Chasing Some Adolescent Gargoyles

Mounted Madness · May 13, 2011

My wife and I were sitting at the diningroom table after dinner, talking and I noted my across the street neighbours had hopped into their car with the dog a short time before and gone out.

About 1/2 hour later, I see this kid (it's still daylight) wandering up from the street, between houses, and being kind of sneaky about it, into the back yard. I do the whisky tango foxtrot question and head out to the garage and hit the opener. As the door is rolling up, I know see another teenager with the first one, they both see me, and then they run like the wind. Well, I don't run anymore, gave it up to preserve my knees.

I'm yelling at these rats as their running down the street, telling 'em to never come back, I'll recognize 'em, blahblahblah. I go across the street to make sure there hadn't been a break in, do the perimeter and come home and phone 911 for police. 9 rings later, I finally get police dispatch. Tell 'em who I am, provide descriptors, all the usual stuff. I know nothing is going to happen, too late to follow up with...and since nothing really happened, worst case would be a 'trespass' complaint.

As I get off the phone, I see my neighbour return. I head back out, basically order his wife to hop out and I jump in. Having had a couple of brewskies, don't need to be behind the wheel. Neighbour is retired military, so away we go. WE patrol the neigbourhood and find the 2 about 3 blocks away.

We pull up close, they see us, realize who it is and run. Now we're chasing deer...running them to exhaustion, we hope. Played this game many times before, and pretty much can tell how it'll play out. Lose 'em, see 'em, chase e'm, and so on. Anyway, see 'em in a backyard, give chase on foot, and they run. Householder is at the back, yelling at them as well.

Turns out the householder knows the two boys. The boys were hoping to get the householders son to let them in, to hide out, but the kid wasn't home.

Anyway, householders knew the boys, and called their house. They were stoned and screwing around. Frightened, exhausted, and when householder put me on the phone, really scared. They did 'man up' and came over to apologize.

I verbally walked up one side and down the other of these two boys, strongly cautionned them about doing such 'haunting' ever again, and let them go.

Householders, neighbour and myself - we all came to the same conclusions...

1. These boys were (probably) NEVER going to do this again...they were scared.
2. All of us were on the same page...which was great
3. IT DOES TAKE a community to raise a child.

Oh yeah, we had been out and about the neighbourhood for about an hour...never did see a police car.

Now it's nap time...

...:laughing:

LoveTheSmellofDiesel · May 13, 2011

Good for you MM... Some things come to my mind thinking about "nowadays"...

Nowadays, most would look the other way and be worried the boys had a weapon...and say it's someone else's problem and go right back to the brewskies

Nowadays, most would probably look at you chasing the boys and side with the poor boys are just misunderstood, came from a bad upbringing, lost too many games - yet rewarded for the effort

Nowadays, the police may just harass you for being a vigilante

I could go on. I've hit the age that now I shake my head and say, wow, I've become my father - saying what is on my mind without regard to what others think - usually based on a higher morale compass and discipline he handed down. It is time that more folks step up and demand a higher standard, and to make things right versus leaving it to be "someone else's problem".

Thanks for the story.

Mounted Madness · May 13, 2011

LoveTheSmellofDiesel said:
Good for you MM... Some things come to my mind thinking about "nowadays"...
... It is time that more folks step up and demand a higher standard, and to make things right versus leaving it to be "someone else's problem".

Thanks for the story.

I'll tell ya, I was really happy that the 'householders' were on side. It could have been a bad scene. I kind of knew these folks, they'd built a big shop at the back of their place, and I've done the same in the past year. I really don't want kids 'investigating' what I've got in my shop and I know these other folks didn't either.

There was no 'laying on of hands' with these 2 kids (16 and 15), but one of them almost challenged me when I asked him what his name was. He re-thought his response when he was asked again, with a little more vigour.

I know how things were when I was a kid, and the respect you had to give adults. It was clear these kids were prepared to accept responsibility for their actions, minor though it was...so I'm confident the lesson was well learned. :thumbsup:

moored4 · May 13, 2011

Simply!!

Good Job All Around! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

potstirrer · May 13, 2011

moored4 said:
Simply!! Good Job All Around! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

Here here!!!
:drink:

Marveltone · May 13, 2011

Good on ya! We raise, too often, tall boys and not enough men.

Joe

Taylortractornut · May 15, 2011

Im having trouble with the neighbor hood renter kids. THeys a half mile away and walk up this way and pilfer. We caught 3 last year stealing copper ground wire of f the power poles. One in which was hit by lightnening and not having the ground did some damage to my home. I called the law 4 times and cant get one sorry deputy up here. Well after replacing a computer and fridge and a few other items from the powerline damage I saw them taking the new ground wires and I called the law. Well the dispatcher said the nearest deputy was 45 minutes away. You can drive across the whole county in 45 miniutes and Im in the middle. I just told the dispatcher get me the cororners office Ill take care of it. I had 4 deputies here in 5 minutes lol.

They got one of the kids DUI and one had a bag of dope and about 50 pounds of copper wire in his car. Now when we call we have someone out here in a few minutes.