Tuesday, July 13, 2010

from the HF files

image taken from here
The other day, I was talking to a friend that lives in Boston. She says, "Oh, I've got a story you can tell HF." I was completely surprised by the outcome of this story. She told me how she witnessed teenagers fighting on her street in front of her house. She went outside and started yelling at them to knock it off and two other neighbors came outside and joined her. One of her neighbors teaches Jr. High so "he's been trained on how to deal with fights so he broke it up. We almost had to call the cops. But luckily didn't have to."

I waited for more.

Nothin'.

She wanted me to pass on to HF that she almost had to call the cops. That was her story. I just politely said, "Oh, okay." I don't remember the rest of the conversation. I was once again weirded out by people's thinking HF would want to hear a story like this because he's a cop. Later that night in bed I was telling HF about the conversation. I said, "Like that's something you would want or need to know about". Immediately HF said, "That's good. I'm glad you told me. That is something I would want to know about." I got up on my elbows and peered at him through the darkness. Continuing in a serious tone he said, "Now I can update her file. And I keep forgetting to update Kate's as well. I still need to do that." I still didn't catch on that he was being funny. He went on. "I have files for all of our friends, families, and neighbors. Then we laughed.

Lately I am feeling a little annoyed with all these lame stories that friends think we would want or have to know. Some people definitely get weird around us sometimes even though we're the same people they've always known. I guess there is a lot of mystery and assumption about police work. HF gets a lot of questions and he doesn't mind answering them, as silly as some of them are. He doesn't mind hearing stories as silly as they sometimes are, but sometimes it's just so ridiculous. I've been told numerous times that this sort of thing will happen at parties or at dinners, and that your friends and family generally won't understand your lifestyle. Nothing could've prepared me for this however. Please tell me I'm not the only one to constantly hear lame and irrelevant stories to pass on to my cop husband?!

10 comments:

Ann T. said...

Dear Mrs. Fuzz,
oh, Freak! But I was laughing because HF has a comeback, LOL! If he has a file on me, it should say that i am in full compliance with the Law!! i'm sure he worries about this All the Time.

My husband was a Doctor but I also worked. (We were not Rich. We had loans.) As soon as anyone found this out, they would IMMEDIATELY start describing some set of symptoms--to Me. Then they would ask, "What do you think it is? What should I do?"

Did I attend any of my husband's classes?

I would always promise to get back with What My Husband Said. And invariably, he said, "Gee, if symptoms persist, they should probably go see their doctor."

This happened for as long as he was alive. Pretty soon I just quit asking and used the magic phrase. Sometimes i would still get the blow-by-blow, doctor visit accounts, weeks later . . . maybe I should have kept files . . .

At least my husband wasn't a proctologist.

And I feel for you. I am sure some of the questions or accounts are FAR more intrusive than that.
Ann T.

Genesis said...

Mrs Fuzz this had me rolling!
The other day my sister got a speeding ticket. When she told her husband he told her she should call OH ... and she said, "What's he going to do about it?" I felt like FINALLY people around us are starting to get it! He's been a cop for four years now...it's taking a bit, that's for sure!
I love the idea of files for people though. That is seriously one of the best comebacks I've heard!

Sister Copinherhair said...

You. Are. NOT. Alone. If I had a quarter for every police related question or story I have heard, I'd be able to afford a decent vacation this summer.

Courtney Breul said...

Not alone at all! I always have friends/co-workers asking me things to "ask my husband", or telling me things that "my husband should know about". Geez. Gets old.

Anonymous said...

That's pretty funny - I can imagine JB using the "friend files" line. I haven't gotten too many "requests" yet, but time will tell, I'm sure. Although I do remember a recent conversation between JB and a friend who had recently received a speeding ticket. The friend wanted to give JB a play-by-play so JB could give the friend information he could use to contest the ticket. JB suggested to his friend that -perhaps- he was speeding, and that by driving the speed limit next time he could avoid tickets that way, instead of having to go to court and all. (Luckily they're good friends.) :)

Unknown said...

Oh yeah! this happens all the time! my favorite is when little old ladies corner him at church and start asking him questions about stuff he has no clue about, since he works a completely different beat then were we go to church, plus the fact he is in the courts right now as a bailiff.

W said...

Add me to the list! Both he and I get countless stories like that and not well thought out questions like that all the time! We've got a family event to go to in a couple weeks, I'm sure we'll get tons of them. Haha

Jessica said...

Right there with ya! I'm as 'green' as you are (hubby graduated in April 09), but I'm already sick of it. My personal favorite is when friends/family assume I know all about the crimes du jour. We live in a decently sized town that feels like a small town, and its never ending! I finally had to tell my mother "No I don't know anything about what happened this morning, no hubby doesn't know anything about it as he was not on duty at the time, and if he did know he wouldn't (in theory) be telling me!" BTW, I'm sooo glad I found your blog! I'm always looking to network with other wives. Sometimes there are things that only other leo wives understand.

Sarah said...

my family is really redneck- so now they don't have any stories to tell when J comes to thanksgiving. HAhah...every story involves running from the cops!

Awkward!

Anonymous said...

Oh my lordy, you are SO not alone! We always get whatever was on the news. "Were you there?! I looked for you on the news!" (We live in a city of 600,000 people and at least 1,000 officers.) And yet they continue to ask, every. single. time.