Seattle Salsa Column:

-Nadine Knows

 

No more STOLEN stuff

 

Nadine,

What do you do with your stuff so it doesn't get stolen? I try and bring as little as possible- but I do have keys, license, etc...

Yup, BRING as LITTLE as possible.  Leave your expensive leather or wool coats at home or in the trunk of your car.  If you’re going to be cold, then check in your coats at the coat-check. Or bring a coat or light sweater you wouldn’t mind losing, should it occur.

 

Leave all your extra keys (office, school, parent’s house, friend’s car, etc) at home. Leave your cell phones with your nice coats in the car or at home. Afterall, are you REALLY going to be able to HEAR the phone ring, let alone the person on the other line IN the LOUD club? 

 

Keep your keys and wallet on you at all times. If you leave it in your coat, which is draped over a chair, you increase your chances of having it taken. A thief on the prowl might just grab your nice coat and see that you’ve conveniently left your car keys in the coat pocket, which means you can say adios to your car, too. This, unfortunately, has happened to someone I know.

 

Ladies, we know it is especially tough to keep our stuff on us, since many of our sexy salsa wear DON’T come with sexy pockets for keys and cards. Wouldn’t it be nice to have guy friends who were always willing to let us borrow their pockets for the night?  The problem always is that by the end of the night, we completely forget to grab our things from our friend before he takes off!  Better to depend on yourself when you can.

 

Nadine’s trick: Safety-pin an old plastic card cover to inside the waist-line of your pants or skirt. (I can’t remember where I got the idea for this tip. Maybe it was off Edie’s page? If so, then I happily pass on the credit to her.) Put all your basic necessities in the holder: ID, credit card, a $20 bill, and your card key in it. Wallet photo insert or transparent credit card holder thingees work, but are flimsy and will wear out quickly. If you have to, ask your local drugstore clerk for a bus pass holder. Sometimes, I safety pin my lone car key to myself in a separate location. As an aside, AAA Road Service and Auto Insurance Agency in California had a service where they made a copy of your car key for you in the form of a plastic wallet card. I used to bring this to the clubs with me instead of my real car key. One simply popped out the cut plastic car key when one needed to open the car door.  Loved it.

 

-Nadine