An eventful couple of days…I’ll work my way through it.

Thursday night, [gleaned via the video camera archives] : one of the bonbon spawn, her eldest, got a phone call…about 7:30 pm. While on the phone, he walks around the back of one of the primary machines, nodding his head, and observing where items are plugged into the back. For the next 15 minutes or so he walks back and forth, periodically looking right into the camera… a nervous look on his face. After his mom left, at about 8pm, we see him come out the side door and then hear the rear door open up a few moments later. A box is placed over the camera to black out anything from being seen. (Ooh… clever! I wonder what secret agent broke in and did that while he was out on a “smoke break”?) Anyhoo, “someone” then smacked the camera, and knocked it, supposedly aiming it up… what he didn’t realize is that the whole laser room was still in the field of vision… there was just less floor, and more roof. Something else that he didn’t know was that two minutes or less after pulling out the hardware key, all production on that machine ground to a stop, as the data was dammed up, forbidden to pass from servers to the Xerox printers. He calls tech support, and they walk him through a checklist of repair possibilities… but he doesn’t work with the computer at all, because he full well knows what caused the problem. He clocks out and goes home, since the machine will have to have Xerox come in and diagnose the “problem”. [End camera 1]

Cut to Friday morning, 6am, Xerox techs come in to evaluate the problem. It takes less than a minute to discover that the dongle is missing, and exactly *when* it was pulled out last night. The only two people working that evening; both of the bonbon spawn. Older “Thief” brother, and younger “Accomplice” brother. By checking the alarm and camera logs on all the doors and possible entrances.. Nobody came or went that wasn’t a child of Bonnie’s. 8:30 am, when the board members tart to arrive, they look at the security tapes and security logs mentioned above. The police were called, and Bonnie and her children were telephoned, and asked to come in. Morty, one of our guys that work in the computer bank in the front with Riker has a big mouth, called and told Bonnie what was up, soon afterwards.

10am, they all arrive, and Thief is pale white, and has the hardware key with him. He returns it, and says “no harm, no foul, right?”

Wrong. That piece of hardware comes with a $15,000 licensing fee. Taking it is grand theft. A felony good for about 15 years in the state of Florida. He also cost us printer and click time from 8pm to 6am during prime printing hours, unknown costs in paying people overtime, Xerox service, and catch-up .The police grilled The three of them almost all day yesterday. Aside from theft, there’s also a vandalism charge.

The Accomplice came through, totally straight with what he knew. I do believe that he had no idea something of that magnitude was going on.

Thief went through a couple of stories. “The system went down, and it was hanging off loosely. I pulled it off to look at it, and accidentally put it in my jeans and took it home. I returned it.. No harm done, right?” *BUZZ* wrong answer! The system didn’t go down until it was yanked out. It doesn’t hang loosely; it’s screwed in with a pair of thumb-bolts. Try again… let’s go to the videotape. And why exactly did you cover the camera up? Uh, I was just goofing around… I didn’t think anything would happen. “Goofing around, by covering up a security camera, and taking hardware off the system, causing it to crash? Sounds like a laugh riot.

He has a wife and a child at home. What kind of idiot throws away his life for swiping a piece of hardware worth $15k?

Right now, it’s unknown if accomplice and bonbon will have jobs on Monday. That has to go before the board. Thief is certainly going to be fired. The board is going to decide about pressing charges. I suspect that if he comes through with who called him, and told him to swipe that part, they’ll make a deal with him to catch either Big Bird or Ex-boss in a bigger suit. (Remember, Big bird is already in trouble for stealing a $4000 piece of equipment, and selling it to ex boss.).

If the big guys can get nailed, I don’t think they’ll have a problem with letting the thief off with just being fired, instead of going off to jail to be anally taken regularly by his cellmate.

We’ll see what Monday brings. Friday night, I tucked in early, worn out from all the Police hubbub and all the noise.

This morning, I took Newt to the Vet for his 6 month bordatello immunization and fecal test. I was smart, and went tootsie-roll collecting, and tossed it into a Ziploc bag for them to investigate, so he didn’t need the lubricated bubble wand stuck in his bung. That’s one less stress to add to his list. The immunization consisted of a few drops put in his nose, rather than a shot….he didn’t mind that too much, but wasn’t fond of the vet rubbing his belly and bod for unusual lumps or tumors. (He’s looking good!) His weight is the same as it was six months ago, which is good.. Not getting too fat or too thin.

While standing in the front room, waiting for my ride, Newt in my arms, as sweet as can be…. in comes a guy with a mid-sized cocker spaniel. The thing is a spaz, and starts baking at Newt, loudly and excitedly, jumping about mid-waist height to me. The owner, an older lady was having trouble… she panicked a bit, probably because I told her to reel in her dog rather sharply but quietly. Newt puffs up in my arms, tail straight up and looking like it was electrified, and let out the loudest *RAWRAWRAUUUUUUUUUUUU* at the dog that I’ve ever heard. The dog whined sharply, tossed his tail between his legs and hid behind his owner, and began to cry like he’d been beaten with a two by four… The lady took him to a back room shortly thereafter. Dumb-bully dog. Newt continued to growl lowly until our ride arrived, a few minutes later.

A soon as we got outside the office, Newt relaxed, and got extra comfy in my arms for the ride home. Who knew he could get so fierce? Lesson… I’m quite confident that he could hold his own in a fight, or at least a chest-beating match.

After arriving home, I spent much time playing with the little banshee (who hasn’t so much as given a “mer?” since) on the bed, and he seems perfectly calm and collected.

notes : picture of Danger the turtle was drawn last night… Newt-attack mer was drawn today during laundry.