This is a public service announcement...

I hate stuff like this. But as women, we all have probably done this at one time or another and thought we were completely safe.

Have you ever gone on a walk (in Pittsburgh, we go to the Reservoir a lot) and put your purse in the trunk?

Well, here in Highland Park, there are guys that hide in the woods, waiting for you to do just that, and then they steal your purse. So far the police can't figure out how they got into the trunks, there are no signs of entry except, of course, that your purse is gone. The one woman who reported it to our neighborhood list serv didn't check her purse until she was in Monroeville (10 miles away) and at the mall, where she'd hoped to return some stuff. Instead, she found that thieves had racked up her credit cards on gas and groceries.

This stuff happens every day, but as we get closer to the holidays, it gets worse.

My dear internets, be safe!