My Stolen Laptop

So I stupidly left my laptop outside of a meeting room
at the Westin Tabor Center hotel
(westin.com/taborcenter) and while I was in the
meeting, someone walked by the room, grabbed my laptop
bag and another laptop inside someone else's bag.
There's a couple of ironies here.

The meeting was for XPAC, Xcel Energy's political
action committee. Attending the meeting were several
high-ranking Xcel Energy executives as well as two
high-ranking Colorado State Senators. Law makers
inside. Criminals outside.

I guess I figured that given the audience and the
Westin's reputation that my laptop would be safe. I
can't say that I thought much about the decision. I
take full responsibility for my actions. I wish the
same could be said for all those involved.

The Westin was one of the official hotels for the NBA
All-Star game and they also seem to be the hotel of
choice for visiting sports teams and rock stars. The
Westin folks I dealt with were very nice, but
completely ineffectual. One person told me that there
was no security camera in the area where the theft
took place. When I talked to the head of Security he
said they had a camera there. When he reviewed the
footage, they couldn't identify a suspect. So, either
the first Westin guy or the second Westin guy was
lying to me about the existence of the camera. I
wonder if the thief was aware of the lack of security
cameras there. Inside job perhaps?

For their part, the Denver Police have been completely
useless. They were too busy to come down to the
Westin to allow me to file a report. I had to file
one online and I have absolutely no expectation that I
will even hear from a real person. Apparently,
they’re too busy covering up their own crimes to
investigate new ones. Or maybe they’re getting rid of
panhandlers… Nope. They're still there. Come on
Looper, let’s get this city up to par!

I’m still waiting to hear back from my insurance
company also. We’ll wait before we rant on them…
They're going to give me money…

Regardless, if you are in the laptop stealing
business, I would recommend that you go to the
conference room on the second floor on the west side
of the Westin. It's the one whose entrance is
directly across from the entrance to the Tabor Center,
near the ESPN Zone. With luck, you'll encounter a
meeting going on with attendees as stupid as I was and
you can make off with whatever they leave behind, like
a raccoon going through the trash. If you need a
winter coat, there should be a full coat rack there.
Incidentally, the Tabor Center has a camera in their
hallway leaving the hotel, but it's pointed at the
ESPN Zone. So don't turn around if you leave that
way, and you’ll be fine.

And to the person who took my laptop or to anyone who
can recover my 12 in. iBook G4 and all of my data,
there is a reward. Contact me. No questions asked.
If you don’t contact me and I happen to find out who
you are, I will remove your... wait... can't post an
actual threat... might be used as evidence... if the
police investigate...