Dear Ann Landers, I am a member of the board of directors of the Massachusetts Crime Prevention Officers Association. I am concerned about the letter signed "Ohio Nightmare Without End." She said her in-laws often show up on Sunday morning uninvited and let themselves into their home. The in-laws use the emergency key the couple keeps hidden near the door of the house.
Please, Ann, tell your readers not to hide keys outside their homes. No matter how secret they may believe a hiding place is, a criminal is sure to find it. Burglars know exactly where to look. After all, breaking into homes is their business.
No one should leave an extra key under the mat, over the door, in the mailbox or anyplace someone could find it. If your readers feel they MUST have an emergency key, it should be left with a trusted friend or neighbor. May I also suggest that they not leave the key in any of the commercial devices advertised as "hiding places" because, believe it or not, criminals read those advertisements, too. -- Richard D. Pontes, security specialist, Boston
Dear Richard Pontes, Your letter is sure to prevent a great deal of anguish. Thank you for giving my readers some extremely valuable advice today for the price of a newspaper.
Hi! It's Margo here. I'd love to know what you think of the letters -- and the answers!
Also, any additional thoughts you might have. Thanks!
Please share your comments below:
Our Reader to Reader Question of the Week:
Dear Readers, , showering together has be-come a major bone of contention. My husband watches more TV than I do. He tells me that he has seen dozens of couples in the shower to-gether and they seem to be having a wonderful time. “Henry” thinks I am completely out of sync, because the few times we tried showering together, I didn’t care for it at all. We have a standard-size tub with a shower. There is no room for anything larger. We are both average-size people. When Henry and I shower together, he gets the warm water and I get the damp steam. Frankly, I do not think there is anything sexy about this sort of togetherness. I have always looked forward to a warm bath as a wonderful oppor-tunity to relax at the end of a hectic day. I love the solitude and don’t need any company when I’m in the tub. Also, showers wreck my hair. Am I alone in this? And please, Ann, one more thing: I already changed Henry’s name, so don’t change it to something else or you just might hit his real name, and he would kill me. -All Wet in Binghamton, N.Y.
