Okay, many thoughts run through my head while reading the news story about the man that got robbed ($7,200 was taken!!) at the Love’s gas station of Exit 83 on I-77. You can read the story here.

You back? Okay, let’s discuss.

First quote from the article:

He said the man and his wife became interested when they watched the men handling a large amount of cash amongst themselves in a room at the truck stop.

Okay, so I can see being interested in whatever game the men were playing. But seriously – a truck stop is probably NOT where you want to gamble. Casinos like Harrah’s or Caesar’s Palace is probably a better bet (no pun intended).

The victim then went out to his car to get money, Zachary said, and that’s when the thieves robbed him. … “The man and his wife were visibly upset – extremely upset,” [Fort Mill Police Captain Bryan] Zachary said.

Let’s say for the sake of argument that the man wasn’t robbed, but instead found himself a part of a real gambling game at Love’s. Would he and his wife had been just as upset if they lost money while gambling on their trip home?

But police counted another victim on the report: the company the victim works for…Zachary said $3,000 of the stolen money belonged to the company [for whom the man works], but he isn’t sure if the man intended to use that money in the gambling scheme.

So the man gets over $7K stolen, and $3K of that belongs to his company? Forget about the company cash. Why is anyone carrying $4K in CASH anyway? Seriously…who does that? When I take a road trip (remember the article said this couple was on their way home to Florida from a visit to Ohio), I pretty much keep $100 on me – and that’s just so that I can get to wherever I’m going and pay only cash. It’s for gas, snacks, and meals. There’s no need to carry more than that on a travel day. You want cash at your destination? Wait and take it out of the bank AT YOUR DESTINATION. Seriously.

So let this be a lesson to us all this holiday weekend. Don’t flash your cash, and don’t play dice or cards or whatever with random men at rest stops – even if they are flashing bills around themselves. I feel bad for this couple, yes, but the other part of me exasperatedly thinks, “REALLY?”