They raped your house, man. They went somewhere they were not supposed to go. A man's house is his castle, and to have intruders is not a good feeling. I would be pissed as well.

Our cable used to be really shitty, so I had my separate DSL so I could keep competing in Q3. Well, the cable went out, and dad hooked everyone into my DSL. I was fine with this, but Howard would download shit for HOURS right in the middle of matches. Howard, in case you weren't here before he left, was the guy that rented a room from my dad. Anyway, I was matching, and his light on my switch started blinking rapidly and I lagged out. Well, I unplugged him.

The next day, without asking me or my dad or ANYONE else, he went INTO my bedroom, pulled out my switch, and plugged himself back in. That's MY stuff and MY room, and it's UNACCEPTABLE that someone else violate it. I was LIVID. That is one of the few times in recent memory that I have been truly angry. Anyway, I understand how you feel, definitely.

Any firearms class that does not teach safety too is dangerous. In fact, it would be dangerous to *teach*. No sane instructor is going to want to be on the range with students who don't have good safety practice drilled into them. Not following safety rules will get you thrown out of any firearms class worthy of the name.

A cheap way to get a taste of what is/should be taught in such a class is the NRA <i>Basics of Pistol Shooting</i> book....$6 direct from NRA and worth every penny.http://store.nrahq.org/nra/product.a...%5Fid=EF+13270

After that, I'd recommend <i>The Concealed Handgun Manual</i> by Chris Bird (Privateer Publications, ISBN 0-9656784-6-6 phone orders at 1-888-700-4333) A bit pricer at $17.95, 332 pages. The subtitle of this book is "How to choose, carry and shoot a gun in self-defense" http://www.bookzone.com/bookzone/10001001.html
Beating? Arrest? How about getting shot?

But the fact that nothing is missing really does suggest that it was someone who knows you and was sure there would be no consequences. Why indeed would someone gain entry to your house and not steal anything? I'm willing to bet a) it's someone you know (or kids from your neighborhood) having a laugh at your expense, b) they'll never be caught unless they confess, c) if they are caught the worst they'll get is a lecture from the judge and a suspended misdemenor sentence.

i dont think it was anyone we know, we are new to the area and no maybe 3 people, none of whom know where we live, except for my landlord (if i find out it was him im breaking my lease and moving). it could be a neighbourhood kid. little bastards. ive sort of come to the conclusion that it was someone who didnt think through what they were doing. given the way the note was written, both grammatically and and the handwriting, i tend to think it was one of the teenaged kids from down the street. oh well. fuck him. if i ever find proof, he will have the police at his door. if not, well, im watching him now.

~james

Sounds like this kid or whoever is just getting off in your space. There is an interesting film I picked up recently at the video store- It's British and called "Following" The main character is a frustrated writer who becomes interested in other people's spaces, starts with following strangers and leads to breaking in. Its well done. The burgling is secondary to the invasion and messing with the victim's heads. If thats not too creepy, you may find it interesting.

Lock up, If you think its this kid, and he's not too threatening, I would even just say, "If I find you've been in my space, you're going to jail." to let him know you're aware.

threatening? he reminds me of scott evil from austin powers. :) i think ill check that movie out tonight. thanks.

~james

I hadn't even considered the pisscycho landlord angle... thats a creepy thought. Anyway, you got some great advice from russ and mag all I'd add is something which I always had in my apartments over the years, a baseball bat.

now theres an idea. the satisfying CLANG! of the louisville slugger. hehe. :)

~james

I've been a victim of a B&E involving about US$10,000 in losses, mostly stereo equipment and sports collectibles All replaceable stuff really, except that all the movies of my kids growing up were in the same box as the CDs. That's a senseless loss that is hard to get over. But, even then, I had to realise that people suffer floods, hurricanes and fires all the time and I should get that loss in perspective.

Another point I learned from the police ... they've got more serious things to investigate than my insurable losses.

If you want to get the police involved in your case, just be aware that the time they spend discussing home security with you is time they should be spending preventing crimes, not solving your mystery.

I'm sympathetic to your feelings, but the cops see a lot worse every day and they won't be.

oh, yeah. im aware that they wont be sending any evidence to the boys down at the crime lab. i dont expect them to find the culprit or even do anything beyond file the report away in their files. the only reason i filed the report in the first place was because i hoped the sight of a police officer at our house would deter them from doing it again. i promise i didnt make him hang around any longer than was necessary (though the officer was very interested in the different wines on my wine rack)

~james

Damn. talk about signs of the times.

There was a time when Louisville Sluggers were made of ash, not aluminium.

frankly i have no idea what theyre made of. i just like the word 'CLANG!'.

~james

Oh. I thought you made it a clang for a metal bat....which have replaced wooden bats in a lot of places.

In fact, if you hit someone in the head with a baseball bat of either material, I think the sound is likely to be the "crunch" of a skull fracture; those things are very nasty; the cannonical "blunt instrument".

well, one can hope for a metal plate in the target area. :)

~james

If you want bat speed go aluminum, if its classic bonecrushing ala ethnic mens club of choice get the lumber.

what about corked?

~james