An inspiring story from NPR

[emma]

"a white boy in shorts."

The Jon From Maplewood Story

[henry]

i was mugged 6 years ago, it was soon after i moved to chicago.  i had come off the farm in iowa looking to start the city life.  my buddy and i were walking home and we cut down a street where the the street lights weren't working.  when we started down the street we were talking about the possibility of it being a poor decision.  but we were in a good mood and didn't think any more of it.  half way down the block we see two guys run out of a door and jump behind a tree.  we started to walk faster, but not fast enough.  as we pass the tree the guys jump out and grab us from behind.  they were shorter than us, but they nearly lifted of us off the ground.  they were screaming for our money, threatening to cut us if we didn't had it over.  i had an empty matchbook and some lint in my pockets, i had just purchased some tacos with the last of my cash.  my buddy had $1.50 in quarters (for laundry) and a bag of weed in his pockets.  i pulled my pockets out to show i had nothing and my buddy gave them his laundry money.  that was enough for them and they let us go.  as we get to the end of the block we hear one of the muggers say to other "why did we do that, they weren't doing anything".  to which the other guy yells at us "sorry dudes, i just wanted a dollar to by a blunt!".  being a good midwesterner i told them not to worry about it. 

my car was recently broken into.  they stole all of my parking tickets, the title/registration and my spring jacket. 

[todd]

I was jacked/mugged probably 50 times between the ages of 11 and 16...

...However, once I was borrowing an RPG computer game (Might & Magic 6 I think) from a friend...

No surprises here, I'm afraid.

[masterofsparks]

Not really a mugging story per se, but it kinda fits in with this thread's theme of funny or unusual things happening in connection with a robbery. Someone told me this story back in high school, and I have a pretty hard time believing it really happened (it smacks of urban legend, especially since it was told to me as something that happened to a friend of a friend), but it was presented as a true story:

This guy carried a large quantity of change in his car, probably for tolls or parking meters or laundry or something. Probably $10-$20 worth of change at a time. Fairly regularly, probably about once a week, the guy would get in his car after work to find that the car had been broken into and the change stolen. After a few times, he finally stopped refilling the change after each theft. Before getting out at the beginning of his next work day, he left a note in plain view that said something like "There is no change in here, so please don't break into my car." When he got back in the car after work, there was a note inside that said "Just checking."

[<<<<<]

Been jumped/assaulted once in broad daylight.  The guys hit so weakly that it really mostly left me feeling angry and entertaining uncharacteristically violent revenge fantasies for the next couple days.

Another attempted mugging was equally half-hearted.  Honestly I don't believe I looked like a guy who would have much money, but in this case I actually had about $400 in tip money on me.  I managed to flee and they just laughed and taunted me.

[John Junk 2.0]

Not really a mugging story per se, but it kinda fits in with this thread's theme of funny or unusual things happening in connection with a robbery. Someone told me this story back in high school, and I have a pretty hard time believing it really happened (it smacks of urban legend, especially since it was told to me as something that happened to a friend of a friend), but it was presented as a true story:

This guy carried a large quantity of change in his car, probably for tolls or parking meters or laundry or something. Probably $10-$20 worth of change at a time. Fairly regularly, probably about once a week, the guy would get in his car after work to find that the car had been broken into and the change stolen. After a few times, he finally stopped refilling the change after each theft. Before getting out at the beginning of his next work day, he left a note in plain view that said something like "There is no change in here, so please don't break into my car." When he got back in the car after work, there was a note inside that said "Just checking."

Yeah, I heard that one.  But to make you feel better, I also thought it was true.  My dad told it to me.  If my dad lied about this, what else has he lied about?

[senorcorazon]

I got very mildly mugged by three guys in Italy. They got a scrap of paper that had my "to-do" list on it.

[Sarah]

Did they take care of everything on it?

[gravy boat]

Did they take care of everything on it?

They were Italians. Not Germans.

[senorcorazon]

Did they take care of everything on it?

They were Italians. Not Germans.

If I remember correctly, it included "Buy canvas, do laundry, pick up pastries", which were all completed in leisurely Italian time. I also was chased across a bridge and into a few backalleys by a grunting maniac in Italy. And my girlfriend at the time was either molested or assaulted every time she rode the train by herself. Lovable country. 

[Beth]

Italian boys were pretty "friendly" when I was over there. They know no shame. But everyone else was really nice in a non-predator sort of way. I still love Italy, regardless.

[Sarah]

I never had any trouble in Milan.  In Rome, I was actually pinched.  It was funny:  the friend with whom I was staying--a blonde--was mercilessly hounded in Paris (by Arabs; the Africans preferred me; the French were uninterested in both of us); in Italy, everyone ignored her and went for me.  Odd.

[todd]

Those stories gross me out so much - is that stuff really tolerated? I always imagine going over there and getting thrown in jail because I put every groping creep on the subway in wheelchairs.

[Sarah]

Ladies put up with quite a bit even in this country, todd.

[Laurie]

When I was gearing up for my big European adventure, my mom told me that she and her friend Mitzi were pawed at and chased by these big brutes in Rome. They followed them back to their pension room and banged on their door for twenty minutes. Scary!

I thought, Hey, that was thirty years ago. Surely things have changed.

Not so much.