8 Chapter 8: Stealing

Cee enjoyed ripping things off: you could call it an engrained character defect. It started in grade school. She stole eight pieces of colored construction paper from a supply cabinet near the janitor’s room. After three days returned it all, unused. This behavior excited her. She called it “puffering.”

Like a good cat nip she would get puffed up from the danger and unpredictable outcome of her misbehavior which of course had been “relined” since grade school.

After all, sober days at times could become quite boring.

This character defect like any others made her feel good without actually being good. She did feel “possessed” when she took ownership of the misplaced. She rationalized and called her naughtiness:

Straightening up

Reorganizing

Downsizing or

Refunding when the sought after item was found by her.

“No harm no ‘fowl’” whatever that means – no real intended pain without a chicken? The current plane of existence often didn’t make cents, anyway. That’s why fame was the answer as it had been for her relative-roots of long ago.

As a favorite pastime puffering was fun for her but it often looked like it wasn’t fun for its victims. A lost and found game it was not. Other’s disregard of an item she found, carelessly placed by them on counter tops, stairs, floors, beds, ledges, tables was a trigger for her to puff. To do it; get amused; act out.

These lost objects were scrutinized, cleaned up, and put back in their proper place determined by Cee.

Rubber bands, pens, the remote control, magazines and such were all fair game. Once “organized” she would wait and watch. Sometimes put the future sought after prize in what she considered plane-sight. But often still undetected, O.K. They had their chance.

So it would be re-taken, re-done, put away, re-waited for and re-watched. The seeker would inevitably become quite excited, distressed once they finally realized their loss.

They would start asking where they had left their missing item, now quickly becoming a family heirloom. Yearned for more precious to them, and missed, rising to a higher status, an object d’art so to speak.

This puffering was fun.

When looking for it they weren’t even warm. She did enjoy this self- imposed entertainment ritual.

Finally tiring of the victim’s distress, she would help them find their wanted. Acting as a heroine she would go to her private place, which stays private, locate the missing thing and “eureka.”

Presenting the sought after to the searching victim made her feel well liked, valued by association. A sense of importance would wash over her, like when she would lie in front of the television and pretend those couch potatoes were looking at her instead of the 56 inch screen.

Anyway, suspense over.

Relief was felt by all. The victim got their precious back. Cee found “15 minutes of fame.”[9]

This advanced game of give and take wasn’t lastingly satisfying just like electrolysis. She wanted more.

She wanted all the attention only true fame can give. The Cheshire thought she could become a famous treasure by becoming temporarily lost. Like a misplaced item. To rise up while being put down. She just needed some personal hiding space to steal.

She thought everyone else was wrong about the value of her art. They just didn’t know it.