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Article=20 Last Updated: 12/20/2004 07:07:01 AM=20

Decorators leery of lawn Santa=20 snatchers

THE holiday=20 spirit bites some folks with the decorating bug, often = with=20 elaborate results that rival the glitz of Vegas.=20
Unfortunately, Grinches still lurk in the shadows, = eager to=20 steal the joy of the holiday season.=20
Now, please don't ask why. No one quite knows.=20
Whatever the reason, it never fails that some = holiday=20 decorations are pilfered each year.=20
"Vandalism isn't in the spirit of the season," one=20 Pleasanton resident said from her lavishly decorated = home.=20 "They're not really taking from an individual house. = They're=20 taking from the entire community. If a house has been=20 vandalized, even if it's not my own, then that impacts = everyone."=20
Each year, a few treasured decorations are stolen = from=20 their temporary outdoor homes. In early December, some = lighted=20 polar bears and a Santa sleigh with an entire team of = reindeer=20 were stolen from homes in=20 Pleasanton Meadows. The loss was valued at more than = $700. One=20 polar bear alone cost $150.=20
"You could get people from out of town driving = through and=20 they might want to use it for their own decorations,"=20 Pleasanton police Officer Jerry Niceley said of the = seasonal=20 sneaks. "Sometimes certain things appeal to juveniles. = A lotof=20 times they go out trophy collecting. That's why we get = street=20 signs missing. It could be that type of crime. This = time of=20 year, they might want to collect Christmas trophies."=20
The plundered trimmings could be sold to = unsuspecting=20 revelers, at flea markets or through online auction = sites,=20 Nicely noted.=20
Dean Anderson's family was stunned when holiday = Grinches=20 recently kidnapped a singing Santa right from their = front=20 porch.=20
While Anderson's wife had suspected the = motion-sensor=20 singing Santa may be too=20 tempting for thieves to resist, her husband thought, = "Where's=20 your Christmas spirit?" he recalled. "Nobody's going = to steal=20 a Santa right off your doorway. Lo and behold, we come = back=20 from a weekend of skiing and it was gone."=20
The Andersons' two young children were bummed that = Old=20 Saint Nick was pilfered from their porch. The story = has a=20 happy ending, as the wayward Santa turned up in a = backyard=20 across town. Santa is once again singing on his = original=20 Dublin porch.=20
"I'm going to put a cable on his leg and anchor him = in the=20 doorway so nobody can walk off with it," Anderson said = shortly=20 after retrieving Santa from the Dublin Police = Department.=20
Several homeowners with elaborate holiday displays = have=20 installed small surveillance cameras to deter = dastardly=20 fiends.=20
"We have some signs up this year that say there are = cameras=20 on the premises," said one=20 Pleasanton decorator who wanted to remain anonymous. = "If you=20 put up a camera, you have to put up a sign."=20
A more low-tech approach to thwarting thieves would = be to=20 run thick cables or chains to safely anchor items, = Officer=20 Niceley said.=20
"You could run thin steel cable or chains through = your more=20 expensive decorations to keep them from being stolen," = he=20 suggested. "You could lock all of your decorations = together.=20 There's no way (thieves) could get away with = everything=20 without making a huge racket."=20
Single items can be secured to a tree or a support = post on=20 your house, he said.=20
"If you have anything that is important to you, you = should=20 mark it so that it can be identified," Niceley said. = "Take=20 pictures of all of your stuff so you'll have a record = if=20 anything gets stolen."=20
If your lighted reindeer or treasured trolls = =20 end up on e-bay or in a = police=20 property room, it will be easier to claim them if = they're=20 marked with your name, address or phone number.=20
Holiday thieves can be thwarted the same way = year-round=20 thieves are stumped =97 with ample outdoor lighting. = When=20 holiday lights are off for the evening, be sure to = leave on=20 regular outdoor lights, Niceley said.=20
"Why would you be walking around unlit Christmas=20 decorations at night?" he said. "It will be pretty = obvious=20 that they're up to no good."=20
Despite the Santa caper, Anderson still believes in = the=20 true spirit of the season. The Santa thieves, he = believes,=20 were an evil anomaly.=20
"If I have to (anchor everything down), maybe = Christmas=20 just isn't Christmas," he said. But then he thought of = the=20 family's beloved Santa and the horrors he might have = endured=20 during his Santa-napping episode.=20
"If I have = any more=20 problems," Anderson pondered, "maybe I'll put out a=20 surveillance camera and catch the little Scrooges."=20
Be sure to check out www.lightsofthevalley.com for = a=20 comprehensive listing of elaborate holiday displays in = the=20 Valley and beyond.=20

Got a good column idea? Or maybe you're just = curious about=20 something around town. Send your ideas or questions to = Zoe=20 Francis at zoe@zoefrancis.com or=20 call (925) 461-1170. Letters may be sent to 4770 = Willow Road,=20 Pleasanton, CA 94588.

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