A friend of mine recently lost her mobile phone after a hold-up in broad daylight. You would really be surprised at the casualness with which these robberies occur. It could be the well-dressed teenager beside you on the jeep, or a woman seemingly dozing off. Which reminds me that I have my phone for exactly one year now. I lost my first phone December 2000, on a waiting shed outside a mall while I waited for the street lights to change. Whoever stole it didn't poke a knife at me, s/he simply stuck his/her hand inside my bag. The moment you realize you don't have it anymore, you look around you, trying to identify a suspect. But everyone is rushing off in different directions, and there really aren't any cops to ask help from. It's gone, never to be seen ever again. And I only had that phone for a month. Darn.

I don't have the same luck with backpacks. A month ago, I discovered that my bright purple pack had a huge gush on its pocket. Not so big as to get something, but it really pisses me off. It happened to me twice already. Even with all the precautions you take, a single unguarded can cause you your valuables. Or maybe I just don't have that much luck with that particular kind of bag. Or maybe I should just be thankful that I escaped from the ordeal unhurt? Something in me just doesn't agree with that. I worked hard and paid good money for my stuff, and somebody just comes along and takes it. Absurd, absurd life.