Inner city chesham
At the moment it feels like I have been transported back to Liverpool, with a series of unpleasant incidents in our road that seems out of character with the semi rural home counties location.
The first incident was arson in the block of flats at the end of the road, followed by a very nasty incident when a baby was dropped out of the window of an upper flat in the same block, and is being treated as attempted murder.
The next week I got back from choir to find Tim watching out of the bedroom window, when he is normally snoring, and our front garden mildly vandalised. Apparently I had only just missed catching them in the act, and we are not sure if that is good or bad!
On the Thursday in the same week, not long after collecting the car from the mechanics, a neighbour knocked on the door to tell us that a local kid had just smashed the window on our car. We were grateful for the heads up as it was hidden from the house and could have lead to much worse. There was a mad dash by me back to the garage (in easy running distance) to catch them before they shut, while tjprent cleared enough glass off the driving seat to be able to drive round there and have them lock it up securely in their workshop.
Once my panic attack had calmed a bit, I pulled myself together enough to go up the street and, armed with pictures, speak to the mother of the boy who had been seen by the car. She was horrified, and quite good about it rather than defensive, and later negotiations lead to half the cost being given into our hands.
I got home late that night to find Tim leaning out of the bedroom window again, watching the police up the road. Apparently (we later found out) the kid and his friends had a long running issue with the neighbour who had shopped them, and this had escalated when the mother confronted them about our car. The boy was arrested as a result. Tim was already up when the blue lights went by as the youths had already been loitering around our house not long before, looking as if they were planning something. If it was them on Tuesday as well perhaps it is better I didn't catch them!
On the positive side, I am very pleased at how well I have dealt with it. After an initial "I can't cope" moment I err, did.
There have been good things going on too. Looking out to see red kites close up is a privilege, and we have escaped for a free (!) holiday thanks to purplemandylou and T's parents.
Hopefully it will all calm down a bit here now, especially with exam fever over.