by Bob Harris
Columnist

Here’s a true story that might ruin the Spirit of Christmas. Temperatures have been very cold and when I get a little exercise by walking around West Acres like hundreds of you do, I brought in my Nook-HD from the car because I didn’t want to leave it out in the cold. Here’s what happened, my son needed some help with his shoes. We sat down at one of the many places available in the shopping center and went to work on the crooked tongue of his tennis shoes. I set down my drink, set down the Nook, fixed the shoes on my son’s feet and guess what? Forgot to pick up the Nook. Realized the stupid thing I had done…turned around and darted to the spot we had sat and it’s gone. The FM area is a great place to live. I have lived in this town since I was five years old. I was raised to be honest and to obey the rules and if I found something that didn’t belong to me I was to bring it to my parents, or the lost and found department of the place I found it. In two simple words BE HONEST.

Well that obviously didn’t happen in my case. I called Barnes and Noble’s hotline and closed the account. They would also keep track of the serial number and if anyone tried to register it again, it would be refused. For over a week I called to see if someone had turned it in to Lost and Found and nothing. But I was little surprised on a couple other things during this incident. I called local pawn shops to ask them to keep an eye out for the device. Two had no problem telling me if and when they had seen it while another said they wouldn’t talk to me until I filed a police report. There was a very unique marking on it so it would be easy to spot. So I drove down to Fargo Police Department and filed a report. My deductible for my insurance was too high so there was no relief there either. So I wait and nothing. I made a mistake and I’ll pay for it by coughing up some money for a new one. I was just getting used to it too. It’s almost like losing your watch. You know what I mean?

So for the person who grabbed my Nook, I hope you are enjoying it. I hope you feel proud of your accomplishment in life. You stole something, and that probably makes you a big person with your friends. So I hope when you and I meet, you can tell me how much fun you’ve had with it.

Oh by the way, (BTW) do you know what surveillance cameras are?

bob.harris@mwcradio.com