provide a safe, secure, single user access, storage location. Certainly not an unsecure bathroom If I were the OP, I would be livid. You absolutely should lock your purse somehow - I'd get some sort of small bag (luggage type) and securely lock the purse in it.

 

[LuluLovesDisney]

I have 2 ideas- one I would do, one probably not--

First, I teach high school so I don't keep any valuables in my purse, just pens, lipstick, bottled water, my planner, phone -- things like that. I need a $5 bill for when I buy lunch (if I don't bring it) and I roll it up and keep it in my bra. I never keep cash in my purse at school, even though it is behind my desk, just in case. You never know when a principal or guidance counselor will come to your door and ask to "speak to you privately" and things can happen in 2 minutes. I would advise you to do the same.

Second, you could replace your candy/mints with a nice minty or chocolaty laxative and try to see who the culprit is that way. Just don't eat them yourself.