rifle, hoping the vandal will make his day by picking up that rock and pitching it through the truck window.

Of course it would never do to have such bumper stickers around this town. There is a perhaps whimsical story of someone who shot a deer in Northern California and proudly tied it the hood of his car for the long drive home. Initially as he drove through small towns he got thumbs up signs for the nice kill. The closer he got to LA the more palatable became the disapproval, culminating with angry shouts as he approached his West side home. So it would be best if the "hunter" disguise could itself be disguised. The only removable public statement gadgets for automobiles that I can think of were those suction cup "Baby on Board" signs that dangled from rear windows years ago (often when baby was clearly somewhere else, or at least was in a car without a baby seat) but it's doubtful that "I Love My Gun" would have much punch hanging from a suction cup. Maybe what's needed are magnetic stick on bumper stickers like we all use on the fridge.

Jennifer Lambelet has suggested a more effective alternative to the above red neck theme would be to pretend that you are (or at least once were) a sheriff! Get a bumper sticker that says "Florida Sheriffs Association" or some such. Such a sticker wouldn't have to be removed when in Los Angeles.

Speaking of problems with vandals, my truck was stolen from the front of my house in Manhattan Beach on our wedding night in September. It was found two days later in South Central with all the good stuff gone, the engine, radiator, transmission, etc. Do these guys strip the car on the street where it's found or do they have a garage somewhere and then tow it to where they abandon it? Ironically I've always put a great deal of effort into protecting my truck at trailheads, but never gave much thought when it came to parking it at home. Last year Bruce and Paula Peterson also lost their truck from their home in San Marino, and now they really button up the new truck ("SHERPA 2", since "SHERPA 1" was never recovered), even in their driveway. My vanity plate "MCWORD" will continue on the not yet bought new truck, which will bristle with a full set of gizmos to keep thieves at bay. Since I rarely used the truck during the week it would have made sense to leave "The Club" on it whenever it was home. Taking a club on and off on the weekends wouldn't have been much trouble. The adjuster for my insurance thought a club was a deterrent but what he really liked was a cut out switch that stops the car a few blocks after
it's stolen. Any kid can hot wire a car on a suburban street, but it takes really steely nerves to try to figure out why the stolen car just conked out on the Harbor Freeway. Oh well, hindsight is wonderful.

One more note, several weeks after the theft I received a letter from a government agency saying that as a victim of a crime I was eligible for a free hour with a shrink to


help me cope with my loss!

Congrats to Vic Henney and Sue Wyman for finishing all three lists, with each finishing the DPS list a second time. In addition Vic and Sue are the first married couple to have done every peak on the SPS list together.
 
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