Prevention is Key

   As with anything that has ever gone wrong, prevention would obviously been the key. If you know your car tires are wearing thin, then buy new tires, not re-treads (They're a waste of money in the long run). There are so many times in life that we wish we had hind sight, you know, I wish I had done this or that, then that or this wouldn't have happened.
   Well, though prevention is always a great thing, sometimes we actually need things to happen to us so we can understand the need for prevention. If you've never experienced anything bad, then life would seem to just mosey along in your favor you'd never become aware of the dangers lurking around the corner. Back in '97, I was driving a little Honda Civic. I came home late one evening and parked in my stall. The next day, I went to leave for work and when I got to my space, the car was gone. Though I wasn't worried about the car because I had insurance, I knew that the valuables I left in the glove box would be history. I lost two nice watches, a lot of CDs, some cash and the faceplate to my stereo. The stereo box that was in the dash would have been worthless to the thief if I had just taken the faceplate in the house.
   Since that time, I no longer leave anything I consider valuable in my car. I carry a small backpack that contains my GPS unit, my stereo faceplate, my iPod, spare cash, my tire lug-nut lock (so they can't easily steal my custom wheels) and anything else that is not easily replaced. Yes, prevention is the key!
   What is in your car? Do you have a weapon? What about an expensive flashlight or a stereo faceplate? Do you keep your checkbook in the car? What's in the trunk?
   I'm not suggesting that you have to remove everything from your vehicle each time you get out of the car, but you should be very aware that thieves will break in if they even see small change in the center console.
   Just because you live in what might be considered a "secure" apartment, just know that there is really nothing 100% secure. I have a friend that has left their laptop computer in their car overnight. To me, that's crazy! If you were a thief that was intentionally wandering through a "secure" garage, wouldn't it make sense to break into the car with the laptop sitting in the back seat.
   Prevention is about removing the possibility. If you have things in the back seat of your car that are valuable, then throwing a blanket over them is not prevention. Covering things with a blanket is a well written note to any would be thief that you have something valuable worthy of being hidden, and worthy of being stolen.
   The subject of prevention can go on and on. Today's topic was really about preventing theft from one's car, but I will be discussing in future blogs about how to raise one's awareness level and how it works in conjunction with preventing all types of loss in Situations X.