We have this lady from Africa who walks our neighborhood. We have invited her up on the porch before and gave her like a sandwich, chips and drink and she asked for a few cigarettes.
A couple times she has come back and asked a for cigarettes.
Anywho, as you may know, I’ve been trying to quit smoking. So I keep this glass ashtray with a few cigarette butts out on the front porch (I dont smoke insides generally, but I have a couple times in the basement when its really cold).
I was out last night and all was well with it.
I just woke up at 2 am really craving a butt and I went outside and all the good butts are gone and the ashtray is broken.
The most likely scenario is that she came up on our porch in the middle of the night and dropped the ashtray on the ground while stealing all my butts.
Now, the loss of a few butts is not that big of a deal except that I dont have anything else here, dont really want to buy a full pack, and would have to drive a couple miles away to get more at this time of night.
This angers me enough that now I dont want to give her cigarettes if I have them anymore.
Yes, I know…poor lady cant afford cigarettes. I’m sure some of you are going to say that.
But it pisses me off she is sneaking on our property in the middle of the night and stealing and breaking stuff.
I think the most important point to make is that we really don’t know who did it. Assuming it’s this woman is unfair I think. It could be her. But we don’t know.
Yes, it is crime but I have no intention of reporting it to the police. I somewhat am sympathetic and I dont want jail time or anything. Just dont want her trespassing in the middle of the night.
Yes, it is not 100 percent, but I know no one else who wanders the neighborhood, and knows I keep an ashtray on the interior of the porch.
She also often stops when walking by and stares at me while I’m smoking my butts. I wave. I hadnt offered any cigarettes lately because I havent been keeping full packs often, just the butts.
I really dont see who else would be interested in sneaking up on my porch to search for an ashtray , which is not kept out in plain sight, and steal a bunch of butts in the middle of the night.
Can I say 100% sure its her, no. Am I 90% sure? Sure enough to withhold inviting her up again? Yes.
When i was still smoking cigarettes people would ask me for cigarettes. It’s an expensive habit. I was nice about but I had to start saying I have none.
Don’t be afraid to tell her no. When I needed a cigarette I would ask and I replaced it to whom gave me one/two.