Today's News

You may remember yesterday that we reported on an unfortunate scene in Chicago at the North Avenue Park. A woman's purse was stolen and dumped under a park bench. According to the phone call Mandie of "Just We Moms" received today, the owner of that purse has been reunited with her belongings and is ever-so-thankful to have recovered a portion of what was lost.



In other news, the beloved horse, June, who has made Cosley Zoo home for the past several years died yesterday. She was 14 years old. According to one of the zookeepers, she was sick and taken to the vet, but did not survive. She died on Sunday evening, July 12, 2009. June was an American Cream Draft Horse and shared her stall with Pro the Shetland Pony. Pro appeared to be somewhat lost while on display today. Normally he is seen following June as she wanders in the horse enclosure. The zookeeper said, "He knows something is different, but I don't think he knows what," as she sympathetically scratched him behind his ears. Since June was not in the stall with Pro at her time of death, the keeper staff does not believe she is mourning at this time. According to Danielle, a zoo spokesperson, they hope to get a new companion for Pro since horses thrive with companionship.

There will be a memorial fund to remember June, but details are not yet available. If you are interested in making a donation in honor of June, you can do so by contacting the staff of the Cosley Zoo.

On a personal note, while the ducks are String Bean's favorite zoo animals by far, she is always thrilled to see the horses. Today was a sad day as the big white horse no longer is with us.

Do-Gooders

The Beans (Mr. Bean, String Bean, and I) spent Saturday afternoon with our friends, Whitney and Shawn, the Newlyweds. We walked from their apartment to the North Avenue Beach and the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago. On our way back, we saw an empty park bench with a purse underneath it.

As we approached we quickly realized that this had been a grab and ditch job. There were receipts strewn all about and a makeup bag with makeup spilling out beside the bag. The wallet was in plain view at the top of the bag.

Being the astute CSI-in-training* that I am, I did not touch anything. I considered drawing a chalk like around the bag and putting up my crime scene tape. Instead, I just called the cops because, after all, if my purse were stolen and someone found it, I'd want it turned in to the authorities (and dusted for prints, and surveillance checked, etc.). I suppose we "do-gooders" did our good deed for the day.

Whitney, Mr. Bean, String Bean, and I waited until Officer Doyle, one of Chicago's finest (who really shouldn't be wearing teeny-weeny shorts like that with those white, white legs) showed up. After he looked through the bag and confirmed there was no money or credit cards in the wallet, we got a public service announcement courtesy of the Chicago Police Department about being safe when visiting the beaches surrounding Lake Michigan. "Carry very little cash, one credit card and your ID. Leave your social security cards at home and don't carry a big bag like this one. This girl had too much stuff with her which made her a target."

Thanks, Officer Doyle.

Ironically, I got a message from Whitney today that her wallet had been stolen earlier in the day and as we sat talking to the officer, someone was out there racking up charges on her credit cards. Oy vey. Be sure to check Whitney's blog for the full details on that one. (And praise the Lord for fraud protection!)


*Clearly, my CSI training comes from watching numerous episodes of the series. It is just a matter of time before someone from the crime lab calls asking for my assistance on a case.