Repeat Offender & Robert

Back in November, I wrote about a crazy woman (man/transvestite) knocking on my door sobbing that a child in the building had been electrocuted the night before. She was asking for donations for flowers. I gave her/him money. I was scammed--there was no kid and no death.

A few days ago I heard a knock at the door and when I opened it I quickly realized that my little scammer was back. Not recognizing me, she claimed that a man just down the street had been electrocuted and was collecting money for flowers. After hearing the whole tragic story, I looked concerned and said, "Let me get you some money, I'll be back in a moment." I closed the door, ran into the kitchen and called the police. They said, "Stall her." I opened the door with cash in my hand and said, "Explain to me what happened again." She looked at the cash in my hand, thinking she was so close to closing the deal. I asked how much the average person gave where she replied, "Oh, 10 or 20 dollars." Then, I quickly pulled out my point-and-shoot camera and took a photo of her, which startled her. Suddenly, she paused and seemed to remember me. She quickly excused herself and started down the steps as I followed. When we reached the lobby I held the door shut and said, "You bitch, you pulled this stunt a few months ago. Give me back the money I gave you the last time." She panicked and said, "I never took your money." I said, "Yes you did, stick around, the police will be here shortly." She ripped the door open and ran outside. I yelled at her, "Give me back my money you thief!" There was a small group of Hispanic people on the front stoop, wondering what was going on. I watched the scammer run across the street as I dialed the police to see what was taking so long. They showed up 15 minutes later. The scammer got away.

The scammer.

The other day I saw the worst gallery show in recent memory at the Leica gallery by Frank Dabba Smith. Total crap. Leaving within minutes, I pressed the elevator button and noticed the name "Robert" just below it. This reminded me of my late grandfather, whom I hadn't thought about in years. We weren't close nor do I have many fond memories. He always favored my brother Mike to the point of being obvious. Perhaps he was reaching out from beyond. Or, more likely, it was just an elevator named Robert. Or the company of....