Bike Thieves In The Area

I have been watching the mountains of snow melt this week, waiting impatiently for the time when I can hop on my trusty two-wheeled steed again to get around. Being a non-driver, my bike with baskets is my chariot for many a chore. And I've missed it during this long, snowy winter, especially after last winter when I could ride it for most of the season.
I was hotly anticipating being able to ride by Friday or so.

And then someone stole it.

An all-too-often-told tale here in T.O., I know, which is widely hailed as The Bike Theft Capital of North America, whether it's true or not. Here's the cautionary part: my bike was housed in my backyard, which is accessed by unlatching a gate (with a Beware of Dogs sign on it) at the start of a loooong alley that runs the length of my house, past several of my and my neighbour's windows. I also have automatic lights that are activated by movement.
And my bike could not be seen from the street, so the thief was looking for whatever was available to steal, no doubt.
Brazen. And extra creepy.

It's not a shock, in a way. I keep nothing on my front porch after a few years of having anything that I put on it -- from cheap chairs, to tables, to plants -- stolen. And my visiting sister's van was stolen from our front pad parking space during a Holiday visit several years ago. I think the lowest point, though, just because it was so, well, low was when someone DUG UP plants and stole them from my neighbour's yard. A sad reality of our community, I suppose, and, I don't doubt, many communities in T.O.

But, hopefully, you can learn from my experience and diligently lock up your bikes, no matter where they are housed, or what the weather's like. Plus keep your eyes peeled for suspicious characters in our 'hood, but then I guess we should always do that!
Vanessa