Hi everyone. I’m usually not a poster here, I’m more of a comments kind of guy. But I don’t know what else to do and my head is spinning.
So, I’m out eating with my mom in what we over here in Mexico call a fonda, which is like a small house where you can eat some food. It’s kind of like a diner mixed with a street vendor that isn’t on a street. Anyways, we’re eating minding our own business and some guy bursts in waving a gun around and screaming. He points it right at my face and takes my cellphone out of my breast pocket. Then turns around and takes some more cellphones and stuff and everyone’s just super jumpy. Then he runs out and away he goes.
So that’s a shitty day. I keep thinking what if the gun had gone off and it makes me sick to my guts.
We called the police but that’s just as useless.
Thanks! I keep telling that to myself, that any cellphone in the world just ain’t worth it. I am really grateful for being alive and the guy didn’t even hit me or anything. He was super young too.
That’s horrible. I’m glad you and your mom are safe.
You probably need some time to process, but when have a chance, if you don’t have insurance on your phone covering theft, you might if you bought it or made the down payment with a credit card. Credit card companies often cover things they don’t go out of their way to advertise. Might be worth checking out.
Unfortunately no, but it was pretty old. I’ve been signing out of all my accounts, just in case.
You should have seen him. He was nervous as fuck and definitely first timer. One of the other costumers stood up, I guess he was bugging or something, but he’s a huge dude, and the mugger was tiny. So he really freaked the fuck out. That’s when he left.
So sorry to hear that. I’m sure you and your mom felt frightened and violated. Still, it could have ended up worse. Here ya go:
If it’s a smartphone and you can wipe it remotely, even better. Unfortunately you won’t see the device again, but it doesn’t sound like this punk is a criminal mastermind who’ll use the info on the phone.
I’m going to say some things that might not apply to you, but come from personal experience, so if it doesn’t fit, just ignore it.
First off: I’m happy that you’re okay. The fact that no one was physically hurt is always worth feeling good about.
Second of all: This is something I think a lot of people don’t like to believe, and it sometimes leads to feelings of guilt and shame: You did nothing wrong. It is okay to be robbed, and it’s okay to let mere possessions go and not risk your life for them. You shouldn’t feel the slightest bit ashamed of that.
Feeling of powerlessness are normal and valid and it’s a completely acceptable emotional response to stress like this. I’m not going to tell you that how you feel is somehow wrong. Anger is also a normal response to something like this. Just be aware that these feelings shouldn’t necessarily dictate how you behave or how you view yourself. The thief had to make you fear for your life to get what he wanted. This is not someone who fundamentally controls the world more than you do. You aren’t powerless, you’re just not as desperate to keep your phone as he was to take it.
You might not be able to sleep tonight, and you might have really bad dreams. All of this is normal, if disturbing. You might also start to get more irritable with friends or loved ones. Also, very normal. Try and slow down, avoid caffeine, find activities that make you feel more relaxed, and distract yourself from intrusive thought. Your feelings will get better with time.
Sending good vibes your way, for whatever it’s worth.
Thanks guys. You can’t even imagine the headache I’ve got right now. Today rightfully sucked, but I’m thankful to be alive and well. Hugs out to you!
Hey, thanks for all the advice. While I certainly don’t feel ashamed about it (I mean, I’m no Spider-Man) I do feel angry that this sort of stuff happens. I will follow all of your advice. I’m listening to some Albert Collins to soothe the nerves.
Exactly. My mom tells me that she was worried about me and I tell her I was worried about her. Talk about glass half full.
Yeah. Luckily (or unluckily) she didn’t bring her cellphone with her, and the mugger wasn’t physical with us, perhaps because it was a big group. The thing is that sometimes if you don’t have anything valuable with you it might go very wrong, so there’s really no way to keep those jerks satisfied.
