Thief pinches firefighter's bagpipes

OK, we'll admit it: We don't like bagpipes. Never have. And though we've briefly entertained thoughts about doing a lot of things with bagpipes — none of them charitable — we have never thought of stealing a set. But that's what happened this week to Hunter Schappaugh, an off-duty Houston firefighter. Schappaugh noticed somehting was amiss when he walked back to his SUV after lunch Wednesday and found his window shattered. When he checked the car, he found that his briefcase, work ID and bagpipes were gone. We know what you're thinking: "My god, not the bagpipes."

Kidding aside, it is a pretty substantial loss. At the Bagpipe Store, most sets of pipes sell for more than a grand, with some getting up near $5,000. Schappaugh has played the pipes for HFD for eight years, part of a tradition that goes back a century and a half. But as Schappaugh pointed out, "The type of people who do this don't care about anything. The fact that I was a firefighter or whatever, they wouldn't care."

Police are investigating the theft; Schappaugh said he hopes the loss of the pipes will be covered.