Surviving In The Old South End

Well, I was having a pretty good day until I took a neighbor out to get her perscription at the Kroger at Southland (she refuses to use the "Rite-Aid" at Broadway and South because the clerks there are "snooty" even though it is three blocks away vs. 3.5 miles). She treated ne to lunch at the Glendale Garden Cafe. I enjoyed a bowl of potato soup (the special on Monday). She had a half sandwich and a cup of soap. About 2:30 PM we got to Kroger's at Southland, and spent about 35 minutes shopping (women!). We leave about 3:05, get home in 15 minutes, and I helped her unload her stuff, and got to my garage about 3;30 PM. I found the garage door open. I probably didn't check to see if it went down, and stayed down (the "child protection" feature on the door works quite well, any obstruction causes it to rise up again). I pulled in and began my inspection. Tools (check!), snowthrower (check!), lawn mower, lawn mower, where the hell's the lawn mower, oh, sonuvabitch the bastards stole my lawnmower, Oh, God, Oh, Christ, oh crap. Tell my mom, and go out into the alley to see if there is some kind of trail. Start to walk toward Walbridge, turn left, see a neighbor at the corner of Chapin and Walbridge, and the letter carrier. "You see anyone pushing a red lawn-mower" "No, what happened". Explained what happened, and continued up the street, crossed, and turned north on the alley between 300 block of Chapin and Havre. Pass the back yards of the new houses they're building on the 300 block of Chapin. Hear a call behind me. A blond woman motions toward me. I walk back (not in good enough shape to run for no reason). I asked if she called me. She had. She had seen a "black guy pushing a red lawn-mower" on Walbridge toward the park at about 2:30 PM. I head that way. I see a couple of young black guys, but no lawn mower (of course, it's been over an hour). I go home. I at least have a serial number (but is it for that lawnmower or the replacement I bought when one got its guts chewed up by a stake rising errantly from the ground). Well, I've got a serial number. I then find that my BC90Y Troy weed eater is missing. I don't have a serial number for that. An expensive day when you leave your garage door open in the Old South End of Toledo, OH.