Keep Bailing

If it’s not the first question people ask, it’s the second; “You’re a bail bondsman - like Dog the Bounty Hunter?” No, actually, my job is nothing like what Beth and Duane Chapman (aka “The Dog”) do on television. A day in the life for me entails talking with mostly nice people who know someone who has made a mistake or who the authorities think has broken the law.

Quite honestly, I had never seen the Dog the Bounty Hunter show start to finish. I’d probably caught 5 or 10 minutes here or there while surfing. Still, when I cruised by A&E the other night, the show was just starting; I thought I’d give it a shot and watch the whole episode.

Dog was in Colorado (possibly why I decided to watch; I have a long-standing love affair with the Rocky Mountain State, dating back to John Denver, but I digress…). As I watched, I was a lot more interested in the “how” of The Dog’s operation than the two fugitives they were chasing down.

It surprised me to see the Dog’s team pray before they went out on a pickup (as well as a prayer of thanks at the end of the episode). As a woman of faith and a strong believer in the power of prayer, it was quiet endearing to me. It may have been what kept me watching.

I did have to “humff” at Dog’s statement that when he forgets to pray, it takes three days for a pickup. In my experience, a one day pickup would be unusual. When we have a skip, it generally takes a month or several months to locate and safely apprehend the person. But I guess that wouldn’t make good television. What makes our cases so different? I guess I’ll have to watch more Dog to figure it out. And, maybe I should pray more too.