It had to happen sometime, didn’t it? On my way to a meeting in Cebu my necklace got snatched off my neck. Trying to ignore the emotional (I got this one in Singapore 5 years ago) and the value (my one and only white gold jewelry) loss, this incident focused my attention to an interesting aspect: speed.
It took a split second for my necklace to grow legs and decide to unchain itself from years of boring dangling around my neck. Or so I wish to believe. Fact is, a hand out of nowhere grabbed it straight off my neck, leaving a nasty scratch-mark and a puzzled me.
It took me 2 minutes to fully grasp what had just happened for I didn't see anybody approach or run away from me. I just felt that little monkey-like hand grabbing me.
Since the whole spectacle took place in front of a bank, my meeting partner, it took less than 5 minutes for the rumor to spread. The next 2 hours I was approached by bank clerks and customers asking if I'm the one... tapping heir necks. Yes, that's me! I received so many condolence-like sorries one could think I lost a family member, not my jewelry.
What took forever, or rather did not happen at all, was the intervention by any of the plenty security guards bumming around in front of the bank building. Hiding from UV exposure in the shade of trees and entrance halls they were the last to react let alone intervene.
Every time I see a man in uniform with an empty gun holster on an over sized belt, sipping coke out of a plastic bag while pretending to work, I feel much safer! The great thing about the security theater here is, admission is free, there is no age restriction and for the cynic there is definitely a punch line.
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