STORIES

A Visit to the Nursing Home

I used the Bay Bus in my business and it often carried quite a lot of valuable equipment. As a result, I built an alarm system with a very loud siren to scare off would-be thieves.

On the day in question, the van had been pressed into service for a visit to see Mum in a distant nursing home. This was rather a nice home and, vacancy permitting, the management would often invite us to stay overnight in one of the luxurious suites.

That was to prove a boon as the night we arrived it was raining heavily and we were able to park near the unit offered to us. I was a bit uneasy about leaving the van overnight where anyone might get at it, so I took the precaution of setting the alarm switch.

That sense of security allowed me to fall instantly into a very deep sleep which lasted till dawn.  Around 7 AM, there was a tremendous banging on the door of the suite.  Groggily, I opened the door to find a uniformed security guard who was not smiling.

He asked my name and whether I owned a VW Bus. I struggled to understand what relevance that had at this early hour. Summoning what patience he had, the guard explained at some length that the elderly residents had been complaining vociferously all night about the siren going off repeatedly in the parking area beneath their windows.

But no one knew the owner of the offending car. In desperation, the staff began inquiring of each and every resident.

Finally, they asked one elderly lady who responded chirpily, "Oh! That must belong to my son!" And that's how the guard came to be standing at the door.

Why did the alarm go off? The control box was mounted under the dash and the heavy rain had leaked in through the windscreen seal, shorting out the control and sounding the alarm siren.

Needless to say, we were not invited to stay overnight ever again!