Car Thief

After a wonderful 7 day cruise to Mexico with hubs and friends, I land in L.A. to do a business trip visiting 7 banks and credit unions. Since there was a ton of driving in 2 days for this, my very reliable sister flew in from Arizona to be my driver. We met at the L.A. airport to send hubs home and get the rent a car to head to Ventura.

Oh lookie! A HUGE outlet mall! Let's go! OK!!! It is so so huge - you would not believe it - in Camarillo. We decided to eat first so we pull up to Panera Bread for a yummy dinner. My sister refilled her tea, me my coffee so we could take our drinks as we shopped. I remember her saying she wanted Harry and David samples for dessert, so we went there first.

After walking and shopping for one hour, we decide it is time to call it a day. Guess WHAT? OUR CAR WAS GONE!!! totally = we looked everywhere in front of Panera Bread and on both sides. Gone. All of our things were there - my lap top, passport, ipod, clothes, her phone. I DID have my cell with me, but no charger and the batteries were nearly dead.

We went back into Panera and announced that someone had stole our car! The manager there was the sweetest man, and gave us tea, coffee, and cookies as he called the security.

I stayed inside to call the rent a car place to report the theft and to order another car. Unfortunately we had to take a shuttle an hour away to BURBANK to get a replacement AFTER the police report is done. GUESS what their phone number to call back ended in?? 666 - not even kidding!

I get off the phone and walk to a table of young college students to see if I could charge my phone on their laptop - and noticed they go to Westmont. So, I said "Do you know David Fertello?" and one of them said "I roomed with him in Europe on orchestra tour!" So that nice young man drove me to the Verizon store to get a charger.

While Jerry the security guard was on the phone to fetch the police, they told him to ask us what we are wearing so they can find us - and we said "we are two blondes with matching coats, only one is purple the other brown".

While I went to Verizon, my sister waited for the police in order to fill out the report. One policeman drove around looking for the car while the report was being filled out.

I came back from store, and told police and sister that we cannot get a car this night unless we go to Burbank, and we almost were upset. It was cold, raining,and that thief had all of our things. The very kind policeman offered us a ride to the hotel in his car! We had to ride in the back though - so we jumped in. As we pulled up to the hotel, got out of the back of a police car, we were laughing hysterically, while being sad at the same time.

We told the front desk man of our plight, and he was so sorry for us. He arranged a driver to take us to Walmart (at 9pm) to: "get a business suit for me"??? Really now, Walmart. I needed shoes too. Makeup - etc. etc....etc......We make our $135 purchase, and call the hotel for a ride back. As soon as we return to the hotel, I get a call from the security man Jerry exclaiming gleefully "Guess what I am standing next to?"
I said "OUR CAR!" I was elated! I asked if things were still in it - but WE had the key. At first signs, there were "no signs of tampering and the doors are locked". He said "It is parked by the Tommy Hilfiger store" and I said "where is that?" he said "near Harry and David". I gulped a tad.....then the phone call with Jerry was interrupted with a call from our police friend, saying our car was found - and he arranged for his partner to pick us up from the hotel to take us to our car! We raced out of there, telling the front desk clerk the good news!!!!

Once again, a ride in the back of a police car - really weird seats - they are bucket plastic seats so they can be cleaned. (THAT made our minds wander) As we passed Panera Bread, the police asked if we were sure we parked there, and we said YES - we went straight to Panera for dinner before shopping. We exclaimed as he passed Panera Bread at how large the mall is, and he told us it is the largest outlet mall in the US. We ooed and awed at the stores - Harry and David, Coach. We were still not positive how the car got there!

Pulling up to the missing but found car were three police cars and our famous security guard Jerry. He was so joyful at his find! We opened the trunk, where we discovered my OPEN suitcase. They said "check to see if anything is missing" - which I did, and said I cannot see that anything is missing. (I could not bear to tell them that I had left it open when I got my rain coat out of it)- they thought it was so weird that the thief would not take my laptop, or anything of value that was lying next to the open suitcase.

We hugged them and thanked them and said goodbye to our new friends. When we got in the car, the proof was sitting in the cup holder - there was my sister's tea that she had brought from the Panera Bread. (I tossed my coffee cup after the Coach outlet) We DID go to the car and drive to the other parking lot! WOWSERS!!!!

We started back to the hotel, having NO idea at all WHERE it was since we had only been taken there in the back of the police car. Driving around and around making illegal you-turns, a police car pulls up and turns his little siren on. We look over, and it was our friend! He escorted us back to the hotel and we once again said goodbye.

We were elated to tell the hotel front desk clerk we had ALL of our things - but we had to admit to him the entire story. He could not stop laughing.

Next day, everything was returned to Walmart - except for the matching donkey jammies that we bought in honor of the bad bad thief - oops. (donkey - get it?)