Karma

Last Sunday my loyal steed (= bicycle) was stolen from outside my office building. Desolate university campus on a Sunday evening + cable lock => Bike Thieves 1, Me 0. Walking to the police station with a broken cable lock in hand, I could not have felt dumber.. The police are constantly (ok, not exactly constantly) leaving notes on bikes and reminding us to use a bic-pen-proof-U-lock AND a cable lock since the thieves usually have equipment to foil only one type. My Integra Flex lock made from aircraft cable, copper wiring, diamonds, braided by tiny dexterous gnomes was not cut, but twisted/wrenched from the lock housing. vom. vom. Fortunately I have a backup steed, but what a terrible feeling to have someone steal from you! vom. Hopefully (if my bike is not already enjoying its new life in Mexico City or Guatamala) I will have the chance to enact one of the many plans I've concocted for dealing with the perpetrator. A 4-foot jumping roundhouse kick to the front tire? A rugby-style tackle of the rider?

Anyway.. it's all bad karma from not trying to stop a theif on the previous day. I watched a kid run off with a woman's purse and, like everyone else around, did nothing. I could have chased after him on my bike. Too many rational thought had flooded by head: 1) the kid could have taken me, 2) if I yelled at him, he'd probably keep running, 3) if i ran him over on my bike, I'd go flying to the ground too. ugh.. I was so disappointed at my inability to act on impulse.. live a little.

In some ways, I'm glad to have bad things happen to me now and then. It keeps life real, removes the feeling of invincability..