Anyway, it created a huge headache for my sister's family. My brother in law, Jay, called the car rental company, and was told he would need to file a police report before he could get a replacement vehicle. We called the police using 311. No one showed up. We called again. No one showed up. When we complained, we were told to go to the police station and file the report. So we did.

When we explained why we were there, the cop chastised us for leaving the "crime scene." One thing I admire about Jay, is his ability not to put up with any shit. So he admonished the officer for not having a cohesive system for filing reports.

It took forever to file the report, and even longer to get a new rental. He had to pay over $500 for the stolen GPS system. The car was insured but there was a deductable for stolen property. Ridiculous. The whole process took about 6 hours and cost them their only full day here.

It would have been nice if someone seemed interested in finding the individual responsible for the theft right after it happened, but no one was even remotely interested in patrolling the area where the crime occurred.

I realize these crimes happen all the time in DC, but they might happen less frequently with some common sense follow up.

A few years ago, I saw a woman getting her head bashed against a brink wall by some thug in our alley. I called 911 and it was busy. When I finally got through and explained the incident, the operator said, "Oh, those silly kids these days."

With a brand new police chief here in DC, I hope to see some progress. If not, I'm totally gonna write a really nasty post.

Other than that, the visit went reasonably well. The kids are very well-behaved, except for the 2 year old demon child, disguised as an adorable little boy-baby.

The first evening we went out to dinner, I thought I would get to chat with the kids, but they brought crayons, books and video games. I'm all, "I thought we were gonna talk." My niece says, "You're silly." I suppose; I just don't remember having that luxury when I was a wee boy.

The two year old is wise beyond his years. He calls me Uncle TJ, but it sounds more like "Uh-kuh Teejer." So when he asked me to come look at something he discovered, like this, and I say, "I'll be there in a second," he says, "Come here now, please." And keeps repeating it until I do as he says. He runs that family!

So the kiddies are now all gone. The place is quiet again, except for my neighbor's weiner dog, who I'm trying to silence with rat rid. And I am alone all weekend, as Rob is away. Call me if you want to watch some mindless telly, although with the crime rate in DC lately, I expect a home invasion of some sort. And not the good kind.